Officials to meet over Caspersen Beach erosion

VENICE (FOX 13) - Caspersen Beach appears peaceful and picturesque, but if people take a glance to the right, their eyes will be amazed.

"This is catastrophic. It is bad. It is really shocking," said Carmen Young.

Another picture begins to unfold.

"There used to be a big coconut tree out here that you could go under and get out the way. Now it is gone," said Young.

The beach is eroding badly. Tree roots have been exposed and people like Young have taken note.

"When you go down the beach, there are no landmarks anymore. They are all gone. You don't know how far you are walking or whatever. You are just walking," she said.

Erosion at Caspersen Beach is nothing new, but it reached a whole new level when it hit a walkway. County officials were forced to take it down for safety concerns.

"We haven't seen this level or extent of erosion in the past. At this point in time, enough sand has eroded," said George Tatge, with Sarasota County.

Tagte has seen the ups and downs of Caspersen Beach. He works as Sarasota County's manager of beaches.

Over the years, erosion has occurred, but in the past, mother nature corrected the problem. Tagte said this summer's storms did a number on the beach.

Officials will meet Wednesday to determine how bad the damage is and what they can do.

"We are rather constrained with the options that we have to deal with beach erosion and not all options are preferred. We will look at the erosion rate and the shore line. We will look and see if there is anything new," said Tatge.

One thing is certain: nothing can change mother nature's plan.

"Winds and waves can create or exaggerate erosion on the beach. You are at the mercy of the weather," he said.

Beach visitors are just hoping for some relief.

"We don't ever know what we are going to get next," said Young.