The Bluffs Industrial Complex In Cantonment, Town Of Jay Projects Named TaxWatch ‘Budget Turkeys’
June 12, 2020
The Bluffs in Cantonment and two projects in the town of Jay were included in the 2020 Budget Turkey Watch Report released Thursday by Florida TaxWatch in the think tank’s annual independent review of the state’s budget. They are recommending that Gov. Ron DeSantis veto the funding for the turkeys.
Announced in late 2015, The Bluffs was envisioned as the home of up to 60 new industrial and manufacturing companies and more than 15,000 jobs. The 6,000 acre master-planned development area includes about 1,700 acres of land that can be developed in an area east of Highway 29 bordered by the Escambia River to the east, Becks Lake Road near International Paper to the north, and the University of West Florida to the south.
The $93.2 billion budget passed by the Florida Legislature for FY2020-21 contains 180 appropriations items qualifying as Budget Turkeys worth $136.3 million.
Items classified by the group as Budget Turkeys in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties were (with item descriptions from the Florida Senate):
Escambia County
- The Bluffs Entrance and Transportation Upgrades – $750,000 Escambia County
- The Bluffs entrance at Ascend Performance Materials/Emerald Coast Utilities Authority/Chemstrand Road Intersection. Planning, engineering, design, and construction for the entrance to The Bluffs Industrial Corridor and transportation upgrades at the multileg intersection of New Chemstrand Road, Old Chemstrand Road, Emerald Coast Utilities Authority’s entrance drive, and Ascend Performance Materials entrance drive(s). Project supports the active economic development program for The Bluffs, including over 100 logistics and manufacturing jobs for current active opportunities. The current active projects are: Project Astro, Project Coral, Project Emerald, and Project Flow.
Santa Rosa County
- Town of Jay Roadway Improvements $300,000
- A pavement assessment was conducted in 2019 of all roadways in the Town of Jay. The report concluded that a majority of the roads have not been serviced in thirty years and will only require an overlay rather than a complete redesign making the proposed project “shovel ready”. The funds requested will cover the permitting, contract administration, and construction of the roadway overlays.
- Town of Jay Bray Hendricks Park Master Plan $300,000
- Bray-Hendricks Park is a 39-year old park that is in critical need of updated sports surfaces and support capabilities to place the park in compliance with ADA requirements. This essential Town of Jay project is a proposed master planned sports complex within the town limits of Jay, Florida. The master plan includes one competition softball field, four regulation baseball fields, three tee-ball fields, four tennis courts, a basketball court, a combination soccer/football field, a children’s splash pad, a playground, an accessory concession building, and ADA compliant bathrooms. Economically, the sports complex can bring opportunity to the area by hosting tournaments and events that draw visitors. Current youth recreation leagues bring hundreds of families to the park to share in their child’s sport. The BrayHendricks Park is an important building block in promoting economic development in this rural community.
- Pea Ridge Connector – $750,000
- Santa Rosa County is constructing a new roadway connecting U.S. Highway 90 to Hamilton Bridge Road in the Pea Ridge Area. The new connector road is a 4-lane roadway with bi-directional bike lanes and sidewalks. The construction includes new turn lanes and new signals at both the U.S. Highway 90 intersection and the Hamilton Bridge Road Intersection.
According to TaxWatch, Budget Turkeys are often local member projects, placed in the final appropriations bill without being scrutinized and subjected to the budget committee process, or that circumvented existing grant and other legislatively established selection processes. The Budget Turkey label does not signify judgment of a project’s worthiness. Instead, the review focuses solely on the integrity, accountability, and transparency of the legislatively established budget process. The goal of which is to ensure that all appropriations of hard-earned taxpayer money achieves its intended public benefit. Since 1986, both Republican and Democratic governors have vetoed more than $3 billion in projects identified by FTW as Budget Turkeys.
County Closing Recycling Site At John R. Jones Ballpark On Nine Mile Road
June 12, 2020
Escambia County is closing the recycling drop-off site at the John R. Jones Ballpark on Nine Mile Road.
The site will close Monday, June 15 and remain closed until further notice.
“This closure is due to illegal dumping and unacceptable levels of contamination commingled in the recyclable materials,” Escambia County said in a statement. “The contamination increases the cost of processing recycling materials. There have been multiple complaints from citizens, commuters on Nine Mile Road and neighbors using the park.”
