All Santa Rosa Libraries Have A New Phone Number
July 10, 2011
Each Santa Rosa County library now has a new phone number.
The new number (850) 981-READ (7323) is the only number residents will need to reach any of the five Santa Rosa County libraries or library administration office. The phone system allows residents to request renewals, account information, and library service information by dialing one number. The new system not only provides enhanced customer service for library customers, but also provides a savings of almost 40 percent per year, according to Santa Rosa County.
Consolidating the six separate systems into one allows staff to transfer calls throughout the system and simplifies the process of changing recorded service messages like holiday closures and special announcements. To help in the transition, the current phone numbers will have a recorded message of the phone number change as well as announcements posted in each library and provided on bookmarks to take home.
Featured Recipe: Pork Blade Steak Piccata
July 10, 2011
Pork Blade Steak Piccata, from Food Network star Guy Fieri’s new book “Guy Fieri Food” is an off-the-hook take on a classic, and it’s sure to light your creative fires.
Pork Blade Steak Piccata
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
4 1-pound pork blade steaks
1 tablespoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed
1 tablespoon capers, drained
1 tablespoon flat-leaf parsley, chopped
Marinade:
1⁄4 cup garlic cloves, smashed (about 12 cloves)
3 tablespoons capers, drained
1⁄2 cup white wine
1 1⁄2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons black pepper, freshly cracked
1 1⁄2 tablespoons lemon zest, grated
3 tablespoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed
In medium bowl, combine all marinade ingredients and stir until fully incorporated. Add blade steaks, cover and marinate for 30 minutes (or up to 3 hours) at room temperature.
Preheat grill to high.
Remove steaks from marinade, brushing off any large pieces. Bring marinade to a boil in a saucepan for 3 to 4 minutes, and set aside to baste while you grill.
Grill steaks while basting with reserved marinade. Remove from grill when well marked on both sides, about 3 to 5 minutes per side. Let rest 5 minutes.
To serve, slice and season with the salt, pepper, lemon juice, capers and parsley.
Citizens Insurance Builds Reserve For Hurricane Claims
July 10, 2011
Citizens Property Insurance Corp. has lined up another $900 million to help pay claims if a major hurricane hits Florida.
The Citizens board recently heard a presentation about the sale of bonds, scheduled to close July 14, that will give the state-backed insurer about $6 billion to cover claims in coastal areas.
The insurer also will have about $3.1 billion that has accumulated to pay claims in other areas of the state, spokeswoman Christine Ashburn said.
Citizens is the largest property insurer in Florida, with 1.358 million policies as of May 31.
Governor, Congressman, Others Remember And Honor Nadine McCaw
July 9, 2011
Local, state and national political figures paused Friday to remember Century Councilwoman Nadine McCaw who passed away Thursday night at age 57.
For more on her passing, click here.
NorthEscambia.com asked several people for their thoughts on Nadine McCaw. Here’s what they told us:
“Town Council Member Nadine McCaw will be remembered for her dedicated service to her community. My condolences go to Nadine’s family and the town of Century, Florida.” — Gov. Rick Scott
“Her day job was her work with the Century Branch Library, but Nadine’s passion was service to others. She worked to better the lives of those in her community. My wife Vicki and I offer our prayers for her husband, Eddie, her children, and her entire extended family. She will be missed by all of us.” — Congressman Jeff Miller
“Nadine was a person who truly loved her town.” Century Mayor Freddie McCall
“Nadine was was a very fine, caring and compassionate person. She was a credit to her community.” — Escambia County Commission Chairman Kevin White
“Nadine’s death was a great loss to us all; but I am grateful that she is no longer suffering. I am also thankful I had the opportunity to know her and work with her on the Town Council. Even during the last months of her life, while suffering, she unselfishly gave as much of her energy to the Town as she could possibly manage. Nadine made Century a better place to live, and proved, with her hard work and commitment, that we all have the ability to make our community a better place.” — Century Town Council President Ann Brooks
