Okaloosa County and Town of Cinco Bayou officials cut the ribbon Tuesday on upgrades to the Cinco Bayou Boat Ramp, a project that added new trailer parking, a restroom and improved ramp access.

The improvements include 16 new boat trailer parking spaces, each 53 feet long from curb stop to the end of the divider stripe, along with a new restroom, improved access to the ramp and landscaping, according to the county. Future dock improvements are planned. The ramp and new parking area opened to the public Sept. 4, ahead of the Labor Day weekend.

Director of Parks and Facilities Maintenance Jeff Peters said the project was a long process that required several organizations to work together, including FPL moving power poles and the City of Fort Walton Beach relocating fire hydrants. He said he and Goodwin attended many town hall meetings with Cinco Bayou along the way.

• “They’re a great organization to work with. All of those groups came together and built a really nice project,” Peters said.

Goodwin credited Peters with stepping up the way the county addresses its parks and facilities, and said the ramp will serve both visitors and residents.

“The best part about this is it’s better for our locals and our residents, so many of which have boats and watercraft and other desires to get out on our beautiful waters here in Okaloosa County, and this makes those opportunities more accessible,” Goodwin said.

Goodwin said some people abuse public assets like the boat ramp, and that the county is partnering with the town to crack down on it. The county has previously stated that commercial activity, including pontoon rentals, is prohibited at all county boat ramps.

“If you want to operate out of this boat ramp and do it improperly, we’re going to catch you, and we’re going to do something about it because this is an asset that belongs to the people of Okaloosa County and the people of the town of Cinco Bayou, and they have a right for you to respect their asset,” Goodwin said.

Water quality

Goodwin also addressed water quality concerns in the bayou and other Okaloosa County waterways, which have seen multiple warnings about bacteria levels. He said the warnings are partly the result of the county insisting on increased water testing, which it conducts through its Tourism Development Department.

“I want to make sure everyone out there knows Okaloosa County is not ignoring this issue. In fact, we’re doing just the opposite. We’re taking the bull by the horns. We’re doing the testing, and even if we get bad results, we are doing it anyway because we need the data,” Goodwin said.

He said commissioners will discuss at their Oct. 6 meeting whether to pursue a joint resolution with local municipalities that share the waterways, including Cinco Bayou and Fort Walton Beach, to ask the state of Florida for help.

“I’m committed to the idea that these waterways in Okaloosa County can be the best in the state of Florida. All we have to do is work together and insist on it,” Goodwin said.

Town partnership

Cinco Bayou Mayor Jean Hood said the project could not have been completed without the interlocal agreement between the town and the county. She invited visitors to return to the town, which she said is about a half-mile square.

“We have four parks in this little town, believe it or not. In this small town of about a half-mile square. So please come back and visit us, and we are very proud of this development and very proud of our town,” Hood said.

Project background

The Okaloosa Board of County Commissioners approved the $4.1 million project in March 2025, including the $2.95 million purchase of a three-story former bank building at 198 Eglin Parkway NE and two vacant lots at 4 Lucille St. and 254 Seaway St. The bank building now serves as the Tourism Development Department headquarters, while the vacant parcels were acquired for expanded boat trailer parking.

In November 2025, the board approved a $120,918 purchase order to CXT Inc. for a prefabricated restroom, which was installed at the site in June.

The project was funded through $3.1 million from Tourism Development end-of-year funding, $750,000 from Cinco Bayou Tourism Development Tax funds, $100,000 from Cinco Bayou Community Redevelopment Agency funds and $150,000 from county Boater Improvement Funds.

A list of county-maintained boat ramps and parks is available at myokaloosa.com/fpm/parks/list.