Mark Your Calendar: Escambia County School Orientations, Open Houses Are Set
August 3, 2026
Mark your calendars — orientation sessions and open house dates have been set for schools in Escambia County.
Elementary Schools
- All Elementary Schools (General Schedule): Friday, August 7 | 9-11 a.m.
- Byrneville Elementary: Thursday, August 6 | 1-3 p.m.
- Pensacola Beach: Thursday, August 6 | 9-9:45 a.m. (Grades K-2) and 10-10:45 a.m. (Grades 3-5)
Middle Schools
- All Middle Schools (6th Grade Orientation): August 7, 2026 | 1-3 p.m.
High Schools (9th Grade Orientation)
- Northview: Wednesday, August 5 | 9-10 a.m.
- Pensacola: Wednesday, August 5 | 9-10 a.m.
- Pine Forest: Monday, August 10 | 4-5 p.m.
- Tate: Monday, August 10 | 1-2 p.m.
- Washington: Thursday, August 6 | 9-10 a.m.
- West Florida: Friday, August 7 | 9-10 a.m.
- Escambia: (Held Friday, July 31)
Special Centers & Alternative Education
- Achieve Academy: Scheduled individually | By Invitation
- Beulah Academy: Monday, August 10 | 9-11 a.m.
- Escambia Westgate: Friday, August 7 | 9-11 a.m.
- Hope Horizon: Friday, August 7 | 9-11 a.m.
- Jackie Harris: Friday, August 7 | 10-11 a.m.
- Success Academy: Scheduled individually | By Invitation
- Warrington Preparatory Academy:
- Thursday, August 6 | 3-6 p.m. (8th & 9th Grades)
- Friday, August 7 | 3-6 p.m. (6th & 7th Grades)
Information provided by the Escambia County Public Schools.
This Week’s Road Construction Delay Spots
August 3, 2026
Drivers will encounter traffic disruptions on the following state roads and projects in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties as crews perform construction and maintenance activities.
Escambia County:
- Interstate 10 (I-10) Resurfacing from east of U.S. 29 to east of Davis Highway (State Road (S.R.) 291) – Drivers on I-10 may encounter intermittent lane closures, traffic shifts and periodic ramp closures, between mile markers 11 and 14, Sunday, Aug. 2 through Thursday, Aug. 6, from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. for paving operations and roadway construction.
- S.R. 292 (Gulf Beach Highway) from east of Bauer Road (County Road (C.R.) 293) to Manchester Street – The week of Sunday, Aug. 2, drivers may encounter intermittent lane closures on S.R. 292 from east of Bauer Road (C.R. 293) to Manchester Street, between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m., for construction activities. Median devices are in place near Patton Drive and Mills Avenue. Drivers are reminded that the speed limit has been reduced to 35 mph through the work zone.
- U.S. 90 (Scenic Highway) Resurfacing, from south of I-10 to south of Hyde Park Road – Drivers on Scenic Highway may encounter intermittent lane closures, from south of I-10 to south of Hyde Park Road, Sunday, Aug. 2 through Thursday, Aug. 6, between 8 p.m. and 5:30 a.m., for placement of thermoplastic striping. Law enforcement will be on site, and traffic flaggers will direct drivers safely through the work zone.
- U.S. 90A (West Nine Mile Road) Resurfacing, from Perdido River Bridge to S.R. 99 (Beulah Road) - The week of Sunday, Aug. 2, drivers on U.S. 90A will encounter inside lane closures, between Western Way Drive and Tower Ridge Road, for construction activities.
- Business U.S. 98 (Garden Street) Construction from Pace Boulevard to the Interstate 110 (I-110) ramp – The week of Sunday, Aug. 2, drivers may encounter the following construction-related traffic disruptions:
- Garden Street, between Pace Boulevard and North Donelson Street, is reduced to two travel lanes (one in each direction) as crews perform construction activities on the north side of the street. This temporary traffic configuration will be in place through late 2026.
- Temporary side street closures north of Garden Street for stormwater drainage system reconstruction. This week, drivers may encounter a closure with detour at D Street. Signage will be in place to direct drivers through the work zone.
- On-street parking is closed on Garden Street, between A Street and L Street.
- I-110 Resurfacing from I-10 to U.S. 98 – Drivers on I-110 may encounter intermittent lane closures, traffic shifts and periodic ramp closures, between I-10 and U.S. 98, Sunday, Aug. 2 through Thursday, Aug. 6, from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m., for paving operations and roadway construction.
- I-10 Resurfacing from the Perdido River Bridge to west of U.S. 29 – I-10 drivers may encounter intermittent and alternating lane closures between the Perdido River Bridge and west of the U.S. 29 interchange (Exit 10), Sunday, Aug. 2 through Thursday, Aug. 6, from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m., for guardrail installation.
