Warmer Weather For A Few Days
January 9, 2018
Here is your official North Escambia area forecast:
Tuesday: A 20 percent chance of rain. Otherwise, cloudy, with a high near 65. East wind around 5 mph.
Tuesday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 55. East wind around 5 mph.
Wednesday: A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 69. Southeast wind around 5 mph.
Wednesday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 58. Southeast wind around 5 mph.
Thursday: A 40 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 72. Southeast wind 5 to 10 mph.
Thursday Night: Showers likely. Cloudy, with a low around 55. South wind 5 to 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
Friday: Showers likely. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 58. South wind around 10 mph becoming west in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 60%.
Friday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers before midnight. Partly cloudy, with a low around 36. Northwest wind 5 to 10 mph.
Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 51.
Saturday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 29.
Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 47.
Sunday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 28.
M.L.King Day: Sunny, with a high near 50.
Town Council Takes On National Championship Football, Elects President And VP
January 9, 2018
The Century Town Council went head to head with the National Championship Football Game Monday night and elected council leadership for the coming year.
The council normally meets on the first Monday of each month, but that was New Year’s Day. So they rescheduled the meeting for Monday night at 7:00, the same time as the big Alabama-Georgia game. The meeting’s pre-game show was a meet and greet with a few members of the Century Chamber of Commerce with a spread of Krispy Kreme doughnuts.
The council re-elected Ann Brooks and president and Ben Boutwell as vice president for the new year.
Pictured: Century Chamber President Freddie McCall addresses the Century Town Council Monday night as Georgia was scoring their first field goal against Alabama in Atlanta. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Florida Gets Legal Win On Satellite TV Taxes
January 9, 2018
Ending years of legal battling about the issue, the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday refused to take up a challenge to the constitutionality of a Florida law that sets different tax rates for satellite and cable-television services.
The U.S. Supreme Court, without explanation, turned down Dish Network’s appeal of a ruling last year by the Florida Supreme Court that upheld the law.
The state’s communications-services tax is 4.92 percent on the sale of cable services and 9.07 percent on the sale of satellite-TV services. Local governments also can impose communications-services taxes on cable, with rates varying.
Dish Network contended the different state tax rates on satellite and cable are a form of protectionism that violates the “dormant” Commerce Clause, which bars states from discriminating against interstate commerce.
“The decision below (at the Florida Supreme Court) is a green light to adopt protectionist measures encumbering the flow of commerce across state lines,” Dish Network argued in a November brief asking the U.S. Supreme Court to decide the case. “Even though Commerce Clause doctrine is a morass — indeed, precisely because it is a morass — it is vital for the (U.S. Supreme) Court to step in.”
But Attorney General Pam Bondi’s office, which represented the Florida Department of Revenue, argued in a brief that a federal telecommunications law prevents local governments from taxing satellite services. As a result, the brief said, the state set a higher tax rate for satellite services and shares part of the money with local governments. Meanwhile, local governments can tax cable services.
“If a state taxes communications services at the state and local levels, as Florida does, the only way to ensure that the state receives the same revenue from satellite as other communications services while ensuring that local governments may also receive revenue is to tax satellite at a higher rate and share the revenue with local governments,” the brief said.
The state’s 1st District Court of Appeal in 2015 ruled in favor of the satellite-television industry and raised the possibility that Florida would have to pay refunds to satellite companies. But the Florida Supreme Court in April unanimously overturned that decision, with justices saying in a main opinion that they did not find the law was “enacted with a discriminatory purpose.”
A key part of the case at the Florida Supreme Court focused on arguments by the satellite companies that the different tax rates benefited cable companies that are “in-state interests” at the expense of “out-of-state” satellite operators. But Justice Peggy Quince, writing for the court, rejected such a distinction and noted that the state’s largest cable operators are headquartered outside of Florida.
“Cable is not a local, in-state interest any more than satellite,” Quince wrote. “While it may be true that cable employs more Florida residents and uses more local infrastructure to provide its services, the Supreme Court has never found a company to be an in-state interest because it had a greater presence in a state.”
by Jim Saunders, The News Service of Florida
Century Joins Escambia County In Waving Fees For Freeze-Related Pipe Repairs
January 9, 2018
The Century Town Council voted Monday night to join Escambia County is temporarily waiving permit and inspection fees for repairs to plumbing resulting the recent hard freezes in the area.
