HURRICANE IAN

Tolls suspended in Okaloosa and Santa Rosa counties ahead of Hurricane Ian

On Monday, September 26, 2022, Governor Ron DeSantis issued updates on Hurricane Ian at the State Emergency Operations Center with Florida Division of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie. 

To help Florida families safely and quickly evacuate in preparation of Hurricane Ian, tolls have been suspended on many facilities in the projected areas of impact. Tolls in our immediate area of Okaloosa & Santa Rosa counties were suspended as of 12:00pm on Monday for the following:

• Spence Parkway in Okaloosa County
• Mid-Bay Bridge in Okaloosa County
• Garcon Point Bridge in Santa Rosa County

“Regardless of Ian’s exact track and intensity, there is a significant risk of life-threatening storm surge, hurricane-force winds, and heavy rainfall along the west coast of Florida and the Florida Panhandle by the middle of this week,” said Gov. DeSantis in a press release.

HURRICANE IAN

Sandbags available in Okaloosa County ahead of Hurricane Ian

As of Monday, September 26, 2022, sandbags are now available in Okaloosa County ahead of Hurricane Ian.

“While current tracking places a Hurricane Ian landfall as a Category 1 storm over 200 miles to the east of Okaloosa County, we are monitoring closely for shifts and local impacts,” wrote the Okaloosa Public Information Office in a statement on Monday.

In order to help residents prepare now, self-service sand and sandbags have been made available at the following locations:

• Stillwell Park – 710 Essex Rd, Fort Walton Beach
• Public Works North – 1759 S Ferdon Blvd, Crestview

GROWTH

Props Brewery proposes new location at the Fort Walton Beach Landing, includes 40-year lease

On Tuesday, September 27, 2022, the Fort Walton Beach City Council will hear a proposal from Props Brewery about relocating from their current location next to the Brooks Bridge, to the concrete slab that was once the home of the Emerald Coast Science Center at the Fort Walton Beach Landing Park.

• Tuesday night’s city council meeting begins at 6pm at Council Chambers.

The City of Fort Walton Beach currently owns the property located at 139 Brooks Street SE. After the demolition of the previous building, all that remains is a vacant concrete slab that serves as a parking area for golf carts in the Downtown area.

The existing concrete slab is approximately 6,000 square feet, according to city documents, and was originally slated to provide 18 additional parking spots once The Landing was complete.

As part of FDOT’s Brooks Bridge Replacement project, numerous parcels, businesses and buildings were acquired by FDOT as part of the right-of-way acquisition phase of the bridge project. The City has also donated ten parcels to FDOT as part of the Brooks Bridge project.

Props Brewery has been affected by the upcoming Brooks Bridge project due to their location within the Paradise Pointe shopping center and proximity to the bridge. FDOT’s demolition contractor recently removed a front portion of the unit occupied by Props.

According to the City of Fort Walton Beach agenda document, Props will be required to relocate their business within 12-14 months due to the Brooks Bridge project. No further explanation was given on this.

Originally started in Downtown Fort Walton Beach, the owners of Props would like to remain in the downtown footprint. The document notes that “Props has been looking at various properties within the Downtown FWB area but have been unable to purchase or lease any property that fits within the required relocation timeline for the bridge project.”

The owners of Props Brewery approached the City and Realty House (city’s real estate broker) about leasing the space at 139 Brooks Street SE for a new Props Brewery location. Realty House negotiated a Ground Lease Proposal with the brewery for the existing 6,000 square feet concrete slab area with the following lease terms:

• Lease Term = 40 Years
• Lease Rate = $1,750.00 per month plus Florida State Sales Tax (To commence six (6) months after lease execution)
• Lease Rate Increases = 12% Increase Every Five (5) Years
• Proposed Use = Construction of an approximately 6,000 SF tap room / restaurant

According to city documents, Realty House did obtain an appraisal on the property to determine the market rate for the proposed ground lease.

• The appraised value of the property is $150,000.
• The proposed lease rate values the property at approximately $350,000.

As for the status on the Landing Improvements project, the city requested bids a couple of month ago with bids due on September 8, 2022. However, of the 26 contractors who received the bid package, no bid proposals were submitted to the city. According to the city, Avcon, Inc. will reissue the bid packages as soon as possible once they determine the reasons why no bids were received.

