Fire Crew Won’t Move From Century To McDavid; Century Presents Erroneous Data To Make Case
October 31, 2013
A paid Escambia Fire Rescue crew currently assigned to Century won’t be shifted to the McDavid Fire Station in an effort to improve the level of service across the North Escambia area. The decision was made after the Town of Century made their case to county leaders using erroneous data from an Internet site.
Escambia County Fire Rescue Patrick Grace said Wednesday afternoon that Escambia County Interim Administrator George Touart had decided earlier in the day that the paid crew would remain in Century. Earlier in the day, Touart, Grace, Public Safety Director Mike Weaver, Century Mayor Freddie McCall and Escambia Fire Rescue Century District Chief Regi Burkett met to discuss the idea.
“Moving the paid crew to Molino would have had a bigger impact for the taxpayer’s dollar,” Grace said. “It would have greatly improved service levels.”
A daytime paid fire crew in Century has answered 108 calls during the past year, many of which were in Flomaton. If the crew had been stationed in McDavid, they would have been dispatched on over 160 calls across parts of North Escambia, Grace said.
During Wednesday’s meeting, McCall presented a memo to Touart, Weaver and Grace asking that fire crew remain in Century. The memo listed mileages between the Century and McDavid fire stations and destinations including local schools. The data presented by the Town of Century showed moving the fire crew from Century to McDavid would result in increased mileage, and travel time, to the schools.
However, NorthEscambia.com discovered some of the listed data presented by McCall was erroneous. Century’s data shows the distance from the McDavid Fire Station to Ernest Ward Middle School at 17.72 miles; however, the actual distance is only 12 miles. Century’s data also overstated the mileage from McDavid to Northview High School by 3.81 miles, and from McDavid to Bratt Elementary School by an extra 4.8 miles. (See charts at bottom of article.)
In their data, Century did not include Molino Park Elementary School, which is seven miles closer to the McDavid Fire Station than Century and would benefit from a much faster response time.
Century Town Clerk Leslie Gonzalez said she obtained the mileages for the mayor’s memo presentation from the Mapquest website. NorthEscambia.com confirmed that, with a ordinary search, Mapquest does return the incorrect mileages due to mapping a partially incorrect route. (Editor’s note: In our computations, NorthEscambia.com used mileages as provided by Google Maps using the most direct route over paved roads via verified correct routes.)
In his effort to convince Touart to keep the fire crew in Century, McCall also presented data showing there are 70 tax paying businesses in the Town of Century. He did not present any information about the number of businesses outside Century that would be served by a paid fire crew if it were moved to McDavid.
According to the University of West Florida’s Haas Center for Business Research and Economic Development, there are 259 licensed businesses operating in the Century zip code; 250 in the Mcdavid/Walnut Hill zip code, and 425 in Molino. It should be noted that the business numbers from both the Town of Century and the Haas Center include numerous small, home-based businesses.
An attempt to reach Touart for comment Wednesday afternoon was unsuccessful..
Paid Firefighter Crew
The paid firefighter crew currently staffs the Century Fire Station from 7 a.m. until 4 p.m. Monday-Friday. The crew provides coverage during the daytime hours when many volunteers are unavailable due to employment outside the area. Volunteer firefighters answer calls at other times and on the weekends.
Until a few weeks ago, a paid crew was stationed at the Molino Fire Station during the same hours. But Molino’s paid crew was among those transferred to the Cantonment Station in order to provide 24/7 paid coverage after Cantonment experienced an overall lack of volunteer response. Since the switch, volunteers have worked to answer calls in Molino around the clock.
From the more centrally located McDavid Fire Station on Highway 29, a paid firefighter crew would have been dispatched and been able to answer calls a few miles — and just a few minutes — away in Century, Molino and Walnut Hill during the daytime hours when the availability of volunteers is the lowest. Volunteer firefighters in those areas would still have been dispatched and respond to call in their districts.
“Moving the fire crew to McDavid would have greatly benefited the tax paying citizens north of Cantonment,” Weaver said. Fire taxes and fees collected from Molino north fall just short of funding the expense of the paid crew currently assigned to Century.
