Minor League Baseball Owners Headed To Pensacola
October 20, 2011
The newest member of Minor League Baseball’s Southern League, the Pensacola Blue Wahoos, will host owners and representatives from other Southern League teams at a league meeting this weekend on Pensacola Beach.
The meeting, an off-season gathering of team owners and front office staff, is a yearly conference focusing on the business aspects of the league and the various legal, technical, and financial aspects of the baseball industry. As the Southern League’s newest member, the Pensacola Blue Wahoos volunteered to host the meeting.
Pensacola Blue Wahoos president Bruce Baldwin said the conference would be an opportunity to introduce Pensacola to the rest of the league.
“All of these teams have heard of Pensacola, and know about the Blue Wahoos. As the newest member of the Southern League, we thought it would be a great way to connect with the other teams, and at the same time to show them what a great city Pensacola is, if we hosted the owners’ meeting here. Almost all of these teams are within a day trip to Pensacola,” said Baldwin. “And this meeting gives us a chance to not only show off this great location for baseball, but also build a positive perception of Pensacola around the Southeast,” Baldwin said.
Representatives from Minor League baseball teams across the Southeast will attend the conference, to be held at the Springhill Suites Marriott on Pensacola Beach. Attendees will participate in the conference meetings, dine at local restaurants, and tour the stadium at the Community Maritime Park. Baldwin said he was hopeful that the meetings would give the other team owners and executives a chance to see Pensacola up close.
“My colleagues in baseball are already talking about Pensacola – they know about the Blue Wahoos, they know about the waterfront stadium, and they’re learning about our City. Now they’ll get to see first-hand what a great place this is,” Baldwin continued. “I’m excited for the Blue Wahoos to host this meeting, to show off our new home at the Maritime Park, and to support our local community.”
The Southern League is comprised of ten teams in two divisions, and Pensacola is the latest member of a select group of 90 cities across the country that host major-league baseball affiliates.
Escambia’s Top 20 Wish List Includes Molino Library, Septic Tank Regulations
October 19, 2011
Escambia County is set to approve a list of 2012 Legislative Requests Thursday night — a wish list that includes a half million dollars from the state for the new Molino Library and a policy stance on mandatory septic tank inspections.
Topping Escambia County’s Top 20 requests is support for a Congressional bill to funnel oil spill recovery funds to Escambia and other impacted counties for economic development, environmental damages and lost tourism revenues.
Number two on Escambia’s wish list is a half million dollar state grant for books and furnishings for the new Molino Branch Library (conceptual drawing above). Escambia County has applied for the grant for several years and has been ranked in to top three for the cash before, but for the last several years the Florida Legislature has not appropriated any funding for the state library construction grants.
“It is subject to funding by the Legislature. The resubmission was encouraged by State Division of Libraries who believes the legislature may provide some funding this year,” Escambia County Administrator Randy Oliver said . “This is a great opportunity to make a valuable resource better.”
The Legislative Requests list also includes opposition to regular mandatory septic tank inspections. A requirement that septic tanks be inspected every five years at the owner’s expense technically became state law in July after being approved in the last legislative session. But language was inserted into a budget bill that prohibits the Department of Health from spending a dime on the inspections without the approval of the Legislative Budget Commission — essentially putting the program on hold.
Escambia County’s complete 2012 Legislative Requests list, subject to approval by the county commission, is as follows:
1. Congressional SB 1400 – Support – Oil Spill impacted counties receiving funds to mitigate for Economic Development, Environmental Damages, and Tourism Lost Revenues.
2. Support – Library request for $500,000 allocation for Molino Library.
3. Support – DEP Administrative Hearing Process for Cease-and-desist Orders.
4. Support – Senator Gaetz’s bill, from last year, that allocated $30 Million ($10 per year) to area Economic Development.
5. Support – Amending the law for the Northwest Florida Corridor Authority to include all funding strategies.
6. FS 1013.30 – Oppose – Repealing existing State Statute requiring Universities to fund any and all off-campus infrastructure concurrency improvements (sidewalks, turning lanes, traffic signal, etc.).
7. SB; HB – Oppose – Legislation limiting the discretion of the first appearance judge, requiring written reports and certification of defendants for release and eliminating the presumption of release on on-monetary conditions.
8. Oppose – Any proposal to reallocate Transportation Trust Fund dollars; doing so will reduce Local Roadway and Transit Projects within the FDOT Five (5) Year Work Plan.
9. Support – 2012 Local Projects submittals for the
Transportation Reauthorization Bill (SAFETEA-LU):
• Project: I-10 Beulah Interchange/Beltway PD&E Study
• Project: Construction Funds – Nine Mile Road (US 90 Alt) 2-Lane to 4-Lane Project
• Project: Construction Funds – Creighton/Burgess Road Extension (SR 742) Four Lane Project
10. FS 343.80 – 343-89 – Support – Amending existing State Statute to include clear language to support the Regional Transportation Finance Authority (RTFA) concept providing optional funding strategies beside primarily toll facilities. This approach will reduce the gap between Transportation Funding needs and the existing Funding Revenues. Positive Impact is increasing the number annual roadway capacity projects, stimulating local economies with labor and professional jobs.