Fees will be waived until the close of business on Thursday, January 19. The county and town waivers are not retroactive and refunds will not be issued for county fees incurred prior to January 4 or Century fees incurred prior to January 9.
This waiver only applies to permit and inspection fees. Permits are still required as usual.
For more information, contact Escambia County Building Services at 850-595-3550 or buildinginspections@myescambia.com or Century Town Hall at (850) 256-3208.
Century Man Arrested In Connection With Flomaton Subway Burglary
January 9, 2018
A Century man wanted on burglary charges by the Flomaton Police Department has been arrested in Escambia County, FL.
Patrick David Griffis., 26, was booked into the Escambia County Jail Monday afternoon as a fugitive from justice. He is being held without bond awaiting extradition back to Alabama.
In late December, the Flomaton Police Department asked for the public’s help in finding Griffis on outstanding warrants for felony third degree burglary, first degree theft of property and misdemeanor criminal mischief. Griffis allegedly kicked in the back door of a Flomaton Subway restaurant where he worked before stealing cash from the safe.
Cold Weather Focuses Highway 29 Cantonment Work On Drainage, Not Asphalt
January 9, 2018
Weather is an important factor in placing asphalt. With temperatures below 45 degrees in the area, crews have focused on drainage improvements along Highway 29 in Cantonment.
Crews are placing concrete drainage pipe across Tree Street at the International Paper (pictured above). Only closing one side of the roadway at a time, team members cut the asphalt, remove roadway base materials and place the cross drain. Workers then compact soil around the cross drain to maintain the structure’s integrity and hold it in place.
Further south near Tate Road, crew members continue to install new concrete drainage and grade ditches on the east side of the roadway. This work is taking place off of the travel lanes and not impacting traffic.
The $5.25 million Highway 29 resurfacing project from Nine Mile Road to Muscogee Road is slated for completion in the spring.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Trump Touts Rural Broadband Initiative, Farm Agenda
January 9, 2018
President Donald Trump Monday unveiled a major initiative designed to strengthen a rural economy that has lagged urban areas in recovery from the recession of 2007-2008. Trump signed two executive orders that fund and streamline the expansion of rural broadband access after an address to 7,400 farmers and ranchers gathered at American Farm Bureau Federation’s 2018 Annual Convention in Nashville.
White House agriculture aide Ray Starling said, “High-speed internet should remain a high priority for the administration.” The report urges faster federal permitting for broadband internet expansion in rural areas and for eased rules for providers to place cell towers on federal lands.
In addition to economic development, Trump touched on issues of particular importance to agriculturists such as regulations, labor and trade. He praised farmers for their enduring values. “We are witnessing a new era of patriotism, prosperity and pride—and at the forefront of this exciting new chapter is the great American farmer.” Farmers, Trump said, “embody the values of hard work, grit, self-reliance and sheer determination.”
“In every decision we make, we are honoring America’s proud farming legacy,” Trump said.
The president spent much of his address decrying the costs of excessive regulation and tallying the rules his administration has moved to eliminate.
“We are also putting an end to the regulatory assault on your way of life. And it was an assault,” he said. Trump singled out the Waters of the United States rule, now being withdrawn following an executive order he signed in the first weeks of his administration. “It sounds so nice, it sounds so innocent, and it was a disaster. People came to me about it and they were crying – men who were tough and strong, women who were tough and strong – because I gave them back their property and I gave them back their farms. We ditched the rule.”
Trump acknowledged controversy over the North American Free Trade Agreement and other trade agreements that account for roughly a quarter of U.S. agriculture revenues. “To level the playing field for all of our farmers and ranchers as well as our manufacturers we are reviewing all of our trade agreements,” he said. “On NAFTA I am working very hard to get a better deal for our farmers and ranchers and manufacturers.”
