Wakulla commissioners adopt 2025 infrastructure plan after residents raise land‑swap and traffic concerns

The Wakulla County Board of County Commissioners on [date] accepted the county's 2025 adopted infrastructure plan after a lengthy public comment period in which residents urged the board to reconsider a proposed land swap with the U.S. Forest Service and to prioritize recreation sites that reduce traffic impacts.

In a presentation, county staff said the updated plan adds septic‑to‑sewer projects, boat‑ramp and park amenities, and household hazardous waste program needs. The recreation complex page was amended to reflect options including purchase of property, collaboration with the school board for surplus school property, and development of practice fields on other county parcels; references to a forestry land exchange were removed.

County administrator David Edwards (identified in the meeting record as the official presenting the plan) traced the county's use of the adopted infrastructure plan to secure grants and described project totals returned to the county since 2021, including multi‑million‑dollar investments across sewer, roads and other projects. He told the commission the plan is strategic, not a commitment to immediate construction.

Residents who spoke during citizens' comment pressed the board on a proposed swap tied to the so‑called Ivan Tract. Eugene Watkins, who described decades of experience as a burn boss with the Apalachicola National Forest, argued the Ivan Tract is harder to manage by prescribed burns and warned that moving the boundary west would force control lines through ephemeral ponds and complicate fire operations. "I think it's a bad move for the county," he said.

Landscape architect Shannon Harvey told the board she had raised the land‑swap concept at a 2023 recreation workshop and disputed media accounts she said suggested opponents had "ginned up" controversy. Harvey urged siting tournament parks near arterial roads to avoid forcing parents to cross SR 319. "Who in their right mind is gonna let their child cross 319 as it is now," she said.

Edwards and other staff clarified the county had not been presented a formal, binding Forest Service land‑swap agreement. Edwards said the Forest Service had asked if the county was ready to move forward but no official agreement or vote had been submitted; he said staff plans to tell the Forest Service the county is "not interested at this time" and will pursue alternatives, including the WEC facility and other properties.

Commissioners and staff emphasized the practical value of maintaining an adopted infrastructure plan. Edwards and the chair described how having a plan enabled the county to respond quickly to funding opportunities, citing examples of grants awarded after the plan identified shovel‑ready or prioritized projects. The board voted to accept the infrastructure plan (motion and approval recorded by the clerk), clearing the revised plan with the removed land‑swap references.

The meeting also included sustained discussion about traffic mitigation and developer contributions. Citizens and Commissioner David Damon asked whether developers should be required to install turn lanes and other off‑site improvements, citing previous examples (Publix, Wawa) where such improvements were sought. Staff said the county uses traffic studies and coordinates with FDOT and that the county will continue to press for needed signals and turn lanes.

Looking ahead, staff said the county will continue discussions with the school board and FDOT, and will keep the community informed of any new formal proposals from the Forest Service. The board recorded the adoption of the infrastructure plan; no binding land exchange agreement was approved during the meeting.

The board moved on to additional planning and operational items, including adoption of the AHAC affordable housing report and other planning matters.