11. HB; SB – Support any Legislation offering roadway project priority incentives to any local agency offering a financial partnership with FDOT to improve capacity on state facilities. Positive Impact will encourage local agencies to adopt local tax or other measure to get more roadways funded.
12. HB; SB – Oppose any attempt that requires regular, mandatory inspections of septic tanks and/or the septic tank evaluation program.
13. HB; SB – Support efforts that allow governmental entities to use their public website for legally required advertisements and public notices in lieu of newspaper advertisements.
15. HB; SB – Support legislation which reduces medical expenditures to county detention facilities to 110 percent of the Medicare rate for all inmate medical care.
16. HB; SB – Oppose legislation that would weaken or dismantle Pre-Trial Service Programs resulting in significant jail population increases.
17. Support – Legislation to implement local funding incentives for partnerships on State Roadway Capacity Projects.
18. Support – Requesting that the Dedicated Affordable Housing Funds remain in the State Housing Trust Fund to assure continued funding for the State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) Affordable Housing Programs.
19. SB;HB – Oppose non-homestead associated cap.
20. SB.HB – Oppose Legislative or constitutional restriction on County authority to determine local tax burdens or financial commitments.
State To Hold Public Meeting On Fannie Road Bridge Replacement
October 19, 2011
The Florida Department of Transportation will hold a public information meeting concerning the bridge replacement on Fannie Road over Dead Lake in Century Thursday from 5:30 until 6:30 p.m. at the Century Ag Building at the corner of West Highway 4 and Industrial Boulevard.
Construction for this project is currently funded in 2014. Proposed improvements include replacement of the current bridge at Dead Lake with a new concrete structure consisting of two 12-foot travel lanes and 8-foot shoulders. The roadway pavement will be reconstructed as necessary to accommodate the new slightly taller bridge. The roadway will be closed and through traffic detoured onto Highway 31/29 in Alabama and onto Highway 4 in Florida.
Maps, drawings and other project information will be on display. The meeting will be an open-house format with project team representatives available to address your questions and explain the proposed improvements. There will be no formal presentation.
Pictured above and below: The Florida Department of transportation is set to let the contract to replace this Fannie Road bridge over Dead Lake in 2014. NorthEscambia.com file photos, click to enlarge.
Byrneville Students Collect Hats, Cash For Kids With Cancer
October 19, 2011
Byrneville Elementary School recently held a “Hats Off For Cancer” program, collecting money and new hats to donate to children who lose their hair due to cancer treatments. The school collected 29 new hats and $310, according to Principal Dee Wolfe-Sullivan.
“We may be a small school, but our families have big hearts,” Wolfe-Sullivan said.
Since 1996, over one million brand new hats have been collected nationwide through the program for children with cancer.
For a photo gallery, click here.
Pictured: “Hats Off For Cancer” day at Byrneville Elementary School. Submitted photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Northview Teacher Needs Votes For National Technology Grant
October 19, 2011
A Northview High School teacher is in the running for a technology grant, and he needs your help to win.
Language arts teacher Raja Atallah wants to replace the traditional research paper with a digital documentary for his students. If his grant proposal wins, the students will research a current issue using a variety of media resources, gather their findings and create a research digital documentary video with student reporting, student interviews and more.
As part of the process, the students will learn about copyright laws, plagiarism, online research as well as traditional research — all while learning how to use the software to create the video projects.
At last report, Atallah’s proposal was ranked fifth out of 200 nationwide submissions for the We Are Teachers grant. The grant includes a video camera and $200 toward classroom technology for top-five teachers in online voting. The winner will also include 10 Nook Color tablets.
To vote for Atallah’s project at Northview High School, click here. Voting ends Thursday.
Spooky: Kids Enjoy Stories, Treats In Barrineau Park
October 19, 2011
Children enjoyed a “spooky” story, cookies and other treats Tuesday evening at the Barrineau Park Community Center. Submitted photos by Teresa Andress for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Scott Posts University Salaries Online
October 19, 2011
Amidst a push to reform higher education, Gov. Rick Scott has posted the salaries of all state university employees online, prompting pushback from faculty.
The salary information for all 11 state universities was already publicly available, but Scott’s office last week took the extra step of compiling the information, putting it into a searchable spreadsheet and posting it online on the “Florida Has a Right to Know” website.
The website allows Florida faculty and administrators, and anyone else, to easily glimpse the salaries of their colleagues, supervisors and rival academics for the first time.
Salaries of professors vary widely, from the $30,000 a year made by an English instructor at the University of Central Florida to $1.2 million paid to a medical professor at the University of South Florida. The highest professor salaries came primarily from medical school professors at the University of Florida and USF.