Recyclables can taken to the Perdido Landfill Drop-Off Recycling Site located at 13009 Beulah Road. Residents can also contact their waste services company and request recycling service. ECUA customers can call (850) 476-0480.
NorthEscambia.com photo.
Two Cantonment Men Arrested On Drug Charges After Traffic Stop
June 12, 2020
Two Cantonment men were arrested following a traffic stop..
Adam Luken Daw, 42, was charged with possession of a weapon by a convicted Florida felon, possession of a synthetic cannabinoid, possession of drug paraphernalia and driving while license suspended for financial obligation. Jacob Joseph Settle, 40, was charged with possession of a controlled substance without a prescription and possession of drug paraphernalia.
An Escambia County Sheriff’s Office deputy observed a pickup truck pulling a small boat and trailer with no tag or operating tail lights on McKenzie Road. The passenger looked in the deputy’s direction and ducked down in his seat “as if in an attempt to conceal his identity”, an arrest report states.
The deputy conducted a traffic stop at the intersection of Highway 95A and Quintette Road and identified the passenger as Settle, who was taken into custody on an outstanding warrant.
An ESCO K-9 alerted on the vehicle.
During the subsequent search, deputies located a backpack containing Settle’s identification, a gun magazine containing five .22 caliber rounds, multiple baggies, glass pipes, rolling papers and a digital scale, according to an arrest report. In the passenger seat where Settle was sitting, deputies found a clear plastic bag with a substance that tested positive for methamphetamine.
In a bag by the gas pedal, deputies reported finding a bag that contained four burnt spice cigarettes, a smaller bag that contained 15 loose .22 caliber rounds and a bottle that contained 51 additional .22 caliber rounds.
Settle said the backpack and its contents on the passenger side belonged to him, and the bag by the gas pedal belonged to Daw, the report states. Meanwhile, Daw told deputies that everything in the front of the truck belonged to Settle, and he did not know what was in the bag found by the gas pedal.
Settle remained in the Escambia County Jail Friday without bond. Daw was released on a $13,500 bond.
Escambia Tax Collector Offers Saturday Hours for Driver’s License Transactions
June 12, 2020
Escambia County Tax Collector Scott Lunsford is offering driver’s license services on Saturdays by appointment only.
The appointments are available only at the tax collector’s Marcus Pointe location at 6451 North W Street from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m.
Citizens can renew or replace their current license or identification card, get a new license or identification card (with Real ID compliant documents) or upgrade their learner permit if they previously passed the road skills exam.
Customers eligible to renew online should visit EscambiaTaxCollector.com and click the “Renew DL/ID Here.”
Other transactions that will be available by appointment only include fast title printing, driver transcripts, and handicapped parking placards.
Registration renewals will be available in the drive-thru only; no appointment is required.
“I am excited to offer this Saturday service for our community,” Lunsford said. “This is all about serving our customers well and fulfilling our vision to promote world-class customer service during this difficult time.”
In order to facilitate as many customers as possible, the office will not offer tag or title work, written testing or driving tests during this time.
Customers should visit our website, EscambiaTaxCollector.com and click the “Book Saturday Appointment” button on the homepage. There they will enter their information, select “Saturday Appointment Only” button, then select the applicable service and time requested.
Plan Announced To Reopen Florida Public Schools At Full Capacity By Fall
June 12, 2020
Gov. Ron DeSantis and Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran announced their plans for fully reopening Florida schools this fall, including several incremental steps this summer.
This plan outlines the nearly $475 million in state directed education financial assistance provided to Florida through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. In total, more than $2 billion in education-related aid was provided through the CARES Act.
“In Florida, we’re taking a smart, safe, step-by-step approach to re-opening, and this extensive data driven plan will ensure Florida students, educators, and families have the confidence and support needed to get students back to the classroom, which will in turn allow parents back into the workforce and allow Florida to hit its economic stride,” said Governor DeSantis.
After, receiving feedback from thousands of Floridians, including medical experts, community stakeholders, education leaders, and parents, two constant themes became apparent and are pillars embedded throughout the plan – keeping our education community safe and ensuring all students receive a first class education.
