NorthEscambia.com reports that Rishy and Quint Studer will soon hold a $25,000 Business Challenge in Century, providing a winning business plan developer the cash and guidance needed to open their doors. Three…
How Pensacola City Council voted on its officers
We’ve had the ballots for the Pensacola City Council’s election of president and vice president for some time, but the ATF report on the county jail blast took our focus in a…
Florida minimum wage to top $8, but debate continues
By JIM TURNER THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA Florida’s lowest-paid workers will get a raise Jan. 1, but a higher minimum wage sought by state and national Democrats doesn’t appear on the…
Supreme Court rejects BP appeal
Reuters reports that the U.S. Supreme Court today rejected BP’s challenge to its multibillion-dollar settlement agreement over the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill. The oil giant had complained the agreement allowed…
Video shows dryers floating morning of explosion
Inweekly obtained the video of the laundry area which shows the dryers breaking from the wall and floating before 6 a.m. the day of the explosion. Here are the notes that accompany…
Publix picketers advocate for Florida farmworkers
By Shelby Smithey A documentary called Food Chains is shedding new light on the state’s largest supermarket chain and what part it plays in the poverty and exploitation of tomato pickers in…
County hires new Corrections Director
Escambia County has hired Michael Tidwell as Corrections Director. As Director, Tidwell will oversee Community Corrections, Probations, Jail, Pretrial, Code Enforcement, Animal Control and the Road Prison. He replaces former director Gordon…
Qatar ambassador donates $10K to ARC Gateway
Ambassador Mohammed Jaham Al-Kuwari from Qatar was in town today to speak at the Panhandle Tiger Bay Club. At the meeting, he announced a $10,000 gift from his country to ARC Gateway….
Discover Ukraine
The Gulf Coast Citizen Diplomacy Council is hosting an opportunity to “Discover Ukraine” on Wednesday, Dec. 10, noon-1 p.m. at West Florida Public Library, Main Library, on Meeting Room “C” 239 N….
What County employees told ATF about the jail explosions
The daily newspaper posted online the 300-plus surveys completed by prisoners who were in the Central Booking & Detention Center when it exploded on April 30. I’ve pulled together the ATF investigators’…
FDEP hosts meeting re: Bayou Chico, Dec 11
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) will host a “Maps on the Table†meeting regarding Bayou Chico on Thursday, December 11, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., at the Escambia County Central…
Latest report shows increase in reports of sexual assault in the military
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel released yesterday the latest survey of sexual assaults among our armed forces. He believes that the Defense Department’s efforts to prevent such attacks in the military are having…
State Fire Marshall’s photos after the jail explosion
This morning I posted the State Fire Marshall’s report of its initial investigation in the hours after the April 30 explosion of the CBD. Here are the photos that went with that…
State Capital Briefs for Dec. 4
By THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA BILL WOULD REQUIRE POLICE TO WEAR BODY CAMERAS Amid a broader national debate about the issue, a state House Democrat filed a proposal Thursday that would…
New app allows for cyberbullying, according to School District
Malcolm Thomas, Superintendent of the Escambia County School District, issued a press release today that his some of his middle school and high school students are using an app “After School –…
Fire marshall preliminary report tells of gas odor and how bodies were found
In this week’s issue, “When Everything Went Black†reveals that several correctional officers smelled natural gas at the Central Booking and Detention Center the day of the explosion. The account of what…
Breaking news: UWF faculty vote to ratify collective bargaining agreement
Yesterday afternoon, Jonathan Fink, the vice president for Bargaining and Chief Negotiator for the University of West Florida faculty, notified his colleagues that the union had voted unanimously, 82-0, to ratify the…
Institute for Women in Politics issues its report on 2014 local elections
Women make few gains in 2014 elections in Escambia and Santa Rosa There are five new women in the halls of government and the judiciary in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties but…
County holds ribbon cutting for archery park, Dec 10
Escambia County will host a ribbon cutting ceremony for the new Klondike Archery Park, 7201 Sparshott Drive, Pensacola, on Wednesday, December 10, at 10 a.m. The Klondike Landfill originally operated from 1976…
FDOT secretary steps down
PRASAD TO STEP DOWN AS TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY By JIM TURNER THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA Florida Department of Transportation Secretary Ananth Prasad has become the third of Gov. Rick Scott’s agency heads…