“Molino would have benefited from the move. Walnut Hill would have benefited from the move,” he said. “Those citizens are paying for that service.”
Weaver noted that the volunteers at the Walnut Hill and McDavid fire stations have historically good response rates and times to calls in their district. The Walnut Hill fire district is 225 square miles — comprising over one-third of Escambia County’s total 660 square mile area. A paid crew in McDavid would have been poised to provide coverage in the immediate Walnut Hill area when Walnut Hill volunteers were answering calls in outlying areas of their relatively massive fire district.
DATA PRESENTED BY THE TOWN OF CENTURY/MAPQUEST:
CORRECT DATA FROM GOOGLE MAPS:
Three Subway Restaurants Burglarized
October 31, 2013
Burglaries are under investigation at three Escambia County Subway restaurants.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office responded to burglaries at the Subway on Highway 29 in Gonzalez, West Nine Mile Road near Highway 29 and Pine Forest Road. The restaurants were burglarized sometime between closing time Tuesday night and opening Wednesday morning.
There’s no word yet on what was stolen from the restaurants.
Anyone with information on the burglaries is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP.
Escambia Public Schools Foundation Announces 62 Grants for Excellence
October 31, 2013
The Escambia County Public Schools Foundation’s Grants for Excellence Committee will award over $53,000 in grants to fund classroom projects this year.
The Grants for Excellence Classroom Grant Program is a competitive grant program to fund classroom projects to enhance curriculum and drive student achievement in Escambia County classrooms that is not available through current school or district budgets
This year, the Committee selected 62 projects to fund for a total of $53,862.34. Each recepient will receive up to $1,000 for their innovative classroom projects in the areas of literacy, STEM education, low-performing students, increasing graduation rates, career and technical education, and teaching quality.
Grant recipients are:
• Mitzi Allen, Tate High School, “Literally Great Photos”
• Kimberly Andreoli, Bratt Elementary School, “Learning Through Literacy”
• Angela Avery, Ransom Middle School, “Hide and Seek-Geocaching Project”
• Dr. Alana Battaglia, Escambia High School, “Skeleton in Search of a Closet”
• Edward Bauer, Washington High School, “Bringing Back the Bayous”
• Saundra P. Bell, Hellen Caro Elementary School, “Sailboat Breeze Meets Captain I. Seegood”
• Janice Bello, Navy Point Elementary School, “Math Madness”
• Russell L. Bertles, Workman Middle School, “Who Said All Great Music Composers are Dead?”
• Adam Bretschneider, Roy Hyatt Environmental Center, “Touch of the Gulf”
• Rose M. Briggs, George Stone Career Center, “Shining a ‘Light’ on Mathematics”
• Donna Burch, West Florida High School, “Photo Me This”
• Rebecca Burt, Global Learning Academy, Beulah Elementary and Cook Elementary Schools, “The ART of Writing”
• Anita Carnley, Ensley Elementary School, “Wingspan of Monarch Butterflies”
• Nichole Childress, Jim Allen Elementary School, “Visual Vocabulary Cards”
• Leslie R. Cuyuch, Workman Middle School, “Kickstarting Student Discourse with Kagan”
• Elizabeth Dunaway, Oakcrest Elementary School, “Paying it Forward”
• Jennifer Etheredge, Scenic Heights Elementary, “Creating a Therapeutic Play Therapy”
• Stephanie Furey, Washington High School, “Helping Students One Question at a Time”
• Stephanie Gaffney, Navy Point Elementary School, “Looking, Hearing, and Feeling Through Literacy”
• Kathy Gilliland, Pine Forest High School, “Connected, Unique, and Powerful!”
• ReNae Grant, Semmes Elementary School, “Android-Powered Learning”
• Janice Hall, Bellview Middle School, “Cooking with the Write Stuff”
• Anna K. Harageones, Ferry Pass Elementary School, “What’s the Weather Today?”
• Ila Harvey, Sherwood Elementary School, “Bridging the Learning Gap”
• Pam Hicks, Washington High School, “Volumetric Measurement”
• Maurine Kramerich, PATS Center, “Let’s Make a Puppet!”
