CSX: Atmore Crossing Work Should End This Week
February 19, 2015
For the past couple of weeks, driver in Atmore have experienced delays due to closed railroad crossings as CSX upgrades tracks through the city.
That work, according to CSX, is expected to soon be completed/
“CSX engineering crews are laying new rail, new rail ties, resurfacing crossings and repaving them with asphalt. CSX has worked closely with local officials to coordinate the crossing closures to minimize disruption to the community,” said Kristin Seay, spokesperson for CSX. “Several of the crossings have already been re-opened. The remainder of the work is expected to be completed by the end of this week.”
Seay said the Atmore track upgrades are part of CSX’s network-wide infrastructure maintenance program.
“Maintaining railroad infrastructure is critical to minimizing service disruptions and preventing accidents and injuries. CSX spends more than $1 billion annually on improving and maintaining track, bridges, signals and other equipment to keep freight moving safely and reliably. We appreciate the patience of community residents as we complete this work as safely and efficiently as possible,” she said.
Crossings at Industrial Drive and Main Street were the only crossings that remained closed as of late Wednesday.
Pictured top: The Industrial Drive railroad crossing in Atmore remained closed Wednesday afternoon. Picture inset and below: Traffic backed-up at the Main Street crossing last week. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
State Education Boss Calls For Cutting Back Tests
February 19, 2015
Education Commissioner Pam Stewart on Wednesday called for the elimination of at least one statewide test, as a key Senate education committee began hammering out legislation meant to curb the number of exams given to students in Florida’s public schools.
In a report delivered to Gov. Rick Scott, Stewart recommended that the state get rid of a language-arts test students take in 11th grade. An exam in the 10th grade is used to determine whether students have met the state’s graduation requirement in language arts, and many educators say the later test is unnecessary.
Stewart recommended that Scott issue an executive order to suspend the test in the current school year, with lawmakers later approving legislation to permanently scrap the assessment.
The report also recommended making optional a college readiness test that some students are required to take and eliminating final exams in courses that have state-mandated tests at the end of the year. Stewart also urged local school districts to do what they can to lower the amount of time students spend on tests.
“I am recommending that we eliminate as much testing as we can,” Stewart told reporters after brief remarks before the Senate Education Pre-K-12 Committee.
Scott has pushed for reining in the number of tests and asked Stewart for the review.
“It’s important to measure students’ progress and achievements, but we must not lose sight of our goal to provide every student with the very best education,” Scott said in a statement accompanying the report. “As I have traveled the state, I have heard from parents and teachers that there are too many tests and I agree.”
Stewart’s report also called for local districts not to “test students for the sole purpose of evaluating teachers” — just four years after the Legislature passed a controversial law more closing tying teacher pay to student performance on standardized tests.
“Students already take tests to determine whether they know their subject matter and districts should use information from these tests to help gauge teacher performance,” the report says.
But Senate Education Pre-K-12 Chairman John Legg, R-Lutz, would not commit Wednesday to getting rid of the 11th grade test in language arts.
“It’s one of the items on the table,” Legg said. “We are reviewing that. … It’s one of those options that we are seriously looking at.”
People who addressed the committee Wednesday largely agreed with Stewart’s recommendation on the 11th grade test, even as they pressed for more steps to cut back on exams.
“But trust me, there are opportunities to look at the portfolio of assessments in the state of Florida and identify other areas and examples of duplication that has put us in this position of over-testing,” said Miami-Dade County Superintendent Alberto Carvalho.
Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, questioned why students who do well on tests in upper-level courses then have to sit for state exams that are expected to be less rigorous.
“These students who have already taken and passed Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate tests are bored out of their gourds when we then ask them to take another test on the same material,” said Gaetz, a former Okaloosa County schools superintendent.
Education groups largely agree that the state should hold off on assigning school grades and making decisions about whether students should be promoted from the third grade or allowed to graduate based on new tests the state is introducing this year. A similar test has caused a backlash in Utah, though Legg said he still has confidence in the exam.
Lawmakers have already ensured that schools won’t face consequences from this year’s results under the state accountability system. But supporters of pushing back some of the other ways the results are used say that’s not enough.
