Comments on: Langley Bell 4-H Center Could Be Sold To Navy Federal Credit Union

By: krl

krl — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 14:54:41 +0000

Mr. Bell gave the land and the center to the youth. The center is apart of 4-H history and is an important part of 4-H activities. Mr. Bell have the youth that center so they had some place to gather and go for activities. That center belongs to the youth. I was a 4-Her for 13 years and am now a volunteer. I have been in that building more times than I can count. It is an asset to 4-H and a symbol of the 4-H program in Escambia county. I think it would be a tragedy to sell the center. It belongs to the youth of 4-H and it should stay in their hands. I love 4-H and I love that center. I urge you to not sell it!!!!

By: mv1325

mv1325 — Thu, 12 May 2011 21:45:08 +0000

do not sell the 4-H center!

By: mark

mark — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 18:47:25 +0000

ok people listen closely – all proceeds from a sale of 4H property go to the 4H Foundation which was established prior to the last sale. Proceeds from the prior sale were matched by state funds – brilliant move by the Foundation. The county receives no money from a sale – nada. The extension service receives no money from a sale. The funds secure the future of Escambia 4H for a long, long time. What a wonderful legacy – thank you Bell family!

By: gulf Coast

gulf Coast — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 15:27:05 +0000

4H mom,
I will reserve judgement on the county commissioners as none of them have come out and said the are in favor of the sale or not. Also their responsibility is to the constituents of Escambia County, not just 4Hers.

The real problem lies at the extension service, not many agents use the facility and then one of the arguements for selling it is its nonuse. The real point of the sale is this ” Is it in the best interest of 4H to sell the property” NO it is not, not without a replacement facility that is BETTER (not necessarily bigger) . Extension wants to sell the property and NOT replace it. That is why all these people are fighting the sale of the property.

Navy Federal doesnt “need” the property right now, they want it because land prices are as low as they have been in recent years. I say hold on to the property another 10 years and by then Navy Federal will finally be close to capacity at there present location (1600 employees vs 3100 capacity currently) discuss selling it to them then and at least make twice the money they are offering.

My $0.02 worth.

By: 4-H mom

4-H mom — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 12:34:46 +0000

This does stink of the county wanting to get their hands on this land and the profit from it. The land was donated to the 4-Her’s, the children of future generations. Unfortunately they are minors and the county “thinks” they know what is best for them. These county officials have never been in 4-H or had chldren in 4-H. My children started in preschool and graduated high school including 4-H in each year, 13 to be exact. They learned how to improve on communication skills, work with others, teach others, create a project, care for animals, compete in county up through state level events, and volunteer their services. There is so much more. They have received numerous scholarships to college based on these life long skills and they can use these skills the rest of their life. This is history and future history that is being sold for a price. What has our values come to?

By: Annette Faircloth

Annette Faircloth — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 21:37:00 +0000

What about the children That this will affect ? I to remember alot of great memories at this facility ; Learned alot about nature ,trees and outside in general ; before long there will be no History in Pensacola ,Molino ,Century ,Berrineau Park . These were great inspirations to all of us as youngters ..Dr.Matt Langley Bell , Mr Merwin Berrineau,and countless others .We want our kids to follow good examples and learn about the good things in life ,well i’m here to tell you there is nothing likethe history of this place.

By: Football Mom

Football Mom — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 14:58:25 +0000

“they could put it in Century (of course, they’d need armed guards, though)”

BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA that was a good one

By: Terri Sanders

Terri Sanders — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 00:57:53 +0000

This facility has been used less and less… mostly because of a few people who think they are in control of the facility.There has not been an over night camp held there for as far back as I remember.Homemakers used to be allowed to use it for their monthly meetings.The county stooped that.They let us use it for a few years for our annual Christmas tea,they stopped that.In fact it has become nearly immpossible for us to use that building for anything at all.It is a shame that what Mr.Bell intended the facility to be used for has been all but done away with.I agree let Navy Federal expand the other way or upwards.But I think this is about $$$$$ for the county coffers and not for anyone elses best interest.

By: David Huie Green

David Huie Green — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 17:14:08 +0000

they could put it in Century (of course, they’d need armed guards, though)

By: Trish

Trish — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 17:09:25 +0000

To David Huie: I agree, what will be next????? National Parks, Historical landmarks???? They have been making it hard for the public to use the beach for years (oh we can use a little stretch here or there but they provide little to no parking), the county has the civic center up for sale, now the 4H property. Why not sell some of these ball fields or soccer fields, or boat ramps? Being sarcastic here!

Why can’t Navy Federal build up instead of out? Or is it not cost effective to build a parking garage with 6 or 7 stories above that for working space?