$1.3 Million Covered Play Area And Multipurpose Room Completed At Beulah Elementary
March 2, 2021
Construction is now complete an a new multipurpose room and covered play area at Beulah Elementary School.
At $1.3 million, Morette Company was the low bidder on the Escambia County School District project. Four other bids ranged up to nearly $1.48 million.
The project was funded by half cents sales tax money.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Verizon Brings 5G Ultra Wideband To Portions Of The Pensacola Area
March 2, 2021
Verizon customers now have access to 5G Ultra Wideband service in select portions of the Pensacola area.
According to Verizon’s coverage map, the service is available in portions of downtown Pensacola between A Street and 19 Avenue south of Gonzalez Street, parts of East Hill, around Airport Boulevard and Davis Highway, Cordova Park, Langley and College Parkway, around Summit Boulevard, and parts of Gulf Breeze and Pensacola Beach. To view the 5G areas, search for Pensacola and zoom in on Verizon’s coverage map.
“Verizon continues its aggressive expansion and technological advancements of 5G Ultra Wideband service, the 21st century platform for innovation,” said Kyle Malady, Verizon’s chief technology officer. “Customers in these cities can now take advantage of revolutionary, game-changing technology, with access to download speeds and bandwidth that can power the future of wireless and home broadband applications and solutions.”
5G Ultra Wideband uses small cells and is much faster than Verizon’s Nationwide 5G product that can be found in much of Escambia County south of Kingsfield Road and in a portion of the Molino area.
Built for industrial and commercial use cases, Verizon’s 5G Ultra Wideband boasts ultra-low lag and throughputs many times faster than 4G. As the technology continues to mature, it is expected to eventually handle data volumes 100 times larger than today’s capabilities. Verizon’s use of mmWave spectrum, the backbone of 5G Ultra Wideband, is essential to these revolutionary capabilities as is being used in parts of the Pensacola area.
NorthEscambia.com graphic.
Century Honors Joe Brown For 30 Years Of Dedicated Service
March 2, 2021
The Town of Century honored Joe Brown Monday night for 30 years of dedicated service as a town employee from December 1990 to December 2020. Century Mayor Ben Boutwell presented Brown (pictured right) with an appreciation plaque during a town council meeting. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Mammography Services Now Offered By Community Health Northwest Florida
March 2, 2021
Community Health Northwest Florida is now offering mammography services.
Established Community Health patients will be able to access appointments for screening mammograms at its newly expanded imaging department, located at the health center’s main site at 2315 West Jackson Street in Pensacola.
Community Health Northwest Florida patients needing mammograms will be referred for this important screening by their healthcare provider. Initially, mammography services are available on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays each week.
“We are very pleased to be able to offer this life saving screening for our patients, allowing us to detect any potential issues as early as possible. Especially for our low income and uninsured patients, access to mammograms is critical, as vulnerable populations bear a disproportionate burden of breast cancer mortality,” said Chandra Smiley, CEO of Community Health Northwest Florida.
Breast cancer is the second most common cancer in women after skin cancer. Mammograms can detect breast cancer early, possibly before it has spread, according to Community Health. Early detection of breast cancer with screening mammography means that treatment can be started earlier in the course of the disease.
Florida Teachers, Police And Firefighters Over 50 Can Now Get COVID-19 Vaccine
March 1, 2021
COVID-19 vaccine eligibility in Florida is being expanded to sworn law enforcement officers, firefighters and K-12 school employees that are age 50 or older.
Monday, Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an executive order expanding vaccine eligibility that thus far has been concentrated on people age 65 and older. The order goes into effect on Wednesday.
An order issued last week also allows the vaccination of people under age 65 if they are deemed “extremely vulnerable” to the virus by a physician.
Long-term care facility residents and staff, persons 65 years of age and older; and health care personnel with direct patient contact are still eligible for the vaccine.
During a press conference Monday, DeSantis said Florida would get up to 175,000 doses of the newly approved Johnson & Johnson vaccine that only requires a single dose. Bot the Moderna and Pfizer vaccine require two does.
Cantonment Woman Killed In Gulf Shores Crash
March 1, 2021
State troopers have identified the victim of a fatal single vehicle wreck in Gulf Shores Friday night as a Cantonment woman.
Lindsey Murphy, 40, was killed in the crash just after 10 p.m. February 26 on Highway 59. She was the passenger in a 1996 Honda Accord that left the roadway and crashed into a utility pole. The driver, 34-year old Arthur Arabian of Pensacola, was also injured in the wreck.
The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency is continuing their investigation.
File photo.
High Speed Chase Ends Near Ascend With Arrest Of Beulah Car Burglaries, Attempted Gun Shop Burglary Suspect
March 1, 2021
A high speed chase traveled through parts of Cantonment and Gonzalez Monday morning before ending near the entrance to Ascend Performance Materials on Old Chemstrand Road with the arrest of felony suspect on multiple charges.
