Could Federal Stimulus Money Resurrect Plans For Century Car Plant?
March 12, 2009
Escambia County’s top 22 project list for federal stimulus dollars includes millions that might resurrect plans for an electric car manufacturing facility in Century.
The county is seeking $20 million in federal funding for a “renewable energy electric car” at number 15 on their 22 items wish list.
The $20 million would be used to “support renewable energy transportation needs, provide economic stimulus, and reduce carbon emissions. This will support economic development for the southeastern United States by establishing and promoting incentives to companies that develop measures to reduce dependence on foreign oil and limit and combat climate change,” according to the county’s proposal.
Larry Newsom, who worked to develop the list for the county, said that the money could go toward LHS EV locating in Century. LHS EV is company that planned to build an electric car in Century until the state denied a $2.5 million grant from the state’s Renewable Energy and Energy-Efficiency Technologies program. At that point, the company announced that Century and Escambia County were no longer being considered for the plant.
“Maybe the feds will come through for us,” Newsom said. “The money could be used for LHS EV to still locate in Century. But I can’t speak for them; I don’t know if they would or not.”
If it is not used to lure LHS EV or another similar company to Escambia County, it could still be used for other projects that would alleviate some of Escambia County’s traffic problems that ultimately impact the environment, he said.
The county’s wish list to be presented to our federal legislators states that the $20 million would create 1,100 jobs in the county — the exact number that LHS had said that their electric car plant would bring to Century.
The grant, Newsom said, is not directly tied to LHS EV or Century.
LHS EV had promised about 200 jobs would have come with the plant to Century, and they said total employment could reach as high as 1,100. Escambia County helped LHS EV apply for the $2.5 million grant, and the county passed a resolution offering $39,000 in tax incentives to the company. But the state turned down the application in late February.
Patel said that LHS EV needed the $2.5 million to get $34 million in financing for Project Green Leaf. Nash and his brother Jay Patel said they had the $34 million secured in a line of credit, but they refused many media requests to name the bank that would provide the financing.
“The Patels’ concern was how money they would have to put up on the front end,” Newsom said. “The $2.5 million would have got the plant built, put people to work and got the ball rolling. They would have generated revenue before they had to put up their own money. I thought it was a very smart strategy; they would have been looking at only about a year to get a return on their investment.”
An exact timetable to decisions to be made the county’s stimulus list is not known.
Attempts to reach Jay and Nash Patel, co-owners of LHS EV, were unsuccessful late Wednesday afternoon.
Man Interrupts Daytime Burglary In Progress At His Home
March 12, 2009
A Molino resident interrupted a burglary in progress at his home during broad daylight, now Escambia deputies are asking for your help in locating the suspects.
At about 11:00 Monday morning, a man returned to his home in the 4000 block of Chestnut Road as two men were burglarizing his home, according to Sgt. Ted Roy, spokesman for the Escambia County Sheriff’s Department.
He found an older mar car backed up in the driveway of his house; the car was occupied by a black male in his 20’s. The rear door of the home had been kicked in. The victim stated that he suspect outside the home began yelling at another suspect inside the home.
The victim entered the house to discover another black male in this early 20’s near his grandchild’s bedroom. The sheriff’s report states that the black male ran past the victim in the hallway and exited the home.
Deputies attempted to locate the suspects or their vehicle in the area, but they were unable to do so, Roy said.
The vehicle was described as a late 70’s or early 80’s model Oldsmobile or Pontiac. It was golden or yellow in color and had a large of rust near the front edge of the hood. The car was described as not being “tricked out” — no fancy hubcaps or rims or other alterations.
Camera equipment was reported missing from the home. One digital camera was recovered from the front yard of the home.
Anyone with information about this crime is asked to call the Escambia County Sheriff’s Department at 436-9620 or Crime Stoppers at 433-STOP.
Learn To Read: Program Offered In North Escambia
March 12, 2009
About 50,000 adults in Escambia County are unable to fill out properly fill out a job application because they are unable to read; they are functionally illiterate.
But Sharyon Miller, Edna Earle Barnes and a host of volunteers are hoping to change that one person at a time through Learn to Read of Northwest Florida.
