Gulf Power To Seek Rate Hike
May 17, 2013
Little more than a year after receiving approval to increase base electric rates, Gulf Power Company has given notice that it will may file another rate-hike proposal this summer.
In a letter sent to the Florida Public Service Commission, the Pensacola-based utility pointed, in part, to upgrades of its transmission system and lagging revenues.
“In addition to the increase in the cost of providing electric service …Gulf’s base rate revenues have not grown as expected,” the letter said. “The economic recovery from the severe nationwide economic recession is slower than previously predicted. Significant uncertainty still surrounds the pace of economic recovery in northwest Florida and in the nation as a whole. As a result of the slower than expected economic recovery in our region, sales in each customer segment have failed to meet forecasted growth.”
Gulf said it may file a detailed rate proposal in July, which would start a months-long process that would include a hearing before the Public Service Commission.
The letter, signed by Gulf Power President and CEO Stan Connally, said Gulf Power estimates that an increase in annual revenues of about $75 million to $80 million “is necessary to produce sufficient revenues to allow us to continue to provide the electric service our customers require.”
The PSC in March 2012 approved a $64.1 million rate increase for Gulf Power, the first base-rate hike for the utility in a decade.
by The News Service of Florida
Once Again, Jay Docs Give Up Controlled Substance Licenses
May 17, 2013
Two Jay doctors that were the target of a federal drug raid nearly two years ago have once again surrendered their licenses to prescribe narcotics.
Dr. C. David Smith and his son, Dr. Michael Smith of the Jay Medical Center, applied to reinstate their Drug Enforcement Agency licenses on April 22; the federal licenses were issued the following day and mailed, David Smith said on May 1.
They reportedly voluntarily surrendered their licenses again this week because there has been no clear word that any investigation against them has been completed.
On the morning of July 28, 2011, the FBI, DEA, the Attorney General’s Office, the Florida Department of Health and Florida Department of Law Enforcement spent hours inside the Jay Medical Clinic as Florida Highway Patrol troopers stood guard outside the complex. Federal and state agents could be seen inside the building, looking through patient files and other records. The removed many items including patient records and computer hard drives. Both doctors were forced to surrender their DEA licenses to write prescriptions for narcotics. The Jay Medical Center was able to reopen the following day.
“We never really heard anything back from the authorities,” Smith said May 1. “We are approaching the two year mark, and figured that no news was good news, and it was time to move forward.”
No charges have been filed against either man. None of the federal or state agencies involved in the 2011 raid have every commented on the investigation. The other two physicians in the practice, Dr. Marian B. Stewart and Dr. Jeffery S. Kelley were never targets of the investigation and never lost their licenses to issue all prescriptions, including narcotics.
David Smith has been a licensed physician in Florida since 1980, while Michael Smith has held his physician’s license since 2003. Neither man has any public complaints on file with the Florida Department of Health. Dr. David Smith was awarded a Florida Rural Health Association lifetime achievement award.
Pictured top: The Jay Medical Center was the target of a federal and state raid on July 28, 2011. Pictured bottom inset: Agents search records inside the facility. Pictured below: A state trooper stands guard outside the facility during the 2011 raid. NorthEscambia.com file photos, click to enlarge.
Escambia’s Crime Up, Highest Overall Rate In Florida
May 17, 2013
Overall crime was up 5.6 percent in Escambia County during 2012 according to new data released Thursday by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, while the state’s indexed crime rate declined about 6.5 percent during the same period.
Escambia County’s overall crime rate — 5,656.2 crimes per 100,000 residents — was the highest in the state in 2012, followed by Miami-Dade at 5,129.3 indexed crimes per 100,000 residents.
During the year, the overall crime index was up 5.6 percent. Murders increased 38 percent, from 16 to 22, forcible rapes decreased very slightly from 169 to 162, robberies fell 11 percent, aggravated assaults jumped 23 percent, burglaries were up 23 percent, larcenies were almost unchanged going from 9,908 to 9,920, and motor vehicle thefts were down about 7 percent.
The Escambia County crime numbers include crimes in the jurisdictions of all law enforcement agencies in the county, including the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office, Pensacola Police Department, University of West Florida Police Department, Pensacola State College Police Department and the Florida Highway Patrol.
Of the 22 murders last year in Escambia County, 15 were in the county and seven were in the city of Pensacola. Totaled indexed crimes were up 5.9 percent in the county, 4.4 percent in the city. The crime rate per 1,000 residents was higher in the city at 6,737.5, up 4.2 percent. Escambia County had 5,351.9 crimes per 100,000 people in 2012, up 5.8 percent over 2011.
In 2012, the Pensacola Police Department cleared 40.1 percent of indexed crimes, while the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office cleared 26.3 percent.
Want to know more? Click the graphic below to enlarge and view Escambia County’s crime data as released Thursday by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
Northview’s Kahlil Grice Signs With Minnesota College
May 17, 2013
From team manager to a state championship to a college scholarship, hard work and dedication have paid off for senior Northview Chief Kahlil Grice.