“As a fellow councilwoman, the example Nadine set on the City Council is one I will always treasure and remember. She didn’t care about all the “politics” surrounding things. She only wanted to do what was best for Century and its citizens. I tell my students all the time to “live a legacy, not just leave a legacy.” Nadine certainly LIVED a legacy! I, for one, count myself blessed to not only say I knew Nadine McCaw, but I was friends with her. I know she is no longer in pain, but boy am I going to miss that great smile and contagious laugh! But, my memories are engraved deeply in my heart, and I find comfort in knowing I will see her again.” — Century Councilwoman Jacke Johnston
“There was a spark about her that cannot be replaced. There will never be another like her.” — Century Town Clerk Leslie Gonzalez
“The family should be extremely proud of what she has accomplished in her life, and the town should honor her for all she did not only for keeping the town going but for all of the individuals she personally helped when they had no where else to go to. Nadine did not need to know why you needed help, she just did it.” — Librarian Pat Rigel, Century Branch Library
Pictured: The flag was lowered to half-staff and a black bow was placed on the door at the Century Town Hall Friday in honor of the late Councilwoman Nadine McCaw. Courtesy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Gulf Power Files For Rate Increase
July 9, 2011
Citing rising costs and the need to strengthen Northwest Florida’s power system, Gulf Power Company has asked the Florida Public Service Commission to increase rates as early as September.
The request is the company’s first base rate request in 10 years and would increase the total bill for a residential customer buying 1,000 kilowatt-hours by $12.15 per month — from $122.67 to $134.82. Gulf Power has asked the PSC to implement a portion of the increase ($4.49) in September, pending a final decision on the request in early 2012.
“Even though we have had increases to cover rising fuel and required environmental costs, we have not had an increase to cover the day-to-day cost of doing business for almost a decade,” Gulf Power spokesperson Sandy Sims said. “Since then costs have increased significantly as we’ve built new power lines and substations. At the same time we’ve taken steps to strengthen and upgrade our electrical system that has been shaken by major hurricanes.”
Sims said Gulf Power has invested significantly in new infrastructure since the last such request in 2001, building more than 850 miles of new power lines and nine new substations and serving an additional 50,000 customers.
“The costs of maintaining our local customer service offices, our line crew centers, our fleet of bucket trucks and other day-to-day operations have also all increased since 2001,” Sims said. “Material and equipment costs have gone up significantly.”
Sims said that since the last base rate increase request several items commonly used in the business have seen significant cost increases. For example, the cost of copper wire has increased more than 250 percent, transformers 90 percent and the cost of diesel fuel for bucket trucks has jumped more than 300 percent.
“We wouldn’t be asking for a price adjustment unless it was absolutely necessary,” said Sims. “Maintaining reliable service is at the core of our business. Over the past 10 years we have had to upgrade our grid with stronger poles, new computerized monitoring and control technology, smart meters and new switching equipment to meet the growth in demand and to avoid outages. Like any other business, at some point our prices have to be adjusted as the cost of doing business increases. ”
Heat Index Headed Up
July 9, 2011
There’s a 60 percent chance rain for your Saturday. Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
- Sunday: Mostly sunny in the morning becoming mostly cloudy. Slight chance of showers and thunderstorms in the morning…then chance of showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs in the mid 90s. Southwest winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation 50 percent. Highest heat index readings 105 to 108 in the afternoon.
- Sunday Night: Partly cloudy. Slight chance of showers and thunderstorms in the evening. Lows in the mid 70s. Southwest winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation 20 percent.
- Monday: Mostly sunny in the morning becoming mostly cloudy. Slight chance of showers and thunderstorms in the morning…then chance of showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs in the upper 90s. West winds around 5 mph. Chance of precipitation 50 percent.
- Monday Night: Partly cloudy. Chance of showers and thunderstorms in the evening…then slight chance of showers and thunderstorms after midnight. Lows in the mid 70s. West winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation 30 percent.
- Tuesday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny and hot, with a high near 98. Calm wind.
- Tuesday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 76. West wind around 5 mph becoming calm.
- Wednesday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny and hot, with a high near 98. Calm wind becoming southeast around 5 mph.
