The City of Fort Walton Beach marked the completion of several park improvements at Ferry Park on Wednesday with an unconventional ribbon-cutting ceremony that pitted two first responders against each other in a fitness challenge.

Officer Howard of the Fort Walton Beach Police Department emerged victorious over Battalion Chief Bobby Anderson of the Fire Department in a race through the new fitness court’s exercise stations. 

• The competition required participants to complete 10 burpees, chain push-ups, box jumps, pull-ups, and chain pulls before an agility run to claim the ceremonial scissors.

The $195,000 fitness court was funded through a combination of sources, including a $30,000 National Fitness Foundation grant, $100,000 from the Recreation Department’s budget, and $55,000 from the city’s half-cent sales tax. An additional $10,000 was allocated for a sunshade over the exercise equipment.

City Manager Jeff Peters said the fitness court was part of a larger improvement initiative at Ferry Park that included new pickleball courts.

• “The city’s been very fortunate over the last many years to be able to continue to add on recreation amenities in Fort Walton Beach,” Peters said during the ceremony.

The event also honored two former city officials with commemorative trees. The city planted trees in memory of Carole Jones, a former city administrative coordinator who served for over 25 years, and Mayor Mike Anderson, who served on the City Council for nearly 20 years.

Peters highlighted the expansion of pickleball facilities across the city, noting that with the addition of the new courts at Ferry Park, Fort Walton Beach now offers between 25 to 30 pickleball courts at various locations including Mooney, Jet Drive and Holmes Blvd., the Recreation Center, and the Fort Walton Beach Tennis Center.

• The fitness court installation involved collaboration between multiple city departments. “Our public works department did a lot of the work over there for pickleball courts. Our parks crew did all the irrigation, the sod, everything…and that’s all cleaned up,” Peters said.

Mayor Dick Rynearson praised Ferry Park’s expanded amenities during the ceremony. “What a great day for the city to introduce not only this facility, but pickleball courts, tennis courts, and everything that we have in this park,” Rynearson said.