Florida senator's proposal could hinder Manatee cruise port

State of play: Boyd is seeking to ban dredging in the preserve except under specific conditions.

• Those reasons include improving navigation, enhancing environmental and aesthetic quality, and building and maintaining facilities such as marinas and docks.
• The legislation, filed as an amendment to a coastal resiliency bill, was approved by the state Senate on Thursday.

What they're saying: "If passed, this provides another tool in the toolbox to ensure the heart of our community is protected and maintained for generations to come," Boyd, a Republican, said Wednesday in a statement.

• SSA Marine, the cruise terminal operator seeking to build the port, declined to comment through a spokesperson.

Catch up quick: Since SSA announced the port proposal a month ago, it's drawn intense opposition from residents and environmental advocates who say it would wreak havoc on the surrounding waterways and coastlines.

• The port is planned for a 328-acre site on the southern end of the Sunshine Skyway Bridge known as the Knott-Cowen tract.
• The developers have defended the project by pointing to SSA's plan to preserve nearby Rattlesnake Key, a 700-plus-acre island of mangrove forests and wetlands it bought that's beloved by anglers and boaters.
• Environmentalists are unmoved, saying Rattlesnake Key's preservation isn't enough to offset a port's negative impacts.

Zoom in: Among the critics is Boyd, who previously tried to bring Rattlesnake Key, the Knott-Cowen tract and a few small islands in the area under state control and protection.

• "If it would've gone through, presumably we'd be well underway to having that property available for friends, families and tourists to enjoy," Boyd previously told Axios.

Between the lines: It's unclear how Boyd's amendment could impact dredging rights the landowners asserted in initial documents filed with the county, which they say date back decades.

• "This legislation has just been introduced," Honey Rand, a spokesperson for the ownership group, told Axios on Wednesday. "It's got an entire process to work through before it becomes law — if it becomes law."

Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect that the state Senate approved Boyd's amendment.