• Justin Luciano, West Florida High School, “E-magine That!”
• Matthew MacGregor, Escambia High School, “Protecting Our Estuaries”
• Jason Majors, Escambia High School, “Original From Step One”
• Jeffrey R. Mason, PATS Center, “Physical Computing and Digital Electronics”
• Sarah Mason, Blue Angels Elementary School, “The Engineering Wall: Rube Goldberg Style”
• Janneke McElroy, Oakcrest Elementary School, “Kicking It Up A Notch”
• Angela McFarland, West Florida High School, “iPhotograph, iOptimize, iCode”
• Jill Mealy, Ensley Elementary, “Ensley’s Project Green”
• Cathy S. Melton, Weis Elementary School, “Boots and Bits and a Little ‘Bit’ More”
• Nancy Melton-Buffington, Workman Middle School, “Thinking Differently to Change the World We Live In”
• Catheryn Morrison, Bellview Middle School, “Discover and Explore Pensacola”
• Jean Odom, N. B. Cook Elementary School, “Reader’s Theatre”
• Dawn Parnell, Pensacola High School, “Increasing STEM Skills”
• Paula Petsel, West Florida High School, “Aquaponics System”
• Hytza Piatt, Tate High School, “My iSpanish Experiences”
• Karen Potter, Ransom Middle School, “Getting Middle School Readers ‘Interactive’ with Reading”
• Sharon Powers, Longleaf Elementary School, “Literacy for All”
• Jeff Pribble, Escambia High School, “Career Preparation in High Definition”
• Sylvia Ramos, West Florida High School, “Virtual Hispanic Center”
• Julie Reda, West Florida High School, “Color My World”
• Dottie Ritchie-Riddle, Global Learning Academy, “Small Group Learning Stations”
• Anita M. Schmitt, Lipscomb Elementary School, “Young Mentors-Kindergarten Reading Buddies”
• Jennifer Shiver, Holm Elementary School, “Learning Through Music”
• Cindy Speed, Weis Elementary School, “E-Books for Every Student”
• Paula Stillman, A.K. Suter Elementary School, “Pocket Full of Sunshine”
• Alicia Stone, Lipscomb Elementary School, “Reading Fluency with Technology”
• Zenda G. Swearengin, Workman Middle School, “Music and Tech Geeks Meet”
• Angela Taylor, Myrtle Grove Elementary School, “Check Out Math!”
• Nancy Thomas, Ferry Pass Elementary School, “Bop and Skip Into Reading”
• Chet Truett, Ransom Middle School, “Music Video Translation”
• Kevin Turner, Washington High School, “Observing Benthic Diversity and Water Density”
• Kristi Waldrop, Ransom Middle School, “Let’s Get Those Boards Out!”
• Shawn Walker, West Florida High School, “Go Out on a STEM!”
• Pamela Weiseman, Capstone Academy, “Increasing Engagement and Success”
• Ronald J. Williams, Extended Program, Hall Center, “Flying ‘B’ Enterprises”
• Dorice Zeier, Holm Elementary School, “Ready Bodies”
The 62 projects funded this fall will directly impact a total of 20,018 students and 74 teachers this school year alone. Many of the classroom materials, software, technology, and other items purchased with Grants for Excellence grant funds will continue to be used for years to come.
The Foundation will present grant recipients with their checks at the 2013 Grants for Excellence Reception on Thursday, November 7.
Trial Set To Begin For Lottery Store Murder Suspect
October 31, 2013
A docket hearing was held Wednesday for one of the two men accused in the robbery and shooting death of a Davisville lottery store owner last November.
Malcolm McGhee. Jr., 25, has entered a not guilty plea. Jury selection is set to begin in less than two weeks in his trial on charges of premeditated first degree murder and robbery with a firearm for the shooting death of 74-year old Thomas “Tommy” Kroll during a robbery on November 6, 2012, at the State Line O’ Yes Lotto on Highway 97.
His co-defendant, Brent Dewayne Lambeth, 21, has pleaded no contest to second degree murder. Under his plea deal, he will receive no more than 30 years in prison, provided he testifies against McGhee.
