Century Gives Nod To 51%, $1.7 Million Budget Increase
September 9, 2011
The Town of Century has given preliminary approval to a $5 million 2011-2012 budget that is up almost $1.7 million from last year — thanks to $1.9 million in grants.
The $5,032,816 budget includes grant income and expenditures of $1,913,000. The grant funds are from state and federal sources — not local revenue or taxes.
“It’s money in and money out,” Mayor Freddie McCall said of the budget increase for the grants. “If we did not have the grants in there we would be less than the previous year’s budget,” Robert Hudson, the town’s accountant, added.
The $1.9 million in grants included in the budget are:
- CDBG Housing Grant, $650,000
- Energy Grant, $100,000
- Residential Construction Mitigation Program Grant, $100,000
- FEMA Hazard Grant, $823,000
- Housing Preservation Grant, $50,000
- Sewer Filter Grant, $190,000
There will be no increase in ad valorem taxes this year to meet the budget for fiscal year 2011-2012, which begins October 1.
The Century Town Council will give final approval to the new budget at their September 19 meeting.
To view a summary of the budget in pdf format, click here or the image below.
Pictured: Century council member Sandra McMurray Jackson reviews the town’s 2011-2012 budget during a special hearing Thursday afternoon. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Molino Resident Charged With Painting Graffiti On Restaurant
September 9, 2011
A Molino man was arrested after police say they caught him painting graffiti outside a Pensacola restaurant.
Andrew Plenkers, 19, of Richardson Road was charged with criminal mischief after Pensacola Police Department Sgt. Steve Rankin observed him walking through a parking lot on North Davis Highway to the 500 block of East Cervantes Street.
During a search of the suspect, Rankin found a large blue marker in his right front pants pocket. Officers said they also found several cans of spray paint inside Plenkers’ car.
A freshly painted design that contained the words “BEZ” (for “be easy”, according to police) was found on the east wall of the Coffee Cup restaurant at 520 East Cervantes.
Sgt. Chuck Mallett, who is focusing investigations on graffiti in the downtown area, said Plenkers is a suspect in other graffiti cases.
Plenkers was released from the Escambia County Jail on $250 bond.
Hundreds Attend Elementary Open House Events
September 9, 2011
Hundreds attended the annual open house events at Bratt, Molino Park and Jim Allen elementary schools Thursday evening.
Byrneville, the other elementary school in North Escambia, has an open house scheduled for September 20 at 6 p.m.
Pictured: Students attending the open house at Bratt Elementary School Thursday night took part in an art class project to build a robot out of recyclable materials with the help of art instructor Meredith Roberts. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
One Injured After Slamming Into Parked School Bus
September 9, 2011
One person was injured after running off the roadway and hitting a parked school bus Thursday night in Bratt.
A 51-year female was transported to an area hospital by ambulance following the crash; her condition was not immediately available.
The accident happened about 8 p.m. on West Highway 4 near C.W. Caraway Road. The woman, who officials said might have been experiencing a medical problem, ran off the road, into a yard and struck an Escambia County School bus parked in the private driveway at the home of a bus driver. There was no one on the bus at the time of the crash.
The accident is under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol; further details have not yet been released.
The Walnut Hill Station of Escambia Fire Rescue and Atmore Ambulance also responded to the call.
Pictured: A woman slammed in to school bus parked in a private driveway in Bratt Thursday night. NorthEscamba.com photos, click to enlarge.
Louisiana Man Faces Death Penalty For Escambia Murder
September 9, 2011
State Attorney Bill Eddins announced Thursday that prosecutors will seek the death penalty against 25-year old Christopher Eugene Stallworth of New Orleans for the death of Jerry Wayne Ledden.
On August 16, a Grand Jury indicted Stallworth, for first degree murder, burglary while armed, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and grand theft auto.
On July 24, the badly beaten body of Jerry Wayne Ledden was found at his home on Mitchell Lane in the Bellview community by his sister and brother-in-law. Ledden’s Cadillac, guns, and cell phone were missing from the residence. On July 27, Stallworth was arrested on suspicion of homicide in connection with the death of the 65-year-old man.