The program, which operates a branch office in Century, provides free one-on-one reading instruction through a free tutoring program.
“When looking at a job application and they see ‘DOB’, they have no clue what it means,” Miller, excutive director of the Learn to Read program, said.
Volunteer tutors are trained to teach adult students that want to learn to read. Complete training is provided at no cost, and the entire Learn to Read program is free for the group’s clients.
Currently, there are six sets of tutors and students — 12 people in all — in the Learn to Read program in Century. Barnes has volunteered as the Century coordinator for about two years.
For more information about the Learn to Read program, visit www.learntoreadnwf.org or call Edna Earle Barnes in Century at 256-0880.
Pictured above: Century Area Learn to Read Coordinator Edna Earle Barnes listens to Executive Director Sharyon Smith explain the literacy program. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Molino Community Center, Library Near Top Of County Wish List
March 12, 2009
One of the 22 projects listed on Escambia County’s “Priority Project List” could finally provide the funds for a new Molino Community Center
The renovation project at the old Molino Elementary School would create multi-use communtiy center that would include a library.
The old Molino school project is ranked at number six on Escambia County’s 22 stimulus wish list projects, with the county hoping for $5 million in funding for the Highway 95A project.
The project would renovate the old school into a multiuse/multipurpose community center and branch library for the Molino area.
The county says the facility used for disaster response and recovery, agribusiness, health services, a library, education, economic development, transportation and recreation.
It would include a community center, possible educational partnerships with the Escambia County School District’s vocational programs, possible community college uses, a full use branch library, agricultural services, a visitor’s information center or chamber of commerce satellite location and more.
The library portion of the project is currently ranked number three in the state for a half million dollars in funding from the state. The grant, if awarded, would require the county to use the facility as a library in Molino for a minimum of 20 years.
The school closed in 2003 when the new Molino Park Elementary School consolidated Molino Elementary and Barrineau Park Elementary. The school, which sits on nine acres along County Road 95A just south of Molino Road, first opened in 1939.
Friday Is Final Day For Three Farm Bill Programs
March 12, 2009
The USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) says tomorrow, March 13, is the cutoff date for three Farm Bill conservation programs.
All applications for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP), and the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) will be accepted until close of business on March 13.
EQIP and WHIP offer financial and technical assistance to install structural and management practices on eligible non-federal lands to address natural resource concerns and wildlife habitat restoration. Conservation treatment activities for EQIP and WHIP are carried out in accordance to a conservation plan that is developed with the landowner or manager.
State-wide priorities for EQIP include erosion control, water quality, water quantity, animal / plant health and confined livestock operations. Priorities for WHIP include habitat restoration on scrubby flatwoods, pine rocklands, tropical hammocks, and native grasslands for bobwhite quail. Individual county priorities may vary slightly due to locally established objectives.
The Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) is a voluntary program that provides technical and financial assistance to private landowners and Tribes to restore, protect and enhance wetlands in exchange for retiring eligible land from agriculture.
For additional details on these Farm Bill programs and for specific eligibility requirements to participate, contact the Escambia County, FL USDA NRCS office at (850) 587-5404 ext. 3. Or stop by 151 Highway 97, Molino (Escambia County Farm Bureau Building).
Bratt Road Brush Fire
March 11, 2009
Firefighters were called to a brush fire near Byrneville this afternoon.
The Century and McDavid stations of Escambia Fire Rescue and Engine 519 responded to the brush fire just after 1 p.m.
The fire was behind a residence in the 7500 block of Bratt Road. Their were no structures threatened by the fire.
It took firefighters just a short time to bring the blaze under control. It burned about one acre.
The Florida Division of Forestry was called to scene, but they were cancelled prior to their arrival.
Pictured above: A crew works to pull hose into a brush fire located on Bratt Road Wednesday afternoon. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Details Released On Alabama Shooting
March 11, 2009
Alabama authorities have released more details about a shooting that left 10 people — including the suspect’s own mother and girlfriend — dead in South Alabama. The Alabama Department of Public Safety issued the following statement:
State, federal and local investigators responding to the multiple homicides March 10 in south Alabama are piecing together the sequence of events that resulted in the shooting deaths of 10 victims, the injury of six individuals, and the death of the suspect from a self-inflicted gunshot. Investigators also are working to determine a motive for the deadly attacks.
