BOCC Approves $55K In Economic Development Funds To Benefit 50 Century Area Businesses
July 19, 2019
The Escambia County Commission on Thursday unanimously approved a $55,000 economic development allocation for the Century Area Chamber of Commerce that will directly benefit up to 50 locally owned businesses in the Century, McDavid, Walnut Hill and Molino areas.
The county had $80,500 in remaining Century area economic development funds that were previously budgeted for the last two fiscal years, and there is an additional $50,000 is under consideration for the upcoming fiscal year beginning October 1.
With the allocation approved Thursday, each of the first 50 eligible businesses to apply will receive a marketing package that includes 200,000 display ads at no cost on NorthEscambia.com before November 30, a free business spotlight story on NorthEscambia.com, and a free one year membership in the Century Area Chamber of Commerce. The package to be received by each business is valued at $3,300 for a total project value of $165,000.
Businesses can apply beginning Monday morning on NorthEscambia.com.
The Century Chamber will also use a portion of the funding for a business speaker series and special events. The Century town government is not involved with the project or funding.
“(The chamber) sees this an opportunity to be able to highlight some businesses that are in that community,” Escambia County District 5 Commissioner Steven Barry said. “The Century Chamber of Commerce is not restricted to the town limits. It is the Century Area Chamber of Commerce, so other communities in the north end would have access to make applications for this.”
The Chamber requested the funding after approval of their board of directors on July 9.
“This proposal will implement several tactics included in the Town of Century’s Economic Development Strategic Plan and will also guide the newly formed Community Redevelopment Agency in planning efforts to implement the Century Community Redevelopment Plan,” Century Chamber President Mary Hudson Bourgeois wrote in a funding request letter to Barry. “In addition, the proposal will further the interests of businesses by revitalizing the Century Area Chamber of Commerce through advocating on behalf of the north Century area business community. The Chamber wholly supports this endeavor.”
Barry said, “If through this process we can achieve some degree of success and highlight some businesses that a lot of citizens are not aware of…if we can increase traffic, increase foot traffic, increase awareness for professional or other type services. If we ended up having say even five businesses that expanded by a couple or three people apiece, that type of impact would be more impactful than what I have been able t0 successfully accomplish up there in the past.”
In the past, county economic development dollars for Century have funded a paid staff person at the chamber. “That didn’t seem to have a lot of bottom line effect,” Barry said. The county also funded a staff person after the Haas Center developed a Six Pillars economic development plan. “Not to knock the outcome of the study, but that effect of that is debatable at best,” he said.
During Thursday’s BOCC meeting, Commissioner Doug Underhill said, “This is exactly that kind of thing that I would think we would be doing. So I second it wholeheartedly. It strikes me, I like that fact that it is very ingenious and really just giving local businesses who are already taxpayers here the opportunity to step it up a notch, and that is what I think our economic development should be focused on. So I am very much supportive of it.”
“I concur,” Commission Chairman Lumon May said.”I think that is good indicator to FloridaWest and to the Gulf Coast Minority Chamber of a direction in which we may be going.” The BOCC also provides economic development funding to the FloridaWest Economic Development Alliance at the Gulf Coast Minority Chamber of Commerce.
“What is important here is that not one dollar of taxpayer money is going to pay someone’s salary. This is going to put something on the ground, and I think that is the challenge with the Minority Chamber and with all of PEDC (The Pensacola-Escambia Promotion and Development Commission)…there’s just nothing to show for that at the end of the day,” Underhill added.
Pictured top: Escambia County District 5 Commissioner Steven Barry explains his economic development recommendation for the Century area Thursday afternoon. Pictured inset: Commissioner Doug Underhill. Pictured below: The Escambia Commission unanimously approved the economic development allocation for the Century Area Chamber of Commerce.
Alabama’s Back To School Sales Tax Holiday Is Underway
July 19, 2019
Alabama’s annual back to school sales tax holiday is this weekend.
The tax-free weekend started at 12:01 a.m. and will continue until midnight on Sunday, July 21. The state will waive it’s four percent sales tax on school related supplies and clothing, as will more than 300 cities and counties including Escambia County, Atmore, Flomaton, Brewton, Baldwin County and the cities in Baldwin County.
Exempt items include:
- clothing priced at $100 or less per article of clothing;
- school supplies valued at $50 or less per item;
- books that cost $30 or less per book; and
- tablets, laptops, computers and printers with a selling price of $750 or less.
Florida’s back to school sales tax holiday will be held August 2-6.
Beginner Beekeeping Class Saturday At Molino Library
July 19, 2019
The West Florida Public Library and the North Escambia Bee Association will host a class Saturday at the Molino Branch Library.
