PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — Savannah Steckler, of Port St. Lucie, is sounding the alarm about a development, she said, could harm threatened bird species.
The area being developed by Mattamy Homes is located along Tradition Parkway and Fern Lake Avenue.
For Steckler, the area used to be a paradise for bird-lovers.
“It's just acres of beautiful land," said Steckler.
WATCH: Resident says development is destroying bird habitat
Steckler said people can still hear the birds but added that this development is destroying the habitat for federally protected and endangered birds, like the Everglade snail kite.
“This is their home,” said Steckler. “They will have no home.”
Steckler isn’t just a concerned neighbor, she is a wildlife rehab specialist for Treasure Coast Wildlife Hospital. She said she’s concerned the development is happening during peak nesting season.
“Many people think, ‘they're birds, they'll fly away,’” said Steckler. "It's happening during that nesting season, because nestlings, fledglings, they can't just get up and fly away."
Steckler started at the wildlife hospital in 2020. She said she’s watched new developments go up on the Treasure Coast over the last five years, and with it, an increasing number of injured, displaced and dead animals.
“We're at almost 4,000 animals,” said Steckler. “When I first started, we had less than 2,000.”
Other birds on site that Steckler is concerned about are protected species like great egrets, great blue herons, and crested caracaras.
While WPTV’s Tyler Hatfield and Steckler were on site, they saw an otter running out of the development area. Steckler said time is of the essence.
“I fear that they will be the ones that are coming in through my clinic doors,” said Steckler.
What the city of Port St. Lucie is saying
Hatfield went looking for answers about the impact to the wildlife by reaching out to the city of Port St. Lucie.
The city told WPTV that every development project must meet federal, state, and local requirements to minimize the impact on threatened and endangered wildlife. The city also added that they require an environmental site assessment before any work is done on the existing habitat.
As for the project along Tradition Parkway and Fern Lake Avenue, the city wrote in a statement:
“[We’ve] confirmed that no existing nests were discovered, and the work being done is currently following environmental protection protocols as required by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and South Florida Water Management District.”
WPTV also reached out to Mattamy Homes, who confirmed that they followed all regulatory requirements for environmental impact, including wildlife studies.
