Blog: Jim Paul, DUI, Happy Birthday And Etc.
January 23, 2008
Quit scolding me. I’m sorry. It seems that many of you have emailed to tell me to write more on my blog. I’m one of those people that will usually sit and listen with my mouth shut until I have something to say. But I suppose I’ll oblige (is that a Little House on the Prairie word or what?) and write more often.
It’s been an interesting couple of weeks since I wrote anything on my blog. That entry was Mr. Paul, Let’s Talk: My Kids Have Questions in which I challenged Mr. Jim Paul to respond to my elementary school age kids that had questions about his DUI arrest.
Hours after the blog posted, Paul did respond to the questions my girls asked in an exclusive interview with NorthEscambia.com. As far as we know, we are the only news outlet that asked him to explain himself to the kids in the district he is suppose to be running. If you happened to catch the story on WPMI (channel 15) about his comments to the media, you saw him talking on the phone with NorthEscambia.com doing that interview.
The Pensacola News Journal called for him to resign. Many of you emailed us supporting his resignation. We did not publicly call for his resignation, nor did we call for him to stay. We figured he’d be a man about it and admit his wrong doing. He did the media circus thing, granting interviews like the one NorthEscambia.com did. In those interviews, he fessed up to having a couple of drinks and driving off hours later. Short of having liver problems, various experts have said he’s lying. When asked at Tuesday night’s board meeting if he had anything to say, “No, Mam” was the best he could muster. Sounded like a kid afraid to tell momma the truth, if you asked me. Nuff said on that subject.
Former board member Cary Stidham filed today (Thursday) to run against Paul. Back when she served on the board, she pretty much opposed anything and everything Paul remotely appeared to support. She had a rough time in the 2006 election when she was easily defeated by Gerald Boone for the District 2 seat on the board. He raised many times the dollars that Stidham did. If another qualified candidate files to run against Paul, we just don’t see Stidham going very far.
Changing the subject: Happy Birthday to Mrs. Elmira Gandy Crapps! Click here to read the story about her if you have not done so yet. She turns 101 Friday.
I had the chance to sit down with her at the Panhandle in Century Wednesday afternoon. I’ve got to be honest…when she walked in, I thought she might be Mrs. Crapps daughter arriving for the little party. She does not look like, talk like, or act like a person that’s passed the century mark. She’s an amazing lady who’s not shy about giving thanks to the Lord for all of her years. Her dad lived to be 108. Happy Birthday Mrs. Crapps, and many, many more!
You’ll notice the Northview FFA story on the site. NHS teacher Perry Byars and everyone that works with the FFA at Northview deserves a pat on the back. These young men and ladies are our future, and Perry and the other sponsors work hard with them.
Thanks again for stopping by NorthEscambia.com. We appreciate each of you, each time you visit. If you are not visiting each day or so, you might consider stopping by more often. We are posting new stories just about everyday. And to those of you sending us news tips, we appreciate that too!
It does not matter if its some big breaking news story, or just an event at your school, church or club. Let us know about it; send us a picture or two. We want to know what is going on in your community!
Thanks again for visiting with us here at NorthEscambia.com. We look forward to seeing you again soon!
County Fire Chief Addresses Elimination Of Separate Volunteer Departments
January 23, 2008
Escambia County Fire Chief Ken Perkins addressed the consolidation of Escambia County’s volunteer fire departments at an informational meeting held with volunteers Tuesday night at the county’s public safety building in Pensacola.
Perkins said he believes the elimination of separate departments and the formation of a unified county fire department would be a step in the right direction.
But several volunteer fire fighters at at the meeting disagreed, saying there is nothing wrong with the current system that has 15 different departments.
“I make a damn good living working for AT&T. I’ve got two kids and a wife and I’m fortunate to have a rental home,” one volunteer said. “But I’m hurting in this economy right now. And what I don’t want to see is this fire station or unified fire department come in, when fire departments are doing a damn good job.”
The Escambia County Commission is expected to vote to consolidate the county’s fire departments at their Thursday night meeting.
“As far as I am concerned on October 1, we’ve got a whole new fire department in Escambia County,” said Commissioner Mike Whitehead at the commission’s Committee of the Whole meeting last week.
“There will be so many stations, but they won’t be independent districts anymore. It will be an Escambia County fire system,” Commissioner Gene Valentino said last week. “We will still very much value and absolutely need the support of the volunteers, but it will be one system that will be a unified Escambia County fire system.”
The county’s agreement with the volunteer fire departments in the county ends on September 30, according to County Attorney Janet Lander.
“I’m not going to vote to renew a contract,” Commissioner Mike Whitehead said at last week’s meeting. “We’ve talked about it for two years. It’s time to move; it’s time to make it happen.
