County Approves Firefighter’s Idea For Perdido River Boat Ramp For First Responders, Small Personal Craft

April 9, 2021

A volunteer firefighter’s idea to improve response time to victims along the Perdido River was unanimously approved Thursday night by the Escambia County Commission.

The commission approved a gated boat launch at the Otto Hill Recreation Area to allow first responders access to the Perdido River, and provide the public with a place to launch small craft.

Commissioner Steven Barry said the launch was the idea of Mark Butler, who is employed by the county as a road corrections officer and is also a volunteer firefighter in Molino.

“He is intimately familiar with some of the challenges and some of the issues they’ve had trying to get to people that are in dire situations on Perdido River in that area,” Barry told his fellow commissioners. “I want to thank Mark Butler for bringing it to me…It is  going to be a very good thing for my constituency…not an expensive thing.

“I consider this to be just as important for water safety in your district as lifeguards out on Pensacola Beach,” Commissioner Doug Underhill told Barry. “And this certainly costs a whole lot less, so outstanding work on this one.”

Escambia County will enter into an interlocal agreement with the Northwest Florida Water Management District, design and build a 10-foot wide boat launch with a gate at the Otto Hill. It will be constructed at the site of a former primitive boat launch. The gate across the launch will prohibit nonessential vehicle access by the public. Gate keys will be provided only to county staff and emergency personnel, water management staff, Escambia Search and Rescue, and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

While the public will not have vehicle access to the launch, there will be walk-around space to allow the public to hand launch and retrieve canoes, kayaks and small boats.

The Otto Hill Recreation Area is located at 2401 Jacks Branch Road, just south of Fillingim Landing. It has a pavilion, portable toilet and reservation only campsite in addition to river access.

There are several short hiking trails — one of which leads to a picturesque sandbar approximately 100 yards from the main camp site. Under normal conditions, the river is shallow enough in this area to provide a fantastic swimming spot for children, according to the water district.

A short swim or paddle across the river leads visitors to another sandbar and more sunbathing opportunities.

Pictured: The Otto Hill Recreation Area on the Perdido River off Jacks Branch Road. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.

Comments

10 Responses to “County Approves Firefighter’s Idea For Perdido River Boat Ramp For First Responders, Small Personal Craft”

  1. Dale Elder on April 11th, 2021 8:51 pm

    It would be nice if we could use it publicly but I would say ad a few to come and launch your boat and that fee go to help the first responders..I would not have a problem paying to launch and also may think about a few camp sites that would have to be scheduled before camping ..It all be beneficial for everyone…

  2. Frank on April 10th, 2021 3:24 pm

    Maybe opening up sand landing again would also help with access. It has been closed for over a year due to vandalism.

  3. Rasheed Jackson on April 9th, 2021 9:39 pm

    Sounds like nice private boat launch for a select group of county employees.
    There needs to be a stipulation that the key holders can only use ramp for official county business and not personal use.

  4. Whisperjet on April 9th, 2021 3:17 pm

    ..that has been one of my favorite spots for over 68 years..Got my first 17 foot aluminum canoe in 1966 and camped on that sandbar on the Baldwin County side…

  5. Some dude on April 9th, 2021 11:56 am

    Was this the best spot for it? Won’t it require a lot of additional work on the road to the Otto Hill site? It’s a narrow, rough, dirt road. Fine for a truck, but could get dicey for pulling a boat. Why not Fillingim or the Pipes where there’s more space and it’s more easily accessible from Jacks Branch? If the roads there are an issue too, wouldn’t it make more sense to improve one of them instead since they see a lot more traffic than Otto?

    I know it’s probably too late to throw logic into the conversation, but I guess I shouldn’t have expected any better from the BoCC.

  6. just sayin on April 9th, 2021 11:15 am

    @Cody wanting only the tax payers who live within 5 miles to have a special key just for them. You have to be delusional if you think for one second that this would be fare to all tax payers of Escambia County.

  7. Skip on April 9th, 2021 10:31 am

    I had some good memories there….

  8. Cody on April 9th, 2021 9:57 am

    Why not make it open to residence within 5 miles get a key also? I mean our tax paying dollars are paying for it. Y’all do everything for the kayakers and campers but don’t care about us fisherman.

  9. Butch Correll on April 9th, 2021 8:24 am

    Great thinking on Mark’s behalf. That ramp will really be a much needed tool for the responders! A very smart young man!

  10. MOLINO on April 9th, 2021 5:52 am

    GREAT JOB MARK!!!

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News