Molino Park Math A Thon Raises Money For St. Jude Children’s Hospital
March 23, 2015
Almost 40 students from Molino Park Elementary School recently participated in the St. Jude Math-A-Thon for the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Sponsors donated money to student who completed math projects, allowing the students to gain valuable math experience while helping others. Molino Park raised a total of $880 for St. Judes. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Hours Changing At Escambia Animal Shelter
March 23, 2015
The Escambia County Animal Shelter at1 200 West Fairfield Drive will change its hours of operation, effective April 6.
Currently the Shelter is open from noon to 6 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. After the change, the shelter will be open Tuesdays-Fridays to 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturdays to 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and opening Mondays (11 a.m. to 5 p.m.) for intake of stray animals only.
The proposed changes will increase the hours available to the public for turning in stray animals, alleviate staffing issues and improve customer service by increasing the number of employees available during the hours the shelter is open to the public.
The change to Saturday’s hours is in response to the trend of significant traffic reduction after 3 p.m. Opening earlier will encourage the public to visit the shelter on Saturdays knowing they still have time to do other things in the afternoon.
For more information, please contact the Escambia County Animal Shelter directly at (850) 595-3075.
All Abuzz About Bees
March 22, 2015
A “Bee Field Day” was held Saturday, part of a beekeeping short course being offered this month by the UF/IFAS Extension Panhandle Agriculture Team. Participants were able to learn personal protection, how to start a smoker, proper handling techniques, queen identification and honey extraction during the hands-on experience. Class participants will lean about pests and diseases next week. Courtesy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Former NBA Star, College Group Team Up To Clean Up Cantonment Park
March 22, 2015
A former NBA star and a student ministry from Kansas teamed up recently to perform community service projects in Cantonment.
Wayne Simien, who was on the Miami Heat’s 2006 NBA championship team, joined the Kansas University student Ministry group Called to Greatness, Pensacola Habitat’s Neighborhood Revitalization team, the Cantonment Improvement Committee and numerous area residents on a variety of projects.
Nearly 50 volunteers worked to paint the pavilion and picnic tables at Carver Park, create a community garden, plant trees and more. The projects centered around a planned Community Resource Center, which will be located in a renovated modular building that Escambia County donated to the Cantonment Improvement Committee. The building, once is fully operation in a few months, will serve as headquarters for the CIC from its location in Carver Park. Modifications and alterations for accessibility are currently underway, and the resource center should be fully operational in the coming months.
“Called to Greatness’ presence here quickened efforts to give this deserving community a stronger chance of recognizing their dream of an operational Community Resource Center in the immediate future,” said Jon Potrzeba, Habitat’s community outreach coordinator. “To have such a passionate group of college students volunteer with the neighborhood revitalization energizes everyone involved.”
The Neighborhood Revitalization team works to fulfill the mission of Pensacola Habitat through clean-ups, revitalization construction, community development and other efforts. For more information contact Pensacola Habitat for Humanity at (850) 434-5456.
New Walmart Store Taking Applications For 95 Jobs
March 22, 2015
Looking for a job? Walmart will hire up to 95 people for their new store this morning.
The new Walmart Neighborhood Market is currently under construction at 9201 Pine Forest Road. At about 44,000 square feet, it’s much smaller than the 200,000 square feet of a Walmart Supercenter.
Walmart is accepting applications from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. Monday-Friday at a temporary hiring center at 2115 West Nine Mile Road, Suite 12. Applications can also be submitted online at careers.walmart.com.
Many of the new employees will be hired in April to begin work stocking the store in May.
Play Ball! Opening Day For Molino Ballpark (With Photo Gallery)
March 22, 2015
Saturday was Opening Day for Molino Recreation Association and the Molino Ballpark.
