PROJECTS

Destin City Council approves proposed expenditure plan for allocated TDC funds

In October 2021, Okaloosa County residents voted to pass the countywide bed-tax expansion via mail-in ballot.

• As part of the expansion, 12.5% of the annual Tourist Development Tax collections are set aside for Okaloosa municipalities.
• You’ll remember, the City of Destin gets 48.5% of the 12.5% pot of money.

Now, the Tourist Development Council have asked the municipalities to request their allocation of the 12.5% through the submission of Expenditure Plans. 

• The Expenditure Plans are due to the TDC by March 15, 2022. 

For the City of Destin, funding allocations available to request at this time are $1,104,920 for FY22 and $1,515,625 for FY23. 

To qualify for the funding, each project must show a direct correlation to increased and/or improved tourism and tourist experience to comply with state statute.

On Monday night, the council approved the following project requests:

• Harbor Boardwalk – Repair and Replacement of the Harbor Boardwalk for remaining unimproved areas.
• Captain Royal Melvin Park and Plaza Project – Funding for the completion.
• Shore at Crystal Beach – Acquisition of the remaining property at Shore at Crystal Beach Park.

Harbor Boardwalk – $500,000 request

A portion of the Harbor Boardwalk decking boards have already been replaced with WEAR deck boards, along with other structural improvements. 

• The City of Destin would like to replace the remaining portion of the Harbor Boardwalk deck boards and make any needed structural repairs necessary. 

“The older boardwalk sections are worn, damaged, and pose a dangerous hazard to the public,” according to the city’s application. “Due to the fact the worn and damaged boards may present risk management issues, repairs are necessary to meet requirements, where health and public safety or the conservation of public resources needs to be preserved.”

Captain Royal Melvin Park – $200,000 request

As you’ll see below, completion of the Captain Royal Melvin Heritage Park is scheduled for end of April. And while the project has been active lately, the city has faced some unexpected change orders with additional associated costs. 

• Additionally, the city has finishing work to complete outside of the contract with GLC, the contractor. 

This finishing work will include irrigation and landscaping along with some additional amenities. 

Shore at Crystal Beach

An Interlocal Agreement exist between the County and the City of Destin for the acquisition, development, maintenance, and other matters related to Phase 1 of the public beach acquisition project. 

• As part of the expansion of Shore at Crystal Beach, the City of Destin & Okaloosa County both ponied up money to purchase three properties adjacent to the existing public beach access in order to provide 251 feet of linear beach.
• Two of the properties have been acquired.

Destin intends to use $404,920 of the FY22 12.5% TDC allocation and $1,515,625 of the FY23 12.5% TDC allocation to advance this initiative, according to the city.

• The Phase 1 project still requires the acquisition of one additional property and the development of the site. 

The City of Destin is also submitting an additional Funding Request for continued Waterfront and Beach Operations.

Once the applications have been reviewed, the TDC plans to bring the recommended projects to the Okalooosa Board of County Commissioners in May and June 2022 for approval.

COMING SOON

Captain Royal Melvin Heritage Park in Destin could open by end of April

On Monday, the Destin City Council discussed the completion timeline of the Captain Royal Melvin Park on the Destin harbor. 

• The construction of the park began back in January 2021 and was originally expected to be completed by the Fall of 2021.

Scott Jenkins, of Jenkins Engineering, told the council on Monday night that the park could be complete by mid-April.

Jenkins explains that while there have been delays, a lot of activity has been happening on the construction site lately.

• “They are making progress on it and we are starting to see the light at the end of this tunnel,” he said.

Over the past few weeks, the contracting team has:

• Installed the lift station wet well.
• Compacted sub-base and base material for the pavers along the Harbor-side.
• Placed panels on the roof of the building.
• Completed internal block work.

Some of the things that you’ll start seeing in the next couple of weeks include:

• Waterproofing of the roof panels.
• Placement of the top slab on the roof.
• Concrete pouring of the stairs.
• Stucco placement on the buildings.
• The final signage.
• Final landscaping.

According to Jenkins, the pouring of the concrete stairs is scheduled for this Friday, assuming that the weather cooperates. Jenkins says that the concrete pouring is a large portion of the work to be done at the park.

Aside from weather delays, Jenkins says that the handrail construction could be another setback for the park, as his team is still waiting for a response on the matter. 

• “There was some decision-making at the city that took a little while, but we do know the direction we’re going and we hope to have an answer on that tomorrow,” Jenkins said.
• The handrails may not be ready until April 26th.