HS Volleyball: Northview Splits Varsity, JV Wins With Baker
September 9, 2011
Northview’s varsity fell to Baker while Northview’s junior varsity beat Baker in Thursday volleyball action.
Varsity
Northview (0-3, 0-2) lost to Baker in five games, 18-25, 25-18, 23-25, 25-21, 12-15.
Misty Doran — Aces-4, Kills-6, Blocks-5, Digs-1, Assist-1
Payton Hadley — Aces-6, Kills-1, Kills-2, Digs-3
Morgan Payne — Aces-2, Kills-5, Assists-1, Digs-2
Lily Townson — Assists-8, Blocks-1, Digs-1
Junior Varsity
Northview’s junior varsity (1-2, 1-1) defeated Baker in three, 25-22, 18-25, 15-3.
Hannah Fiellin — Assists-4
Kyndall Hall — Ace-1, Blocks-1
Tiffani Pritchett — Ace-7, Kills-3
Danielle Steadham — Kills-8, Blocks-2
Northview’s junior varsity will be in action beginning at 9 a.m. Saturday during the Northview JV Tournament with Pace, Pensacola Christian Academy, Flomaton and West Florida High School. The JV will play on the road Monday at 4:30 against Flomaton, and the varsity will take on the ‘Canes at 6 p.m.
Molino Man Charged With Home Invasion, Armed Burglary
September 8, 2011
A Molino man is behind bars with bond set at more than a quarter million dollars for a list of crimes, including home invasion robbery and armed burglary.
Troy Edward Massey, 47, of Barth Lane, was arrested after a brief manhunt and foot chase following a burglary on Fairway Drive in Pensacola. A man and wife came home to discover Massey in their apartment, according to an Escambia County Sheriff’s Office report. He fled on foot, leaving behind two suitcases that he had packed full of silver platters, silver utensils, silver drinking cups, a fur coat, currency and a gold bracelet. He had also allegedly packed another bag with a .22 caliber rifle and 13 bottles of alcohol.
He was charged with armed burglary, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, grand theft, criminal mischief and resisting arrest without violence. He remained in the Escambia County Jail early Thursday morning with bond set at $277,570.
At the time of his arrest for the Pensacola burglary, Massey had outstanding warrants for home invasion robbery, aggravated assault and petty theft.
On August 20, deputies responded to Bamer Holley Lane where a resident reported Massey barged into her home armed with a paring knife just after 10 p.m., yelling “You have to hide me” and “You have to save me”. The resident reported Massey looked through her cabinets and purse before fleeing on foot. A short time later on nearby Brickyard Road, another resident reported a person matching Massey’s description had attempted to enter their home while saying that he was being followed.
A subsequent manhunt on August 20 turned up empty, and warrants were issued for Massey’s arrest.
Family Believes Missing Boater Is Dead
September 8, 2011
The family of missing boater Alonzo Lee Kent apparently believes he’s dead — they have published an obituary for the former Jay resident that says he was lost at sea and scheduled a memorial service for Sunday on Pensacola Beach.
About 8:30 a.m. on August 28, family reported 41-year old Kent, now a resident of Gulf Breeze, missing after he did not return from a fishing trip south of Pensacola Pass. The Coast Guard called off their search for Kent on Tuesday after searching an area larger than Maryland.
Kent’s The Monkey Bar II was located near Chuburna, a small town on the Yucatan Peninsula — about 550 miles away. There was no one aboard the Boston Whaler, according to the Progreso Hoy newspaper website.
The boat was floating with the keys in the console and out of gas. There was no one aboard, according to fisherman Yam Chan who found the boat. The U.S. Coast Guard confirmed late Friday night that the Monkey Bar II was being held by Mexican authorities pending an investigation.
Back in the U.S., a warrant for Kent’s arrest was signed August 30 by an Escambia County Judge, the same day the U.S. Coast Guard ended a three-day search for him and his 32-foot Boston Whaler in the Gulf.
Pensacola Police said a 40-year old woman, whose name has not been released, reported that Kent had repeatedly stalked and harassed her for months. The woman claimed he called her over four dozen times, yelled obscenities while banging on her door and sat outside her home for four hours drinking beer.