There are four volunteer departments in the North Escambia area…Century, McDavid, Molino and Walnut Hill. All four would be eliminated as independent departments and replaced by the unified county fire department under the county’s plan.
School Board Censures Paul, Gindhl Casts Lone Vote Against Motion
January 23, 2008
Tuesday night, the Escambia County School Board voted 4-1 to censure Superintendent Jim Paul following his drunk driving arrest in Pinellas County back on January 10.
School board member Claudia Brown-Curry made the motion to “express disapproval for the conduct of Superintendent Paul in Pinellas County on July 10″.
Paul was arrested with a blood alcohol level over one and a half times the legal limit while in the Clearwater area attending a technology conference funded by Apple Computer. Paul told NorthEscambia.com in an exclusive interview (pictured above) that he was sorry for he had done, but had no intentions of resigning. You can read the story about Paul’s exclusive conversation with NorthEscambia.com and hear the interview by clicking here.
Prior to the board meeting, several people addressed the board during its public forum and called for Paul to resign or for the board to force his resignation.
“Many of you came forward and said we need to make him resign,” board member Patty Hightower said once the meeting began. “We can not do that. He is elected by the people of this county.”
“The governor can remove the superintendent or you can do it by recall,” she said. “We can not remove him.”
District 5 board member Pete Gindhl, who represents the North Escambia area, cast the lone vote against the motion. He made no comment as to why.
“I feel as an elected official that people expect more out of us,” Curry said. “He has to check his heart.”
While he voted for the motion, board member Jeff Bergosh expressed some reservation. “I would like to wait until we see more facts come forward before voting on this,” he said.
“If we go forward with this, this is going to be all over the news,” Bergosh said.
When Hightower asked Paul if he had any comment, he simply replied “No, Mam”.
The boards vote to censure Paul carries no weight or legal standing; it is simply a public statement by the board.
About a half dozen protesters marched in front of the J.E. Hall Center before Tuesday night’s meeting, calling for Paul resignation or removal.
Century Mayor’s Emergency Spending Limit Increased, Council Meeting Time Changed
January 23, 2008
The Century Town Council voted Tuesday night to give Mayor Freddie McCall, Sr. more spending authority in the event of emergencies.
The mayor had been under a $200 spending limit according to the town’s charter, a document that dates from the 1940’s.
A motion by council member Henry Hawkins and approved by the council gives McCall the authority to spend necessary funds during an emergency situation. In non-emergency situations, McCall still must abide by the $200 spending limit or get the council’s permission to exceed it.
The discussion arose after McCall reported three emergencies had arisen during the past two weeks that caused him to overspend his limit. The first was $5,600 to replace a sewage pump that failed at the Century Correctional Institute. The second instance was the $300 replacement of of a control valve that failed at the water treatment plant, and the third instance was the $1,400 replacement of a broken roll-up door on a town building.
In other business, the council voted to change its first and third Monday night meeting time from 6:00 to 7:00 beginning with the February 4 meeting.
The mayor reported to the council that the town will go from being $2,000 a month in red to Allied Waste to turning a profit of about $576, or about 83 cents for each of the town’s 694 residential garbage accounts. The change comes because Allied Waste will begin to bill small business customers directly rather than them being billed the town.
On the mayor’s recommendation, the council voted to repaint the interior of city hall. McCall reported that the only cost would be for paint and materials; the labor would be provided by city staff and inmates.
The mayor reported that he will get prices for the council to consider for additional chairs to be used at the Century Community Center on Highway 4. At Monday’s Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration at the community center, there were not enough chairs available.
The council authorized about $5,000 for Fabre Engineering to develop plans for three projects: a water tank at the prison, a standby generator for a sewage lift station at the prison, and changes to a lift station that has been damaged by vehicles in the past. The project will ultimately be done in lieu of payment of a $16,000 fine to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. One of the three projects will be chosen by the Florida DEP.
The council also declared January 25th as Elmira Gandy Crapps Day in the town of Century. She turns 101 on that day. Mayor McCall told the council she still drives and attends church.
Town of Century Votes To Support Upcoming Relay For Life
January 23, 2008
The Century Town Council voted to support the town’s upcoming American Cancer Society Relay for Life with a $1,000 donation and a team in April 25-26 relay.
Last year, the council made the $1,000 donation and the town’s team raised over $4,000 more for the cancer society, according to Paula Jernigan (pictured left), this year’s relay coordinator.
She said over $30,000 was raised by last year’s relay in Century. This year’s goal is $45,000.
“Seven years ago, I was diagnosed with cancer,” Jernigan said. “No one ever told me about the American Cancer Society and what they would have provided for me.”
“I I don’t what that to happen to anyone else in the north end of the county,” she told the council.
