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Cessna Landing users press county on congestion, attendant pilot and 13th Street launch delays
Summary
At a Walton County workshop, users and staff discussed short-term fixes such as an on-site attendant and a lottery for commercial launch rights, longer-term plans for a new 13th Street launch, and infrastructure changes at Cessna Landing that staff say will add dock space but face permitting delays with the Army Corps of Engineers.
Residents, charter captains and county staff at a Walton County workshop discussed short- and long-term options to reduce congestion at Cessna Landing and other county launch sites.
Speakers described a range of possible short-term measures — adding an on-site attendant to oversee loading and ticketing, stricter time limits for staging boats, and a lottery to allocate commercial launch slots — and longer-term projects including the addition of piers and a proposed launch facility on 13th Street that county staff say is delayed by federal permitting issues.
Multiple commercial operators and residents said Cessna Landing has become congested during high season. “If you made these improvements and you believe in them, kick the can down the road to see if the improvements have made more flow easier,” resident Christian Bolden said, urging the county to monitor the effect of recent construction before imposing new limits.
County staff said recent improvements at Cessna included two new finger piers intended for loading and unloading and new parking, and that the piers were designed to help separate loading from launching. Staff cautioned, however, that the Army Corps of Engineers has required corrections on a separate 13th Street property the county received by gift because of illegal dredge-and-fill work done in the past — a problem that must be resolved before a new launch there can be permitted. Staff said the Corps has not provided a timeline and offered a best-case permitting and construction sequence of roughly 1½ years for permits and design plus about a year to bid and build, if approvals proceed on a favorable schedule.
Operators proposed practical rules to ease day-to-day congestion: limit parking time for trailers, ban unattended trucks and trailers in the launch lot, move fish-cleaning facilities away from the immediate launch area, and schedule shuttle pickups to reduce on-site parking. Several operators described staging practices in which they launch a boat and move it out of the immediate ramp area if clients are not yet present; a pontoon operator said her company staffs Cessna throughout the day to manage boats and customer turnover.
One participant described a near-miss involving a rental jet ski and an offshore charter boat to underscore safety concerns in busy channels; a licensed captain urged the county to prioritize safety when considering where operators may stage vessels. County staff encouraged people who see suspected violations to file complaints through the county website so code compliance can investigate.
Staff also discussed operational fixes tied to construction: fresh paving must settle before thermoplastic parking markings are installed, and contractors are still completing punch-list items at the new lot. A Zoom participant and commercial operator at the meeting said the project would add about 216 feet of dock space and offered a nearby two-acre parcel for the county to consider acquiring to expand parking and park amenities.
Staff said they will compile workshop ideas and present them to the Board of County Commissioners; any land purchases, new construction or permanent program changes would require further design, permitting and funding steps.
