District celebrates completion of Lighthouse Estates project

CARRABELLE – Representatives from the Northwest Florida Water Management District, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and the city of Carrabelle celebrated on Thursday the completion of a project designed to protect water quality in Carrabelle Beach and Apalachicola Bay.

Thanks to nearly $3.7 million in funding from the District and DEP, the city of Carrabelle connected 142 homes in the Lighthouse Estates neighborhood to central sewer services.

The neighborhood is located along U.S. Highway 98 across from the public access to Carrabelle Beach in Franklin County.

“Eliminating this many septic tanks located so closely to Apalachicola Bay is an accomplishment worth celebrating,” said Lyle Seigler, Executive Director of the Northwest Florida Water Management District. “It is important work, which is why Governor DeSantis, the legislature, and DEP supported this project every step of the way. We applaud the leaders in Carrabelle and Franklin County who helped steer this project to completion.”

The Lighthouse Estates project was completed in two phases. The first phase, totaling $851,000, was funded by the District. The second phase, totaling approximately $2.8 million, was funded by the Department of Environmental Protection and federal grants.