There is some good news for the residents of Deer Moss Creek in Niceville. City Manager Lannie Corbin said during the city council meeting on November 9th that Okaloosa County’s portion of the ‘non-potable recycled water‘ project could be complete by Spring 2022.

• This is part of Okaloosa County’s 11-miles of purple pipe for reclaimed water that will go from Fort Walton Beach to Niceville, Val-p and Eglin Air Force Base.

However, there is still a 4-mile section to be constructed by the City of Niceville that is currently in the planning stage.

On October 21, 2021, Marion Ruckel Skalicky, Developer of Deer Moss Creek®, received communication from the City’s engineers that the planning for the City’s 4-mile section is estimated to be done by January 2022.

“Permitting and construction can’t even begin until Eglin Air Force Base grants an easement for the portion of reclaimed pipe that will be on Eglin’s land, which could take 6-12 months or 12-24 months,” said Skalicky to Get The Coast. “Depending upon whether the easement can be granted at the base level or at the Air Force level.”

While there is no timeline set for how long it will take the City of Niceville to complete their portion of the 4 miles, Ruckel Properties plans to have the Deer Moss Creek® portion of this project completed by the time the City of Niceville completes it on their end.

The city is working with the County and Eglin Air Force Base in order to get the permits and permissions necessary to run reclaimed water piping on the land to the subdivision. 

As you might’ve guessed, reclaimed water is much cheaper to use than potable water in order to keep lawns and gardens irrigated. This will result in much cheaper water bills in the future for those residents.

Reclaimed water is separated from sewage and other waste at the Arbennie Pritchett Water Reclamation Facility in Fort Walton Beach and then pumped back to the community for non-drinking uses. This water is treated several times, but is not considered safe enough to drink.  

Just a note: This post is brought to you by Chris Saul of Abstract Creative Communications. It’s his mission to increase participation in local government and make Niceville a more quirky place to live.