Atmore Looks To Solve Flooding Problem. What Will That Mean Downstream In Florida?

February 24, 2026

A federally funded project is in the planning stages to alleviate flooding in Atmore, but what will that mean for Florida residents?

Atmore has received a $17 million grant from the USDA National Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to reduce flooding in the Pine Barren Creek Watershed. The watershed drains a large portion of the city, essentially south of East Nashville Avenue (Highway 31) between South Main Street and 21st Avenue. (Click map to enlarge.)

The water from Atmore flows down Pine Barren Creek into Florida, crossing culverts under Greenland Road and West Highway 4 before flowing under a bridge on Highway 99 in Oak Grove, a bridge on Highway 164, and continuing eventually to the Escambia River.

For more photos from the Atmore meeting and Pine Barren Creek flooding problems on Greenland Road in Florida, click here.

Recenthly, the City of Atmore and NRCS held a “scoping meeting” to explain the project and seek public input from Atmore residents.

Paul Simmons, a hydraulic engineer for consultant WSP Engineering, said the project will include 2D models of the watershed flow through Atmore and into Florida.

“We are extending it (the modeling) down into Florida to make sure the project we come up with does not extend problems to someone else,” he said.

“We are going to make sure we don’t send all of this water down into Florida and say, ’sorry, Escambia County, Florida, we fixed it in Atmore,’” Scott Taylor of WSP said.

The upcoming project, covering roughly 10 square miles (6,389 acres) in Atmore, is funded with 100% federal money, with local match required from Atmore. There is currently not a similar project planned south of the state line in Florida, according to state and county officials.

In the next phase of the Atmore project, alternatives will be explored before developing a final plan for presentation in 2027. The construction phase won’t be reached until sometime in 2028 or 2029.

Pictured above and below: Previous washouts and flooding along Pine Barren Creek at Greenland Road in Florida. Also pictured: Last week’s Pine Been Creek Watershed meeting in Atmore. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.

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Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under TOP STORIES