Powerball Fever Sweeps The Area As Jackpot Climbs
January 9, 2016
The Powerball jackpot for tonight’s drawing is at $900 million — the largest lottery jackpot in American history. And those numbers may grow on Saturday.
The odds of winning the Powerball jackpot are 1 in 292,201,338. But someone has to win, right?
And those big dreams of winning have led to lines at lottery retailers across the area. And at the state line on Highway 97 in Davisville, those big dreams have led to traffic congestion and even longer lines being just a short distance from Alabama, one of just a handful of states that does not play the Powerball lottery.
There are three lottery retailers just south of Atmore in Davisville — the Grey Goose package store, a Diamond gas station and, just a few feet from the Piggly Wiggly grocery store - the State Line Gift Shop. Back in April, Alice Dawson of Monroeville, AL, purchased a Quick Pick Powerball ticket at the State Line Gift Shop. And she was that someone — purchasing the only winning ticket that week for the $80 million drawing.
The winning numbers will be drawn at about 9:59 tonight, with the cutoff time for ticket sales at 9 p.m.
Pictured: Lottery sales inside the State Line Gift Shop on Highway 97 in Davisville where an $80 million winning Powerball ticket was sold last April. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
GED Classes Begin Monday At The Molino Community Center
January 9, 2016
GED classes will begin Monday at the Molino Community Center.
Classes will be held from 6-8 p.m. on Mondays and Thursdays in Room 124. Tuition is $30; register by visiting www.georgestonecenter.com or get help at the Molino Community Center on January 11 from 5-8 p.m.
The program offers teachers and tutors, not just sitting behind a computer self-teaching.
For more information, call the George Stone Technical Center at (850) 941-6200.
Two Charged, One Wanted In Christmas Shooting
January 9, 2016
Two men have been arrested on outstanding warrants and charged with attempted murder for a shooting that occurred December 25.
Meanwhile, police are continuing their search for Calvin Dudley Thomas Jr., 21, aka “Boomie” of Pensacola, wanted on an outstanding warrant for attempted murder in connection with the incident.
Thursday night police arrested Reaquion Markease Smith, 19, of the 4600 block of Bellview Avenue, Pensacola, and charged him with attempted murder. In addition, Franklin D. Bates II, 22, of the 2600 block of North L Street, Pensacola, was arrested Thursday morning in Panama City and charged with attempted murder.
“This is a high priority case, and we are continuing efforts to find Thomas,” said Detective Amy Parsons.
The incident occurred around 8 p.m. December 25 near the intersection of F and DeSoto streets.
Officers who responded to the area found a 20-year-old male who had been shot multiple times. The man remains hospitalized and has undergone multiple surgeries.
Officers with the Panama City Police Department and the U.S. Marshal’s Office assisted with Bates’ arrest.
Also, Martavion Rashun Jones, 21, of 2900 block of Melody Lane, Pensacola, was arrested at the same time as Smith and charged on an outstanding warrant from Escambia County for aggravated assault.
Anyone having information on the incident or Thomas’ location is asked to contact Detective Amy Parsons at (850) 435-1977, Detective Chris Grantham at (850) 435-1986, the Pensacola Police Department at (850) 435-1900, or Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP. If a tip to Crime Stoppers results in Thomas’ arrest, the tipster can receive up to a $1,000 reward.
CareerSource Escarosa Names New Executive Director
January 9, 2016
CareerSource Escarosa announced Friday that Cliff Krut has been named the agency’s new executive director.
Krut will begin his new position February 1, following the retirement of current Executive Director Susan Nelms.
Nelms has served as Escarosa’s Executive Director since 1996 and has more than 30 years of experience administering federal employment and training programs in our area. April 29 will be her last official day serving as CareerSource Escarosa’s executive director.
Since 1995, Krut served as an economic development representative for Gulf Power Company working closely with state, regional and local economic development agencies and business leaders to attract and retain businesses throughout the region. Prior to his role at Gulf Power, he served as the director of Workforce and Economic Development for Pensacola State College. He also worked with the Pensacola Area Chamber of Commerce where he was responsible for military base retention and economic development work.
Krut also serves as the Northwest Florida regional director for the Florida Economic Development Council and is an active alumnus of Leadership Santa Rosa where he serves as a class facilitator. Krut served in U.S. Navy, retiring as a Senior Chief Petty Officer.