- Wednesday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 76.
- Thursday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 96.
- Thursday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 75.
- Friday: A 40 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly sunny, with a high near 93.
Blue Angels Pensacola Beach Air Show Today
July 9, 2011
It’s the big Red, White and Blues Week on Pensacola Beach, with the Blue Angels’ annual air show.
On Saturday, the Pensacola Beach Air Show begins at noon, with the Blue Angels scheduled to fly at 2 p.m.
NewsRadio1620 AM will carry the Blue Angels Air Show on Saturday, July 9th from noon until the Blue Angels routine concludes. Anchoring the show live from the beach will be Pensacola Morning News host Rob Williams and comedian and author T Bubba Bechtol.
On Saturday, NewsRadio1620 and sister station Cat Country 98.7 will provide comprehensive traffic reports from both the Gulf Breeze Police Station and the Sheriff’s Substation on Pensacola Beach, with support from station news anchors monitoring traffic scanners for the most up to date information. Air show reports on Saturday from 7 a.m. until 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. until 5 p.m.
The following is the Pensacola Beach Air Show schedule:
- 12:15 p.m. Water in front of show area is cleared for safety precautions
- 12:30 p.m. Julian MacQueen’s Grumman Widgeon G44
- 12:35 p.m. US Coast Guard Search and Rescue (SAR) demonstration in an HH-65 Dolphin
- 12:45 p.m. Skip Stewart’s Modified Pitts Special
- 12:55 p.m. Gary Ward’s MX2 sport aircraft
- 1:05 p.m. Aeroshell Acrobatics Team, WWII North American AT-6 Texans
- 1:20 p.m. Swimmers are allowed back into the water
- 1:40 p.m. Water is cleared again for the main event
- 1:50 p.m. Fat Albert, a C-130 Hercules
- 2:00 p.m. Blue Angels F/A-18 Hornets
Shuttle Blasts Into History, Taking Florida Economic Engine With It
July 9, 2011
The Space Shuttle Atlantis lifted off Friday from the Kennedy Space Center taking with it a piece of history, not to mention an economic engine that will be hard to replace.
After three decades, the program is folding up, leaving thousands of highly paid, highly educated workers wondering where they go from here.
The shuttle program will soon be talked about in past tense. Atlantis’ 12-day mission, the last to be flown over a 30-year span, will mark the end of the longest running manned space effort.
The program, which put the Hubble telescope up and linked Earth to the International Space Station, also brought the country and manned space flight to its knees with two of the most watched tragedies since man ventured into space more than four decades ago with the disasters that destroyed the Challenger in 1986 and Columbia in 2003.
But aside from its role in the nation’s history and scientific endeavors, the shuttle program was a large employer and a key economic driver in the Space Coast. Its end leaves the area wondering what’s to come, how the roughly 9,000 jobs lost will be replaced and those thousands of engineers and others trying to decide whether to seek similar work elsewhere or wait for a new job in Brevard County.
“Today really sucked. For the first time after the launch, after that initial wave of patriotism, came a wave of absolute sadness,” said Florida Rep. Ritch Workman, R-Melbourne, who represents the Space Coast.
Gov. Rick Scott tempered sadness with optimism for a rebound that’s becoming a trademark.
“This is a historic time, and it’s sad to see the program end,” Scott said in his weekly radio address. “However, I am optimistic that we can attract high-tech aviation and aerospace jobs to the Space Coast because of our highly skilled workforce.”
By Michael Peltier
The News Service of Florida
Pictured top: Space shuttle Atlantis lifts off the launch pad for the final space shuttle mission. Courtesy NASA for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Cops Bust Rooftop Pharmacy Burglar
July 9, 2011
It looked like something out of movie script in Santa Rosa County early Friday morning when an Escambia County man tried to break into a Pace pharmacy.
Deputies said 27-year old Joshua Samuel Stephen definitely had a plan — he was dressed in all black, including a mask, a collapsible extension ladder, two canvas bags full of tools and climbing ropes and rings. But Stephen, a former employee of the Pace CVS, missed one little detail — there is an alarm on the roof hatch.