- I-10 at Nine Mile Road Interchange (Exit 5) Construction – Drivers will encounter the following construction-related traffic disruptions:
- Intermittent lane closures on I-10 westbound near the Nine Mile Road interchange, Sunday, Aug. 2 through Thursday, Aug. 6, between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m.
- Nine Mile Road will be reduced to one travel lane in each direction between the I-10 ramps, Sunday, Aug. 2 through Saturday, Aug. 8, between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m. Law enforcement will be on site, and directional signage will be in place to guide drivers through the work zone.
- Temporary reconfiguration of the I-10 westbound on-ramp, which will remain in place through mid-2026.
- I-10 at U.S. 29 Interchange (Exit 10) Construction – I-10 drivers may encounter intermittent inside lane closures near mile marker 11, Monday, Aug. 3, between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m., for barrier wall placement. Additionally, drivers are reminded of the following ongoing construction-related traffic impacts:
- West Hope Drive at North Palafox Street remains closed temporarily for drainage construction. Traffic on North Palafox Street is being detoured via Tower Drive and Burgess Road. Signage is in place to direct drivers through the detour.
- I-10 is reduced to two travel lanes in each direction between U.S. 29 and I-110.
- I-10 travel lanes are shifted away from the median area of the roadway, near the U.S. 29 interchange.
- The U.S. 29 southbound access to the I-10 eastbound on-ramp has been reduced.
- The U.S. 29 northbound ramp to I-10 eastbound is closed. U.S. 29 northbound drivers are being detoured to make a U-turn at Broad Street onto U.S. 29 southbound to access I-10 eastbound.
- S.R. 97 (Atmore Highway) Resurfacing from U.S. 29 to the Alabama State Line – Motorists will encounter the following traffic impacts:
- Intermittent lane and shoulder closures are to be expected throughout the project limits on Monday, Aug. 3 through Friday, Aug 7, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Santa Rosa County:
- U.S. 98 Widening from Bayshore Road to Portside Drive – Motorists will encounter the following traffic impacts:
- Median and turn lane closures from Bayshore Road to Tiger Lake Drive.
- Intermittent lane closures and additional median closures between Bayshore Road and Tiger Lake Drive, Sunday, Aug. 2, through Saturday, Aug. 8, from 7 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. for paving operations.
- S.R. 281 (Avalon Boulevard) Routine Bridge Maintenance over Garcon Point Bridge – Motorists may encounter intermittent lane closures Monday, Aug. 3 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. for routine bridge maintenance.
All activities are weather dependent and may be delayed or rescheduled in the event of inclement weather.
Pictured: construction of the new North Palafox Street bridge over I-10 reached a major milestone, as crews completed the concrete deck pour on the north end of the structure. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Five-Run Sixth Sinks Wahoos In Smokies Series Finale
August 3, 2026
The Pensacola Blue Wahoos fell in their series finale with the Knoxville Smokies to the tune of a 5-3 final.
The Wahoos got on the board first in the usual way: the longball. Ethan O’Donnell went first, smashing his first homer with Pensacola way over the right field wall. Two batters later, Brandon Compton continued his seemingly endless stretch of dingers with, you guessed it, another dinger. This one was a two-run jack that gave the Wahoos a 3-0 lead.
Joey Volini pitched 5.0 scoreless innings and left in-line for the win when Gabe Bierman (L, 3-2) entered in the 6th. The Smokies pounced on the pitching change. Knoxville loaded the bases and, with two outs, Karson Simas beat out an infield single up the third baseline to get his club on the board. This would prompt manager Nelson Prada to pull Bierman in favor of Michael Perez, who gave up a grand slam to Drew Bowser. It was Bowser’s first Double-A homer and the fifth grand slam the Wahoos have given up this year.
When the 6th inning ended, Knoxville had a 5-3 lead. And, despite having men on second and third with nobody out in the top of the 8th, Pensacola failed to score for the rest of the game and ended up dropping the series finale by a score of 5-3. Frankie Scalzo Jr. (W, 3-1) earned the win with Marinos Santy (S, 7) securing his 7th save of the season.
The Wahoos fell to 55-46 overall and 19-13 in the second half while the Smokies improved to 54-48 and 16-17.
The Blue Wahoos have an off-day Monday before beginning a series with the Montgomery Biscuits.
$5.3 Million Resurfacing Project Planned for West Highway 4 From Davisville to Century
August 2, 2026
Escambia County is set to award a $5.3 million contract this week to resurface the full 13 miles pf West Highway 4 from Highway 97 in Davisville to North Century Boulevard in Century.
The project will provide resurfacing and safety improvements along West Highway 4. The work on the county road will also include reconstructing sections of the road base, milling the existing asphalt, and placing a new asphalt surface. Safety upgrades will include new pavement markings and the removal and replacement of existing guardrail, as well as installing additional guardrail where needed. After the asphalt work is completed, the right of way will be graded and restored.