For more photos from select games, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
One Dead, Two Critical After Munson Crossroads Crash
March 22, 2015
One person was killed and two were critically injured in a two-vehicle crash at the Munson crossroads east of Jay Saturday afternoon.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, the 22-year old driver of a 1999 four-door Hyundai was northbound on Munson Highway and failed to yet right of way by entering Highway 4 and the path of a 2006 Ford driven by 26-year old Nicholas Kotona of Jay. Kotona attempted unsuccessfully to avoid the collision; his pickup rolled several times following the crash
The driver of the Hyundai was pronounced deceased at the scene. Their name has not been released pending notification of next of kin by the FHP.
A passenger in the Hyundai, 22-year old Javier Calderon-Hernanadez of Milton, was transported to Sacred Heart Hospital in critical condition. Kotona was also transported to Sacred Heart in critical condition.
Any charges in the crash are pending the outcome of an ongoing Florida Highway Patrol traffic homicide investigation.
Weekend Gardening: Daffodils Signal Spring
March 22, 2015
Few plants seem to signify the freshness of spring quite as well as daffodils. The name “daffodils” is derived from “addodell” a variant of Asphodel (a plant of the Asphodelus genus.) In historical documents and the common language of 16th century Europe, the term “daffodil” referred specifically to the wild daffodil, Narcissus pseudonarcissus.
The derivation of the Latin narcissus is unknown. It is frequently linked to the Greek myth of Narcissus, who was rumored to be so obsessed with his own reflection that he died while gazing at himself in a pool of water. From the location of his death sprang the narcissus plant. Another Greek myth finds Persephone, daughter of the goddess Demeter, lured to her doom by the God Hades while picking a narcissus. Therefore the plant is perceived as a symbol of vanity in some Western culture.
Others attribute the plants’ name to its narcotic properties. One translation of the Greek name is “I grow numb!” All narcissus species contain the alkaloid poison lycorine, mostly in the bulb but also in the leaves. Members of the Amaryllidaceae family contain unique types of alkaloids. They are responsible for the poisonous properties of a number of the species. Of the 200 different chemical compounds found in this plant family, at least 79 of them can be found in narcissus.
Daffodils are a popular potted plant for cut flowers, but also make attractive naturalized ground covers in gardens and around trees, providing color from the end of winter through late spring. If the narcissus blooms on Chinese New Year, it is said to bring wealth and good fortune throughout the year. The flower color varies from white through pinks and yellows to deep reddish-orange with multiple petal forms. Hundreds of cultivars are available.
Planting dates vary according to geographical location, but bulbs are usually planted in the fall when the soil is cool. Daffodils grow well in full sun or light shade, with the blooms lasting longer when protected from the noon day sun. When selecting a location for planting, it should be noted that the individual flowers will face the sun.
Pre-chilled bulbs should be planted in 6-8” deep holes with a tablespoon of slow release fertilizer added to the soil directly under the bulb and with 4-5” of soil covering the bulb. Watering throughout the winter will be necessary if rains are infrequent. After flowering, the daffodils need to be fertilized and watering should continue. The foliage will naturally turn yellow and die as stored food is restored to the bulb.
Division, transplanting and collection for forcing potted plants can be done after all the foliage has declined. To force Daffodils to bloom at varied times in a container the dried bulbs will need to be stored at a 45° F temperature for 4-6 weeks prior to being placed in the sun to grow.
The bright, cheery Daffodil flowers are beginning to bloom now and will continue as Easter approaches, reminding us that spring really is coming.
Email Sheila Dunning at sdunning@ufl.edu.
Photos by Matthew Orwat for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Florida Gov’t Weekly Roundup: Temps Rising As Budget Unveiled
March 22, 2015
Things are getting warmer in Tallahassee — and while the mercury is rising sharply, the hottest thing in town could soon be the battle over the shape and size of the budget for the coming year.
On Friday, the House and Senate unveiled spending plans for the year beginning July 1 that were similar in some respects and vastly different in others. The most striking area of conflict was the bottom line. An austere House budget would spend $76.2 billion — less even than the almost $77 billion plan that Gov. Rick Scott proposed.