“It is critically important that we continue to show compassion and grace as we make decisions to safely get students back in the classroom,” said Commissioner Richard Corcoran. “We realize that to fully re-open Florida, we must do our due diligence and instill confidence in families which allows them to return to school campuses safely and ready to succeed. Data from across the nation and world clearly indicates it is safe to reopen schools in August. Additionally, we must and will attack the achievement gap by offering summer programs and engaging in significant academic interventions to ensure all children receive a world class education.”
Recommendations for Re-Opening
Step-by-Step Approach: K-12 Campus Reopening Steps 1-2-3
- Step 1 – June – open up campuses for youth activities and summer camps.
- Step 2 – July – expand campus capacities further for summer recovery instruction.
- Step 3 – August – open up campuses at full capacity for traditional start of the academic year.
Step-by-Step Approach: Postsecondary Campus Reopening
- Summer A and C Semesters – state colleges, technical colleges and universities are generally virtual, with the exception of first responder and some CTE programs.
- Summer B Semester – open state colleges and technical colleges for in-person summer learning. State universities continue to remain virtual as they have already decided for Summer B.
- Fall Semester – open state colleges, technical colleges and universities at full capacity for traditional start of the academic year.
Reopening Strategies
- Reopening is a locally driven decision
- Education institutions should create a local safe schools plan to maintain in-person learning, which is the best method of education delivery for students.
- Create a framework for local planning by creating a Crisis Response Team.
- Establish partnerships and support in communities to make local decisions.
- Promote risk reduction through a great culture of teaching.
- Protect students, staff, and families with medical vulnerabilities.
- Recommendations to Reduce Risks at the Front Door
- Create a crisis response team at the district, school or program level, as applicable.
- Post a crisis plan and response check list where they are easily accessible.
- Consider screening students, employees and visitors through visual signage, verbal questions or visual assessments.
- As feasible and while maintaining the goal of getting students on campus every day, explore staggered schedules, start and end times to limit crowds.
- Monitor student and employee absenteeism closely, as absenteeism may be an early warning system of larger health concerns.
- Regularly update employees, parents and students with emails on best practices for at-home preventative care.
- Locally determine what constitutes an adequate prevention inventory that includes extra supplies of PPE, cloth face coverings, gloves, sanitizer, soap, etc.
- Consider creating a protocol for incoming and outgoing mail and deliveries and consider creating a “timeout” or cleansing room.
- Post signage about hygiene and social distancing in many very accessible areas.
- Conduct employee trainings for all of the above and regular employee meetings on COVID-19 updates.
- Recommendations to Redesign the School Day to Reduce Risks
- As feasible, keep groups of students together throughout the day to minimize the number of people in close contact with each person.
- As feasible, convert cafeterias, libraries, gymnasiums, auditoriums, outdoor areas into classroom space.
- Explore allowing students to eat meals in traditional classroom space or outdoors.
- Move nonessential furniture and equipment out of classrooms to increase distance between students and turn desks the same direction.
- Maintain a maximum distance between desks as possible, even if not able to achieve 6 feet, and avoid sharing of textbooks, supplies and toys.
- Consider setting up a secondary clinic in schools, exclusively for students showing symptoms of COVID-19.
- Establish procedures in consultation with school health staff to quickly separate students and staff who become sick from others.
- Create a disinfection protocol for cleaning door knobs, counters and other surfaces throughout the day.
- Consider limiting nonessential visitors to campuses and programs.
- Consider alternative meeting options for nonessential volunteer activities, clubs and other elective meetings that require in-person contact.
- Explore limiting nonessential mass gatherings or reschedule as virtual gatherings.
- Recommendations to Plan for Graduations, Sports, Band, Arts, Other Extracurriculars and Co-curriculars
- Consult with the local department of health and the crisis response team.
- At events, consider non-contact temperature testing of adults who will be direct participants and have close contact with students.
- Monitor students who participate in extracurriculars for symptoms throughout the day.
- All equipment, instruments, uniforms, etc. should be washed or wiped down after each use.
- Explore an increased presence of law enforcement or staff at events to maintain adherence to social distancing.
- Consider limited seating at events while allowing families to sit together and marking off seating for social distancing.
- Consider having attendees arrive at events earlier, stagger exits and allow for multiple entry and exit points.
- Explore options to maintain social distancing at event facilities: public restrooms, concessions, etc.
- Consider ways to limit close contact between participants and attendees until an event concludes.
- Identify a space that can be used to isolate staff or participants if one becomes ill at an event.
- Determine what are adequate prevention supplies to have at an event for participants and attendees, including hand sanitizing stations.
