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steel1man

Beach Fanatic
Jan 10, 2013
2,291
659
reports say Destin thinking of leaving Okaloosa county and joining Walton..again just Being reported. All of a sudden New South Walton County looking fully funded...
 

steel1man

Beach Fanatic
Jan 10, 2013
2,291
659
Destin city officials are threatening to leave Okaloosa County and join Walton County. Find out… instagram.com/p/BQWB347hq3j/ @WMBBTV Twitter account.
 

FactorFiction

Beach Fanatic
Feb 18, 2016
494
409
Interesting opinion piece.

Opinion: Go ahead Destin, Dexit on out of here!

In case you haven't heard, Destin is seceding from the Union, or, at least, Okaloosa County. The lovely little city on the sea has had enough. To hear Destin City Hall tell it, they've been put upon and abused by the rest of us Okaloosians one too many times. Who knew being so blessed, as the City of Destin undoubtedly is, could be such a curse.

As we all know, of course, the grass is always greener on the other side. Destin incorporated in 1984 to take control of its own destiny from the County. Some might wonder if incorporation has really amounted to much, beyond higher taxes and a duplicative layer of government, of course. Destin has no city fire department, no city police department, no ambulances, no jail, no judges or courthouses, no (public) airports, no water or sewer system, and no tourism development department. Destin has two public beach accesses with public parking, while Okaloosa County has 11. Destin does have a library, which thanks to the tremendous City-County partnership known as the Okaloosa County Public Library Cooperative, is open free of charge to all citizens of the county, not just Destin residents.


When all the rhetoric is scrubbed away, Destin City Hall's only real added value is as an additional regulatory and permitting agency. Given the constant flow of new regulations proposed by Destin City Hall, no one would question the City's prowess as a regulatory powerhouse. As a permitting agency, their record may be less distinguished.

The boundary of Destin can be difficult to find. As you drive along Highway 98 through "Destin" (in the generic sense), for substantial stretches one side of the road is in the City and the other is in the unincorporated County. I would challenge anyone to note any discernible distinction. Thus, if the County has done well planning and permitting, so has Destin. And if the County has done poorly, so too has Destin. Why pay extra for the same services? And to be sure, the citizens of Destin do pay extra each and every year, a whopping 35 percent extra in property taxes compared to citizens in the unincorporated County. Perhaps City Hall should be discussing dissolution rather than secession.

It is possible that Destin would find Walton County to be more suitable, or maybe not. I consider Walton County to be a well-run county and a great place to live. And yet, there is a group in South Walton that is pushing for incorporation as a city as a way to, you guessed it, take control of their own destiny. Maybe South Walton residents will find incorporation is the answer to all that ails them, but probably not. As I age, I am learning more and more to be satisfied where I am. There is little that can't be fixed with open dialogue.

Destin City Hall is unlikely to get everything that it wants through dialogue with the County, but I would argue it is likely to be more productive than bombastic rhetoric and idle threats. And, at any rate, secessionist movements do not have much of a history of success in these parts.

This guest column is by Nathan Boyles, Okaloosa County Commissioner for District 3.
 
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Jerry Lewis

Beach Fanatic
Mar 19, 2010
369
110
When I told my wife I was leaving her for her sister, she rolled her eyes and laughed. I repeated it and she stabbed me with a kitchen knife.
 

John G

Beach Fanatic
Jul 16, 2014
1,803
553
The article outlines all the reasons A Better South Walton is failing.

No one is looking at establishment of our own Law Enforcement, Courts and other areas.

We pay about 50% of our taxes to WCSO and I don't believe we get that amount of representation from them, man power wise.

I'd favor a public safety program where we use SWFD and build upon what already exists there.

As for courts, we would need a place for the "city" infractions to be heard. Don't have that...

We'd have to rely on Judges Green and Wells and they just don't have time for that sort of thing. Why do you think WCSO is not more aggressively issuing parking and traffic citations? Because the recipient has a right to be heard and our busy court system just can't be bothered...

The only thing ABSW is offering is control over development. Why not focus all that attention to the real problems in Walton Co.?

I'll give you a guess what that is and where to find it.

THERE WAS A GRAND JURY INVESTIGATION THERE.

No go find it and work to fix it.

Otherwise, please put some real costs to the Incorporation plan that include the missing areas aforementioned.
 

steel1man

Beach Fanatic
Jan 10, 2013
2,291
659
We get NO representation..... If your lucky enough to find a deputy who likes to enforce laws and can get their number ( which I've done) most time if she is working will show up ASAP and write tickets..one day last summer she was here for a hour writing...so obviously lots of laws broken..But if they ARE getting 50% for doing nothing..why bother writing tickets?
 
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