School And District At Odds After Leak Damages Byrneville Elementary
June 22, 2012
A leaky roof caused damage inside the Byrneville Elementary School media center, and exactly who will pay for the repairs has become a point of contention between the school and the school district.
The damage happened during the weekend of June 9-10, the same weekend that flood waters caused damage to several school district properties in the Pensacola area. While parts of the Pensacola metro received up to two feet of rain, a WEAR Weathernet station located at Byrneville Elementary recorded 1.25 inches of rain on Saturday, June 9 and 3.56 inches of rain on Sunday, June 10.
The problem, according to Byrneville Principal Dee Wolfe-Sullivan was not flooding — it was rain pouring through the ceiling. Discovered on Monday when employees returned to work, the leak damaged ceilings, walls, carpets and bookshelves. The library’s materials collection was essentially unharmed, with the school losing about a dozen magazines. A computer lab located in the same portable building as the media center received little damage except for wet carpet.
As a charter school, Byrneville Elementary is different than most schools in the county. Byrneville — not the school district – is responsible for paying operational costs and is responsible for all of the physical contents at the school.
Upkeep and maintenance on campus buildings is the responsibility of the Escambia County School District, including what Superintendent Malcolm Thomas described as the “vintage portable” building housing the library.
But the problem lies with which party is responsible with replacing carpet in the building, and whether or not the leak was caused by poor maintenance on the building by the county, potentially making the district liable for damage to the school’s contents.
Shawn Dennis, the assistant superintendent of operations, said the school district responded after being notified of the leak. He said the district, per its contract with the charter school, will look at repairs needed to the building itself, including walls and electrical systems.
“We have a work order system, and we have been responsive to every work order on that building,” Dennis said Thursday morning during an Escambia County School Board workshop.
“Are we saying that we feel we have no responsibility? What else are we going to do?”, asked Bill Slayton, District 5 board member.
Dennis replied that he did not feel damage to the contents, including carpet, were the responsibility of the county school district.
“The carpet came with the building. It’s not like the bookcases that I could move,” Wolfe-Sullivan told the board. “I feel it is the district’s responsibility to take care of the carpet.”
Thomas said he was concerned not just about the current leak damage, but the overall status of the aging school complex.
“You’ve got a very old building; that building is not going to last forever,” he said. “We gave that building up a long time ago because it was not suitable.”
Thomas told Wolfe-Sullivan that he wants to hear plans for capital improvements at the school. “There’s got to be a better long term solution…we are going to have to think about the building and how you are going to house the students,” he added.
Wolfe-Sullivan said that the she has spoken with the Byrneville Elementary board of directors about building a new school, but that is not going to happen in the near future.
No action was taken by the school board concerning the leak at Thursday’s meeting. Instead, Wolfe-Sullivan, Dennis and other district employees will continue their negotiations.
In the meantime, Wolfe-Sullivan said she is just worried about having the building repaired by the time students return in August. And she maintains the carpet and perhaps her contents damage will ultimately be the responsibility of the school district.
“The building must not have been maintained properly if it leaked from just the rain we had,” she said. “I think the district is responsible.
Pictured top: Byrneville Elementary School Principal Dee Wolfe-Sullivan addresses the Escambia County School Board during a workshop meeting Thursday morning. Pictured top inset: Byrneville Elementary School. Pictured bottom inset: Congressman Jeff Miller speaks to students inside the now damaged Byrneville Elementary media center. Courtesy photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Escambia Woman Convicted Of First Degree Murder
June 22, 2012
An Escambia County woman was convicted Thursday of the 2010 fatal beating and burning of a 19-year old woman.
It took a jury only about an hour to return the first degree murder conviction of Tina Lasonya Brown, 41. Brown faces life in prison or the death penalty.
Brown is one of three women accused of brutally beating and burning 19-year old Audreanna Zimmerman in an Ensley field. Zimmerman lived for 16 days after the attack.
Man Upset Over Traffic Ticket Threatens To Blow Up Sheriff’s Office
June 22, 2012
An Escambia County man apparently upset over a traffic ticket was arrested Thursday for threatening to blow up the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office.
Ronald Harrell, 23, received a ticket about 4 a.m. Thursday after running a red light at I-10 and Avalon Boulevard in Milton. After receiving his ticket, deputies said Harrell drove to a nearby residence and called 911 five times, using profanity in reference to the traffic ticket.