Investigators said McGhee and Lambeth targeted Kroll’s business because they had previous purchased “Spice” there and the duo intended on robbing the store of more of the synthetic marijuana.
Pictured top and bottom: The scene outside the State Line O’ Yes Lotto on Highway 97 following the murder of store owner Thomas Kroll on November 6, 2012. NorthEscambia.com file photos, click to enlarge.
Southeastern Religious Leaders Fight SNAP Food Aid Cuts
October 31, 2013
As a congressional conference committee began talks on cutting the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — known in the past as food stamps — religious leaders from across the Southeast said Wednesday they’re worried about potential effects on the poor and working poor in a region with the country’s highest rates of poverty.
The debate is part of negotiations over a federal farm bill that includes the SNAP program. The Republican-led U.S. House wants to cut SNAP funding by $39.5 billion over 10 years, while the Democratic-controlled Senate holds the line at a $4 billion reduction. President Obama has said he would veto the larger amount.
The talks come as $11 billion in cuts resulting from the expiration of a 2009 federal-stimulus act kick in Friday — $36 per month for a family of four on full SNAP benefits.
Leaders of Methodist, Baptist, Catholic, Episcopalian, Presbyterian, Jewish and Lutheran congregations from eight Southeastern states held a conference call to underline the start of negotiations, saying that too many Americans are going hungry already.
“As SNAP benefits are decreasing, we’re seeing an increase in individual needs in our area,” said Bishop Paul Leeland of the Alabama-West Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church, representing 650 congregations. “(Our pastors) tell us that they are seeing an increase in the number of people at their food closets and clothing closets, and that the majority of these people are children and older adults.”
“Even before the recession, there were alarming rates of poverty in North Carolina,” said the Rev. Betty L. Meadows of the Presbyterian Church USA. “And now there’s just an increasing gap between the haves and the have-nots. Hunger is real. One in four children lives in poverty and is hungry.”
According to the Food Action and Research Center, the SNAP caseload in Florida has increased 130.5 percent over the past five years. More than one in four of the state’s children — 25.4 percent — live in poverty; the national child poverty rate is 22.6 percent.
Florida Congressman Steve Southerland, one of the House conferees, is spearheading a proposal that would require work for SNAP benefits, though the proposal exempts children, seniors and people with disabilities.
“For those vulnerable people, we want to make sure they’re protected and they’re cared for,” he said.
The Southerland amendment is currently part of the House bill and requires able-bodied adults to earn their benefits by working 20 hours a week or participating in a job training program.
Southerland is passionate about the importance of work and said he and his wife require their four daughters to get part-time jobs when they turn 15 years old.
“I’ve been deeply burdened that there’s so many people — and a segment of people in our population — that have never been introduced to the blessing of work,” Southerland said.
Responding to the religious leaders’ posture on SNAP cuts, he said his amendment is also based on scriptural concerns.
“All through scripture there is a requirement of individuals who are able-bodied — individuals who are able, not children, not disabled, not seniors — but individuals who are physically, mentally, psychologically able to work to participate in their own well-being,” Southerland said.
But Debra Susie, the executive director of Florida Impact, an advocacy group, said many SNAP recipients live in areas where there are no jobs or job-training slots.
“You can’t force people to go to work where there are no jobs,” she said. “And you cannot punish their children by removing food stamps if those jobs don’t exist.”
Virtually all the religious leaders on the call described their states’ efforts to help hungry children. Many routinely send backpacks home on weekends with students they suspect aren’t eating on days they’re not in school.
“If the children coming (to school) are hungry, they’re never going to learn,” said the Rev. Canon Geoff Taylor of the Episcopal Diocese of Upper South Carolina. “If they’re never going to learn, they’re never going to work and we just have a cascading problem. I think we need to address these things at their roots, and at the very root of that hierarchy of needs is food.”
Southerland on Tuesday said he was “optimistic” about the fate of the amendment he has championed.
But Jim Weill, president of the Food Action and Research Center, said Democrats in both chambers and in the White House oppose the measure strongly.
“So it may well be stripped out at some point,” Weill said. “On the other hand, the Republican leadership put Southerland on the conference committee, so he’s going to be in the room when the deals are cut. And they obviously put him there for a reason.”