Grice, just a few days before graduation, has signed a scholarship to play for Mesabi Range Community and Technical College in Virginia, Minnesota — just south of Canadian border.
Grice started as a team manager his freshmen year and spent the next three years playing for the Chiefs.
Pictured top: Kahlil Grice signs a football scholarship Thursday afternoon with Mesabi Range Community and Technical College in Virginia, Minnesota. Pictured inset: Grice was joined by his mother, Felicia Grice (seated) and sisters (L-R) Alisha and Keyth Grice. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Amazon Effort To Build Warehouse In Florida Crumbles
May 17, 2013
A plan by Internet retailing giant Amazon.com to build at least one warehouse in Florida has been scrapped, with the company unable to reach an agreement on when it would have to start collecting state sales taxes, an official in Gov. Rick Scott’s office said Thursday.
Scott administration officials declined to offer many details of the scuttled proposal, including where the facility would have been and how many jobs it might have meant had a deal been worked out.
“Amazon officials discussed building a facility in the state by the end of 2015 if the Department of Revenue could reach agreement on their sales tax collections,” Scott spokeswoman Melissa Sellers said. “We were not able to reach an agreement in those discussions.”
Currently, Amazon doesn’t collect Florida sales taxes from state residents who make purchases through the site, but it would likely have to do so if it were to have a physical presence in the state, such as a warehouse.
In January 2012, officials in the governor’s office said in published reports that they were “aware” of a desire by Amazon to put warehouses in the state, creating as many as 3,000 jobs, in exchange for a two-year exemption from collecting state sales taxes.
In a statement issued Thursday, Sellers implied that if the Internet company were to locate in Florida and begin collecting taxes, that would amount to a tax increase on Florida residents who use the popular shopping portal. And she said the company could still decide to build here, anyway.
“Gov. Scott does not want to raise taxes in Florida, and we are confident Amazon will invest in our state because of our low-tax, pro-business jobs climate,” Sellers said.
Brick-and-mortar retailers in Florida had initially opposed the Amazon proposal. They’ve long complained that Internet retailers get an unfair advantage.
Officials from Seattle-based Amazon didn’t respond to a request for comment Thursday from the News Service of Florida.
Under Scott’s direction, state economic development officials have pushed hard for a number of companies to open facilities in the state in exchange for tax breaks and other incentives.
Most recently, state and local officials in southwest Florida lured car rental company Hertz to move its headquarters from New Jersey to Estero. The state has touted what could be a more than $80 million incentive package for Hertz as a good deal because it will create 700 jobs, although many of those will be filled with the company’s current employees who would move from other states.
by David Royse, The News Service of Florida
Contract Awarded Again To Remove Derelict Vessels, Log Jam From Escambia River
May 17, 2013
Thursday night, Escambia County awarded a contract to remove derelict vessels and clear a log jam from a section of the Escambia River near McDavid.
In February, Escambia County awarded a $68,498 contract to Florida Forest Recyclers, LLC to remove the vessels and associated debris — including thousands of logs — from the Escambia River about one river mile north of the Cotton Lake boat ramp. The agreement was not executed as written at that time.
The contract awarded Thursday night for the same amount to the same contractor was revised to waive the bond requirements at the request of Interim County Administrator George Touart. The agreement provides for a one-time payment upon final completion and inspection of the project. The standard practice of the County is to require payment and performance bonds for projects in excess of $100,000.
One of the required permits for the project has a start date of June 1, according to Escambia County Commissioner Steven Barry.
“I spoke to the contractor….and they assured me they would be removing logs on June 1,” Barry said. “I am very excited for the freshwater sportsmen of District 5 and Escambia County who have been waiting years for this project to begin.”
The bid from Florida Forest Recyclers was over a half million dollars lower than bids received from two Alabama companies. A $527,000 bid was received from Crowder Gulf Joint Ventures of Theodore, while DRC Emergency Services, LLC bid $792,622.14.
Pictured top: A logjam stretches bank to bank, blocking the Escambia River near McDavid (courtesy photo). Pictured below: An abandoned boat along the Escambia River. NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.
Lookouts Beat The Wahoos In 10; Wahoos Honor Molino’s Fryman
May 17, 2013
The Chattanooga Lookouts escaped massive trouble in the ninth and went on to blow out the Pensacola Blue Wahoos in 10 innings, 8-2, on Thursday night at Pensacola Bayfront Stadium in a game that started by honoring a Molino man.
The Blue Wahoos honored two of Major League baseball’s greats to Pensacola’s Bayfront Stadium Thursday night. Tate High School grad Travis Fryman, former third baseman and shortstop for the Detroit Tigers and Cleveland Indians, threw out the first pitch along with Ken “Squeaky” Parker, a member of the Cincinnati Reds’ organization and legendary major league scout.
