Okaloosa County will host a public information meeting on July 31 to discuss the West 98 Collector Road project, a proposed 3.25-mile roadway designed to alleviate severe traffic congestion on Highway 98 west of Hurlburt Field.
- The meeting will run from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Okaloosa County Administration Building Board Chambers, 1250 N. Eglin Parkway in Shalimar. Participants can view project displays, speak with team members and submit comments, though no formal presentation or public forum is planned.
The proposed collector road would run parallel to Highway 98 from east of Solar Street to Green Drive, positioned between Eglin Air Force Base property and private property north of Florosa Elementary School. The project also includes a 2-mile utility corridor extending to the Santa Rosa County line and an additional roadway connection supporting the Hurlburt Field West Gate Project.
Commissioner Trey Goodwin, whose District 4 includes the project area, plans to attend the meeting.
- “Commissioner Goodwin said he is looking forward to engaging with residents and local leaders and how we can all work together to help improve the traffic flow on U.S Highway 98 in that area,” according to the county’s announcement.
The project emerged from years of mounting concerns about traffic impacts on both civilian commuters and military operations. In January 2023, Goodwin first presented the roadway proposal to the Northwest Florida Legislative Delegation as a county legislative priority, requesting $375,000 in state funding.
“I will tell you that in my time in office, one of the biggest complaints that I’ve had from our partners across the fence at Hurlburt has been Highway 98 traffic and getting their people to and from work,” Goodwin said during that 2023 presentation.
The traffic concerns have escalated into military readiness issues, according to Col. Patrick Dierig, commander of the 1st Special Operations Wing at Hurlburt Field.
“Highway 98 traffic is not a matter of convenience for the 1st SOW,” Dierig said during meetings with Florida legislators in March. “The traffic is a readiness issue.”
Dierig emphasized the operational impact on the wing’s rapid-response missions.
- “I never want to be in the position of calling the Air Force Special Operations Command commander and saying the mission failed because of a traffic jam,” he said.
The traffic situation reached a critical point in October 2024 when construction reducing Highway 98 to one lane created massive delays. Dierig authorized squadron commanders to implement flexible schedules and alternate duty locations while extending Child Development Centers and Youth Center hours without late fees.
Highway 98 currently handles approximately 50,000 vehicles daily, according to Scott Bitterman, Okaloosa County Interim Public Works Director. Even planned expansions may prove insufficient.
“A six lane highway, it can handle about 55,000 cars per day. So if-and-when Highway 98 gets widened out to six lanes, it’s still going to be almost at capacity when it’s open day one,” Bitterman said during an August 2024 county meeting.
In August 2024, county commissioners approved a $1.1 million Project Development and Environment study with HDR Engineering to evaluate the collector road proposal. The study funding includes a $375,000 Florida Department of Transportation grant match, with the remainder from county surtax funds.
- “Highway 98 in the West County area, it’s way over capacity. There’s a lot of crashes out in that area. A lot of delay,” Bitterman said during the August meeting.
The project involves coordination with multiple agencies, including the Air Force, Okaloosa Water and Sewer, Florida Department of Transportation, Okaloosa Public Schools and the Florosa Fire Control District. County officials said the project would primarily use federal property and is not expected to require taking private land.
The collector road would allow relocation of access to Florosa Elementary, removing school turning traffic from Highway 98. Plans also include a potential bicycle and pedestrian component providing alternative transportation to the school.
Jason Autrey, then-Okaloosa Public Works Director, emphasized the project’s long-term community value during the August 2024 meeting.
- “We will continue to fight the good fight because we believe in this having such value to the community,” Autrey said.
The project has gained legislative support, with Sen. Don Gaetz committing to advocate for a $4 million funding bill to study the “Connecting the Collectors” project, which would link separate county initiatives. Rep. Lawrence McClure, chair of the House Budget Committee, and Sen. Ed Hooper, chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, agreed to support the proposed funding.
“If traffic impacts the mission, you could lose the base. If you lose the base, you lose the economy,” Gaetz said during March meetings with Hurlburt Field officials.
The study will also evaluate stormwater requirements to minimize flooding between existing Highway 98 and the proposed collector road.
Meeting materials and presentations will be available on the project website at www.myokaloosa.com/west98collectorroad. Questions about the study can be directed to project manager Scott Bitterman at (850) 689-5772.
6 Responses
It needs to be moved farther inland, away from the homes that currently abut the reservation. It will ruin the quality of life for me and the others in this situation and have a gigantic detrimental effect on property values.
I also live within the immediate vicinity and think perhaps that we as the affected residents should possibly look into forming our own committee to study the detrimental effects this could potentially have on our property values as well as quality of life. If we were to wait on the government as the sole determinant of the level of impact, then we will more than likely wind up on the short end without a leg to stand on once it’s all said and done.
Eglin AFB has plenty of land to supply there transportation and housing needs. The DOD has much more money than state or local government. If they cannot fullfill their mission with all those resources, then they should be DOGED and get someone who can. Guilting the local community in to spending its money so the USAF can do its job is just slimey politics.
I don’t really care about the politics or the fact that DOD “has more $$$”. Although these can be important, the readiness of our military should come first. If, after making sure that is fait accompli than you can bring up politics and even lawsuits to balance the picture if that’s what you want. W/the rogue nations that threaten our freedom, security, and even our existence (did you ever hear of suicide squads en masse?) I for one want to have my family, neighborhood, city, state, and the USA protected fully from the scavengers who would take us down in a heartbeat if they could.
I feel bad for all the homeowners in the neighborhood affected. Personally, with all the land use restrictions for country residents, by Eglin etc I would say no. These bases aren’t going anywhere, it’s just talk to get tax dollars.
See NAS Cecil Field that closed in 1999. It was a Master Jet Base for the Navy
that had every East Coast F-18 Hornet squadron and thousands of civilian jobs. Based close and it all left. Don’t say it can’t happen.