Roads, Inc. of NWF was determined to be the lowest-cost, most responsive and responsible bidder at $5,327,739. Other bidders were Panhandle Grading & Paving ($5.5 million), C.W. Roberts Contracting ($5.7 million), and Site and Utility ($6.6 million). The Escambia County Commission will vote on the contract at its regular meeting on Thursday.
The project will be funded with Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) funds.
Pictured: A deteriorated section of Highway 4 near Northview High School in Bratt. NorthEscambia.com photos and map, click to enlarge.
New Escambia County Teachers Prep For The New School Year
August 2, 2026
The first day of school is just around the corner, and last week new Escambia County Public Schools teachers gathered for a two-day introduction to the system.
The new teachers familiarized themselves with ECPS, learned from experienced teachers, and prepared for the coming school year at the “Great Beginnings Conference” at Beulah Middle School.
The first day of school for students in Escambia County is Wednesday, August 12.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
New Principal, Assistant Principal Named At Escambia Westgate
August 2, 2026
A new principal and assistant principal have been named at Escambia Westgate Center.
Pamela Cebula was appointed principal this week by the Escambia County School Board, and Tasheba Sheppard was named assistant principal.
“Our mission at Escambia Westgate School is to work as a community to foster the academic, social, and emotional potential of every child,” Cebula said. “I am happy to be a Westgate Wildcat.” Cebula was the district’s subject area specialist for Exceptional Student Education.
“I am truly honored to be chosen to ensure that the most fragile and indeed special children and young adults at Westgate receive the absolute best education and access to the services they deserve,” Sheppard said. She was an assistant principal at Oakcrest Elementary School.
Pictured top: Pamela Cebula, the new principal at Escambia Westgate. Pictured below: Tasheba Sheppard, the new assistant principal at Westgate. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
2025 Northview Graduate, NJROTC Commander Flew In Pensacola Beach Air Show
August 2, 2026
If you attended the recent Pensacola Beach Air Show, one of the planes you saw overhead may have been piloted by a 2025 Northview High School graduate.
Kate Stinson flew a TB 30 Epsilon.
“We did aileron rolls, steep turns, barrel rolls, turned upside down, and ‘cloud surfing’,” she said. “We pulled 4-5 G’s.”
Stinson was the Northview High School NJROTC commanding officer for 2024-2025. Stinson, known as ‘Kate the Great,’ completed flying lessons through the NJROTC program.
She attends Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, with plans to become a naval aviator.
Above and below: Kate Stinson flew a TB 30 Epsilon in the Pensacola Beach Air Show. Photo for NorthEscambia.com. Pictures: Stison flying in the air show. NorthEscambia.com, photos by Perry Doggrell, click to enlarge.
Photos: See The Century Library Pollinator Garden
August 2, 2026
In May, the Escambia County Extension Service Horticulture team, installed and planted a Pollinator Garden at the Century Library.
Now, the plants are maturing and have a variety of colorful blooms.
The garden includes a mix of native and Florida-friendly plants for bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds grown by Escambia County Master Gardener volunteers. The garden was planted in Bloom Compost from the Emerald Coast Utilities Authority.
Pictured top and middle: A Pollinator Garden recently in bloom at the Century Library (NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge). Pictured bottom: The garden was being installed and planted in May by the Escambia County Extension Service Horticulture team.
Florida Weekly Roundup: Judicial Wordsmithing
August 2, 2026
As the primary draws closer without any gubernatorial candidates tossed from the ballot, a far-reaching property tax cut proposal set to go before voters later this year had a day in court this week.
Now the wait is on for Leon County Judge David Frank to decide whether to toss a series of lawsuits or order the state’s attorney general to rewrite what voters will read.
BALLOT ADVOCACY
Three groups of plaintiffs, including former local government elected officials and a former Republican legislator, contend the title and ballot summary for Amendment 3, approved by the GOP-led Legislature in June, uses “emotional and political rhetoric” designed to mislead voters.
“I don’t think there is anybody who can say when this amendment was drafted that it’s not partial and it’s not advocacy,” said former Sen. Jeff Brandes, a St. Petersburg Republican, who brought one of the lawsuits against the property tax cut proposal. “All we are asking the court to do is follow the law and follow what the constitution lays out when it relates to advocacy.”
Opponents argue the measure could cost cities and counties as much as $12 billion annually and shift the tax burdens to renters and businesses, which isn’t reflected in the ballot language that is under the amendment’s title of “Save Our Homes From Excessive Property Taxes.”
Representing one of the opposition groups, attorney Jamie Cole told Frank the wording voters see “has to be fair and it has to be accurate.”
“It should not be political rhetoric, it should not be emotional language,” Cole said.
