Greg Evers, Matt Gaetz Poised For Congressional Battle
April 19, 2016
In what could be one of the state’s most hotly contested congressional primary battles, state Sen. Greg Evers said Monday he is running for an open Northwest Florida seat being vacated by veteran U.S. Rep. Jeff Miller.
Evers, a Baker Republican, enters an already-crowded GOP field, which includes state Rep. Matt Gaetz and James Zumwalt, an Iraq war veteran who also served as an aide to Miller.
After toying with the possibility of running for weeks, Evers on Saturday filed a statement of candidacy for Congressional District 1 with the Federal Elections Commission, setting up what could be a grudge match with fellow state legislator Gaetz, who announced his candidacy for the seat almost a month ago.
“After prayerful consideration, I’m humbled and honored to announce my candidacy for CD 1. Many of the residents of the Panhandle have asked me to run because we need someone that will uphold the Panhandle values in D.C. As a lifelong resident of the Panhandle, I’m ready to carry our message to D.C., just as Jeff Miller did,” Evers said.
Evers, a 60-year-old farmer, said he intends to formally announce his entrance into the race at a press conference Tuesday morning in Milton.
Evers in 2001 won a special election for the state House, where he served until his election to the Senate in 2010.
The Northwest Florida district — one of the state’s most conservative — abuts the Alabama border and spans Escambia, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and Walton counties and includes most of Holmes County.
The winner of the Aug. 30 GOP primary is almost certain to go to Washington, and a match-up between Gaetz and Evers could result in the type of political slugfest that the Panhandle is known for. Gaetz has already raised more than $350,000, including putting more than $100,000 of his own money into the race.
But Evers, known among reporters for a droll wit delivered in a thick Southern drawl, didn’t flinch when asked about Gaetz’s campaign war chest.
“The last time I checked, it’s the voters that elect, not dollars,” he said.
The district includes five military installations, which could give Zumwalt a leg up in a region heavily populated by retired and active-duty military voters. According to his website, Zumwalt served two tours in Iraq and was awarded a Bronze Star and later served as an analyst at the Pentagon before becoming an adviser to Miller
Evers stressed his commitment to veterans on Monday.
“I want to go to Washington and I want to fight for the veterans. So many have given so much, and some gave all. It’s something that I’m extremely proud of, the veterans that I have represented over the years. I want to be their voice in Washington, as I was on the state level,” he said.
Evers also said he wants to “fight for every citizen of the Panhandle,” especially small business owners like himself.
“These are serious times and serious problems that we have, and it’s not a time for political gamesmanship. It’s a time for statesmanship, and a statesman to stand up and carry the light to Washington D.C,” he said.
After representing the district for 15 years, Miller took the Florida political world by surprise in March when he announced he would not seek re-election in the fall. His retirement also set off a scramble for legislative seats, as Gaetz and Evers shifted from running state Senate campaigns to looking at runs for Congress. Matt Gaetz had planned to run for a Senate seat that his father, former Senate President Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, will leave this fall because of term limits.
Two Republican state representatives — Mike Hill of Pensacola Beach and Doug Broxson of Gulf Breeze — are poised to run for Evers’s Senate District 1 seat, where, again, the August primary will almost certainly determine the general election winner.
Broxson said he intends to file his campaign paperwork for the Senate seat shortly after Evers makes a formal announcement Tuesday morning.
“We think we have a great chance of telling our story of why we should be (in the Senate) and we’re looking forward to the process,” Broxson, elected to the House in 2010, told the News Service in a telephone interview Monday.
Hill, the victor of a special election in 2013, said he intends to announce his candidacy for Senate “very soon.”
Unlike what could be a brutal primary battle for the congressional seat, both men said they anticipate the race to replace Evers will be tamer.
“I think we’re going to see very civil race. It’s going to be highly contested. But Rep. Broxson and I are friends,” Hill said in a telephone interview.
Hill, meanwhile, said that Zumwalt and other candidates’ military experience could give them an advantage over the state legislators in the congressional match-up.
Gaetz could have a different edge, according to Broxson.
“The Gaetzes have a reputation of being able to raise massive amounts of dollars and I’m curious to see how Sen. Evers is going to match up the money campaign. I think he has pretty good polling information that says he should run. I’m going to be a spectator and see what they do and how they’re going to handle their campaigns,” he said. “Hopefully everyone would hope that it would be positive and they’ll concentrate on their legislative successes, but my guess is it could be a pretty bloody battle.”