Deputies were dispatched to the home from which Harrell was making the 911 calls. According to an arrest report, he then began to rant about the ticket and that he was “not going to stand for it”. He then said he was going to get three deputies, blow up the Sheriff’s Office and then kill himself. “Somebody has to make a statement over this injustice,” he said, according to the report.
Harrell was booked into the Santa Rosa County Jail for threatening to discharge a destructive device and misuse of 911. His bond was set at $20,500.
Photo: Giant, Two Ton Cow
June 22, 2012
A giant, 13-foot tall, 2-ton cow paid a visit to the Tom Thumb in Molino Thursday afternoon. The beefy Holstein’s visit was part of a Turkey Hill brand promotional tour with free ice cream and lemonade, and free prizes in a spin game.
Pictured above: Gracen Brook, Danny Baity and Kylie Brook pose with a giant Turkey Hill cow Thursday afternoon at the Molino Tom Thumb. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
UWF Tuition Hiked 14 Percent; Other State Universities Going Up Too
June 22, 2012
A 14 percent tuition increase for the University of West Florida was approved Thursday by the Florida Board of Governors of the State University System.
But UWF is not alone in higher education rate hikes in Florida, with 11 of the state’s 12 public universities following a chaotic meeting that featured changing votes and shifting coalitions.
Only four universities — Florida Atlantic University, Florida International University, New College and the University of Central Florida — won approval for the full 15 percent allowed under the state’s “differential tuition” law; eight had originally requested it. The University of West Florida got 14 percent; Florida State University and the University of North Florida won approval for 13 percent; and Florida A&M University got 12 percent.
Florida Gulf Coast University, which requested 14 percent, also got 12 percent. The University of South Florida got the 11 percent increase it requested, while the University of Florida got the 9 percent boost it asked for. The new Florida Polytechnic University did not make a tuition request.
Board members spent about two hours debating the changes, and some university presidents were left wondering whether to use a so-far unused appeals process to try to get the board to change its mind.
The voting showed the extent and limit of Gov. Rick Scott’s influence on the board. Scott has long said he wants to hold tuition down. While the increases were less than what several universities asked for, Scott issued a statement afterward saying he was disappointed with the result.
“It is my priority to keep the cost of living low for Floridians and have an education system that produces the most competitive, highly skilled workforce in the world,” Scott said. “And I expect our universities and the Board of Governors to seek those same goals.”
Scott has the power to appoint or reappoint most of the members of the board.
Board Chairman Dean Colson, though, said he believed Scott’s concerns clearly resonated with some board members. No university had ever lost a differential request before Thursday.
“You’re crazy not to listen to what your governor has to say,” Colson said. “He’s the governor.”
Board members opposed to the larger increases said they were concerned about the effects of boosting tuition during a down economy, especially after three years of across-the-board 15 percent increases.
“Today is about a family that has been going through a recession, and we have continuously been beating on them and giving them a 15 percent increase,” said Vice Chairman Mori Hosseini.
Others countered that the increases were necessary to offset years of lagging state funding for higher education, including a $300 million reduction for this year that lawmakers have said will be a one-time cut.
And they said that rejecting the increases could lead to reductions in a number of courses that students need to graduate — causing those students to stay in school longer.
“The worst thing we can do is not have adjunct professors, not have professors, not have associate professors, and not have course sections, so these students can’t graduate,” said board member Tico Perez. “That’s a tuition increase — half a year out of their life, a year out of their life, a year out of the workforce.”
The News Service Florida contributed to this report.
From Kazakhstan To Cantonment: International Group Tours ECUA Facility
June 22, 2012
An international delegation from Kazakhstan visited and toured the ECUA Central Water Reclamation Facility in Cantonment Thursday afternoon.
The group was invited under the auspices of the Department of State’s International Visitor Leadership Program, which focuses on exposing international visitors to a variety of topics in the United States such as waste management practices. The national program visit was arranged by the Institute of International Education and their local program coordinator, the Gulf Coast Citizen Diplomacy Council.
Representing the Kazakhstan delegation were Meruyert Kurmashhova, director, Karaganda Ecological Center, Taissiya Kogutyuk, director general, Kazakhstan Kagazy JSC, Aidar Makhambet, director, Kazakhstan Rubber Recycling, Ltd., and Eldar Kildibayev, deputy head, department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management, Almaty.
The CWRF was named a top-three finalist for the 2011 Global Water Reuse Project of the Year by Global Water Intelligence in Berlin, Germany. The facility uses advanced wastewater treatment technology, and achieves zero-discharge through partnerships for industrial reuse of the reclaimed water. The reuse partnerships also reduce demand on the Sand-and-Gravel Aquifer, the sole source of the area’s drinking water.