“I know it’s going slowly but it is progressing and hopefully within the next month, you guys will see a building that’s substantially complete other than just a few finished touches that the city has to do out there,” he said.

The Captain Royal Melvin Heritage Park site is located at 206 Harbor Blvd, just east of Dewey Destin’s Harborside Restaurant.

The park with feature: 

• A small playground
• Harbor and Wildlife Observation Platform with educational signage
• Harbor Boardwalk
• Picnic pavilion
• Terraced walkway from Harbor Boulevard to harbor boardwalk
• Drinking fountain and restrooms at resource center
• Bike racks near park entrance at Harbor Boulevard

ALSO COMING SOON

Publix to buy the Old Time Pottery property in Destin

During the Destin City Council meeting on Monday night, Mayor Gary Jarvis announced that Publix is set to purchase the Old Time Pottery property.

• Back in January, the council voted to look into purchasing the property to expand the city’s recreation.

“Publix is purchasing the land and they have hired a development team in Atlanta that normally does their work,” said Mayor Jarvis to council. “I haven’t had a personal face-to-face meeting with a representative of Publix.”

• According to Councilman Kevin Schmidt, Publix has had a preliminary meeting with city staff.

“We are under the assumption that they’re going to need about 6-9 acres of that 21 acres for their retail,” added Mayor Jarvis. “We do believe that they’re going to scrape and rebuild so it’s not a renovation.”

While the city was unable to purchase the property, there is still a possibility of working with Publix on what could become a City Center on the remaining portions of the property.

This center could house:

• A new community center
• Expanded athletic complex
• Multi-use event center

As of right now, nothing has been discussed with Publix regarding a City Center. There have been no timelines given as to when construction on the property would begin for the new store.

BIG MONEY

Hilton Garden Inn Destin Miramar Beach acquired for $31 Million

On Wednesday, Chatham Lodging Trust announced that the company has acquired the 111-room Hilton Garden Inn Destin Miramar Beach, Fla., in an off-market transaction for $31 million, or approximately $279,000 per room. 

• Chatham Lodging Trust is a hotel real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on investing in upscale, extended-stay hotels and premium-branded, select-service hotels.

Opened in 2020, the hotel is within walking distance to the beach and is well-situated in relation to the Santa Rosa Beach and Destin markets. 

“We emerged from the pandemic with a stronger balance sheet, as well as the capacity to make accretive acquisitions in terms of both earnings and asset value,” highlighted Jeffrey H. Fisher, Chatham’s chief executive officer and president. “This hotel will generate strong cash flow from the outset, represent our third youngest hotel and generate a 2022 RevPAR premium of approximately 50 percent over our current portfolio.”

According to Fisher, this acquisition further diversifies Chatham’s portfolio by adding a predominantly leisure hotel and also expands their presence in the Sunbelt, which the company believes will continue to benefit from population growth. 

• “Three out of every four travelers to the Destin area come from the Sunbelt, and many of Destin’s feeder markets, such as Atlanta, Dallas, Nashville and Houston, are experiencing strong population growth,” he added.

The Hilton Garden Inn Destin Miramar Beach features 27 rooms with Gulf-view balconies, an expansive public space that includes a state-of-the-art meeting room and/or event space, a modern fitness center and a bar that offers over 60 different whiskies and other premium spirits.

“Although the hotel will primarily serve leisure travelers, the property sits across the street from the Silver Sands Outlet stores and benefits from corporate demand,” he added. “The Hilton Garden Inn also receives a strong amount of military demand related to Eglin Air Force Base. We are excited to add this great hotel to our portfolio, and we will continue to recycle capital out of older assets into newer hotels with higher growth prospects.”

The hotel will be managed by Island Hospitality Management, which is owned by Fisher.

OLD SCHOOL

‘Buggin’ Out’ is a vintage VW festival and car show

Mark your calendars for March 11-13, 2022, because the 2nd Annual Buggin’ Out Festival is coming back to The Island Resort At Fort Walton Beach.

• Buggin’ Out is a weekend full of vintage cars, poolside fun, live music, and more! 

On Friday, March 11, festival guests are invited to a pool party at the grotto pool, with drink specials, a live DJ, as well as other events around the property.

Saturday, March 12, is the main event! From 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., more than 60 vintage cars will be on display, along with live music, local vendor booths, groovy cocktails, kids activities and more.

Attendance for Saturday’s festivities is free for the public and resort guests. All vintage vehicles are welcome in the car show, but only Volkswagen buses and bugs will be judged and eligible for awards. 

• All vehicles must be registered in advance, as space is limited and on a first come, first served basis.
• Vehicles can be registered here.

Click here to learn more.