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had presented its case. On Wednesday eve- ning, it was Taylor's turn to demonstrate why Tim Litchet, the city's director of development and neighborhood services, made a mistake in denying the maintenance dredging permit. Taylor called Kristina Tignor, an engineer with the Tignor Group of consultants. She testified that four separate state and fed- eral agencies had approved the maintenance dredging, including the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the federal Fish and Wildlife Service. But under cross-examination by Litchet, Tignor's claim that the channel is still there in vestigial form weakened. "It appears to be a flat area, both inside and outside the channel," said Litchet. "What are the water depths?" "Our information is from a 2005 survey. I have not reviewed it very much," replied Tignor. "Did you not measure the depth actually in what you call the channel?" asked Litchet. "There are some contour lines that show what the depths are," she told him. "Don't FDEP permits require local approval?" asked Litchet. "That is correct," said Tignor. "Have you ever filed a private mainte- nance dredge project 400 feet long from the coastline to the Intracoastal [Waterway]?" asked Litchet. "No, I haven't," she replied. "Is there any limit on the time frame that one can go back and claim a channel existed? There was something here in 1927. Could you go back to 1850?" asked Litchet. "If the soil borings, the aerials supported it, then, in my opinion, the channel should be able to be maintained," she told him. FEET WET; FEET DRY Nobody disputes the channel existed. Taylor called Jerry Kuehn to testify. A geotechnical By 1983, the channel appears to be filled. Image courtesy Jono Miller Sarasota News Leader June 20, 2014 Page 29