Attendees will learn what a beginner needs to know about beekeeping. The free program will be held July 20 from 2-4 p.m.
Escambia Man Who Threatened To ‘Blow The Baby’s Head Off’ Gets Life In Prison
July 19, 2019
An Escambia County man that threatened to “blow the baby’s head off” during a home invasion robbery has been sentenced to life in prison.
Darquavias Tyrell Brown was convicted by an Escambia County jury of home invasion robbery with firearm, one count of false verification of ownership or false identification to a pawnbroker where the jury found the value of the money received was $300 or greater, one count of false verification of ownership or false identification to a pawnbroker, and three counts of dealing in stolen property. The jury also found Brown to be in actual possession of a firearm which carries with it a 10 year minimum mandatory prison sentence.
On April 9, 2018, at around 5:00 a.m. Brown and two unknown individuals burst into an Escambia County home. Brown threatened the residents with a firearm, including pointing the gun at a one year old infant and threatening to “blow the baby’s head off” if they did not give him the money.
After ransacking the residence, Brown took several watches, rings including the wedding rings off of the hand of one of the victims. a Playstation system, Playstation controller, and several games. Two vehicles were stolen from the residence and abandoned shortly thereafter. Several hours after the home invasion robbery, Brown pawned four of the stolen rings and one of the stolen watches at Capital Pawn.
On April 13, 2018, Brown returned to the same pawn shop and sold the stolen Playstation system and games. After being identified as a suspect, Brown was identified by one of the victims in a photo lineup as the individual who threatened them and the infant child with a firearm.
He will be sentenced in July.
Brown has several prior convictions including convictions for carrying a concealed weapon, burglary, assault, resisting officer without violence, trespass and possession of controlled substance. brown also has another case currently pending where he is charged with robbery armed with a firearm.
Northview Chiefs To Host Youth Football Camp Next Week
July 19, 2019
The Northview Quarterback Club will host their annual youth football camp Monday, July 22 and Tuesday July 23 from 5-7 p.m.
The cost of the camp is $50 and includes a camp t-shirt. The camp is open for any child entering Kindergarten through 8th grade. The participants will receive instruction from the Northview High School coaches and players in offensive and defensive positions, as well as agilities and speed training.
Click here to download a required registration form and waiver.
For more information, email Coach Derek Marshman at DMarshman@escambia.k12.fl.us.
Traffic Shifted To Temporary Bridge In $1.98 Million Highway 168 Project
July 19, 2019
Traffic was recently shifted to a temporary bridge on Highway 168 in Bratt as a $1.9 million project continues to replace a bridge between North Highway 99 and Pine Barren Road.
The Florida Department of Transportation is replacing structurally deficient bridge constructed in 1967 over an unnamed branch. The new bridge will consist of two 12-foot travel lanes with 6-foot shoulders and a concrete barrier wall. The project also includes resurfacing the approaches to the bridge, new guardrail, drainage improvements, new pavement markings and enhanced signage.
It is anticipated that the project will be completed late this year.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Dobnak’s Memorable Performance Spoiled In Blue Wahoos’ Loss
July 19, 2019
One of the top pitching performances in club history Thursday night was unfortunately not enough to shake the Blue Wahoos from current doldrums.
Randy Dobnak continued his remarkable season, along with his potential future, by working eight innings, allowing just two hits, one run and matching a career-high with nine strikeouts, but became a hard-luck recipient of the Blue Wahoos 1-0 loss against the Mississippi Braves to start a road series in Pearl, Miss.
In part, the reason was M-Braves lefty starter Tucker Davidson, a Southern League All-Star and No. 18 overall prospect in the Atlanta Braves system, was equally masterful. Davidson also went eight complete innings with nine strikeouts, scattered five hits and did not walk a batter.
This sensational arms race led to a game completed in just one hour, 54 minutes Thursday before a crowd of 2,218 at Trustmark Park. It was the seventh time in Dobnak’s last nine starts that he has allowed just one or zero earned runs.
The loss became the Blue Wahoos’ 11th in the past 13 games. They are now just one game above .500 overall (49-48) and fell to 11-16 in the second half. They will try and reverse the trend beginning Friday in the second game of a four-game weekend series.
Rarely in minor league baseball does a game feature both starting pitchers going eight complete innings. Dobnak (4-2) threw 90 pitches and got 12 ground ball outs. Davidson stayed in the game with 97 pitches, 64 for strikes.
In what has typified the Blue Wahoos’ recent downfall, they had runners in scoring position in each of the final three innings, but couldn’t get a game-tying hit. They finished with seven hits in the game, all singles.
