For the first time in nearly two years, Matt Gaetz is once again a public official after being appointed to the Triumph Gulf Coast Board of Directors, effective July 1.

The City of Crestview may become the first government in Okaloosa County to take a stand against data centers, as an ordinance banning their development is expected to come before the council.

It has been more than 10 years since Eglin Air Force Base opened its gates to the public for an air show. In April 2027, that will change.

The Okaloosa County Commission voted unanimously on June 16 to declare panhandling and vagrancy a major public safety concern, directing county officials to create a task force to mitigate the problem.

The Okaloosa County Commission voted to move forward with a scaled-back, county-run animal control program after the Panhandle Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) opted not to renew a more than two-decade-old service agreement with the county on June 16.

A proposed constitutional amendment which would dramatically expand Florida’s homestead property tax exemption could cost Okaloosa County more than $24 million in annual generval fund revenue by the second year of implementation, according to County Administrator John Hofstad.

The Crestview City Council unanimously approved a $143,019 miniature town-themed playground to be built near the public library June 8, while waiving the city’s competitive purchasing policy to move the project forward without a bidding process that could have added 60 days to the timeline.

The Crestview City Council plans to ask the Okaloosa America 250 committee to reconsider the date of a grand parade in the Hub City, with council members expressing concerns that scheduling the event the Saturday before Veterans Day could overshadow the city’s existing Veterans Day parade.

The Crestview City Council will consider multiple items at its Monday meeting, from a $143,000 imaginative playground near the city library to a data-sharing agreement between local law enforcement agencies and a rezoning request from HCA Destin-Fort Walton Medical Center.
Here is what you need to know

As Gov. Ron DeSantis’s push for property tax cuts heads to the November ballot, local leaders across Okaloosa County are preparing for tightened budgets over the next several years as Rep. Nathan Boyles defends his no vote on the house floor.