“The letter grades are so important in terms of perception of a school,” Sen. Bill Montford, a Tallahassee Democrat who doubles as chief executive officer of the Florida Association of District School Superintendents, said after the meeting.
Much of the concern revolves around the fact that the new assessments have not been tested on Florida students. Educators say the FCAT was used for letter grades for schools only after a couple of years.
“We’re taking this exam and coming in and laying it down, saying, ‘We’re going to use it this year,’ ” Montford said.
by Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida
Receive Emergency Notices From ‘Alert Escambia’ Service
February 19, 2015
The new Alert Escambia Emergency Notification System allows citizens to receive alert notifications about community emergencies in Escambia County. Participants will receive time-sensitive messages at home, work, mobile or business phones, email addresses, text messages and more.
Escambia County’s EMA has found it necessary to replace its previous mass notification system that allowed it to communicate with the public and other agencies and entities during emergencies. The Escambia County Commission approved the system subscription last year with funding from Escambia County Emergency Management, the Escambia County Health Department, ECUA, International Paper , Ascend Performance Materials and Gulf Power Company.
The agencies will share the cost of the system on a prorated basis through June 30, and then each agency will contribute an equal $11,229.16 for the July 1, 2015, to June 30, 2016, time period for a total yearly cost of $67,375. Escambia County will utilize federal grant funds to pay for its share of the total subscription cost.
These messages will include emergency information regarding potential protective measures required to protect local citizens during an emergency situation such as evacuation notices or shelter in place instructions.
Register Now: https://member.everbridge.net/index/453003085611911#/signup
Login To An Existing Account: https://member.everbridge.net/index/453003085611911#/login
Century Resident Celebrates Her 103rd Birthday
February 19, 2015
Della Godwin of Century celebrated her 103rd birthday Thursday.
Godwin was born in Jay back in 1912, one of 12 children born to her parents Annie and William Griffis. She has two younger surviving siblings - Jean Clark and Veda Welch. She raised two sons, one of which is deceased, and has four grandchildren.
She was raised in the Mount Carmel community of Santa Rosa County. In her early years, she spent most of time in the cotton fields, but she was always in church on Sundays.
Godwin attributes her long life to hard work and faith. Those who know her will say that she was always caring for and helping others. She always put family first, even if it meant she had to do without the things she needed.
Godwin is longtime resident of the Century area and is the oldest resident at the Century Health and Rehabilitation Center.
Pictured top: Century resident Della Godwin turns 103 years old Thursday. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Updated: Wanted Man Behind Bars
February 19, 2015
UPDATE: Pete Anthony Jimenez is in custody in the Covington County Jail in Andalusia, AL.
The Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office is looking for a man on outstanding warrants that has been seen in the North Escambia area.
Pete Anthony Jimenez is wanted on seven outstanding warrants in Santa Rosa County including multiple felony grand theft charges and fleeing law enforcement. According to the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office, he has been seen in northern Santa Rosa County and in the Atmore area.
Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to call Santa Rosa County Crime Stoppers at (850) 437-STOP or their local law enforcement agency.
Pensacola Beach Named One Of The Best In The USA
February 19, 2015
TripAdvisor has named Pensacola Beach as one of the top five beaches in the United States.
Travelers’ Choice award-winning beaches were determined based on the quantity and quality of traveler reviews and ratings for beaches on TripAdvisor gathered over a 12-month period.
“Travelers visiting this Emerald Coast beach will experience miles of powdery-sanded coastline and a destination ideal for relaxation. The Pensacola Beach Pier offers fishing and unparalleled views of the ocean, while nearby beachfront restaurants serve mouthwatering gulf seafood,” TripAdvisor said in their review of Pensacola Beach.
Trip Advisor’s other top five beaches in the U.S. were Siesta Beach in Siesta Key, FL, followed by St. Pete Beach in Florida, Ka’anapali Beach in Hawaii and Wai’anapanapa State Park in Hawaii.