In the ninth inning, former major league infielder Ivan De Jesus Jr. led off with a single against reliever Jordan Harrison. Alex Kirilloff then hit into a force play at second base.
Trevor Larnach, who joined the team Tuesday in promotion from High-A Fort Myers, followed with a one-out single. Lewin Diaz worked a 2-2 count, fouled off a pitch, then hit a hard grounder that shortstop Ray-Patrick Didder converted into a game-ending double play.
In the eighth inning, the Blue Wahoos’ Mark Contreras led off with a single. He moved to second on Brian Navaretto’s sacrifice bunt. But Davidson retired Aaron Whitefield on a fly ball to center, then struck out Jordan Gore to end the threat.
In the seventh, Kirilloff had a one-out single, Larnach hit into a force play, but Diaz followed with a single. Again, Davidson worked out of it by getting Caleb Hamilton to pop out.
Those three innings were the Blue Wahoos’ best scoring opportunities. The other was in the first inning when Kirilloff, who went 2-for-4, hit a one-out single. Larnach followed by hitting into a double play.
The game’s only run was scored in the fifth inning. Greyson Jenista led off with a double against Dobnak. Carlos Martinez followed with a one-out, RBI single, but was erased on the cutoff throw by Diaz to De Jesus at second.
Dobnak, who was pitching in a Michigan-based Independent League two years ago, retired the M-Braves in order the next three innings.
The M-Braves (44-52, 11-16) entered the game with four consecutive series’ losses. They lost four of six games against Jacksonville, a team now just one game back of Biloxi in the second-half division race.
$12.25 Million Grant Awarded To Fund Airport Hangar Expansion For ST Engineering
July 18, 2019
The U.S. Department of Commerce has awarded a $12.25 million grant to the City of Pensacola for a hanger expansion project at the ST Aerospace campus at the airport. The grant, to be matched with more than $36 million in state and local investment, is expected to help create 400 jobs.
This project will fund the construction of a 173,000 square-foot airport hangar, along with adjacent taxi ways and related infrastructure, at Pensacola International Airport. Designed to withstand 170 mph winds, the facility will support state-of-the-art maintenance, repair and overhaul operations, and provide a training center for commercial and technological aviation programs.
“The Trump Administration is committed to not only retaining jobs in this country, but also to creating new opportunities for Americans,” said Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross. “The new maintenance training facility being built with the help of this grant will prepare students for careers in the commercial aviation industry while also making the region’s economy more resilient in the face of future natural disasters.”
“As Florida continues on a path of economic growth, it is imperative that we work to strengthen our infrastructure and workforce development programs,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “Thanks to the support from President Trump and Secretary Ross, this $12.25 million grant for Pensacola will create new opportunities for our students, boost our economy through job creation and increased investment, and enhance the region’s resiliency to natural disasters.”
Thursday’s announcement at ST Aerospace was made by Department of Commerce Assistant Secretary John C. Fleming.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Century’s Gas Department Comes Up Short And Can’t Cover Payroll During Multiple Weeks
July 18, 2019
During at least five recent weeks, the Town of Century has not had enough money from their gas department to make payroll and deposit the required payroll taxes.
“It appears five payroll weekly tax deposits have not been made,” Council President Ann Brooks said. “We will owe penalties.”
The town transfers money to a payroll account each week, with funds coming from each department such as water and gas in order to pay the employees in that department. During those five weeks in question, the gas department did not have available funds to cover the department’s paychecks and tax deposits, Town Clerk Kim Godwin said.
“I’m pretty sure that Friday there is not going to be enough from gas (to cover payroll),” Godwin said. The town may have funds in other accounts to cover the gas department’s payroll, but Godwin does not have the authority to make those transfers between funds without town council approval.
For that reason, the town council voted this week to transfer $5,000 per month from the garbage fund to the payroll account to supplement the gas department’s payroll. The transfers will be in place for five months. Otherwise, the council would be required to call an emergency meeting each Friday the gas department was short.
While funds were short of the amount needed to make payroll taxes, each employee did receive their full paycheck on time during the five weeks in question.
NorthEscambia.com file photo.
Early Morning Fire Destroys Camper Trailer In Century
July 18, 2019
Fire destroyed a camper trailer early Thursday morning in Century.
The fire reportedly started in the kitchen area of the camper, possibly as a cooking-related fire. No injuries were reported.
The blaze in the 800 block of Freedom Road, just off Jefferson Avenue, was reported about 12:25 a.m.
The Century Station of Escambia Fire Rescue and the Flomaton Fire Department responded, along with the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
Pictured above and below: Fire destroyed a camper trailer on Freedom Road in Century early Thursday morning. Pictured immediately below: A firefighter turns off the propane supply to the camper. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