He told deputies that he used the ladder to climb first onto the drive-thru roof and then to the building’s roof. But when he removed the hatch on the roof that leads back into the building, the alarm sounded.
“Stephen told deputies that he tried to find a way to get off of the roof quickly but “the cops arrived too fast” so he found a place to hide,” according to Sgt. Scott Haines, spokesperson for the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office.
He told deputies that he chose the particular store because he is a former employee and knew where to find cash and electronics.
Stephen was booked into the Santa Rosa County Jail with bond set at $25,250. He was charged with burglary, wearing a mask during the commission of a crime, criminal mischief, possession of burglary tools and trespassing.
For a photo gallery, click to enlarge.
Pictured above and below: Burglary suspect Joshua Samuel Stephen on the roof of a Pace pharmacy. Pictured inset: Stephen was busted after setting off the alarm on this roof hatch. Courtesy photos by the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Weekend Gardening: Flowering Plants Require Summer Care
July 9, 2011
High temperatures can be stressful on our colorful annual and perennial plants causing many to diminish in vigor and beauty. Even though it’s hot outside, take the time to take care of your flowering plants. Good maintenance includes regular fertilization, watering, pruning and weeding.
Many beds deteriorate simply because the flowering plants are starving. Our typical sandy soils don’t have the ability to store large amounts of some nutrients, especially nitrogen and potassium. After four to six weeks of waterings, most of these two nutrients have been depleted.
Plants usually grow much better with a continuous nutrient supply. Controlled-release fertilizers like Osmocote, Nutricote, Dynamite and others tend to be more costly, but the nutrients in them are slowly and steadily delivered to the plants over an extended period of several months. If you aren’t using controlled release fertilizers, then monthly applications of a granular fertilizer may be necessary.
Established beds should be watered on an “as needed” basis. Wilting will reduce flowering on many plants and should not be allowed to happen. The frequency of irrigation will depend on your soil type, exposure to sunlight, the plant species and the temperature. While we tend not to recommend daily watering, some annuals
growing in full sun during the summer may require daily watering.
Always water during the early morning hours, rather than in the afternoon and evenings. This helps to reduce the incidence of flower, stem and leaf diseases. Avoid overhead watering if possible. Delivering watering to the roots through a microirrigation system, for example, is a preferred method.
Good pruning practices can also help to keep flower beds vigorous. Many gardeners use the term “deadheading” to refer to the removal of old flowers as soon as they begin to deteriorate.
The goal of many flowering annuals and perennials is to reproduce themselves. Once this has been accomplished through seed production, plants change physiologically. Often the growth rate and flowering for the remainder of the season ceases or is greatly reduced.
Deadheading prevents the plants from producing seed and shutting down. Once old flowers are removed, the plants grow again in order to flower. This process can continue throughout the summer with well adapted flowering annuals and perennials.
The procedure is simple. Wait until flower spikes or individual flowers start to decline and then pinch or prune off the spent blooms. Enjoy the flowers during their peak, but don’t wait too long to deadhead. Once seed set occurs, the depletion of the plant’s stored energy begins.
Leave as much foliage on the plants as possible when deadheading unless they have become extremely tall and unruly. In this case, they can be cut back by one-third without serious damage.
Some gardeners establish a routine of deadheading. After each flush of bloom has faded, plants are cut back to remove old flowers and fertilized to encourage new growth. This practice can stimulate some flowering annuals and perennials to produce three or four flushes of growth and continued flowering throughout the spring
and summer.
Weeds can become very competitive in summer flowers, and in most cases hand weeding is required. Though there are a few herbicides that can help, extreme care must be taken in the selection and use of these products during the hot weather.
Evaluate all flower beds before beginning a summer maintenance program, making sure that you are expending efforts on truly warm season plants. Some, such as snapdragons, dianthus, carnations and pansies are cool season plants and no amount of care will help them to overcome summer temperatures. On the other hand, zinnias, marigolds, salvia and the tropical perennials will return your efforts many times over.