Benjamin Gibson, an attorney representing the state, said the onus was on the plaintiffs to prove the ballot summary was defective. Also, the measure’s title wasn’t misleading because it spells out the danger to homesteads: excessive taxes.
He also downplayed arguments that the measure would essentially give the Legislature veto power over how local property taxes are spent because it restricts such spending to infrastructure, education, public safety and other major needs.
“The ballot title and summary does not need to explain unknowns or hypothetical consequences,” Gibson said.
FISHBACK STAYS
Republican gubernatorial candidate James Fishback remains on the primary ballot.
Judge Frank ruled Monday that Lt. Gov. Jay Collins, another GOP candidate for the governor’s office, didn’t prove Fishback lived outside the state within the last seven years.
Collins alleged Fishback voted in Washington D.C. in 2020 and established a homestead there when he bought an apartment in 2021, making him ineligible due to the state’s seven-year residency requirement for the office.
With Fishback testifying that he never gave up his Florida residency and voted in D.C. to support President Donald Trump, Frank determined the burden of proof was on Collins to show Fishback abandoned his residence in Florida.
“This isn’t just a victory for our campaign. It’s a victory for the constitution and for every Floridian who believes elections should be decided by voters, not politicians trying to rig the system,” Fishback stated after the ruling was released.
DOUBLE EXECUTION
Florida completed a rare day-night execution Tuesday, putting Dominick Anthony Occhicone to death about five hours after James Aren Duckett was pronounced dead.
After a flurry of emergency applications and petitions were turned down the past few days at the federal level, including the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday, Occhicone, 80, became the oldest inmate executed by the state since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976.
Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty described the twin executions as an “unprecedented escalation” of the state’s use of the death penalty.
“These are two profoundly different cases, but they point to the same troubling reality: Florida continues to expand the use of capital punishment, despite mounting evidence that it is not what Floridians want,” said Grace Hanna, executive director of Floridians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty.
Occhicone and Duckett were put to death by lethal injection at Florida State Prison, bringing the number of inmates executed this year to 12.
DeSantis signed his 14th death warrant of the year Thursday, for Harold Gene Lucas to be executed Sept. 1. Lucas received the death sentence for the murder of his 16-year-old former girlfriend in Bonita Springs almost 50 years ago.
On Tuesday, DeSantis said he didn’t “take joy” in presiding over the double execution or take “pride” in signing the warrants even though it will be “more than any administration in the history of the state.” But DeSantis said capital punishment is needed to “bring justice,” as “some of the victims’ families have been waiting a long time.”
“We do owe it to them to do it,” DeSantis said Tuesday night at the Florida Sheriffs Association Summer Conference at Trump National Doral.
STORY OF THE WEEK:
Opponents of a Florida property tax-cutting ballot measure, Amendment 3, get their day in court, but must wait on a ruling.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK:
“You shouldn’t be going for 20 years. You should be able to try and maybe appeal, but then at some point, we’ve got to get cracking here.” — Gov. Ron DeSantis on the death sentence appeal process while at the Florida Sheriffs Association Summer Conference on Tuesday.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida
Blue Wahoos Hold On For Extra-Inning Win Over Smokies
August 2, 2026
The Pensacola Blue Wahoos continued their winning ways on Saturday night, outlasting the Knoxville Smokies 3-2 in 10 innings.
With the win, the Blue Wahoos have now won 9 of their past 11 games and 4 of their first 5 during their series in Knoxville to move to a season-high 10 games above .500.
Brendan Jones opened the scoring for Pensacola with a two-run homer in the top of the third inning against Smokies starter Brooks Caple. It was the 10th homer of the season for Jones, with four coming during the Blue Wahoos’ road trips to his home state of Tennessee.
After 3.0 scoreless innings from Blue Wahoos starter Orlando Ortiz-Mayr, the Smokies evened the score 2-2 in the bottom of the fourth with a two-run homer from Ariel Armas against reliever Josh Hejka. That would be all the damage done against the Pensacola bullpen, however, as Hejka got through 3.0 innings for his longest appearance in more than two seasons to keep the game tied into the late innings.
The Blue Wahoos left the bases loaded in the seventh and eighth innings, but effective relief from Nigel Belgrave and Colby Martin (W, 4-4) sent the game to extra innings.
In the top of the 10th, Juan Matheus singled against Tyler Schlaffer (L, 1-7) to advance placed runner Cristian Hernández to third base. Brandon Compton, who had collected three singles already in the game, then sent a scorching grounder to second base that turned into a double play but also brought home the go-ahead run.
Handed a 3-2 lead, Martin returned for the bottom of the 10th and worked around a leadoff single to Drew Bowser to retire the next three batters and end the game. For the fourth time in five games in the series, the losing team left the potential tying run at third base when making the final out.
The Blue Wahoos wrap up their series against the Smokies on Sunday.
written by Erik Bremer