The Senate, on the other hand, made it rain, unveiling an $80.4 billion budget that would be the largest in state history and would include funding for a quasi-Medicaid expansion and a reconfigured Low Income Pool program. Those responsible for the upper chamber’s proposal played down the significance of its size.
“Absent an additional $5 billion in local and federal funding, our proposed budget is approximately the same as the initial budget the Senate passed last year,” Senate Appropriations Chairman Tom Lee, R-Brandon, said in a statement accompanying the budget. “This conservative approach preserves the resources necessary to address a crisis in Florida’s hospital network.”
There are other differences in the plans — the Senate’s focus on health care comes even as it provides fewer dollars than Scott or the House in per-student funding for public schools. Neither the House nor the Senate would reach Scott’s recommendation for school spending under the main formula used to bankroll elementary and secondary education.
Those disputes could lead to a climate change in what has so far been a mundane legislative session — a change that would make it almost as heated inside the Capitol as April in Tallahassee promises to be outdoors.
SCOTT GETTING SCHOOLED ON ED FUNDING?
As part of Scott’s attempted makeover the past few years from rock-ribbed budget cutting conservative to a more moderate figure, the governor has touted his efforts to pump more and more money into education. A key part of his 2014 re-election platform was to propose a new high-water mark for per-student funding for public schools, which he made good on by requesting $7,176 a pupil in the coming budget year.
He won’t get that much. House and Senate lawmakers have both issued plans that fall short of Scott’s proposal, which would surpass the old record set in the 2007-2008 school year. But the House put forward a version that, at $7,129 a head, at least surpassed the old mark by $3.
“It wasn’t a slight to the governor,” said Rep. Erik Fresen, the Miami Republican who chairs the House’s education budget subcommittee. “We wanted to make sure we hit his historic number.”
The Senate didn’t go that far, proposing a plan that would bump education spending up to $7,123, short of the old mark.
It wasn’t that much of a surprise. Sen. Don Gaetz, Fresen’s counterpart in the Senate, said lawmakers were trying to patch a potential drop in health-care funding from the federal government.
“I think it’s less likely that the Senate or the House can get to the governor’s number, because the governor’s budget relied upon revenues that no longer exist,” said Gaetz, R-Niceville. “That’s not the governor’s fault. He operated under the information that he had then.”
Also worth noting: The Senate’s proposal would still boost per-student funding for public schools by 3 percent. But failing to get the symbolic victory of even a couple of dollars over the old record likely wouldn’t help Scott shake the perception that he’s losing clout at the Capitol.
MEDICATION FOR YOUR LIP
The flip side of the House’s more generous treatment of education is its less generous treatment of the health-care budget. The Senate released a budget proposal Thursday that banks on expanding health-care coverage for low-income Floridians and extending a critical funding program for hospitals.
That creates a hefty $5 billion conflict with the House, a difference that could be one of the biggest flashpoints once the two chambers start negotiating the budget.
Senators included $2.8 billion in the budget proposal to pay for an expansion of health-care coverage that is an outgrowth of the federal Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare. House Republican leaders have rejected such proposals during the past two years — and have shown no willingness to go along with a revised Senate expansion plan this year.
If the expansion ultimately is approved, the federal government would cover the $2.8 billion first-year costs of the plan, which the Senate has dubbed the Florida Health Insurance Affordability Exchange Program, or FHIX.
The Senate budget proposal also includes nearly $2.2 billion for the continuation of the Low Income Pool program, which in recent years has funneled additional money to hospitals and other health providers that serve large numbers of poor and uninsured patients. The program, known as LIP, is scheduled to expire June 30 unless the state can reach agreement with the federal government on an extension. Amid such uncertainty, a House budget proposal did not include the money.
Sounding a bit like the H&R Block commercials, Lee essentially said Friday that the state should get its billions back.