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida
Jay Royals Get District Playoff Win Over Northview
April 19, 2016
The Jay Royals defeated the Northview Chiefs 6-5 in the first round of the District 3-1A playoffs Monday in Jay.
Jay took a 2-0 lead after the end of the first and scored again in the top of the second. In bottom of the second, a two run double by Jared Alif narrowed the Royals lead. The Chiefs scored three runs in the bottom of the fifth to cut Jay’s lead to one. An RBI single by Thomas Moore and a two run single by Zach Payne powered the Northview Chiefs comeback.
Josh Neese pitched a full seven for the Chiefs, allowing eight hits, six runs and striking out four.
Roman Manning was 1-4 with a run; Thomas Moore was 2-4; Luke Ward had one run; Zach Payne was 2-4 with a run; Jared Alif was 2-3 for Northview.
Jay advances to play Chipley at 7 p.m. Tuesday with the district championship game set for 7 p.m. Thursday.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Ramona Preston, click to enlarge.
State Required To Pay Legal Fees In Gay Marriage Fight
April 19, 2016
Lawyers representing plaintiffs who successfully challenged Florida’s ban on same-sex marriage are entitled to collect legal fees from the state, a federal judge has ruled.
U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle’s order Friday came several months after Attorney General Pam Bondi first balked at having the state pay more than $500,000 in fees for lawyers representing same-sex couples.
Late last month — more than a year after same-sex marriages began in Florida — Hinkle issued a final judgment declaring that the state’s voter-approved prohibition against gay marriage is unconstitutional.
Jim Brenner and his partner Chuck Jones, a Tallahassee couple who have been together for nearly three decades and were married in Canada, filed the initial lawsuit against the state challenging the gay marriage prohibition. Brenner and Jones later asked Stephen Schlairat and Ozzie Russ, a gay Washington County couple, to join the lawsuit. The American Civil Liberties Union also filed a challenge on behalf of eight couples and other plaintiffs, and the cases were consolidated.
In August 2014, Hinkle ruled that the state’s prohibition against gay marriage was unconstitutional, but he put a stay on his decision until January 2015, when same-sex marriages became legal in Florida.
In Friday’s order, Hinkle wrote that both the ACLU of Florida and Jacksonville attorneys William Sheppard, Betsy White and Samuel Jacobson, who represented the Brenner plaintiffs, were entitled to legal fees.
“The plaintiffs prevailed in each of these consolidated actions,” Hinkle wrote, and are therefore entitled to fees.
Hinkle also praised the state for agreeing that the plaintiffs’ lawyers are entitled to fees, a departure from the harsh words Hinkle had for state officials in his March 31 final judgment.
In that ruling, Hinkle chastised state officials for their reluctance in acknowledging that the Florida ban had been overturned and “for a history of resistance” in a variety of areas linked to gay marriage — including in the state’s handling of birth certificates for children of same-sex couples.
“We respect the judge’s order,” Bondi spokesman Whitney Ray said in an email when asked if the state intended to appeal Hinkle’s final judgment or Friday’s ruling regarding the fees.
But the legal wrangling may not be over. While the state has acknowledged that the lawyers are entitled to the fees, it is unknown if the state will argue over the amount.
Sheppard and his legal team are seeking at least $455,000 in fees, including a “multiplier” allowed in civil rights cases, according to documents filed last year.
“This is a victory for the American courts and democracy, in my opinion. That sounds hokey, but that’s how I count it in my belief system,” Sheppard, a longtime civil rights lawyer, said in a telephone interview Monday.
The ACLU has not disclosed its legal tab, but praised Hinkle’s decision.
“We are grateful for Judge Hinkle’s order recognizing the work our legal team did in arguing that Floridians have a right to marry the person they love and that denying them that right was unconstitutional,” ACLU of Florida spokesman Baylor Johnson said in an email.
The battle over the legal fees started last summer, after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in June that same-sex couples have a fundamental right to marry. The Supreme Court ruling came in a case involving other states, but it cemented Hinkle’s ruling that Florida’s ban was unconstitutional.