Trump promised the farm bill would continue to provide a safety net for farmers who are now entering their fifth year of declining incomes. “I look forward to working with Congress to pass the farm bill on time so that it delivers for all of you, and I support a bill that includes crop insurance,” he said.
AFBF President Zippy Duvall said Trump’s visit marked a watershed in D.C. politics.
“Farmers and ranchers have too long faced burdensome regulations,” Duvall said. “This president understands the toll government overreach has taken on ordinary business and is moving swiftly to clear the way for prosperity. We are moving into yet another year of economic difficulty. Relief could not have come at a better time.”
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Barry To Host Road And Bridges Town Hall Meeting
January 9, 2018
District 5 Commissioner Steven Barry will host a Roads and Bridges Town Hall meeting Monday, January 22 at 5 p.m. at the Walnut Hill Ruritan Building at 7850 Highway 97. Residents are invited and encouraged to attend the open forum event to discuss issues with their commissioner.
Pictured: The construction on the Molino Road bridge over Penasula Creek as seen in October. NorthEscambia.com file photos, click to enlarge.
Scott Proclaims UCF Knights Football National Champions In Florida
January 9, 2018
Governor Rick Scott issued a proclamation Monday declaring the University of Central Florida Knights football team as national champions in Florida after their undefeated, 13-0 season. The UCF Knights beat the Auburn Tigers 34-27 in the Peach Bowl on New Years Day. This season, the Auburn Tigers beat both the Georgia Bulldogs and the Alabama Crimson Tide, who are playing in the last game of the College Football Playoff.
“Florida is home to the country’s best college football, and this season, UCF proved to the world that they can beat any team. By having a perfect season and beating the only team that defeated both Alabama and Georgia this season, the UCF Knights are clearly champions,” Scott said.
Courtesy photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Bruce Campbell
January 9, 2018
Bruce Campbell, 92, of Century, passed away on December 28, 2017 at Creekside Living in Pensacola. Bruce was born April 20, 1925 to Lee and Omar Campbell and lived on the same piece of property in Century for over 70 years.
Bruce’s love of the land surrounding him was evidenced his entire life. In early years he hauled sand and gravel, and by his mid-fifties he retired from trucking to then farm and raise cattle. He and his wife saved diligently to buy two farms for some farming and cattle pasture. His cattle were his babies, and he always pampered them. He loved fishing, having fish fries with family and friends, and just enjoying the outside. In his later years, you could often find him in his rocking chair on his front porch, just watching the traffic.
Bruce was a people person who never met a stranger. His first question to anyone was “Where are you from?” and if you were from the Florida Panhandle, you were instantly his friend. He was a “most popular” resident in his home, Creekside, the last 5 years of his life.
Bruce is survived by his only child Ronnie Campbell (Anne), of Tupelo, MS, 2 granddaughters, Karen Campbell Kassen (Joe) of Memphis, TN, and Kristi Campbell McNeely, (David), of Olive Branch, MS. Also surviving are great grandchildren, Hays and Wynn Kassen, and Campbell and Cooper McNeely, numerous nieces, nephews, a special great niece, Paula Hammond, who lovingly helped care for him in later years, and a close friend and farming buddy, Larry Bates, of Jay, FL.
He is preceded in death by his wife of 41 years, Earlene Magaha Campbell. Being the youngest child of seven, Bruce outlived one brother, Rufus, and 5 sisters, Lizzie, Noreen, Myrtle, Lottie Mae, and Elmer. Then, after many years of being a widower, Bruce married Geraldine Killam. They enjoyed life together until her death in 2012, after which his health declined rapidly.
The family forever is indebted to Julie Bingham, hospice nurse, who blessed him and the family as his death was imminent. Also a special thanks to all his caregivers at Creekside, who became like family.
A celebration of life service will be held Saturday, December 30, 2017 at our chapel at 3:00 pm, with visitation one hour prior to the service. Officiating pastor will be Hospice Pastor Rickey Tedder, of Walnut Hill. Pall bearers will be David McNeely, Joe, Hays and Wynn Kassen, Billy Campbell, and Randal Hollingshead. Burial will follow in Concord Church Cemetery just south of Jay. Funeral services provided in cooperation with Family Funeral and Cremation.