The gunman has been identified as Michael Kenneth McLendon, 28, of Coffee County.
We believe the attacks began at McLendon’s mother’s residence in Coffee County on County Road 474 in Kinston, where McLendon also lived. The body of a woman was discovered at the residence at approximately 3:30 p.m. when local firefighters responded to witness reports of a fire at that location. The Department of Forensic Sciences is working to confirm the identity, but the victim is believed to be Lisa White McLendon, 52, McLendon’s mother.
McLendon then traveled to Samson in Geneva County, where he shot and killed five individuals on the front porch of his uncle’s residence on West Pullum Street. The victims are identified as:
- Corrine Gracy Myers, 18 months, the daughter of Geneva County Deputy Josh Myers
- Andrea D. Myers, 31, mother of the 18-month-old and wife of Deputy Myers
- James Alford White, 55, identified as McLendon’s uncle
- Tracy Michelle Wise, 34, identified as McLendon’s cousin
- Dean James Wise, 15, identified as Ms. Wise’s son and McLendon’s second cousin
Injured at that residence was 4-month-old Ella K. Myers, the daughter of Deputy Myers. Ella was transported by LifeFlight to Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola. This morning she was listed in stable condition and scheduled for surgery.
McLendon then shot and killed Virginia E. White, 74, identified as McLendon’s grandmother, who was standing in the doorway of her home on Pullum Street, next door to the residence where the first attack occurred.
McLendon then left Pullum Street, traveling north on Wise Street in a red 2003 Mitsubishi. On Wise Street, McLendon shot and killed a pedestrian, James Irvin Starling, 24. McLendon continued north onto Main Street in Samson, where he shot and injured Jeffrey Lynn Nelson, 50. McLendon then traveled to the Inland Gas Station on Main Street in Samson, where he shot and killed Sonja Smith, 43. Injured at that location was Greg McCullough, 49. McLendon continued traveling east on Alabama 52, firing rounds into several businesses and vehicles as he drove.
At 4:01 p.m. CDT, an Alabama state trooper notified the Dothan State Trooper Post that he had received a report of a subject shooting at people in Samson, and the trooper proceeded toward Samson on Alabama 52. McLendon, traveling east on Highway 52 toward Geneva, then shot and killed Bruce Wilson Malloy, 51, who was traveling in a vehicle on 52.
At 4:06 p.m. CDT, the Alabama state trooper encountered McLendon on Alabama 52,and McLendon fired at least seven rounds into the trooper’s vehicle. The trooper, Mike Gillis, was injured slightly by broken glass, and continued the pursuit on McLendon into Geneva.
The Geneva Police Department attempted to stop McLendon using a PIT, or pursuit intervention maneuver, in front of the Wal-Mart in Geneva. McLendon fired several rounds into the officer’s vehicle, injuring him with glass fragments. Geneva Police Chief Frankie Lindsey attempted to block McLendon’s exit from the area, at which time McLendon fired several rounds at the chief. Chief Lindsey was wounded in the shoulder.
McLendon continued on Highway 52, turned onto Maple Avenue in Geneva, and then onto Highway 27 north. He stopped at Reliable Products in Geneva at 4:17 p.m., where he exited his vehicle. McLendon exchanged fire with a Geneva County deputy and a state Conservation officer before entering the Reliable Products building. Within minutes, gunshots were heard, and McLendon was discovered dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
McLendon was employed at Kelley Foods of Alabama. We have identified that in 2003, he was briefly employed as a police officer in Samson, but failed to complete required training at the police academy in Montgomery. He had no known criminal record.
McLendon was armed with two assault rifles, an SKS and a Bushmaster, using high-capacity magazines taped together; a shotgun; and a .38-caliber handgun. At this time we believe that he fired in excess of 200 rounds during the assaults.