In August, Bondi asked the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta and Hinkle to dismiss the case as moot. A dismissal would have absolved the state from an obligation to pay the plaintiffs’ lawyers, Sheppard and his team wrote in a court filing last year.
Despite Hinkle’s final judgment in the Florida cases and the U.S. Supreme Court decision, same-sex couples’ right to wed may not be settled permanently, Sheppard said.
“I don’t think for a second that we won’t be encountering other issues in the good old state of Florida related to this issue, whether it be legislative or whether it be just conduct of individual government officials,” he said. “It’s not an accepted thing, just because the Supreme Court says it is, any more than integrated schools is accepted.”
by Dara Kam, The News Service of Florida
40 On Century Tornado Housing Assistance Waiting List; Many Won’t Qualify
April 19, 2016
As of Monday afternoon 40 people had been added to a waiting list for Century residents to possibly receive state housing assistance following the February tornado.
Many of the 40 will not pass an initial screening for eligibility based upon application criteria, according to Meredith Nunnari, Escambia County Neighborhood Enterprise Division.
Only residents in the incorporated town of Century whose housing units were damaged by the tornado are eligible to apply. Owner occupants of manufactured homes are also eligible to apply if they own the property on which the home is located.
Century residents may call (850) 595-0872 to be placed on the waiting list, which will remain open for the near future. Residents must provide the following information when calling:
- Name
- Street address of impacted residence
- Contact phone number
Services will be made available to income-eligible owner occupants on a first qualified, first served basis as funding permits. Staff will follow up with applicants within five business days to determine program eligibility and to make appointments to begin the application process.
The following chart shows the maximum gross family household income requirements in Escambia County (effective March 28, 2016) for the housing repair and reconstruction activities through the State Housing Initiatives Partnership program, or SHIP. Household income includes income received from all persons residing in the household and from all sources providing income to the household.
Applications are still being accepted for owner occupants needing housing repair or reconstruction assistance from the February 15 and 23 tornadoes. Owner occupants in unincorporated Escambia County can call the Neighborhood Enterprise Division at (850) 595-0022, and those inside the city of Pensacola limits can call the City of Pensacola Housing Office at (850) 858-0306 to apply.
Biloxi Ties Series With 5-2 Win Over Pensacola
April 19, 2016
Pensacola center fielder Beau Amaral tripled in two runs in the top of the seventh inning to pull the Blue Wahoos within one run, 3-2, but it was not enough as the Biloxi Shuckers held on to win Monday in MGM Park.
Biloxi first baseman Nick Ramirez hit his first home run of the year in the bottom of the seventh inning to help the Shuckers defeat Pensacola, 5-2. The victory pulled the defending Southern League South Division champions within a half game of Pensacola, improving its record to 8-3. Pensacola remains in first place at 9-3.
It was the Shuckers who showed the dominant pitching Monday. The Blue Wahoos left fielder Tony Renda, hitting .306 for Pensacola, led off the seventh inning with the team’s first hit off reliever Tristan Archer.
Milwaukee Brewers No. 14 prospect 22-year-old, lefty Josh Hader pitched a scoreless and hitless four innings with three walks and seven strikeouts in his third start of the season. Hader was the only southpaw starter in the Brewers camp this year.
Renda, who went 1-3, got Pensacola going. Pinch-hitter Sebastian Elizalde followed him with a two-out single to center off of Archer, who was then replaced by Stephen Peterson.
Peterson promptly served up a two-out triple to Pensacola’s Amaral that drove in two runs to pull the Blue Wahoos within, 3-2. Amaral upped his team-leading RBI total to eight this season, going 1-4.
But Biloxi came right back on the homer by Ramirez.
Pensacola catcher Joe Hudson caught outfielder Garrett Cooper trying to steal to end the eighth inning and gave the Blue Wahoos one last chance to tie or win it in the ninth inning. However, Biloxi’s leading closer Jay Chapman came in and set Pensacola down in order to earn his fourth save in five games. He has yet to give up a hit or run in five innings of work and has struck out seven.
Biloxi added two runs in the fourth, when it loaded the bases on singles by third baseman Nate Orf, catcher Jacob Nottingham and Cooper. With one out, shortstop Javier Betancourt singled to center in the bottom of the fourth inning to drive in Orf and Nottingham for a 3-0 Biloxi lead.