According to Escambia County Clerk of Courts records, a temporary restraining order was issued against Kent after being filed by a Pensacola woman on August 26. He was scheduled to appear in court in Pensacola on Wednesday.
Pictured: The Monkey Bar II, the fishing boat belonging to a former Jay resident missing since a fishing trip last week, was found in Chuburna, Mexico. Photo courtesy Progreso Hoy for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
ACLU Files Suit Over Welfare Recipient Drug Tests
September 8, 2011
A new Florida law requiring applicants to pass drug tests before getting temporary cash assistance from the government amounts to unconstitutional suspicionless searches, the American Civil Liberties Union said Wednesday after filing a suit in federal court to shut the program down.
ACLU representatives, lawyers and a 35-year-old college student who refused to take the test said the new state requirement stigmatizes low-income recipients. The suit was filed late Tuesday in the federal district court in Orlando.
“The new law assumes that everyone who needs a little help has a drug problem,” said Luis Lebron, a University of Central Florida accounting undergraduate who is the lead plaintiff in the class action lawsuit. “It’s wrong and unfair. It judges a whole group of people on their temporary economic situation.”
As of July 1, new applicants for temporary government assistance through the program known as TANF, or Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, were required to pay for a drug test. If the test comes back negative, the fee is repaid by the state. A positive test bars the applicant from receiving benefits for a year.
The ACLU lawsuit seeks to nullify the law. The group, which includes the Miami-based Florida Justice Institute, also filed a motion to stop the testing of recipients until the court rules on the constitutionality of the law.
A U.S. Navy veteran, Lebron is a single, custodial father who is scheduled to graduate in December. He was denied benefits when he refused to take the test, which costs between $25 and $45. Eight counties have yet to establish certified test sites.
Backers of the measure, including Gov. Rick Scott, say private businesses have been requiring such tests for years and government should be no different. A survey released Wednesday by the Drug and Alcohol Testing Industry Association, a trade group for testing companies, found 57 percent of employers conduct drug tests on all job candidates.
“It’s important we make sure taxpayer money isn’t going to help pay for someone’s drug habit, but that the money is going to help the children for whom it was intended,” Scott spokesman Lane Wright said Wednesday in an email. “That’s what this law does.”
Wright said the federal government has allowed states to test for drugs, a sign that the courts will back Florida’s plan.
Critics argue that recipients are being singled out based on a myth that poor people are more likely to use illegal drugs. They point out that other government programs such as student loans, food stamps and business grants do not require recipients to be screened for drug use.
So far, state says only 2 percent of recipients have tested positive for illegal drugs, a failure rate that is below that of the general population. A 2009 study by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services found that 8.7 percent of Americans age 12 and older reported using illicit drugs.
“It’s an ugly public policy based on stereotypes and talking points,” said Howard Simon, ACLU Florida, executive director. “We’re not the only state to be trading in these ugly stereotypes and talking points, but we are the first state to enact the legislation.”
The U.S. Supreme Court in a 1997 decision threw out a Georgia law requiring candidates for state office to certify they had passed a drug test. In 2000, a federal court in Michigan threw out that state’s attempt to require all welfare recipients to be tested.
“Things that may be appropriate in the private sector are impermissible when done by government,” Simon said.
By The News Service of Florida
Charges Dropped Against Man For ‘Stealing’ Century Church
September 8, 2011
Charges have been dropped against the Pensacola man accused of “stealing” a Century church earlier this year.
John D. Young, now 73, was arrested in May for grand theft for allegedly signing a Century church property over to a Flomaton woman when he was not authorized to do so.
According to an Escambia County Sheriff’s Office report, Young signed the property over to Taryn Wright with a quit-claim deed on the small, 1,500 square foot church located at 401 Hecker Road in Century. Officials said at the time the church was reported “stolen” that Young had no authority to sign the paperwork.
According to Escambia County Property Appraiser records, the church property is valued at $14,253.
Pictured above: A church property on Hecker Road in Century that was reported “stolen” earlier this year. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.