The Okaloosa Board of County Commissioners unanimously approved a design contract Tuesday for a sidewalk project in Shalimar that has been a decade in the making.
- The commissioners voted to approve Task Order 1 with DRMP, Inc. for $102,862.49 to design a 6-foot wide sidewalk along 6th Avenue. The project will extend nearly a mile from Eglin Parkway to 11th Street, spanning approximately 5,075 linear feet.
” I asked for this 10 years ago, 2015,” said Commissioner Carolyn Ketchel during the April 15 meeting. “This is essentially a path that children use all the time. Not only coming from Shalimar Elementary, but also to the ball fields.”
Scott Bitterman, Public Works Director, explained the project will begin at McDonald’s and continue eastward past the little league ball fields to 11th Street. The sidewalk construction is fully funded by a Florida Department of Transportation grant.
- “This project is being done with 100 percent grant funding,” Bitterman said. “The design task order with DRMP should be complete around the end of the year, and FDOT already has $1.2 million in their fiscal year 2026 budgeted for construction of the sidewalk.”
DRMP, Inc. was selected by the county’s selection committee in October 2024 to provide design professional services for FDOT Local Agency Program projects. The design work will be performed under the LAP continuing services contract held with Public Works.
The timing of the project highlights the often lengthy process of securing transportation funding. Ketchel expressed surprise that she was still serving on the commission to see the project come to fruition after requesting it a decade ago.
- “I can’t believe I’m still on the dais to see this happen,” Ketchel said. “When Mr. [Jason] Autrey told me that it was going to be on the agenda, I was so excited.”
The motion for approval was seconded by Commissioner Sherri Cox before receiving unanimous support from the board.