Recommendations also include student drop-off and pick-up, consider contact tracing protocol, testing protocol, best practices, and considerations for buses.
Click here to read the entire plan (pdf, 143 pages).
NorthEscambia.com photo.
Florida Lottery Warns Of Scam Targeting The Elderly
June 12, 2020
The Florida Lottery is warning citizens of a lottery scam making its rounds across the country targeting the elderly. The scammers inform the recipients that they’ve won a lottery prize but must send a check in order to verify banking information and receive their prize.
The Florida Lottery does not contact players to inform them that they have won a prize unless they have entered a promotional game or second chance drawing on the official Florida Lottery website or social media pages.
The following are important tips from the Florida Lottery:
Never pay money to collect a prize.
Never give your credit card number(s) or personal information over the telephone to anyone promising Lottery cash prizes or memberships.
Never redeem a Lottery ticket for a stranger.
You do not need to be a U.S. citizen to claim a Florida Lottery prize.
McDavid Man Charged With Shooting At A Man He Thought Was Trespassing
June 11, 2020
A McDavid man was arrested after allegedly firing a rifle at a man he believed had trespassed on his property.
Samuel Oscar Macks, 56, was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for firing at the man and discharging a firearm in public by shooting beside a county road and close to homes.
Macks told deputies he heard a noise near a shed on his property and saw a vehicle on the side of the road. He followed the vehicle as it drove away and caught up with it near the end of Elsie Davis Road. He found a man sitting on an ATV and confronted him about attempting to enter his property as he believed he had done in the past, according to an arrest report.
The victim told deputies he was sitting near his residence adding oil to his ATV when Macks approached him and accused him of stealing from his property. The victim said Macks retrieved a .22 caliber rifle from his car, threatened him and fired several shots. A witness reported hearing five shots.
It was noted in the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office report that the ATV was leaking oil in the road consistent with the victim’s statement. When Mack’s vehicle was searched, deputies found a case of 61 Remington .22 caliber rounds in the passenger seat and a single .22 caliber long round on the driver’s seat, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
Macks’ first statement to deputies was redacted from the arrest report, but it states he later changed his statement to say he had returned to his residence and was no where near the victim.
Visitors Barred From Florida Prisons Until At Least June 28
June 11, 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic visitation suspension at Florida prisons has been extended until at least June 28, the Florida Department of Corrections announced Wednesday.
“The decision to reinstate the normal visitation schedule will be evaluated in consultation,” the FDC said.
Inmates will continue to have access to their loved ones through mail, phone calls and video visitation. Legal visits will not be impacted, although attorneys are encouraged to consult with their clients via phone, email or mail during this time.
Pensacola Beach Air Show Will Have New Four-Day Format
June 11, 2020
The Pensacola Beach Air Show will go on this year in a new four-day format July 8-11.
After multiple meetings between the Santa Rosa Island Authority (SRIA) staff and air show performers, the staff proposes the SRIA continue planning the 2020 Pensacola Beach Air Show in July.
The air show program this year is built around social distancing in observance of the CDC recommendations for the COVID-19 virus.
The program will be a four-day event, and each day will have similar flight maneuvers. This expanded schedule will give the public four different opportunities to view the performances at least once.
The event’s footprint has been expanded substantially and there will be no center point in this year’s performance, to comply with CDC recommendations.
Aerial displays along the beach are scheduled to begin before noon each day.
SRIA staff and performers, including the Blue Angels, are still refining exact times and geographical locations that will include both Pensacola Beach and Perdido Key.
SRSO: Jay Woman Harassed Air Force Recruiter, Claimed To Be ISIS Terrorist
June 11, 2020
A Jay woman allegedly made dozens of harassing phone calls to an U.S. Air Force Recruiter, making threats and claiming to be a terrorist and a member of ISIS.
Margarette Ann Diamond, 24, was charged with harassing communication and was released on a $500 bond.
Diamond called the recruiter’s office 38 times and left several “vulgar” and “belittling” messages, according to a Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office report, along with a message that stated, “I’m a terrorist now”. Some of the voicemail messages included the words “kill” and “die”, the report states.
According to a U.S. Air Force investigator, Diamond left additional voice mails that continued to belittle the recruiter and stated, “You’re [expletive] going to die”.
The phone number used in the messages was positively linked to Diamond, according to the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office.