Municipal Seaplane Base and Marina, City of Tavares, Florida
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Project Objective

The existing seaplane base and marina located in the Harris Chain of Lakes in Tavares, Florida, were destroyed during the 2016 hurricanes. As part of a multidisciplinary team, Geosyntec provided waterfront planning, engineering, design, and construction administration services for the redevelopment of a municipal seaplane base and marina.

Scope of Services

Geosyntec performed waterfront facility planning; calculated wind, wave, and surge estimates; prepared dock and marina utilities plans and specifications; and conducted construction administration and engineering review.

Notable Accomplishments

Geosyntec's specialists easily understood and incorporated the special design considerations that are needed for seaplanes and seaplane bases.

Our work incorporated the following differences:

• Different float shape from those needed for boat hull–fendering
• Lower freeboard needed, compared to those for boats
• Overhead and tail clearance restrictions (no piles, utility heights and setbacks, walking clearance from wings)
• Incorporation of additional room for steering and maneuvering
• Design to allow for seaplanes' inability to go in reverse
• Different and separate fuel necessary

Note: At the time of this project, Geosyntec practitioners were contracted as ATM, which was acquired by Geosyntec.