Biloxi scored, 1-0, when Cooper singled in the bottom of the first inning to score right fielder Brett Phillips.
Amir Garrett, the Cincinnati Reds No. 3 prospect according to Baseball America, threw six innings and allowed three runs, two earned on six hits and one walk, while striking out five.
But it was Hader, the only southpaw starter in the Brewers camp this year, who starred Monday. Received in a trade with the Houston Astros, some say the young lefty may make the Brewers team as soon as this year.
Greg Evers Files For Congress
April 18, 2016
State Sen. Greg Ever has filed to run for Congress, according to the Federal Elections Commission.
Evers will officially “announce intentions” at a press conference Tuesday morning in Milton, he told NorthEscambia.com Monday morning. He would not confirm that his announcement would be a Congressional run.
With a run for Congress, Evers would join what is expected to be a highly contested Republican primary to replace U.S. Rep. Jeff Miller, who recently announced he will not seek re-election to the District 1 seat he has held for 15 years.
“If I do run, it’s because I believe it’s where I can be the most effective service to my constituents, and not because I’m in a rush to enter the political fray in order to gain some sort of purely political, strategic advantage,” Evers, R-Baker, told The News Service of Florida last month. “I really believe these are serious times, extremely serious times. I intend to conduct myself accordingly. That requires that I do lots of prayer and research. That’s the reason I’m in Washington. And it was very humbling. Our country is in a serious state of affairs right now. We have to have a leader that’s going to stand up for the Panhandle. I’ve done that at the state level, but I want to be sure that I’m the right person to do that in Washington.”
The Northwest Florida district — one of the state’s most conservative — borders the Alabama border and spans Escambia, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and Walton counties and includes most of Holmes County.
Evers has filed a “Statement of Candidacy” for the House seat with the Federal Elections Commission.
Pictured: Helen Mincy of Century explains damage to Sen. Greg Evers following the EF-3 tornado that ravaged part of the town in February. NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.
County Set To Settle With Ambulance Wreck Victims
April 18, 2016
Escambia County is set to make final settlement payment for injuries resulting from a 2012 ambulance wreck in Century.
The accident happened about 8:15 a.m. on October 22, 2012, when an Escambia County EMS unit in the parking lot of the Whataburger on North Century Boulevard received an emergency call to Century Care Center.
The county ambulance driver activated the emergency lights and sirens on the ambulance and stopped at the stop sign while exiting the parking lot onto Highway 29, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. Traffic in the northbound lanes stopped to allow the ambulance to proceed. The driver did not see a 2004 Chevrolet SUV and begin to cross over the northbound lanes to turn south, with the front of the ambulance colliding with the side of the SUV.
The driver of the SUV, then 80-year old Barney Cash of Century, was transported by ambulance to Jay Hospital with minor injuries. His passenger, Clifton Underwood, Jr. of Century, was airlifted by LifeFlight to Sacred Heart Hospital in serious condition.
Underwood was severely and permanently injured and his case was previously settled for the total sum of $195,000.
Cash claimed injury to his back, but has extensive pre-existing conditions involving his low back and both knees which limited his mobility. A jury would have taken these pre-existing conditions into account in determining whether Mr. Cash suffered a permanent injury from the collision, according to county documents.
The county attorney’s office and the Escambia County Commission met in an attorney/client session on June 2, 2015 and was given maximum settlement authority of $30,000. Deputy County Attorney Charles V. Peppler conducted negotiations with the attorney representing Barney Cash and his wife Irene who proposed to settle the case for an additional $1,500.
If approved by a vote of the county commission on Thursday, the county will settle the Cash’s claim for a total of $31,500.
NorthEscambia.com file photos, click to enlarge.
Escambia Man Charged With DUI Manslaughter In Bay County
April 18, 2016
An Escambia County man has been charged in Bay County after running over and killing a man on a scooter.
Kenneth Lee Manhard, 53, was charged with DUI manslaughter, leaving the scene of a crash involving death, and driving with a suspended license while causing a death.
According to the Florida Highway Patrol, Manhard was crossing the Hathaway Bridge on Highway 98 in a 2008 Hyundai Accent when he hit a 2015 Scooter driven by 30-year old Jerry Malachi Jones of Lynn Haven, FL Manhard continued eastbound, leaving the scene of the accident. Witnesses said that two other unknown vehicles may have collided with Jones after the initial impact.
