Despite light rain, elected officials and community members gathered Monday morning for the groundbreaking ceremony of Tarpon Beach Gulf Front Park, celebrating the beginning of construction on a new public beach access point.

• The 9 a.m. ceremony at 3310 Scenic Highway 98 brought together local leaders to officially launch the $16.75 million project that will provide 340 feet of additional public beach access.

“This is a great testament of the power of partnership,” said Paul Mixon, chairman of the Okaloosa Board of County Commissioners. “It’s going to be tremendous to have more beachfront for the public to be able to use, and for the visitors that come and the ones that live here.”

Destin Mayor Bobby Wagner emphasized the project’s role in addressing limited beach space and preserving coastal beauty for future generations. The beach area is already open to the public, though amenities will soon be under construction.

“This is all about reclaiming the beaches for our residents, for the tourists. As we all know, there’s limited space out there, and where there’s an issue, there’s always an opportunity,” Wagner said during the ceremony.

Wagner also addressed ongoing beach management issues, stating that “ghost chairs are a problem” and “beach vending is a problem.” He assured attendees that these concerns remain “at the forefront of why we are doing things like this” when creating public beach access.

• The mayor emphasized the project’s commitment to ensuring the beach remains “open to the public, open for all to be here, and making sure that everyone has a seat in the sand when they come to visit or live in our beautiful Emerald Coast.”

Commissioner Drew Palmer, who represents District 5, described the project as “such an incredible journey” and credited former Commissioner Mel Ponder and previous officials who helped set the stage for the current development.

“One of the reasons why I’m doing what I’m doing is to expand public beach access,” Palmer said. “I get to stand on the shoulders of giants today. Those who came before, those who saw the vision, those who know what it takes and how long of a process it is.”

The Tarpon Beach project represents Phase II of a broader initiative between the City of Destin and Okaloosa County to expand public beach access using tourism revenue. The facility will include free parking with 49 standard spaces, three ADA accessible spaces, 29 low-speed vehicle spaces, bathrooms, four pavilions and a view corridor.

The ceremony concluded with officials participating in the traditional groundbreaking, officially launching construction on the new beachfront park.