“We are sad that Susan is retiring and thank her for her tremendous contributions and years of service. However, we are thrilled to be bringing Cliff on-board. He brings valuable knowledge of our local area and northwest Florida’s workforce needs through his past experience in economic development initiatives. We feel he will be a great asset to our organization and working with our businesses to assist in their future employment needs”, said Scott Ginnetti, chair of CareerSource Escarosa Board of Directors.
CareerSource Escarosa’s services are available in Century, Pensacola and Molino.
Showers And Possibly A Thunderstorm Today, Colder Sunday
January 9, 2016
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Saturday: Showers and possibly a thunderstorm, mainly before 3pm. High near 70. East wind 5 to 10 mph becoming west in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 80%.
Saturday Night: Patchy drizzle after 3am. Partly cloudy, with a low around 44. Northwest wind around 10 mph.
Sunday: Patchy drizzle before noon. Partly sunny, with a high near 53. Northwest wind around 10 mph.
Sunday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 27. North wind around 5 mph.
Monday: Sunny, with a high near 50. North wind around 5 mph.
Monday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 28. Northwest wind around 5 mph.
Tuesday: Sunny, with a high near 55. North wind around 5 mph becoming west in the afternoon.
Tuesday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 32. West wind around 5 mph becoming north after midnight.
Wednesday: Sunny, with a high near 53.
Wednesday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 32.
Thursday: A 30 percent chance of showers. Mostly sunny, with a high near 57.
Thursday Night: A 40 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 44.
Friday: A 40 percent chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 64.
Counties Hope Bill Resolves Fight Over Detention Costs
January 9, 2016
After years of court battles, Florida counties — including Escambia and Santa Rosa — hope the Legislature will pass a proposed compromise about how juvenile-detention costs are shared with the state.
The proposal (SB 1322) by Sen. Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater, would divide the cost of detaining young offenders equally between the state Department of Juvenile Justice and county governments — a 50-50 split that would replace a formula that currently requires counties to pay 57 percent and the state to pay 43 percent.
The measure also would do away with a billing process in which counties pay annual estimated costs in advance. Counties contend the system has resulted in them being owed millions in overpayments — or getting hit with unexpected bills at the last minute.
“Pinellas (County) just got billed $1 million because (DJJ) billed ‘em wrong in the projection at the beginning of the year,” Latvala said. “So they get a lump-sum billing now, after the year is over, of a million dollars. And of course, there’s no credit for what the state still owes them for the years that they overbilled. It’s just a screwed-up process that needs to be fixed.”
Under his bill, which was filed Tuesday, the counties would pay their actual costs for the previous year. That would start with the state fiscal year beginning July 1.
“The department will be monitoring the legislation and remains committed to working with the Legislature and the counties to find a resolution that best serves Florida’s youth and their families,” Department of Juvenile Justice Secretary Christina Daly wrote in an email.
The dispute centers on the department’s handling of a 2004 law that requires counties to help pay for “predisposition,” or the costs of detaining underage offenders before they are sentenced. Between 2009 and 2013, the department calculated the counties’ share at 75 percent. Then in June 2013, the 1st District Court of Appeal upheld an administrative law judge’s ruling that the department had shifted more responsibility for the costs to counties than the law required.
“Your overwhelming evidence of systemic failed billing practices has convinced me for the need to rewrite the statute,” Latvala wrote to the Florida Association of Counties on Friday. “What should have been a simple and obvious fix has turned into a political quagmire.”
Following the ruling, the Legislature in 2014 tried to come up with another formula. But a bill proposing a 50-50 split failed when the counties sought hundreds of millions of dollars in back payments. As a result, Gov. Rick Scott and the Department of Juvenile Justice settled on the current 57-43 percent formula, which the counties have argued is too high.
“It’s another of those unfunded mandates that could be the ruination of a county,” Volusia County Council Chairman Jason Davis said.
The dispute affects 38 counties. The 29 poorest counties are considered “fiscally constrained” and aren’t part of the cost-sharing formula.
Davis called Latvala’s proposal “a good start.” But he plans to seek the $10 million to $15 million in back payments he estimates Volusia is owed. He said constituents want projects that can’t get underway because the county lacks the funds.
To Okaloosa County Commissioner Nathan Boyles, however, the question of back payments shouldn’t keep the counties from accepting the 50-50 compromise this year.
