Photos: Northview Holds Pep Rally
November 23, 2011
Northview High School students showed their team pride Tuesday with a pep rally as the Chiefs prepare for the Class 1A regional finals at 7:30 Friday night in Bratt against Freeport.
For a photo gallery, including “special guest” male cheerleaders, click here.
Pictured: The Northview Chiefs held a pep rally Tuesday afternoon in advance of the regional finals Friday night. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
700 New Jobs Possible For Santa Rosa County
November 23, 2011
About 700 new jobs could be headed to Santa Rosa County by the end of the year.
The unnamed call center company has narrowed their choice to locations in an unknown number of cities, including the former Clearwire building in Milton.
Back in October, the company learned that Clearwire was moving jobs out of Milton, and contacted Team Santa Rosa’s Cindy Anderson at home and setup a visit. TEAM and the Pensacola Chamber of Commerce jointly showed sites in both Escambia and Santa Rosa counties to the company, which will provide both technical support and technical service.
Now, Santa Rosa County is finalist for the jobs.
“This is a highly competitive process,” said Dave Hoxeng, Team Santa Rosa chairman. “We believe we are the only option still being considered in Florida.”
TEAM is working to line up state and local incentive packages for the company and will make a presentation to the Santa Rosa County Commission next week before presenting a deal to the company.
“Of course, the communities that we are in competition with are also lining up their incentives. This opportunity is for a lot of jobs and it is very competitive,” Hoxeng said.
Slayton Elected School Board Chairman
November 23, 2011
A new chairman and vice chairman were elected Tuesday for the Escambia County School Board.
District 5 board member Bill Slayton, who represents the North Escambia area, will be the board’s chairman for the next year. District 1 member Jeff Bergosh was elected as vice chairman.
The next regular meeting of the Escambia County School Board will be Tuesday, December 13 at 5:30 p.m. at the J.E. Hall Center at 30 East Texar Drive in Pensacola.
Investigators Still Seeking Clues In Pharmacy Burglary
November 23, 2011
The investigation is continuing into a weekend burglary at a Cantonment pharmacy.
Someone made entry into the Kim’s Pharmacy on Highway 29 about 11:00 Saturday night through the front door. The burglar made his way quickly to the rear of the building, a blue plastic tub in hand, taking prescription narcotics.
He is believed to have fled the scene in a older model white sedan.
Anyone with information on the burglary is asked to call the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office at (850) 436-9620 or Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP. Kim’s Family Pharmacy is offering a $500 reward into addition to the reward offered by Crime Stoppers.
Pictured: Still captures from surveillance video during a burglary at Kim’s Family Pharmacy in Cantonment. Courtesy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Featured Recipe: Sweet Potato Marshmallow Swirl Cheesecake
November 23, 2011
As Thanksgiving approaches, we are featuring recipes on NorthEscambia.com this week. Today’s featured recipe, from columnist Janet Tharpe is a Sweet Potato Marshmallow Swirl Cheesecake.
Atmore’s Linam Makes 1st Team Capital One Team, Nominated Academic All American
November 23, 2011
Former Atmore resident Josh Linam, senior linebacker for the University of Central Florida Knights, has received a spot on the CoSIDA Capital One Academic All-District First Team. By being voted onto the First Team, Linam will now be included on the Capital One Academic All-America ballot which will be voted upon beginning this week.
Linam is currently majoring in sports and fitness and holds a cumulative grade-point average of 3.36
Prior to his junior season, Linam was used off the bench in 24 games as he racked up 21 tackles from 2008-09. However in 2010 he broke out and started every game as middle linebacker, guiding UCF to a Conference USA title and an AutoZone Liberty Bowl victory over Georgia. Linam completed the year with 78 tackles, 9.0 tackles for loss, an interception and a sack.
Now as a senior in 2011, Linam has amassed 42 tackles to rank third on the team, has 6.0 tackles for loss, a pair of sacks, an interception and two forced fumbles while starting eight games.
Health Department Offers Thanksgiving Food Safety Tips
November 23, 2011
The Escambia County Health Department is emphasizing the importance of safe food preparation and storage to prevent possible foodborne illnesses.