WJHG television reported that Manhard went to a bar in Panama City after the accident. He left the bar because it was closed, but a server called the FHP and followed him.
Anyone with information on the accident is asked to call the Corporal W.A. Mathers at (850) 873-7020 ext. 83656.
FDOT: Weekly Traffic Alerts
April 18, 2016
Drivers will encounter traffic disruptions on the following state roads in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties as crews perform construction and maintenance activities.
Escambia County:
- U.S. 29– Intermittent and alternating lane closures within the town of Century and from Champion Drive north continue.
- I-10/U.S. 29 Interchange Improvements – The speed limit on I-10 eastbound near U.S. 29 (Exits 10A and 10B) has been reduced to 50 mph.
- U.S. 90 over Escambia River- Intermittent lane restrictions from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday, April 19 and Wednesday, April 20 as crews perform a routine bridge inspection.
- Interstate 10 (I-10) Widening – Intermittent and alternating lane closures, between State Road (S.R.) 291 (Davis Highway/Exit 13) and U.S. 90 (Scenic Highway/Exit 17), from 7 p.m. to 6:30 a.m. the week of Monday, April 18 as crews perform construction activities.
- S.R. 292 (Theo Barrs Bridge) – Intermittent lane closures from 8 p.m. Monday, April 18 to 2 a.m. Tuesday, April 19 as crews perform striping operations.
- U.S. 98 (East Gregory Street) – Westbound outside lane closed between 10th Avenue and 11th Avenue from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. Monday, April 18 and Tuesday, April 19 as crews perform underground utility work.
- U.S. 98 (Garden Street) – Westbound inside lane closed between Tarragona and Palafox streets from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. Tuesday, April 19 and Wednesday, April 20 as crews perform underground utility work.
Santa Rosa County:
- I-10 Widening – Alternating lane closures on I-10, between the Escambia Bay Bridge and S.R. 281 (Avalon Boulevard/Exit 22), from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. Sunday, April 17 through Thursday, April 21 as crews place barrier wall. In addition, alternating lane closures on Avalon Boulevard near the I-10 interchange during this time as crews perform bridge work.
- S.R. 87 Multilane-– Drivers are reminded of the temporary speed limit reduction from 55 mph to 45 mph from the Eglin Air Force Base boundary to Choctaw Field Road and from one mile south of the Yellow River to the southern end of the Yellow River bridge. The reduced speed limit is needed for roadway reconstruction efforts that will require shoulder closures along S.R. 87.
All activities are weather dependent and may be delayed or rescheduled in the event of inclement weather. Drivers are reminded to use caution, especially at night, when traveling in a work zone and to watch for construction workers and equipment entering and exiting the roadway.
Pictured: Work on widening I-10 near Scenic Highway in Escambia County. Photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Manna Food Pantries Purchases New Home
April 18, 2016
MANNA Food Pantries has purchased its new future home, the Pensacola Mill Supply Building on North “E” Street.
The 23,000 square foot building is located less than two miles from MANNA’s current home near two bus routes and the bus terminal. The building is large enough to house both client services and warehouse operations under one roof for the first time in decades — greatly improving service quality to the hungry.
“As we approach the anniversary of the 2014 flood that severely impacted MANNA, we are grateful and excited to have found a new home that best serves the needs of our community and of MANNA,” said DeDe Flounlacker, MANNA Executive Director. “The location provides important access from downtown and other nearby areas where many people who need our help live.”
The non-profit hopes to have renovations completed and to be moved into the building by early 2017.
“We will be reaching out to our supporters throughout the community as MANNA embarks on a capital campaign to raise approximately $1 million to pay for the new building, renovations and move,” said Flounlacker. “After the flood, the community was so generous and helped us get back on our feet to resume feeding the hungry. And now we’ll be able to take services to a new level in serving the hungry. We’re excited about the impact we’ll be able to make from this building and location.”
Not a soup kitchen, MANNA Food Pantries is a local, grassroots non-profit organization dedicated to fighting hunger in Escambia & Santa Rosa counties. Our mission is to offer emergency food assistance, service the food–related needs of vulnerable populations, and engage the entire community in the fight against hunger. We are nonsectarian, community focused and volunteer supported. We believe every person has a right to live free of hunger and to be treated with respect and dignity.