“That’s where it really seemed to founder on the rocks in Tallahassee (in 2014),” he said. “But that’s an issue that can be resolved separately.”
Boyles said the current budgeting process creates too much uncertainty for counties, and Latvala’s bill would fix that.
“Tallahassee currently has the privilege of sending us a bill at the end of their fiscal year and saying, ‘All right, now, pay up, you were short,’ ” he said. “We need the ability at the outset of our budget year to understand what the implication of this substantial cost-driver is going to be for us. …. While we may not like the bill amount, at least we can adequately budget and account for it.”
Sen. Rob Bradley, a Fleming Island Republican who sponsored the 2014 measure, said Latvala’s bill is essentially the 50-50 split he proposed two years ago “with the idea that we would do this in exchange for (the counties) forgoing back payments. … I don’t see anything that has changed from that position, but I’m one of 40 senators.”
Bradley is reserving judgment on the proposal, but he said the counties’ lawsuits have also cost taxpayers money.
“They need to quit suing,” he said.
Latvala, meanwhile, said he was open to the possibility of crediting the counties based on past overpayments. He wrote to the Florida Association of Counties that the House companion will be sponsored by his son, Rep. Chris Latvala, R-Clearwater.
Three Tate Aggies Named To All-State Football Team
January 9, 2016
Three Tate High School Aggies were named to the All-State Football Team. Dallas Ditto was named first team, Jake Henry was named second team and Sawyer Smith was name third team. Pictured are (L-R) Tate Principal Rick Shackle, Jake Henry and Dallas Ditto. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Florida Gov’t Weekly Roundup: Scott Plays Trump Cards
January 9, 2016
On the last week before the Legislature returns to Tallahassee, Gov. Rick Scott and his administration were the center of attention in the Capitol.
Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty announced he is stepping down after a months-long struggle with Scott about the regulator’s future. Education Commissioner Pam Stewart won approval from the State Board of Education for test-score and school-grade standards that were too weak for the liking of allies of former Gov. Jeb Bush. And while Scott didn’t exactly endorse Donald Trump, he still had a yuge amount of praise for the real estate tycoon in a headline-generating op-ed.
Meanwhile, some of the adversaries Scott has clashed with over the last year had a less-than-stellar week. The Republican Party of Florida, headed by a chairman who took out the governor’s choice for the top job, faced questions after one top staffer left and another was let go. And Senate Republicans, who fought Scott fiercely over health care in the 2015 legislative session, were trying to straighten out a potential primary fight between two prominent incumbents because of a new redistricting plan.
THE LONG GOODBYE
For months, McCarty fought off a determined effort by Scott to depose or undermine the insurance commissioner. If anyone knew how to survive in government, it was McCarty, who spent almost 13 years in his position under three different governors with a variety of views on property insurance.
But on Tuesday, McCarty said he would step aside.
In a prepared statement, McCarty said he is “looking forward to exploring new opportunities.” He will stay in the job until May 2 “to facilitate a smooth transition.” Scott will name a potential replacement and, if he gets agreement from Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater, then will take the nomination to the state Cabinet for approval.
“The privilege of serving the people of Florida as insurance commissioner has been the highlight of my professional career,” McCarty said.
A high-profile job, perhaps with the National Florida Insurance Program or the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, could be McCarty’s for the taking, according to industry insiders.
“(McCarty’s) opportunities are endless,” said Lisa Miller, who has spent nearly three decades as an insurance regulator and lobbyist. “He’s a rare breed. He’s funny. He’s brilliant. He asks tough questions. He’s no shrinking violet.”
But Miller acknowledged that Scott’s effort to remove McCarty from office played a role in the decision.
“I think the events of this past year have given him the realization that his work is done here,” Miller said. “He can move on and leave Florida with his head held high.”
The governor’s response was low-key.
The decision by McCarty came a week after Florida Department of Revenue Executive Director Marshall Stranburg announced he will leave for a job in Washington.
The moves by Stranburg and McCarty came about a year after Scott called for the Cabinet to replace them and Office of Financial Regulation Commissioner Drew Breakspear, who remains on the job. Breakspear spokeswoman Jamie Mongiovi said in an email Tuesday that “he does not have any plans to resign.”
MAKING THE GRADE
For years, Bush’s education apparatus has loomed over Florida policy when it comes to schools. Through two nonprofit foundations and the political capital he built up as a popular state official, Bush and his allies have been difficult to beat when it comes to education initiatives.