In the third straight extra-inning affair between the two squads, Chattanooga erupted for six runs in the top of the 10th inning. With two on and two out, Blake Smith laced a three-run homer just over the left field wall off of Drew Hayes to give the Lookouts a 5-2 advantage. Two batters later, Griff Erickson tripled home C.J. Retherford to end Hayes’ outing. Shaun Ellis then gave up a first-pitch, two-run homer to Chris Jacobs to cap the six-run onslaught.
Hayes picked up the loss to fall to 1-1 by giving up five runs on three hits in .2 innings. Greg Infante picked up his first win of the season for Chattanooga by holding the Wahoos scoreless in the last two innings.
The Wahoos had a great chance to win the game in regulation. Pensacola loaded the bases with one out in the ninth for Brodie Greene who sent a fly ball out to medium-depth right field where Yasiel Puig made the catch for the second out. Tucker Barnhart tagged from third and tried to score the winning run, but Puig fired a bullet to home that nabbed Barnhart and forced extra innings.
Pensacola jumped out to an early 1-0 lead thanks to a first-inning homer from Ryan LaMarre. It was LaMarre’s third homer of the series and fourth of the season.
The game then seesawed in the middle innings with Chattanooga tying the game on a Puig RBI double in the sixth inning. The Wahoos countered in the last of the six when Barnhart tripled to right-center, scoring Travis Mattair to regain the lead at 2-1. Not to be denied, the Lookouts came right back in the top of the 7th and knotted the game at two on a two-out RBI triple from Rafael Ynoa.
Despite the loss, the Wahoos won the series three games to two over the Lookouts and now continue the season-long 10-game homestand with the first of five against the Mobile BayBears on Friday night. Chad Rogers (2-2, 2.43) will get the ball for Pensacola against Mobile’s Andrew Chafin (1-1, 1.50)
story by Kevin Burke
Pictured: Molino’s Travis Fryan (white Wahoos jersey) tossed the first pitch for Thursday night’s Wahoo game along with Ken “Squeaky” Parker. Photos by Gary McCraken for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Names Released Of Suspected Drowning Victims
May 16, 2013
The names have been released of an adult and a child were found apparently drowned Wednesday on the Sherman Cove beach aboard NAS Pensacola.
The victims have been identified as 32-year old Kimberly Tran and 8-year old Katherine Tran, both of Conyers, GA. Thursday morning, the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office said their investigation shows no early indications of foul play in the deaths.
Further details have not been released as the investigation by the ECSO, NCIS and the State Attorney’s Office continues.
McDavid Man Sentenced For Striking Deputy With Truck, Multiple Felonies
May 16, 2013
A McDavid man has been sentenced to prison for hitting an Escambia County Sheriff’s deputy with his truck while trying to avoid arrest.
Yancey James Thompson, 43, was sentenced to three years in state prison for resisting an officer with violence, operating a vehicle with a revoked license as a habitual traffic offender, failure to appear on the traffic charge, and failure to appear and violating probation on charges of possession of a weapon or ammunition by a convicted felon, destroying evidence, possession of a controlled substance without a prescription and resisting arrest without violence.
In December 2012 Senior Deputy Rudy Brown was on routine patrol when he stopped to check on the BP gas station in Davisville. When he entered the store, he recognized Yancey James Thompson who had felony warrants and a revoked driver’s license. Thompson fled the store in a blue Ford truck at a high rate of speed. Brown attempted unsuccessfully to follow Thompson, and later discovered that the pickup had been abandoned back behind the gas station.
Later, Brown was on patrol in Walnut Hill when he stopped at Mike’s Ag Air on Highway 97 where he observed Thompson. He approached Thompson, called him by name and told him he was under arrest for three active warrants. Thompson replied, “I ain’t going back to jail,” according to an Escambia County Sheriff’s Office arrest report. Thompson then moved toward a white Chevrolet dually truck that was idling nearby.
Thompson got into the vehicle at about the same time Brown arrived at the truck door, the report states. Brown again told Thompson he was under arrest, opened the driver’s door and took hold of the steering wheel with his left hand. Thompson, the report states, again said stated was not going back to jail.
He then floored the accelerator in the truck, causing the back tires to spin and started to drag the deputy toward a field. Brown let go of the vehicle and attempted to get away, but he was struck by the the rear of the dually truck, injuring his back.
Thompson fled the area at a high rate of speed and eluded capture from responding backup deputies.
Senior Deputy Brown returned to a work a few days after the incident.
Pictured top: Yancey James Thompson. Pictured below: Senior Deputy Rudy Brown (left) is presented a a Life Saving Medal last year by Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan. NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.
Fire Destroys Bus On Highway 29 In Molino
May 16, 2013
Fire destroyed a community transport bus Wednesday evening in Molino, shutting down southbound Highway 29 for over an hour.
The bus driver told officials that he had just let off a passenger and was headed southbound on Highway 29 when he noticed a lot of heat on his feet. The bus was fully involved when the first firefighters arrived on scene.
There were no injuries.
The Molino and McDavid stations of Escambia Fire Rescue and the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office responded to the fire.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