“Each year, Floridians across our state send a significant amount of their hard-earned money to Washington,” he said. “Our goal in this budget was to return more of those federal tax dollars to serve the people of Florida.”
The House, which doesn’t include the LIP money, isn’t so sure.
House Health Care Appropriations Chairman Matt Hudson, R-Naples, said it would be premature to include the LIP money in initial budget plans, given that state and federal officials haven’t agreed that there will be a LIP program after June 30.
Hudson and House Speaker Steve Crisafulli, R-Merritt Island, said lawmakers are in a similar position as last year, when the program also was slated to expire. The House and Senate did not include LIP money in their initial budget proposals last year but added the money after an agreement was reached for a one-year extension of the program.
“We’re in the same scenario this year,” Hudson said.
The House also continues to rule out any sort of Medicaid expansion, regardless of the way the Senate presents it.
WATER UNDER THE BRIDGE? NOT YET
And while the House and Senate were presenting their different plans on high-profile issues like education and health care, lawmakers also spent part of the week dealing with how they would divvy up the funding stream for water and land conservation set aside under a voter-approved constitutional amendment.
Under the House plan, Florida’s natural springs would get $50 million, the Kissimmee River is in line for $30 million, and a wastewater plan for the Florida Keys is up for $25 million.
But there are few other clearly outlined projects in a $772.1 million proposal for next fiscal year released Tuesday by the House Agriculture & Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee. The proposal is focused more on land management and water projects than on new land acquisitions.
The plan quickly drew mixed reviews from conservationists, whose reactions included that it was a “a good starting point” for negotiations and that lawmakers disregarded the intent of voters who supported a constitutional amendment, known as Amendment 1, in November.
“The recommendation ignores what the voters thought that they were voting for, which was to put money into land acquisition for parks and wildlife habitat and trails,” said Audubon Florida Executive Director Eric Draper, a lobbyist on environmental issues.
Senators were busy defusing a potential showdown with affordable-housing advocates, changing course Wednesday and saying housing programs won’t take a hit as part of the Senate’s approach to meeting the demands of the constitutional amendment.
The Senate Appropriations Committee unanimously removed a controversial reduction in money for housing programs that had been included in a series of bills (SB 576, SB 578, SB 580, SB 582, SB 584, and SB 586) revamping trust funds to handle the conservation amendment.
“It was a just a choice we made to move on that issue,” Sen. Charlie Dean, an Inverness Republican who is the author of the Senate trust-fund measures, said after the committee meeting.
The change restores the current percentage of money that goes into a trust fund for affordable housing from real-estate taxes known as documentary-stamp taxes.
STORY OF THE WEEK: House and Senate committees revealed their budgets over the course of the week, setting up the annual clash over state spending priorities.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “I don’t think that we can ever be confident that we found all of them. I think it’s the tip of the iceberg. We can only investigate those cases which are brought to our attention since there is no real meaningful oversight by the department to police itself.”—Florida Justice Institute Executive Director Randall Berg, talking about the prison death or Rommell Johnson. After being contacted by The News Service of Florida and told about Johnson’s death, Department of Corrections Secretary Julie Jones said she intends to have Johnson’s case reviewed by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, now probing about 100 unresolved prison deaths.
by Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida
Molino Park Celebrates The Arts (With Photo Gallery)
March 21, 2015
Molino Park Elementary School held its annual Arts Day on Friday, with the students spending the day immersed in a variety of arts.
The students enjoyed a wide variety of artistic experiences including pottery, theater from the Pensacola Little Theatre, quilting, painting, woodworking, handbells, a barbershop quartet performance and more. And, courtesy of Pensacola Symphony volunteers, they were able to play a variety of instruments.
Pictured top and inset:During Arts Day at Molino Park Elementary, students had the opportunity to try playing instruments with members of the Pensacola Symphony Orchestra. Pictured belows: A barbershop quartet performed. Pictured bottom: Leaning about pottery. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
