First Large Perdido Bay Access
Escambia County will hold the Perdido Boat Ramp groundbreaking at 11:30 a.m. Friday, June 16, at 10836 Lillian Highway.
- The boat ramp will be Escambia County’s first large public access to Perdido Bay.
Why this matters: On WCOA yesterday, Commissioner Jeff Bergosh said, “It’s a 39-acre park boat launch, kayak launch and camping center. It’s been a seven-year evolution to get this project, get all the permits, get the money cobbled together, but it is gonna be a state-of-the-art Westside amenity.”
- In addition, a new channel measuring at 2,260 feet long by 40 feet wide and a depth of 5 feet will be dredged from the launching facility to Perdido Bay. Additional passive recreational opportunities include a landing area along the Perdido paddling trail with two primitive campsites and 11 acres of wetlands placed into conservation.
In 2013, the Escambia County Board of County Commissioners funded the acquisition of the Perdido Boat Ramp property for $1.24 million through Local Option Sales Tax III. Project design was paid through a grant from Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and Vessel Registration Fees.
The $4.2 million needed for construction is funded through U.S. Treasury RESTORE Direct Component funds, American Rescue Plan Act funds and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection Natural Resource Damage Assessment Coastal Protection Fund. Hewes and Company, LLC is constructing the new facility.
Unique Children’s Resource
As I reported yesterday, Mayor D.C. Reeves is seeking a nearly $3.5 million grant from the Escambia Children’s Trust to fund a children’s resource center focused on healthcare, in partnership with Community Health Northwest Florida and Lakeview Center.
- If awarded, the grant would allow the City of Pensacola to work with these community partners to provide children and their families with valuable resources at the Morris L. Eaddy Lakeview Activity Center, located at 1110 W. Lakeview Ave.
- The Children’s Resource Center will be the first of its kind in Escambia County – blending traditional community center services with pediatrics care (Community Health) and mental health services (Lakeview).
Total Number of Children Living in Poverty within walking distance of the center: a minimum of 1,706.
Dig Deeper: The proposed project would renovate the existing facility to create a children’s resource center that would be dedicated to providing integrated healthcare services and resources for local youth. Once renovated, the center would include a pediatric clinic operated by Community Health Northwest Florida and on-site behavioral health services offered by Lakeview Center, an affiliate of Lifeview Group. The City of Pensacola Parks and Recreation Department would also offer community programming at the center, with an emphasis on child and family development.
Aronberg Not Seeking Another Term
Dave Aronberg, a former state senator who was elected Palm Beach County state attorney in 2012, said Monday he will not seek a fourth term as the county’s top prosecutor.
- “Nothing is forever, and this position is not meant to be a lifetime career,” Aronberg, a Democrat, said in a prepared statement. “As such, I will not be seeking a fourth term in 2024.”
What’s next: The Harvard-educated Aronberg did not disclose his future plans, saying in the announcement that he “will share more of what’s next in the coming months.” Aronberg served in the Senate from 2002 to 2010.
Remember when: Aronberg unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic nomination for Florida Attorney General in 2010. He made several visits to Pensacola in 2009 and 2010. I covered him taking on the BP Barbies during the BP oil spill:
Aronberg challenges BP Barbie
(May 14, 2010)
State Senator Dave Aronberg, a Democratic candidate for Attorney General, was in town yesterday. He spent part of his day at the Escambia County Emergency Operations Center.
Castro also bragged that BP has accepted full responsibility for the oil spill. To which, Aronberg asked then why did BP officials point the finger at Haliburton and Transocean in House hearings. Did she see the hearings? “Yeah, I saw that.”
Finally, we’re starting to see some outrage from state officials. Aronberg is worried that BP will be gone once the Deepwater Horizon well is capped…leaving the federal, state and local governments paying all the bills. He agrees with Escambia County Commissioner Grover Robinson that the $25-millon block grants from BP shouldn’t be divided equally among Florida, Alabama and Mississippi.
“These grants are to be passed on to the counties along the coast,” said Aronberg. “Mississippi has three counties on the Gulf of Mexico and Alabama has two. We in Florida have 16 counties that could be impacted.”