Pictured top: An international delegation from Kazakhstan tours the ECUA Central Water Reclamation Facility in Cantonment Thursday afternoon. Pictured below: Eldar Kildibayev, deputy head, Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management, Almaty; Taissiya Kogutyuk, director general, Kazakhstan Kagazy; and Larry Walker, ECUA District 5 board member. Submitted photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
U.S. Marshals Capture Wanted Tennessee Fugitive
June 22, 2012
The U.S. Marshals Florida Regional Fugitive Task Force captured a Tennessee fugitive Thursday afternoon who is wanted on four counts of aggravated sexual battery.
Shannon Lee Russell of Forest Park Drive is wanted by law enforcement in McMinn County, TN, for allegedly sexually assaulting a young girl over a five year period. The 42-year old Russell was arrested at his home without incident.
The warrant was issued in December of 2011 and the Marshals believe that Russell has been in Pensacola since late summer or early fall of last year. The U.S. Marshals from the Smoky Mountain Fugitive Task Force in Chattanooga, TN, contacted the Task Force in Pensacola late yesterday requesting their assistance. The Florida Regional Fugitive Task Force quickly identified Russell’s whereabouts and began conducting surveillance. Russell is originally from Etowah, TN.
Russell was booked into the Escambia County Jail and although the warrant holds a $150,000 bond, he will be held there as a fugitive from justice until his return to Tennessee.
Pensacola Blue Wahoos Drop Second Half Opener 3-2 To Chattanooga
June 22, 2012
The Blue Wahoos had opportunities on Thursday night, but fell short 3-2 in the second half opener against the Chattanooga Lookouts at AT&T Field in Chattanooga, Tenn.
The Lookouts got on the board first against Blue Wahoos starter Tim Crabbe (3-3) with a pair of runs in the bottom of the fourth. After a two-out walk to Kyle Russell, Jake Lemmerman doubled home the first run of the game scoring Russell from first. The next batter, Matt Wallach, singled home Lemmerman to give Chattanooga a 2-0 advantage.
The Blue Wahoos were quick to answer with a run in the top of the fifth. Mark Fleury reached on an error at second base and was sacrificed over to second. With two outs, Didi Gregorius delivered the Wahoos’ only RBI of the game with a single to centerfield scoring Fleury from second, and cutting the deficit to one.
The Lookouts countered with a run in the bottom of the inning to reclaim a two-run advantage. Nick Buss opened the bottom of the fifth with a double. A batter later, he was sacrificed to third before scoring on a wild pitch to make it a 3-1 Chattanooga lead.
Pensacola got a run of their own on a wild pitch in the sixth to pull back within one, but their biggest threat came in the seventh. Red Patterson came out of the bullpen and issued back-to-back walks to Ryan LaMarre and Gregorius followed by a bunt single from Brodie Greene to load the bases. The next two batters were retired on strikeouts before Patterson got a pop up to second base to end the inning and the threat without scoring a run. Pensacola didn’t get another base runner the rest of the game.
All three Lookouts runs were charged to Crabbe who suffered his third loss of the season. He gave up seven hits, walked just two and struck out four. Allen Webster (2-7) earned his second win of the year for Chattanooga after allowing two unearned runs over six innings. The Wahoos were only able to get him for three hits, he also walked that many while striking out two. Logan Bawcom (7) worked a perfect ninth to earn his seventh save of the season.
The series continues on Friday when the Blue Wahoos send LHP Tony Cingrani (1-1, 2.55) to the mound against RHP Ethan Martin (6-3, 3.35).
By Tommy Thrall
Silver Alert Canceled
June 22, 2012
A Florida Silver Alert has been canceled for 81-year old Arlie Euretha Peterson, who was last seen in the area of Highway 90 and Log Lake Road west of Holt.
She was located unharmed.
Eyes On The Gulf: Tropical System Could Form Today
June 22, 2012
The National Hurricane Center is now giving a broad area of low pressure centered near the northern coast of the Yucatan a good chance of developing into a tropical cyclone in the next 48 hours.
The area of low pressure is producing a large area of showers and thunderstorms from the Yucatan to Cuba and southern Florida. Upper level winds are becoming more favorable for development.
All interests along the entire United States Gulf Coast should monitor the progress of this system through the weekend, according to the National Hurricane Center.
