COMING SOON

Destin one step closer to Drone Show with new FAA approval

The City of Destin announced Monday it is one step closer to hosting a drone show in fall 2024 after receiving approval from the Federal Aviation Administration.

• City Public Information Officer Tamara Young has been working on staging a 200-drone, 20-minute show since February for Destin’s 40th anniversary as an incorporated city.

“We are so excited to work toward a drone show for the 40th anniversary of the incorporated years of the City of Destin,” Young said.

The city received initial bids of $40,000 for the exhibition. After negotiations, local interest has brought costs down by half.

Destin still needs approvals from nearby Eglin Air Force Base. But Young said the FAA approval represents significant progress for the project.

TRANSPORTATION

Fort Walton Beach to explore ferry system from The Landing Park to Okaloosa Island Boat Basin 

The Fort Walton Beach City Council unanimously voted to explore a ferry route between The Landing Park in downtown and the new Okaloosa Island Boat Basin at its Tuesday meeting. 

• The council declined to dedicate any city resources toward a previously proposed Destin-Fort Walton route.

Mayor Dick Rynearson brought up the water ferry topic for discussion, having originated from Destin Mayor Bobby Wagner last month. Details on the ferry system remained vague, other than transporting passengers across Choctawhatchee Bay.

In November, the Destin City Council voted to contribute funding to a study on a proposed ferry system between Destin and Fort Walton Beach.

• The council approved $12,786 toward a $51,144 feasibility study on the ferry system. Destin funding was contingent on the Fort Walton Beach City Council contributing $12,786 and the Okaloosa Board of County Commissioners contributing $25,572. 

The FWB Council agreed not to spend any taxpayer funds on exploring ferries. But several members supported designating potential landing zones to gauge private sector interest.

Councilman Travis Smith said he would only back designating pick-up and drop-off spots for licensed charter companies, but nothing further.

“The free market is a great thing for a reason, because if there’s demand for it, somebody will be doing it,” Smith said. “Nobody’s doing it right now.”

Councilman David Schmidt motioned for city staff to work with Okaloosa County officials to develop a basic scope for a ferry route between The Landing and the new boat basin on Okaloosa Island.

The motion passed unanimously following clarification that no money was being committed. Supporters saw it as a way to get private companies’ input on a short Fort Walton-Okaloosa Island route’s viability, without dedicating any city funds.

• “I’d like to find out,” Schmidt said of private sector interest. “And if there’s none, we’re not out of a bunch of money.”

The city council declined to explore a Destin-Fort Walton route or spend money on any feasibility studies between the two cities across Choctawhatchee Bay.

Members said the private sector could pursue and self-fund a Destin-related ferry if market demand exists, without city involvement. But for now, the council will focus its efforts on an Okaloosa Island-Fort Walton route.

BUSINESS

Submit your top Holiday Gift Idea for our Local Gift Guide!

The holidays are right around the corner, and we want to showcase the best gift ideas from local businesses like yours. We’re creating a Local Gift Guide featuring unique, locally-made (or locally-found), and small batch products that make perfect holiday gifts.

If you’re a local business selling locally-made products, craft goods, clothing and accessories, home goods, experiences, or more, we invite you to submit your top product for consideration to be featured. 

• Having your business included provides great exposure just in time for holiday shopping at no cost to you.

Submitting is easy – simply fill out a short form with details about your featured product, high-resolution photo, why it makes a fantastic gift, pricing, and your business info. Submissions are due by Tuesday, December 19.

There’s no guarantee your product will be chosen, as we have limited space. But this is a great opportunity highlight your small businesses to the many residents seeking to shop local this holiday season. (Many of whom might be shopping last minute!)

Don’t miss this chance to put your products in front of local shoppers looking for meaningful gifts! Submit your top holiday product pick today for a chance to be included in the Gift Guide. Let’s showcase the vibrant offerings from businesses in our community!