The effort to publish university salaries comes during a time that Scott has pressed for changes in higher education, touting an effort in Texas to scrutinize faculty productivity and tenure. This has made some faculty nervous that Scott is publishing salaries as part of a maneuver to galvanize public opinion against university faculty in a push to tie pay to performance, or change other benefits such as tenure.
Scott has also posted the salary information of state employees and information on public employees who receive state pensions worth more than $100,000 a year on the same website.
“Just as salary information for all the Office of the Governor workers and the state agencies are posted online, Florida has right to know about university salaries as well because they are paid for by taxpayer dollars,” said Scott spokesman Lane Wright.
But faculty say salaries are not always paid for with state taxpayer dollars.
“My reaction is not a privacy concern, this is public knowledge anyway,” said Tom Auxter, a philosophy professor at the University of Florida and the president of the United Faculty of Florida. “But when the governor just publishes this, it makes it look like it is something other than it is.”
For example, some professors have part of their salary paid for through endowments or grants, not state funds.
“They are not necessarily all state dollars and it is somewhat misleading as to how the categories are arranged,” said University of Florida spokeswoman Janine Sikes.
For instance, the highest-paid professor in the university system is Dr. Neil Fenske, a renowned dermatologist and professor who is paid $1.2 million. But a USF spokeswoman said his salary is mostly paid for through clinic fees from patients. A USF statement said Fenske is considered “one of the nation’s leading cancer specialists in melanoma.”
Faculty are also concerned the online database will draw attention to the six-figure salaries paid to a few superstar professors and administrators, versus the more typical five-figure salary of an assistant or associate professor.
The database also doesn’t include some forms of compensation. Figures posted for university presidents, for example, list just their base salaries and not bonuses. For instance, University of Central Florida President John Hitt made $673,500 in the 2009-10 fiscal year, according to the Orlando Sentinel. The salary database shows his salary was $463,500.
Auxter, the UFF president, said Scott is motivated to cut costs at universities. Toward that end, Auxter said the governor has chosen to “vilify” faculty rather than find new revenue sources.
“(Scott) has boxed himself into a strategy where he has to be constantly claiming to expose government waste,” Auxter said. He said professors, on average, make less in Florida than in most other states.
Florida universities are already struggling to keep talented professors in the state, Auxter said, a by-product of tough budget years in which universities have seen funding cut from the state.
“You can’t pay the talent you want to keep and the talent you want to attract,” Auxter said.
By The News Service of Florida
Volleyball: Northview, Escambia Split Games
October 19, 2011
The Escambia Gators defeated the Northview Chiefs Monday in varsity high school volleyball action, while the junior varsity Lady Chiefs beat Escambia in the final games of the regular season.
Varsity
Escambia defeated Northview 19-25, 13-25, 17-25.
Senior Jose Docuette had one ace, two kills, one block and two digs for the Lady Chiefs, while Morgan Payne added one ace, two kills, one block and dig. Shelley Motherside contributed three assists, one block and two digs, as Misty Doran Posted one ace, four kills, one block and a dig.
Northview finished the regular season at 4-18, 3-5 in the district.
Junior Varsity
The JV Lady Chiefs defeated the Escambia Gators 25-12, 25-19.
Danielle Steadham had five aces and two kills for the JV Lady Chiefs, as Hannah Fiellin posted four aces, three kills and two assists. Tiffani Pritchett added two aces and seven assists, and Rebecca Grim had five kills for Northview.
The JV Lady Chiefs finished their season at 11-8, 4-2 in the district.’
Pictured top: The Northview varsity volleyball team. Pictured below: The junior varsity Lady Chiefs. Courtesy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Fish Story: Santa Rosa Man Catches Florida’s Largest Catfish
October 19, 2011
A Santa Rosa County man now holds the distinction of having landed the largest flathead catfish ever caught with a rod and reel in Florida waters.
Eric Auston Jr., 33, was fishing with his good friend October 9 at 2:30 a.m. in the Yellow River when he caught a flathead catfish weighing 55.05 pounds. He used a rod and reel with 25-pound-test line and a small bluegill as bait, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission.
His fish was substantially larger than the existing Florida record flathead – a fish that weighed 49.39 pounds, caught in the Apalachicola River in 2004. Auston said he fishes for flatheads only a few times each year. His biggest flathead prior to last weekend weighed 42 pounds, but that fish was caught on a bush hook.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) maintains records for most species of freshwater fish. The FWC will present Auston with a certificate of his record catch for display.
Jay, Flomaton Beat Two Monroe County JV Teams
October 19, 2011
The junior varsity football teams from Jay and Flomaton high schools both celebrated wins Tuesday against teams from Monroe County, Alabama.
The JV ‘Canes defeated Excel 48-8 in Flomaton. And the junior varsity Jay Royals ended their season with a win over Uriah 28-0.