FORT WALTON BEACH - After operating for 15 years in Destin, the Emerald Coast Wildlife Refuge has found a new home in a new city.
Representatives from the city of Fort Walton Beach and the Wildlife Refuge recently signed a 5-year lease for the refuge to move to the city's Commerce and Technology Park. The lease was approved by the Fort Walton Beach City Council at a special meeting last week.
"What it's going to do to the refuge is change it completely," said Amanda Wilkerson, who has been its executive director since 2001. "We're not going to be in this little building. We're going to have exposure, awareness, people coming out to see us. It's going to change, I think, our entire operation and the way people see us and view us in the community."