Pictured top and inset: A sunny winter day on Pensacola Beach. Pictured below: Looking back at Pensacola Beach from the end of the Pensacola Beach Fishing Pier. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Water Project Wishlist Includes $126K For Century, $26 Million in Escambia, Santa Rosa
February 18, 2015
Water-related projects totaling nearly $1.2 billion have been proposed as state lawmakers decide how to carve up a pot of money that voters want for land and water conservation and management.
The list of 475 requested water projects across the state includes almost $26.7 million in local projects in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties:
- Lime additional facilities at the Century wastewater treatment plant, $126,000.
- Flood improvement project for the Institute for Machine and Human Cognition, $550,000.
- Innerarity water and sewer upgrade in Escambia County, $1,020,000.
- Milton beneficial effluent reuse project, $349,115.
- East Milton water reclamation and effluent disposal facility, $15,000,000
- Santa Rosa County Navarre Beach wastewater treatment plant relocation, $9,650,000.
The East Milton project is among the largest requests in the state, which range from $96.8 million for phase two of the Yankee Lake Surface Water Plant in Seminole County to $15,000 for the replacement of sewage flowmeters in Miami-Dade County.
The House Agriculture & Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee panel is working to define the intent of the ballot initiative, which was known as Amendment 1 and was approved by 75 percent of voters.
“There is going to be somebody, somewhere, that isn’t happy with the way the funds are distributed,” subcommittee Chairman Ben Albritton, R-Wauchula, said. “It’s going to happen, because there are so many people and so many perspectives.”
The amendment, which directs 33 percent of the proceeds from a real-estate tax to land and water projects, is expected to provide $757 million for the efforts during the fiscal year that starts July 1.
Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida, contributed to this report.
Molino Man Charged With Tom Thumb Robbery
February 18, 2015
A Molino man has been arrested for robbing a Tom Thumb on Saufley Field Road.
Acoya Kenneth Wright, age 19, was charged with robbery with a firearm and committing a felony with a mask or hood.
According to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office, Wright robbed the Tom Thumb at 5450 Saufley Field Road at 2:36 a.m. on February 5. He was reportedly wearing all-black clothing with his face concealed by a scarf and carrying a long item wrapped in black clothing in a manner that would indicate that it was rifle. He fled the store on foot with less than $40 in cash.
Wright was developed as a suspect in the crime after relatives contacted the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office with their suspicions.
When interviewed deputies, Wright said he was very drunk and had to be carried home the night of the robbery, therefore he was not responsible for the holdup, according to an arrest report.
Friends told investigators that Wright had been looking to trade his .22 rifle for a pistol because he planned on robbing the Tom Thumb because he needed $20,000 — $5,000 of which would be for his little sister to get braces and $12,000 for his little brother, the report states.
Wright remained in the Escambia County Jail Wednesday morning with bond set at $50,000.
Justices Halt Florida Execution Amid Questions About Lethal Injection Drug
February 18, 2015
Saying it must “err on the side of extreme caution” or risk threatening the “viability of Florida’s entire death penalty scheme,” the Florida Supreme Court on Tuesday halted the Feb. 26 execution of a convicted killer until the U.S. Supreme Court rules on a lethal injection drug.
The U.S. Supreme Court has temporarily put on hold executions in Oklahoma while it considers whether a relatively new lethal-injection drug violates constitutional protections against cruel and unusual punishment.
Because Florida’s lethal injection protocol is virtually identical to Oklahoma’s, the execution next week of Jerry William Correll needs to be delayed until the U.S. Supreme Court makes a decision, Florida Chief Justice Jorge Labarga wrote for the majority in a 5-2 decision Tuesday.
“Without a stay of execution in this case, Florida risks the unconstitutional execution of Correll, for which there is no remedy. In contrast, a stay pending determination of the issue in the United States Supreme Court will not prejudice the state and, more importantly, will ensure that Florida does not risk an unconstitutional execution, a risk that would threaten the viability of Florida’s entire death penalty scheme,” Labarga wrote. “For all these reasons — the most significant being the pending Supreme Court review of a protocol for which review had been denied in the past — this court must err on the side of extreme caution and grant a stay of execution for Correll.”
