November 5, 2026
At the end of Gulf Shore Drive, the pay signs at Norriego Point now show a different rate. Since late September, parking there costs $5 an hour. The old charge was $20 for a four-hour block. The Destin City Council made the change after many visitors said they stayed less than four hours and asked for an hourly option. WEAR reported that the new rate was in effect, and that parking stays free for city residents with a decal.
On its own, the new rate looks like a convenience fix. It came out of the same September meetings where Destin made three other decisions. It planned a park on the roughly four-acre state parcel next door. It agreed to let the parking fund help pay for that park. And it offered free parking at every city lot to every Okaloosa County resident. All of those decisions rely on the city's parking revenue, and all of them are waiting on one decision in Tallahassee.
The council approved the $5 hourly rate at its regular meeting in late September, Get The Coast reported. The rate applies at Norriego Point. Elsewhere in the city, the City of Destin's Park & Play notice lists $20 for four hours in the Beach Parking District and $15 per day in the Harbor Parking District.
Destin Park & Play started March 1, 2026, with LAZ Parking running the system. You pay by scanning a QR code or sending a text, with no app to download. The same system collects the $25 launch fee at Joe's Bayou Boat Launch.
If you live within Destin's city limits, you still park free in city-managed areas with a Resident Parking Pass. You can pick one up at City Hall or the Destin Community Center, or register online. Bring your driver's license and vehicle registration. Each household can get up to two passes.
Destin's parking fund can only be spent on parking-related costs. At the same September meeting, City Manager Larry Jones asked the council to let the fund also pay for waterfront parks. He described it as a backstop, with the city going after grants and state money first. Jones put the fund at about $3 million. The staff report listed $4 million available through an amendment to the city's 2027 budget.
The council chose a narrower version. Councilman Chatham Morgan moved to open the fund only to the state park property, not to Joe's Bayou or the beachfront parks in Crystal Beach. His substitute motion passed. "I want to keep the parking fund for parking with this exception to get this park done," Morgan said, according to Get The Coast.
The city expects the new park to pay much of its own way, through more of the same parking fees. Its response to the state projects about $820,000 a year in parking revenue from the new spaces and boat slips, after sales tax and processing fees. Jones said the real figure would likely land "somewhere between the half million and million dollar range." Finance Director Krystal Strickland said the 54 added spaces and 49 dock slips would roughly double the city's parking fee income.
The city engineer estimates the improvements at $3 million to $4 million, including a dock retrofit. That's below the up to $5 million the city pledged in its March resolution. The state bought the parcel in December 2025 for $83.3 million.
Here is what the city's concept plan, sent to the state, puts on the parcel:
| Element | What the city proposed |
|---|---|
| Parking | 54 added spaces, with about one acre paved and the other three left alone |
| Shade | Three shade structures on the East Pass side |
| Recreation | Beach volleyball courts and an extension of the Norriego Point boardwalk |
| Docks | Mostly day use, with a proposed $5 per hour transient slip fee that is not final, and part possibly set aside for fishing |
| Additions from the council | Vertical oyster gardens, monofilament recycling, a finger dock near the seawall as a dinghy dock, and a kayak launch and pickup area |
| Access | An option for the existing water taxi service to use the docks |
| Signage | A real-time sign at U.S. 98 and Gulf Shore Drive showing open spaces at the park |
| Commercial use | None, meaning no commercial marina, shops or food vending |
Jones said the plan is mostly the version the council saw months ago. The playground is gone and more volleyball courts were added. The city wants the parcel to tie into the existing 14-acre Norriego Point Park next door.
The state named Okaloosa County as the parcel's manager when it bought the land. Before Destin could ask for that role, it needed the county's support. On Sept. 16, at a mediated conflict resolution meeting at the county's administrative complex in Shalimar, the two boards agreed on terms. Get The Coast reported that the Destin City Council voted 5-2 to offer free parking to all Okaloosa County residents. It covers every city-owned lot and park, including any parking the city builds later, with no time limit. The county commission then voted 5-0 to send a letter backing Destin as manager to the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund, with a copy to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
The city's earlier offer had been narrower. It covered free county-resident parking only at the Gulf-front parks, including Norriego Point. The council had approved that version at its July 6 meeting. Councilman Dewey Destin's motion widened it to every city lot. He also explained the cost:
"So it's a matter of money. The estimates are it's 10 to 14% that we would go into errors and not collect. The truth is that all of these funds are, at this time, being paid by our visitors, by the tourists. We control our ability to set that rate."
Visitors carry most of the parking revenue, so opening the lots to county residents costs Destin a share of collections, not the whole fund. The money that backs the Holiday Isle plan still comes in. Morgan noted that the city didn't charge for parking at all until nine years ago. He said free parking for county residents could help how the rest of the county sees Destin.
For anyone in Fort Walton Beach, Niceville or elsewhere in Okaloosa County, the timing matters. The free parking begins only if Destin gets management of the parcel. Until then, Get The Coast reported, the county-resident arrangement is still "to be determined" as the city and county work through the agreement. Free passes still go only to residents within Destin's city limits.
On Sept. 22, Brad Richardson, chief of the Bureau of Public Land Administration in DEP's Division of State Lands, emailed City Attorney Kim Kopp. He asked for several items "in order to effectuate a lease," and wrote that it would be a direct lease between the Board of Trustees and the City of Destin. The council approved preliminary answers at a special meeting the next day. Kopp called them "the very beginning, not the end of the discussions at all." At that point, no lease had been signed.
Four steps stand between the September agreement and a finished park:
Councilman Kevin Schmidt said signs, hours and staffing would all come up in public meetings over the coming year. The $5 hourly rate is the only piece already in place. The new spaces, the slips and free county-wide parking all depend on the lease.
Two city events next month fall on the Harbor District paid lots, where the daily rate is $15 for drivers without a resident decal. The Destin Community Center lot is one of the named Harbor lots.
The route is the same as in 2025. The parade application says stormy weather cancels the parade, and there is no rain date.
If a lease would change how you use Norriego Point, or how a property near Holiday Isle fits your plans, our team at Coastal Heritage Realty follows these Destin council decisions closely and can walk you through what they mean for your address. Schedule Your Complimentary Consultation.
Buying or selling a home is a major milestone, and you deserve a team that truly listens and understands your needs. We take a personalized approach to every client, ensuring that your experience is smooth, stress-free, and successful.