By Margie Menzel, The News Service of Florida
Tate Names Malone, Heintz As October Students Of The Month
October 31, 2013
Tate High School has named their October Students of the Month. They are Haley Malone and Noah Heintz. Pictured above are Tate Principal Richard Shackle, Haley Malone, Noah Heintz, and Assistant Principal Laurie Bedford. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Redevelopment Plan Finalized For ‘Blighted’ Areas Of Cantonment
October 30, 2013
A final review and comment meeting was held Tuesday night at Jim Allen Elementary School for the Cantonment Redevelopment Plan — a plan designed to address issues that need major improvement in a distressed area of Cantonment.
Just under 2,000 people live in the Cantonment Redevelopment Area in 533 family households. The median household income is $28,291, far below the Escambia County median income of $43,707. Over half of the homes in the area are worth less than $50,000, and a significant number are in need of some sort of repair.
West of Highway 29, the blighted area is generally bordered by Heaton Road to the south, Nowak Road and Hicks Street to the west and Well Line Road to the north. East of Highway 29, the blighted area is generally bordered by Becks Lake Road, Virecent Road, and Eden Lane. The blighted area does not include all properties on the listed roads. (For a detailed map in pdf format, click here.)
Crime and the perception of crime are major contributing factors to blight in the area. In a five-year data period, total crimes in the Cantonment CRA exceed the crime rate in Escambia County as whole. Residents and business owners in the Cantonment CRA are more likely to experience crime than the county average.
In four out of the five reporting years, citizens and businesses in the Cantonment CRA were twice as likely to be the victim of a burglary that a citizen outside of the CRA.
Through a series of workshops and public participation, seven focus areas needing improvement in the area were identified: Housing, Community Facilities and Services, Health and Safety, Workforce and Jobs.
The CRA will be responsible for overseeing the implementation of the plan once it is approved by the Escambia County Commission. The Cantonment Improvement Committee will play a major role in the implementation of this plan, along with other neighborhood groups formed within this area. Other county agencies, such as Code Enforcement, will also be utilized.
The major needs identified in the Cantonment Redevelopment Plan were as follows:
Housing
Because over 50 percent of the homes within the redevelopment area are 45 years or older, there is a great need for housing repair or rehabilitation. Other identifiable needs included affordable mortgages and affordable rental homes and apartments.
The Community Redevelopment Agency will work with the Neighborhood Enterprise Foundation and other groups to assist residential property owners who need housing repairs and or rehabilitation assistance. The CRA will encourage public/private initiatives to make affordable mortgages available.
Community Facilities and Services
Residents of the area identified the need for a community center, job training center, library, adult education center, center for tutoring, a senior citizens center, recreation center and housing center.
The Sidney W. Nelson Community Learning Center (formerly known as old Ransom High School) has been identified by the community to possibly be converted to a community center. The CRA will collaborate with the Escambia County School Board, Community Affairs, and other agencies to determine if this is feasible and/or look at alternatives of building a new facility. Such a community center could be utilized to meet most of the other community facilities needs identified in the plan.
Health and Safety
The top two health and safety issues identified by the community are street lights and health care facilities. Additionally mosquito control and vacant and abandoned homes are important community issues as well as community policing and disaster shelters ranked very closely. Although they are lower priorities, overgrown trees and bushes and noise at the paper mill were also major concerns.
The CRA will work with Gulf Power and other departments to identify locations for street lights. The CRA will also collaborate with Escambia County Health Department, Sacred
Heart, Baptist and West Florida Hospitals and other agencies to provide or build a medical facility that provides 24 hour health care services in the local area.
The use of community policing, neighborhood watch groups and use of other agencies will be encouraged. The CRA staff will work closely with Escambia County Code Enforcement and
International Paper to ensure buffers is in place to reduce and control the paper mill noise.
Workforce and Jobs
Job training opportunities and more local jobs tied as the highest priority in this category. Many participants at the public meetings noted the long drive required to job training centers and areas were most job opportunities are available. Making job opportunities and training available locally will improve the lives of residents in Cantonment. Providing job opportunities for ex-convicts and voluntary pre-kindergarten programs were also identified as needs in the community.