The Board of Education’s decision this week to back Stewart’s proposals about test scores and school grades over the objection of business groups and Bush’s network might not signal an end to that influence. (For one thing, Bush is more focused right now on trying to win the Republican nomination for the presidency.) But it was notable nonetheless.
On a pair of 6-1 votes, board members set two critical benchmarks of the state’s education accountability system. One involved “cut scores” that determine the levels of achievement students get based on their performances on standardized tests. The other focused on school grades tied to how well students do on those tests.
Business groups and education-reform advocates had pushed for the state to line up what is essentially considered a passing score on the state test to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a highly regarded, nationwide standardized test. That would have increased the number of students who would fall short of passing the Florida exams.
They were also disappointed in Stewart’s recommendations for school grades under the new system, arguing that more students need to be required to pass the tests for schools to receive certain grades.
The system the board adopted would see 189 schools receive “F” grades for the 2014-15 school year, according to a simulation run by the department. But under one of three options proposed by the Foundation for Excellence in Education, an advocacy group founded by Bush, the number of “F” schools would have been 503.
As board members debated the proposals in the Cabinet room at the state Capitol, two of the governor’s top aides sat in the audience. And after the meeting, Stewart didn’t directly answer a question about how much input Scott’s office had in crafting the standards or how board members, appointed by the governor, voted.
“We work closely with the governor’s office on many policy issues, so this would have been like any other policy issues,” she said. “Again, as I mentioned before, I have the luxury of being able to make the recommendation that I believe to be the best one, and that’s what I did here.”
PARTY OF SIDES
The week also brought fresh indications of some of the divisions and problems that face the state Republican Party and the national GOP. But whether any of those issues seriously threaten the GOP’s firm grip on power in Tallahassee was debatable.
In Tallahassee, the state party announced that two high-ranking officials were departing: Executive Director Brad Herold, who is moving to Republican Congressman Ron DeSantis’ campaign for the U.S. Senate; and longtime Chief Financial Officer Richard Swarttz.
Swarttz, who was making six figures in his job as CFO, is leaving as the party reorganizes to take on a more streamlined mission ahead of the 2016 race for the White House.
“We are making these needed adjustments now to ensure that we are in the best position possible to do just that,” party Chairman Blaise Ingoglia, also a state House member, said in a statement following Swarttz’s departure.
That streamlined mission has something to do with the fact that Scott is no longer raising money for the party — Ingoglia ran against Scott’s pick for party chair — and that state Senate Republicans have moved to separate their campaign efforts from the party.
The Senate GOP had its own problems this week. A random renumbering process for the newest version of state Senate districts threatened to trigger a match-up between incumbent Republicans in Pasco County.
The potential match-up revolves around the likely future Senate presidency of Sen. Wilton Simpson, R-Trilby. Under a redistricting proposal approved by Leon County Circuit Judge George Reynolds, Simpson would be paired with Sen. John Legg, R-Trinity, in a district that includes most of Pasco County, along with Hernando and Citrus counties.
Before Tuesday — when numbers were assigned to the districts, essentially deciding how long each senator could serve — Legg suggested he would stand aside if it would clear the way for Simpson to become Senate president ahead of the 2021 legislative session. But Legg said in an interview Tuesday that he was willing to do so if it was the “only pathway” for Simpson to claim the top spot — something that is no longer the case.
Long story short: Because of the way that the districts are numbered, Simpson could run for the state Senate in one of two districts and not be locked out of office by term limits ahead of the 2021 session. Legg basically said Simpson should run in the other district.
“Looking at the numbers now, I feel like there are other pathways for him to remain in the Senate,” Legg said.
But Sen. Tom Lee, R-Brandon, said Tuesday he will run in the district Legg mentioned, in order to avoid another incumbent-vs.-incumbent battle with Senate Majority Leader Bill Galvano, a Bradenton Republican who is expected to become Senate president before the 2019 session.
Regardless, Simpson said he has no intention of moving out of the district he’s represented since being elected to the Senate in 2012.
“My community and my friends live in this district … and I’m going to run in that seat,” he said Tuesday. “That’s where I belong, and that’s where I’m going to run.”
Far away from that fight, Scott nodded in the direction of the most elegant comb-over in the Republican race for the White House. In an opinion piece for USA Today, Scott praised Trump, the Republican front-runner and a part-time Florida resident.