The decision overturned a circuit judge’s order last week denying Correll — convicted for the 1985 stabbing deaths of his ex-wife, daughter and two others in Orlando — a stay of execution pending the U.S. Supreme Court decision.
In the Oklahoma case, the high court is considering arguments about whether the disputed drug, midazolam hydrochloride, does not effectively sedate inmates during the execution process and subjects them to pain that violates the U.S. Constitution’s Eighth Amendment ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
Florida and other states began using the sedative as the first step in a three-drug execution cocktail in 2013, after previously using a drug called pentobarbital sodium. The states switched because Danish-based manufacturer Lundbeck refused to sell pentobarbital sodium directly to corrections agencies for use in executions and ordered its distributors to also stop supplying the drug for lethal-injection purposes.
Correll filed an emergency petition with the Florida Supreme Court on Jan. 30, seeking a stay of his execution while the U.S Supreme Court considers the matter. The Florida court returned the case to Orange County Circuit Judge Jenifer Davis, who last week rejected Correll’s arguments. Gov. Rick Scott signed Correll’s death warrant earlier in January.
In ruling against Correll, Davis pointed to past Florida Supreme Court and federal-court decisions that upheld the use of midazolam hydrochloride.
But on Tuesday, Labarga wrote that, since the U.S. Supreme Court has put on hold executions in Oklahoma while considering the issue, Florida should do the same.
“‘Death is different,’” Labarga wrote, quoting from a previous U.S. Supreme Court decision.”When the execution of a death-sentenced individual is at issue, heightened care must be taken, and none more so than when, as here, the method of execution has a reasonable and realistic chance of being declared to be cruel and unusual punishment by the United States Supreme Court.”
But in a 10-page dissent, Justice Charles Canady argued that the Supreme Court temporarily halted Oklahoma executions because state officials there requested the stays. Canady also objected that, although the drug protocols are similar, a decision about the constitutionality of Oklahoma’s use of midazolam may not have any impact on Florida’s lethal injection process.
The Florida Supreme Court has repeatedly signed off on the use of the drug in previous cases, Canady, joined by Justice Ricky Polston, wrote.
“This court has reviewed an exhaustive amount of litigation in a number of cases regarding the efficacy of midazolam in Florida’s lethal injection protocol, and we have not had concerns about its ability to produce an execution that comports with the Eighth Amendment. Perhaps the Supreme Court is concerned with the ‘botched’ executions of Dennis McGuire in Ohio, Joseph Wood in Arizona, and Clayton Lockett in Oklahoma; but none of those executions used midazolam in the same manner or dosage as it is used in Florida’s protocol,” he wrote.
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida
Florida TaxWatch Supports Cable, Cell Phone Tax Cuts
February 18, 2015
Easing the tax burden for Florida families and businesses would also attract business investment, create Florida jobs and grow the state’s information-based economy, according the latest Florida TaxWatch Economic Commentary. The report highlights the state’s Communications Services Tax, which is the fourth highest in the nation.
The Communications Services Tax is levied on cell phone, cable and satellite television and non-residential landline phone service, and can be as high as 22.59 percent for Floridians. The tax differs across the state, and is comprised of a standard federal fee, a uniform statewide tax and a varying local tax.
However, Florida taxpayers may soon have lower bills if the Governor’s proposal to reduce the state’s communications services tax is accepted by the Legislature. Governor Rick Scott plans to reduce the state portion of the tax to 5.57 percent from 9.17 percent. The 3.6 percent reduction would result in $470.9 million in annual savings for taxpayers.
“I applaud the Governor for his leadership and commitment to reducing taxes for all Floridians, especially those families, seniors and residents on very modest incomes,” said Dominic M. Calabro, President and CEO of Florida TaxWatch. “For years we have recommended that the Legislature reduce this highly burdensome and regressive tax on consumers and businesses. Florida’s unfairly high Communications Services Tax is punitive and makes the state less attractive to businesses the state is trying to recruit to provide high-skill, high-wage jobs to its residents.”
The Communications Services Tax is more than twice the highest state and local general sales tax rate in Florida. This year, it is expected to bring more than $2.1 billion in revenue to Florida’s state and local governments.