“While family celebrations are being prepared, everyone should practice proper food hygiene,” said Dr. John Lanza, health department director. “Floridians should wash their hands and counter tops thoroughly before and after preparing foods to help eliminate bacteria. Foods should be cooked at the appropriate temperature and leftovers should be stored properly.”
Factors that can contribute to foodborne illnesses include:
- Improper food storage (inadequate refrigeration temperature or hot holding temperature). Safe refrigeration temperature is less than 41 degrees Fahrenheit, and safe hot holding temperature is greater than 140 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Improper washing of hands and fingernails
- Improper cooling of foods. Safe cooling of foods is getting the foods to less than 41 degrees Fahrenheit within a four-hour time period.
- Cross contamination (such as from uncooked meat to salad ingredients)
- Improper cleaning and sanitizing of eating and cooking utensils, work areas and equipment
- Contamination of food, utensils and equipment from flies, roaches and other pests
Tips to prepare turkeys safely:
- A whole turkey should be cooked at an oven temperature of 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
- An 8-12 pound unstuffed turkey should be cooked for 2-3 hours.
- Preparers should use a meat thermometer. Every part of the turkey should reach a minimum internal temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Frozen turkeys should be kept frozen until ready to thaw prior to cooking.
Individuals with liver disease or diabetes or who have had gastric surgery or are immune-compromised should avoid eating raw oysters or other raw animal protein during the holidays. Oysters that are thoroughly cooked or have been post-harvest treated can be consumed by people with these conditions to minimize the risk of infection from Vibrio vulnificus.
For more information about food safety, click here.
Century Seeks $250K Line Of Credit To Pay Grant Expenses
November 22, 2011
The Century Town Council voted Monday night to allow a $250,000 line of credit to be opened by the mayor and town clerk to pay reimbursable grant expenses.
The town currently has grant projects of over $1 million in the works, and the town is required to pay out of pocket for various grant projects before receiving guaranteed reimbursements. That, according to Mayor Freddie McCall, has left the town shuffling money between town accounts to pay the grant-related bills.
“We are juggling money out of this department, that department, and it cuts us short,” McCall said.
The line of credit will be “much easier from a logistics standpoint”, according to Robert Hudson, the town’s accountant.
The town council voted to open the line of credit at an unknown interest rate from United Bank. The council did not receive a proposal from any other bank.
Century Purchases $11,450 Website, Marketing Plan
November 22, 2011
Century will soon have a website and an accompanying marketing plan with a total price tag of $11,450.
The Century Town Council voted 4-0, with council member Annie Savage absent, to purchase the package from Pensacola marketing company Ideawörks. The town accepted the proposal after an Ideawörks presentation Monday night without soliciting bids from any other company — contingent upon the town’s attorney approving the no-bid purchase.
The $11,450 package includes $4,200 for a “basic website design”, $1,750 for a content management system (CMS) to allow town employees to update the site, and $5,500 for a five-year comprehensive marketing strategy to include “grant identification, development, PR plan, five-year marketing plan and budget”. After the initial services are provided, an hourly rate of $75 to $95 will apply for additional services.
Caron Sjöberg, president of Ideawörks, told the council that her company has created over 200 websites, including the current site for the Emerald Coast Utilities Authority, the Three Rivers Resource Conservation & Development Council and the Perdido Key Chamber of Commerce.
Sjöberg said her company is ready to create a brand for Century with a goal of economic development on the website with a “simple” homepage, contact page, staff page, history, a photo album, business information, chamber information and town news.
To read the complete Ideawörks proposal accepted by the Town of Century, click here.
Pictured: Caron Sjöberg, president of Ideawörks, pitches her company’s website and marketing plan to the Century Town Council Monday night. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Molino Park Reflections Art Program Awards Presented
November 22, 2011
Four Molino Park Elementary School students were awarded for their work in the school’s annual PTA Reflections Art Program recently. Winners were: Teagan Andress, Visual Arts, 1st place; Lainey Pace — Film Production, 1st place; Emily Andress — Photography, 2nd place; Kaelin Brinker — Photography, 1st place.
Each student’s work of art is below, including a video at the bottom of the page from the film production category.
