CRAWFORDVILLE, Fla - Wakulla County has submitted an application to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) for a special use permit for a permanent road and utility easement along sections of Lawhon Mill and Floyd Gray Roads. These road segments are within the Wakulla District of the Apalachicola National Forest and are part of the forest transportation system. The permit would allow the County to pave approximately 2.5 miles of the roads to allow for two lanes of traffic. The roads currently provide access to private land within the forest boundary, including several residences, the Wakulla County Equestrian Center, the Wakulla County Sheriff’s Office Shooting Range, and the Wakulla County Wastewater Treatment Facility.

The special use permit and utility easement will also allow the installation of a wastewater system that enables the County to continue with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s Springs Protection Project which emphasizes septic to sewer conversion to protect local groundwater quality and Wakulla Springs. Based on the remote location of the Wastewater Treatment Facility, there is no alternative setting for the proposed wastewater system.

The USDA has announced a 30-day opportunity for public comments on a Draft Environmental Assessment disclosing the effects of authorizing the permit. The comment period ends on May 21, 2022. Comments may be mailed to the Forest Supervisor at 325 John Knox Road, Suite F-210, Tallahassee, FL, or emailed to comments-southern-florida-apalachicola@usda.gov. To learn more about the proposed project or view the legal notice, please visit the project website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/project/?project=61292.

For additional questions relating to this project, please contact County Administrator David Edwards at dedwards@mywakulla.com.