Chance Gardner, 23, was charged with attempted armed burglary, fleeing and eluding, felony criminal mischief, a felony narcotics violation, and arrested on outstanding warrants for grand theft and vehicle burglaries. He remained in the Escambia County Jail without bond.
Friday morning, Gardner allegedly burglarized multiple vehicles in the 9400 block of Lutoo Lane, just south of Nine Mile Road at the Beulah Fire Station (surveillance photo below).
On Sunday, he allegedly used a stolen car in attempt to ram his way through the backdoors of Mike’s Gun Shop in the 8600 block of Pensacola Boulevard in Ensley, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office. “He was unsuccessful in that attempt,” ECSO spokesperson Amber Southard said.
On Monday morning, ECSO deputy Darin Vought spotted Gardner driving stolen vehicle in the area of Highway 95A and Old Chemstrand Road, and a pursuit ensued.
According to multiple North Escambia readers, the pursuit traveled down East Kingfield Road headed both east and then west. It came to an end just outside Ascend where it appeared the suspect vehicle came to a stop in a trailer parking area near the lake on the northeast side of Ascend Park. Gardner was captures without further incident. There were no injuries.
During the pursuit, Sgt. James Newton “bumped” Gardner’s vehicle near Ascend Park in an attempt to stop him. Gardner then backed into the sergeant’s vehicle. The cruiser was located on the shoulder of the road near the park with heavy damage to the push bar and hood (photo above).
“This is a criminal who has stolen guns, broken into numerous cars and placed residents at risk. We were not going to let him get away when we had the opportunity to put an end to his crime spree. We were able to end the pursuit, so he could no longer endanger and victimize the good people of Escambia County,” said Escambia County Sheriff Chip Simmons.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Amtrak Service Returning Next Year To The Gulf Coast. But Not To Pensacola Or Atmore.
March 1, 2021
Daily Amtrak service will return to the Gulf Coast next year, but stops will not include Pensacola or Atmore.
Amtrak has confirmed it intends to begin passenger rail service between New Orleans and Mobile in 2022. The daily passenger rail service will feature two business friendly round trips each morning and evening, with stops in Bay St. Louis, Gulfport, Biloxi, and Pascagoula.
“Having worked tirelessly with federal, state, and local officials on this project, we are thrilled that a departure time is in sight for passenger rail service on the Gulf Coast,” said Wiley Blankenship, chairman of the Southern Rail Commission. “Since the 2016 inspection train, which brought out thousands of citizens across the Gulf Coast demonstrating enthusiastic support for passenger rail, this is one of the major milestones we have been working toward.”
While the Amtrak inspection train was enthusiastically welcomed to Pensacola and Atmore, Mobile will be the end of the line. That will leave Atmore, which was designated by the Alabama Legislature as the state’s official rail welcome station, without passenger train service. And service will not return to Florida.
The SRC has been uniquely successful in securing multiple federal grants to enable the Amtrak trains roll next year between New Orleans and Mobile, including full federal support of operating costs for the first year of service and continued federal support in the second and third year ($11.2 million), and a federal grant and local matching funds for improvements to area railroad infrastructure for passenger and freight service ($66 million) to cities along the route for planning, upgrading, and constructing their rail stations ($2 million).
Pictured: An Amtrak inspection train rolls in Atmore (top and bottom) and Pensacola (inset) in February 2016. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Cantonment Motorcyclist Killed In Jacks Branch Road Crash
March 1, 2021
A Cantonment crash claimed the life of a motorcyclist Sunday afternoon.
The crash happened about 2:15 p.m. when a 74-year old Cantonment man was traveling southbound on Jacks Branch Road. The Florida Highway Patrol said a 19-year old Cantonment man headed northbound on Jacks Branch Road turned his Chevrolet Tahoe left at the intersection of Old Bridge Road, directly into the path of the motorcycle. The vehicles collided at the intersection.
The motorcyclist was airlifted by LifeFlight to Sacred Heart Hospital where he was later pronounced deceased.
The Florida Highway Patrol is continuing their investigation. FHP no longer releases the names of traffic crash victims.
Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Ernest Ward FFA Presents ‘Golden Cow Dung Award’ To Assistant Principal
March 1, 2021
Ernest Ward Middle School Assistant Principal Tyvanna Boulanger received the annual “Golden Cow Dung Award” from members of the Ernest Ward FFA recently. The award features a large piece of cow dung, painted a golden color and mounted on a board painted in school colors.
Boulanger received the award during National FFA Week as a “thank you” for supporting FFA.
(Cow dung, in case you didn’t know for sure, is what you are probably thinking it is. It’s that natural byproduct that cows drop in the field. The award is 100% real dung spray painted a golden color. The golden piece is actually the original award piece created and painted in 2009.)
Pictured: Assistant Principal Tyvanna Boulanger received the annual “Golden Cow Dung Award” from the Ernest Ward Middle School FFA. Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
