Objective: The Carpenter Creek restoration project will fund planning, design, and permitting for approximately 2.5 miles of stream restoration between I-110 and 12th Avenue. Once constructed, the project will support the reduction of approximately 2,000 tons of sediment and 2,500 pounds of nitrogen from the Creek annually. Additionally, the project would restore approximately 20 acres of wetlands and approximately 2.5 miles of stream while also reducing flood staging by approximately 1 (one) foot.
Funding: $2.2 million RESTORE Act Component 2 Grant from the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council
Partners: Jennie’s Legacy, City of Pensacola, Escambia County, Florida Department of Environmental Protection
Years: 2024-2028
Work to be completed
Past work completed
In 2019, Escambia County engaged a consulting firm to develop a Watershed Management Plan (WMP) for Carpenter Creek and Bayou Texar using RESTORE Direct Component (Pot 1) funds. Findings included in the WMP indicate Carpenter Creek is suffering from urban stream syndrome, resulting in sediment loading to the Creek that is on the order of forty (40) times greater than average. The WMP states in part "directly connected impervious surfaces throughout the watershed create a flashy hydrograph and have led to bank erosion and subsequent downstream sedimentation and water quality impairments". The WMP proposed 15 project recommendations to achieve water quality improvement, habitat restoration, community resilience, and public access improvement throughout the Creek and Bayou. Those recommendations were presented to the public in May 2022 for review to prioritize the top three catalytic projects to proceed to design. Overwhelmingly, the community selected the restoration of Carpenter Creek as the top priority. PPBEP will lead implementation of the restoration in partnership with the City of Pensacola and Escambia County.
Escambia County Carpenter Creek Restoration Catalytic Project Concept