Transportation and Infrastructure
Improving roads and improving drainage and ditches were the two highest priority transportation and infrastructure need identified by the community. Other high priority issues were
improving Muscogee Road, adding sidewalks and bike paths, creating a roadway plan for private roads, traffic calming and adding more bus stops and increasing bus frequency.
Opportunities identified by meeting participants included increasing transit and transport jobs, training and elderly services.
Business Generation
Creating more small business and retail shopping received the highest priority by the community. Improving commercial infrastructure and developing a local farmers market were also needs that could be addressed. The community identified several ideas for improving business generation opportunities: partner with major industries in the Cantonment and Greater Pensacola area to bring jobs to the community as well as reusing the Sidney W. Nelson Community Learning Center as a job training center.
Cultural/Natural Resources and Recreation
In the cultural/natural resources and recreation category, Cantonment citizens identified the greatest needs as a community pool, sports programs and the lack of identified historic buildings. The Community Redevelopment Agency will work to address the needs.
Pictured top: Areas like Lakeview Avenue are under consideration as the Cantonment Community Redevelopment Area. Pictured top inset: A meeting on the plan held at Jim Allen Elementary School. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Sprint Launches 4G Data Service In Pensacola Metro
October 30, 2013
Sprint launched 4G LTE service in the Pensacola market on Tuesday, providing faster data speeds for customers using their mobile devices to access the internet, upload photos, watch videos and more.
“Today’s announcement means that we are continuing our nationwide network enhancements, tower by tower, to provide even more Sprint customers the speed and power of Sprint 4G LTE,” Bob Azzi, senior vice president-Network, Sprint, said in a prepared release Tuesday.
Bratt Student Awarded In Symphony’s ‘Express Yourself’ Art Contest
October 30, 2013
A Bratt Elementary school fifth grader was a winner in a recent “Express Yourself” art contest held in conjunction with the Pensacola Symphony.
Amber Gilman placed third among fifth grade students in Escambia County and received a gift basket and a $100 prize card from Pen Air Federal Credit Union. This was the third consecutive year that a Bratt student has placed in the contest.
Before attending a field trip to the Pensacola Symphony with music teacher Emily Pollard, fifth graders at Bratt listened to a piece entitled “Firebird: Kastcheir Dance” by Stravinsky. As they listened, the students created pieces of art that fit the mood of the music and the story line while they were in class with art teacher Meredeth Roberts.
On the field trip, students were able to see the winning art creations on display as they listened to the symphony performance.
Pictured: Megan Burke, Pensacola Symphony, Amber Gilman, and Meredith Roberts, Bratt Elementary art teacher. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Second Flesh Eating Bacteria Case Confirmed In Escambia County
October 30, 2013
A second case of the flesh-eating bacteria Vibrio vulnificus has been confirmed in Escambia County, bringing the total number of cases reported in Florida to 37.
Vibrio vulnificus is a bacterium that normally lives in warm, brackish seawater. Since it is naturally found in warm marine waters, people with open wounds can be exposed through direct contact with seawater and can cause disease in those who eat raw shellfish, according to the Florida Department of Health in Escambia County.
Symptoms of vibrio vulnificus can include vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain. Wound infection can lead to skin breakdown and blistering. In persons who have weakened immune systems, particularly those with chronic liver disease, vibrio vulnificus can invade the bloodstream, causing a severe and life-threatening illness with symptoms like fever, chills, decreased blood pressure (septic shock) and blistering skin lesions. Individuals experiencing these symptoms should contact a physician immediately for diagnosis and treatment. Individuals with wound infections should also seek care promptly.
Tips to stay healthy and safe
Thoroughly cook oysters, either by frying, stewing, or roasting to eliminate harmful bacteria and viruses in the meat. Consuming raw oysters that have undergone a post-harvest treatment process to eliminate the bacteria can also reduce the risk of illness. Avoiding exposure of open wounds to seawater and estuarine water reduces the risk of wound infections.
For more information, please contact the Florida Department of Health in Escambia County at (850) 595-6683 or visit www.EscambiaHealth.com.