The biggest construction project Englewood Beach will see this winter is also the fastest one on Charlotte County's list. Dredges are scheduled to start pumping sand onto Manasota Key on November 23, and the county's contract terms require the public beach park to stay open the whole time. The boardwalk, which is the part of Chadwick Park many beachgoers would most like to have back, isn't under construction yet. On the county's own schedule it's still in design and permitting, with completion forecast for 2030.
That gap shapes the season ahead. The sand work moves along the beach in stretches, while the boardwalk, pavilions and lighting at Chadwick Park remain unfinished for years.
The schedule, side by side
Charlotte County posts separate timelines for the Manasota Key Beach Renourishment and for hurricane recovery at Englewood Beach and Chadwick Park. Both list the same address, 1857 Gulf Blvd., but they run on very different clocks.
| Work at Englewood Beach / Manasota Key | Status on county pages | Estimated start | Forecast completion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beach renourishment construction | Bids received Sept. 30 | 11/23/2026 | 04/30/2027 |
| Erosion work at Chadwick Park | Planning | 9/1/2026 | 5/1/2027 |
| Pavilions | Design and permitting | 8/11/2025 | 8/11/2030 |
| Sidewalks, boardwalks, piers, dock | Design and permitting | 8/11/2025 | 8/1/2030 |
| Lighting | Pending FEMA | None posted | None posted |
| Equipment | Pending insurance | None posted | None posted |
The sand project should be finished before next summer. The boardwalk work is forecast to wrap up about three years after that.
Why the sand moves faster
The county describes this as the second full-scale nourishment of Manasota Key. It follows the same design template as the 2019/20 project and adds restoration of the dune system at Chadwick Cove Beach Park. The project page lists the storms that carried the sand away: Ian, Nicole, Idalia, Debby, Helene and Milton. Together they displaced hundreds of thousands of cubic yards and badly damaged dunes and seawalls.
The sand will come from the Gulf, not from trucks. The bid specifications allow either cutterhead or hopper dredges and identify offshore borrow areas and pipeline corridors to bring the sand ashore. That's what lets a project of this size cover a long shoreline in a single season without hauling truckloads down Beach Road.
The amount of sand is almost the same as last time. The bid sheet calls for 590,000 cubic yards on Manasota Key. In 2020, Charlotte County's Manasota Key portion was 578,600 cubic yards.
The 2020 project is the best guide to what a similar job looks like here:
- Work began March 2, 2020.
- Sand placement started at the Sarasota-Charlotte county line and worked south toward the Wanna B Inn and the Stump Pass Beach State Park entrance. Then crews moved north into Sarasota County, according to the Charlotte Sun.
- Manasota Key itself was finished in under 60 days.
- The county deemed the full contract complete June 3, 2020, and reported that it finished 40 days early.
This year's contract will set its own sequence, so 2020 is a reference point, not a forecast. Still, it shows that the five-month window on the county's page covers a larger regional job, and any single stretch of Manasota Key sees active pumping for much less time.
Where the contract stands
Four bids came in for the combined Manasota Key and South Beach fill project. The county's bid tabulation shows Weeks Marine, Inc. with the lowest combined total at $29,103,880. That includes $8,968,000 for the Manasota Key fill and $7,860,000 for 400,000 cubic yards of South Beach fill. The bid package listed an estimated budget of $53,786,700, so the low bid came in well under it.
Weeks Marine is the apparent low bidder, not the contractor. The county's purchasing record says Bid 20260564 "has not been awarded at this time." The award still has to come before the November 23 start date.
What the contract says about keeping the beach open
This is the clause most worth knowing before December. The construction terms name the Englewood public beach park as a staging and access area for the Manasota Key fill. They also say plainly: "The public beach park will remain open during construction and the Contractor will have to conduct their Work accordingly."
The closure to watch for is across the street. Chadwick Cove Park, the county-owned bayside park, is available to the contractor for staging. The contractor has to notify the county in writing seven calendar days in advance so the county can coordinate closing that park. The county keeps access to its maintenance yard and up to five parking spaces for county vehicles. Contractor parking and pipeline storage areas will be set at the pre-construction meeting, so the exact footprint isn't public yet.
If you launch a kayak or take a lunch break on the bay side of Chadwick, plan around that week's notice. If you walk the Gulf side, expect to share the beach with pipe and equipment, not lose it.
What's open at Chadwick Park right now
Most of the park's day-to-day basics are already back. The county's recovery table marks these as complete:
- Parking lot and pavement repairs
- Fencing
- Playground
- Park amenities
- Buildings
- Signage
The Chadwick Park fishing pier is open, according to both the county's July 2026 monthly report and its facilities status page. The same county pages list the Englewood Beach boardwalk as closed. Portable restrooms are available. The pavilions are still in design and permitting.
So the open pier and the closed boardwalk sit side by side. Bring a rod, find shade somewhere other than a pavilion, and check the county status page before a long visit.
Stump Pass changed how you pay
At the south end of Manasota Key, Stump Pass Beach State Park is open 8 a.m. to sunset, 365 days a year, and admission is $3 per vehicle. Since Oct. 5, 2026, you pay at a Remote Off Grid Kiosk at the beach entrance. It takes credit or debit cards on a touchscreen, and the printed receipt goes on your dashboard. The park lists a beach, parking, restrooms, a shower station, a picnic pavilion and a kayak launch.
The address is 900 Gulf Blvd. In 2020, the sand work moved south toward this park's entrance, so the south end may also see equipment at some point this winter. The current bid documents don't say whether the state park will close during construction.
The Sarasota County end of the key
North of the county line, Sarasota County runs Manasota Beach and Blind Pass Beach. The county's park directory lists beach access, boat ramps, fishing, a lifeguard, picnic facilities and restrooms at Manasota Beach. On its Blind Pass Beach Park page, the county lists beach access, a canoe and kayak launch, fishing, a picnic shelter and a restroom. Those are directory listings, not a daily status report, so confirm with the county before planning around a specific amenity.
For time on the bay instead of the Gulf, Sarasota County lists Lemon Bay Park with a canoe and kayak launch, restrooms, paved and unpaved trails, a picnic shelter and a center. It's open 6 a.m. to sunset. Indian Mound Park has boat ramps, a kayak launch, fishing and picnic shelters, and stays open until 10 p.m.
Across Beach Road, lunch is unchanged
The sand work happens on the Gulf side, and the restaurants facing Englewood Beach are open going into the season. SandBar Tiki & Grille sits at 1975 Beach Road, directly across from the beach. Beachcomber Trading Post Restaurant, at 1927 Beach Road, lists hours of 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. On the bay side, Magnolias on the Bay at 2395 N. Beach Road launched its fall menu on Oct. 1.
When the dredges finish next spring, Englewood Beach should have a wider shoreline and a restored dune at Chadwick Cove. On the county's schedule, the boardwalk and pavilions stay in permitting with a forecast completion of August 2030.
Whether you have questions about what's happening on Manasota Key or you're curious how the beach work could affect a property near Beach Road, I'm glad to talk it through. Jill Baldwin follows these Englewood projects closely and is always happy to share what she knows. Let's Connect.