In the piece titled “Donald Trump has America’s pulse: Rick Scott,” Florida’s second-term governor credited the billionaire real-estate developer as someone “who speaks and tweets his mind freely.”
But Scott said Trump’s standing in the polls is more about Trump’s ability to capture “the frustration of many Americans after seven years of President Obama’s very intentional government takeover of the American economy.”
“Have you tried to start a business recently? That used to be the American dream,” Scott wrote. “But, after seven years of endless and tedious regulation and taxation, it is nearly unaffordable to do so. Americans are mad, and I agree with them.”
STORY OF THE WEEK: After nearly 13 years on the job and having weathered months of scrutiny from Scott, longtime Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty stepped aside.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “If it’s good enough to get you into a college, it ought to be good enough to graduate you from a Florida high school.”— Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, on legislation that would allow districts to use national standardized tests like the SAT and ACT to measure student learning instead of the state’s exams.
by Brnadon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida
Four Traffic Crashes Near Four Area Schools
January 8, 2016
There were no serious injuries in four unrelated Friday morning traffic accidents near four different local schools.
In the first about 7 a.m. on Highway 95A at Jim Allen Elementary School, a driver lost control and slid off the road. Escambia County Fire Rescue and EMS were called to the scene, but the driver refused medical treatment.
The second accident was on West Highway 4 near North Highway 99, not far from Bratt Elementary School about 7:30 a.m. There were no injuries in the rear-end two vehicle crash.
The third crash occurred about 8:40 a.m. on West Highway 4 at the entrance to Northview High School where a vehicle was rear ended. One person received minor injuries. The Walnut Hill Station of Escambia Fire Rescue, Atmore Ambulance and the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office responded to the crash.
The fourth accident, also a rear-end type collision, involved four vehicles at the Kingsfield Road entrance to Tate High School about 8:43 a.m. Everyone involved in the crash refused medical treatment. The Cantonment Station of Escambia Fire Rescue, Escambia County EMS and the Escambia County Sheriff’s Officer responded to the crash.
All four accidents are under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol.
Pictured top and inset: Two of four vehicles involved in a crash on Kingsfield Road at the entrance to Tate High School. Pictured below: A single vehicle crash Friday morning on Highway 95A near Jim Allen Elementary School. NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Price, click to enlarge. Pictured bottom: This vehicle was rear-ended in two vehicle crash that occurred at the entrance to Northview High School. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Century Healthy Start Program Growing, Expanding To Former Health And Hope Location
January 8, 2016
The Escambia County Commission has agreed to lease the former Health and Hope Clinic building to the Escambia County Healthy Start Coalition.
The Health and Hope Clinic in Century closed and moved out of the county-owned building at 501 Church Street last fall. Now, the Century Healthy Start location will expand from next door at 511 Church Street to the former Health and Hope building, which Healthy Start will lease for $1 per year from the county.
“Great things are happening in Century,” Healthy Start Century Office Manager Laura Nelson said. “We are going to do so much more from the new building and continue help more and more women and children in Century.”
Each month, the Women, Infant and Children nutrition program (WIC) is currently seeming over 120 clients — preganant women and children up to age five. When the current Healthy Start location opened in Century, WIC planned to be in Century just one Tuesday per month. In August, they increased to two times month, resulting in the increase of over 30 clients.
Healthy Start nurses and social workers see pregnant women and parents of children up to age 3 at the Century Healthy Start clinic, often in conjunction with a WIC appointment, to provide them with education and support services including parenting, smoking cessation, and referrals to other community agencies for substance abuse treatment, nutrition counseling, and other critical services.
Jay pediatrician Dr. Marian Stewart will begin providing pediatric services the third Wednesday of every month beginning January 20 at the Century Healthy Start location. Patients can call Jay office at (850) 675-4546 now for an appointment.
Through a grant the Healthy Start Coalition received from the March of Dimes, the Coalition partnered with the OB residency program at the University of Florida (formerly with FSU), to provide prenatal and interconception care beginning in February.
In addition, Nelson is onsite daily to provide walk-ins with information on food bank assistance, and to assist clients with accessing needed services online. For more information, call Nelson at (850) 619-1469.
Healthy Start plans to move into their new, larger location in early February.
Pictured: Thanks to Escambia County, the Healthy Start Coalition Century is moving from 511 Church Street (pictured below) to the former Health and Hope Clinic located next door at 501 Church Street. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