Back in May, the city received the final, fully executed U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permit to move forward with the The Landing Park renovations. Since August 2017, the city has been working with Department of Environmental Protection and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to permit the Landing Improvement Project. 

• The USACOE permit has been held up in historical review by the State of Florida due to the presence of historical artifacts in the area of the proposed improvements.

COASTAL RESOURCES

Over 1 million pounds of concrete deployed as artificial reef off coast of Destin-Fort Walton Beach

On Thursday, September 22, 2022, Okaloosa County’s Coastal Resource Team deployed nearly 500,000-pounds of donated material as a new artificial reef off Destin-Fort Walton Beach coast.

• On Monday, they deployed additional material that brought the final total to over 1 million pounds of concrete deployed over the two day period. 
• The secondary-use material came from Eglin Air Force Base, Destin Water Users Pumas Reef Building, Dr John Chomer and Mr. Kirk Young.

“Eglin is constantly testing new weapons and when those targets have exceeded their lifespan, they donate them to us as they make great artificial reef material,” said Alex Fogg, Okaloosa’s Coastal Resource Manager, in an interview back in June. “We’re talking 6,000 to 20,000 pounds in some cases. They don’t move around and provide a great base for a lot of the other material that we have here.”

The material was donated about a year-and-a-half ago, and Fogg has been collecting additional material to justify filling up a barge for a deployment.

Back in 2015, Okaloosa deployed the first artificial reef using this sort of material. They did it again in 2017. This is the third project that the Coastal Resource Team is doing to create a 5th artificial reef. 

• The first four reefs that were created with the secondary-use material were all deployed in state water, so within 9 miles, in about 60-80 feet of water. 
• This latest deployment put the material in about 110 feet of water, about 17 miles from the Destin pass within the Okaloosa County Large Area Artificial Reef Site (LAARS) C permitted area. The site has 20-feet of relief. 

Destin-Fort Walton Beach doesn’t have a lot of rubble sites in Federal waters like they do in state waters. This new reef site will provide additional diversity for fishing and diving. 

“With these secondary-use piles that we make out there, you really don’t know what it will exactly look like until you start deploying it,” he said. “You just keep putting the material on top of each other to create a whole bunch of nooks-and-crannies for fish to hide. It’s an awesome place to go fishing and diving.”

The sites that have been created in years past are performing extremely well and are some of the more popular sites, according to Fogg.

“We have a half-dozen sites that are similar to the site that we’re creating today,” said Fogg in a video interview. “Some of them are in state waters really close to shore, and some are out here, even a mile from where we are today.”

Fogg says the popularity for fishermen and divers is because these sites are generally a lot larger, and species such as Goliath groupers, red snapper and gag grouper can be found hanging out there. 

“If you’re a diver, every time you dive these sites, there is generally something new that you’ll see,” he added. “It won’t take very long for fish to find this site and start to hang out.”

One of the benefits of using secondary-use concrete is that it is really just concrete. There’s no cleaning that needs to be done. In the case of the targets from Eglin Air Force Base, all of the harmful things have been removed to where it is only concrete and metal.

“It’s a great opportunity for people to be able to get rid of some of this material that may have just been sitting on their land, but would make a really good reef offshore,” Fogg told Get The Coast in June. 

The coordinates for the site are 30° 08.494’N, 86° 33.928’W.

SHORT READS

A few more things to know

• On September 27th everyone is invited to celebrate National AJ Day at their favorite location. AJ’s is celebrating 38 years since opening their doors on the Destin Harbor. Head to your favorite AJ’s location along the Emerald Coast from 4pm till 6pm to enjoy .38 cent cup of Seafood Gumbo and .38 cent 12oz drafts of AJ’s El Dorado Lager or AJ’s Sunset Ale, brewed locally by Props Craft Brewery.

• The Fair: Due to the uncertainty of the Hurricane Ian and permitting/ inspection issues with the State of Florida, Department of Agriculture, Arnold Amusements, and the Northwest Florida Fair Association is rescheduling the Northwest Florida Fair for October 4th through October 8th.