Click here

A MESSAGE FROM DESTIN-FWB AIRPORT

Christmas comes early for Eglin Airman with free flight home from Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport

Airman 1st Class Sagelee Nichols was presented with a ‘boarding pass’ Monday morning as the winner of the Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport’s eighth annual “Operation Home for the Holidays” campaign.

• Nichols, 21, 96^th Security Forces Squadron, stationed at Eglin Air Force Base,won a free roundtrip flight home to Sacramento, California, to visit her family over the holidays. She leaves this week.

The promotion, open to enlisted personnel in the region, was launched Nov. 1. One service member is randomly selected to receive air travel to be used in December or January as part of the campaign..

“We couldn’t be happier that an Air Force member won it again and we’re actually sending an Airman  home for the holidays who might not otherwise have had a chance to go home for the holidays, she leaves in a few days,” Airports Director Tracy Stage said.

Stage thanked Commissioner Carolyn Ketchel, the county’s liaison to the airport, for her longtime backing of the program and overall support of the Airports.

A beaming Nichols said she was grateful for the opportunity. 

• “If it wasn’t for the Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport, I would not have had the chance to go home for the holidays this year,” she said. “I want to thank you all so much for your dedication and for your support.”

Nichols said her mother “was beyond grateful” at the news. “She was so sad to hear that I wasn’t able to come home because of the prices and the fact that it was so soon,” Nichols said.  

Stationed at Eglin since January 2023, Nichols hasn’t been home in a year. She said she was extremely excited to see her family gathered together for Christmas.

“I’m looking forward to finally getting to see my whole family come together as one, and to be able to hear about the stories and the things that they’ve achieved,” Nichols said when asked what it meant to be home for Christmas. “And to explain the things that I’ve achieved over the past year too.”

Ketchel said the campaign highlights the county’s deep gratitude and appreciation for service members.

• “Everybody wants to be home with their family at Christmas time,” she said. “Besides the fact that we celebrate the birth of Christ, we want to celebrate it with our family. We couldn’t be happier for A1C Nichols. Have a wonderful time with your family.”

Ketchel also noted that Nichols’ trip back home is the farthest trip awarded in the campaign’s history and summed up the campaign’s eighth year by thanking troops everywhere.

• “We cannot thank our military enough for the freedoms that they ensure in our nation,” she said. “God bless.”

TRAFFIC

Brooks Street will be shifted slightly due to bridge construction

This week, the one-way segment of Brooks Street, between Florida Blanca Place and Perry Avenue, will be shifted slightly to the south.

• The traffic shift will provide space for crews to eventually shift the U.S. 98 travel lanes south to allow construction of the westbound replacement Brooks Bridge structure (phase one), and for the future foundation of the eastbound replacement bridge (phase two).

This work is part of the $171-million Brooks Bridge Replacement Project that includes constructing two new, parallel bridges that will increase capacity to six travel lanes from the current four-lane bridge that opened in 1966.

Project completion is estimated for summer 2027.

All activities are weather-dependent and may be delayed or rescheduled in the event of inclement weather. Drivers are reminded to use caution, especially at night, when traveling through a work zone and to watch for construction workers and equipment entering and exiting the roadway.

ICYMI

News you might have missed

• LIGHTNING: Residents may experience aircraft noise Dec. 18 to 20 when the 58th Fighter Squadron conducts night flying operations in the area. Fighter aircraft will conduct missions between 6 and 8 p.m. Night flying is required for training operations. 