In addition to the Alabama Department of Public Safety, agencies participating in the investigation are the Geneva County Sheriff’s Department, Geneva Police Department, Samson Police Department, Coffee County Sheriff’s Department, Dothan Police Department, Dale County Sheriff’s Department, Andalusia Police Department, Covington County Sheriff’s Department, New Brockton Police Department, Ozark Police Department, State Fire Marshal, Alabama Beverage Control Board, Conservation and Natural Resources, Department of Forensic Sciences, Emergency Management Agency, Alabama Power Company investigators, the FBI, ATF, and Ft. Rucker Police Department.
Immigrant Arrested For Arson
March 11, 2009
Atmore Police have arrested an immigrant for allegedly setting a house fire.
At 12:36 a.m. Wedneday, Atmore Police and the Atmore Fire Department responded to a 911 report of a fire at 105 Greer Avenue. When they arrived, they discovered that someone had apparently poured gasoline on parts of the house and yard and set the fire.
After a preliminary investigation, Agustin Hernandez, a 26-year-old Mexican immigrant who lives next door at 103 Greer Avenue, was named a suspect in the case, according to Atmore Police.
Hernandez was arrested and charged with arson in the first degree, a class A felony.
Atmore Police and the Atmore Fire Department will be assisting the State Fire Marshal’s Office in the investigation.
Suspect From Byrneville Manhunt Turns Himself In
March 11, 2009
Escambia County deputies have arrested Jedd Jackson Grimes — the man that deputies were unable to locate in a Friday afternoon manhunt that sent a local elementary school into a lock down. Meanwhile, the female in the vehicle with Grimes that was arrested Friday afternoon was released on bond Tuesday.
Grimes, 24, of Highway 168, Century, was arrested Tuesday by the Escambia County Sheriff’s Department after he turned himself in, according to Sheriff’s Department spokesman Ted Roy.
Grimes was being held Wednesday in the Escambia County Jail without bond as a fugitive from justice. He was being held pending extradition to Escambia County, Ala., where authorities there have outstanding warrants for his arrest.
The search for Grimes started Friday afternoon when Lt. Carl Jones attempted to turn around and stop a small pickup truck occupied by Grimes and a female near 960 Byrneville Road just south of Byrneville Elementary School. Before Jones could make the traffic stop, Grimes fled the scene on foot into some nearby woods behind a house.
At one point shortly after the search began, Jones said Grimes actually called deputies to say that he was in a wooded area not far from where he had ditched his truck.
“But he was on the run and lying to us,” Jones said.
The Escambia County (Fla.) Sherrif’s Department, the Escambia County (Ala.) Sheriff’s Department and the Flomaton Police Department were involved in the search for Grimes along with tracking dogs from the Century Correctional Institute and Santa Rosa County. The nearly four-hour manhunt was called off late Friday afternoon with Grimes still on the run.
The female in truck, Teka Michelle Campbell, 32, of Pensacola, was taken into custody at the scene without incident. Deputies say she was wanted on a probation violation warrant on a petty theft charge from 2006.
Campbell was released Tuesday from the the county jail on a $2,500 bond that was set Tuesday morning by Escambia County Circuit Judge Joyce Williams. Campbell will be in court next on April 23 for a violation of probation hearing before Judge Williams.
Nearby Byrneville Elementary School was placed into lock down during the manhunt. Students were dismissed slowly at about the normal time Friday afternoon under the watchful eye of school employees and a deputy.
Pictured top: Suspect Teka Michelle Campbell is placed in a deputy’s cruiser Friday afternoon in Byrneville. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Dense Fog Advisory Extended Until Noon
March 11, 2009
The National Weather Service in Mobile extended a dense fog advisory until noon. Patchy dense fog remains around the area. Locations to the south are worse that most of North Escambia.
Areas of dense fog over the western Florida Panhandle will continue this morning. Visibilities in several locations will continue at less than one quarter of a mile for several hours.
“The fog is of the advective variety making it rather deep. It will therefore be more resistant to morning solar heating and will linger until around noon or shortly before,” the weather services says.
A dense fog advisory means visibilities will frequently be reduced to less than one quarter mile. If driving, slow down, use your headlights and leave plenty of distance ahead of you.