The Century Relay for Life will hold a kickoff meeting at 6:30 on January 29 at Carver Century School.
Council Discusses Recent Federal Raid At Century Helicopter Business
January 23, 2008
The Century Town Council’s most heated discussion Tuesday night centered around the recent problems at Van Nevel Helicopters in the town’s industrial park
Van Nevel Helicopters was the focus of a federal raid January 9 when the U.S. Office of Transportation raided the business and seized the records of the business and its owner, Georges Van Nevel.
“He’s in a bind,” Mayor Freddie McCall, Sr. said. “He’s got major problems with the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration).”
“They didn’t shut him down,” McCall told the council. “They didn’t find anything wrong.”
City Clerk Dorothy Sims reported that Van Nevel is currently scheduled to make two payments per month for use of the town’s building in the industrial park. He is currently behind four months, or eight payments, she said, At $3,257.61 per payment. That would put the company $26,060.88 behind in payments to the town.
“How far are we going to let him get behind before we do something,” council member Henry Hawkins said. “We are going to have to put a stop to it somewhere.” He suggested that the council would not let other persons get that far behind on lease payments to the town before the town took eviction actions.
“We’ve got to have policies and procedures, and we have none,” Hawkins said. “I think he needs to go.”
“You don’t know anything about business, young man,” former mayor Benny Barnes (pictured above) told Hawkins from the audience. Barnes is the current director of the Century Chamber of Commerce. He was silenced by Council President Ann Brooks, who told him comments from the audience during the council’s regular meeting must be directed only at the council president.
McCall told the council that now that he is mayor he is in a position to know when the company misses a payment to the town.
“He deserves the opportunity to work it out,” Brooks said.
The mayor reported that the town owns the building outright; the building does not cost Century any money each month. The council took no action Tuesday on the Van Nevel Helicopter company.
During the public forum portion of the meeting, Barnes once again addressed the council.
“I am very concerned about jobs here, or the lack of them,” Barnes said. He said he hoped the council would continue to be lenient toward Van Nevel because despite repeated inspections by the FAA, Van Nevel had not been found to do anything wrong.
The raid at Van Nevel was first reported by North Escambia.com on January 9. For that story and pictures, click here. In that story, NorthEscambia.com reported:
“Van Nevel is suspected of improperly refurbishing helicopters and helicopter parts, selling unapproved aircraft parts, performing improper repairs on helicopters and misleading the aviation community by false advertisements,” according to federal documents from the Office of Transportation obtained by NorthEscambia.com.
Escambia Proposes Sector Plan, Meeting Held
January 23, 2008
A long term planning project is underway for 15,000 acres near the North Escambia area. Escambia County Planning and Engineering held an explanatory workshop on the Optional Sector Plan on Tuesday night at Ransom Middle School.
The Optional Sector Plan encompasses approximately 15,000 acres of land north of Interstate 10, south of Barrineau Park Road and west of Highway 29. It is a long-term conceptual planning project.
According to county documents, a group of developers is interested in about 3,400 of the 15,000 acres.
“The area outlined in the sector plan is a transition from rural to suburban land use,” the documents say.
For a larger sector plan map, click the image above to enlarge.
Slightly Warmer Weather, But Rain Returns For Tonight, Wednesday
January 22, 2008
Dozens of campers braved cold nights over the weekend at Lake Stone near Century. The weather will be warmer tonight, but rain is back in the forecast. There’s a 30 percent chance of rain in the evening, with a low around 45. Widespread dense fog is expected by morning.
Rain chances will be at 50 percent on Wednesday with a high around 60. It will be cooler Wednesday night with a low around 40 with a 60 percent chance of rain. Rain chances continue at 40 percent on Thursday with a high of 52. Much colder temps return for Thursday night with a low around 25.
Pictures above: Ducks feeding near the boat ramp at Lake Stone near Century Monday morning. Campers (pictured background) endured overnight lows in the low 20’s over the weekend. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Century Council Meeting Moved To Tuesday Night Due To Holiday
January 21, 2008
The regular third Monday night meeting of the Century Town Council has been rescheduled for Tuesday night due to the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday.
The Century Town Council will meet at 6:00 at in the town council chambers at town hall. This will be the second meeting of the year for Freddie McCall, Sr., the town’s new mayor.
Presidential Hopeful McCain To Visit Escambia County Tuesday
January 21, 2008
Republican presidential hopeful Sen. John McCain will visit Escambia County on Tuesday. McCain will hold a military veteran’s rally on the main campus of Pensacola Junior College. Doors will open at 8:00 with McCain scheduled to speak at about 9:00.
McCain came out on top in this past Saturday’s highly contest South Carolina primary.