• PARKS+REC: The Niceville City Council heard details on last week about plans to revitalize Meigs Park with accessibility upgrades and facilities for those with special needs. Okaloosa Commissioner Mel Ponder outlined $2 million in proposed contributions to overhaul the 4-acre city-owned park during a presentation to the council. Planned improvements include an 8-foot quarter-mile walking track, a 200-foot ball-field, and a large ADA-compliant playground. The county also proposes adding a basketball/volleyball court and a large pavilion with a quiet room. Read more

• DOWNTOWN: The Crestview City Council approved contract negotiations on a $7.2 million downtown revitalization project. The proposed renovations aim to improve roadways, sidewalks and lighting along Main Street between U.S. Highway 90 and Industrial Drive. Plans also call for 91 new parking spaces, widened sidewalks, crosswalks, benches, bicycle parking and other upgrades to make the area more pedestrian friendly. Read more

• TECH: The Alzheimer’s Association estimates that 6.7 million people have Alzheimer’s disease in the United States. Now, cutting-edge technology has been developed to detect early signs of the disease. It was created by University of West Florida faculty and students. Read more

• IMOGENE THEATRE: A historic theatre in downtown Milton will be a new location for Liberty Church. The church closed on the deal last week. Read more

PUBLIC SAFETY

FWB targets vagrancy, crime through new environmental design downtown

The Fort Walton Beach Community Redevelopment Agency held a workshop last Tuesday focused on Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) and how it can be used to reduce crime and vagrancy.

• CPTED uses design elements in buildings and public spaces to naturally discourage unwanted activities, explained CRA Administrator Alisa Burleson during the workshop.

“We have already been successful in some of the programs that we’re working on,” Burleson said.

One successful project was installing a fence and security cameras at the Gulfview Hotel to prevent trespassing and loitering between air conditioning units and on the balcony, a spot Burleson said had become “almost a tent city” at one point. 

Since the August installation of cameras, police calls to the site have dropped from nine incidents in November to just one in December.

• “It’s definitely decreased issues of people camping out or any problems at the Gulfview with the stuff that we have implemented,” Burleson said. “That is an encouraging estimate. In just a few months, it’s made a difference.”

Other simple, low-cost successes highlighted included blocking off under-ramp sleeping spots downtown and adding a fence to enclose a utilities area near Catholic Charities that had become an ad-hoc homeless encampment.

Going forward, Burleson has been conducting lighting analysis with the Fort Walton Beach Police Department on problem roadways — including Harbeson Avenue between First Street and Miracle Strip Parkway, which saw 58 police reports in the last year. An upcoming project with Florida Power & Light will add more streetlights.

• “Lighting is a major key with CPTED,” Burleson said. “You put light on the subject and usually that subject doesn’t want to be seen.”

The CRA used nuisance abatement grants to have overgrown trees cut down along Carson Drive Southeast, another area of focus, including a freshened up cul-de-sac and cleared a lot. Burleson said seeing progress on the street has encouraged private investment as more homeowners fix up and resell houses.

CRA staff is also beginning to analyze issues with Sound Park across from City Hall, where the gazebo has become a magnet for vagrancy. 

• CRA Board Member David Schmidt made a motion during the workshop calling for a full CPTED evaluation within weeks and options to install police-monitored security cameras at the park.

To expand CPTED efforts, Burleson announced an upcoming training in February for police officers and other staff to become certified CPTED practitioners. A new CPTED grant program is also being launched for residents where the city will cover the costs of improvements (cap of $10,000) like lights and fencing that can help the city’s anti-crime goals.

• “We can’t develop downtown [Fort Walton Beach] and people aren’t going to want to come and put their businesses downtown if they’re worried about crime and vagrants,” Burleson told the board. “So we’ve got to address safety before we can sell. That’s what we’re working on.”

CRA board members praised the preventative approach being taken. Board Member Nic Allegretto called it “one of the best, if not the best presentation” he’s seen during his tenure as a council-member.

City Manager Jeff Peters said the emphasis now is on fixing problems with vagrancy instead of simply removing benches and gazebos due to misuse.

“We’re talking about removing the gazebo across the street at the Sound Park. That was a $25,000 gazebo. It can be nice,” he said to the board. “We need to fix the problem and let the people actually enjoy it and I think this does help.”

The goal now is to “make our parks and areas of our CRA District more safe and secure to our citizens and visitors in Fort Walton Beach, and deter negative influences,” added Burleson.