The full text of the referendum: “In order to provide additional early childhood education, safety, developmental, preventative, health and wellbeing services, including after school and summer enrichment programs, should an independent special district entitled the “Escambia Children’s Trust” be created and authorized to levy an annual ad valorem tax of one-half mill of 10 years.”
Do Escambia County Sheriff’s VR Simulator, Real Time Crime Center, PSA program and movie nights fit the referendum?
The voters were told contracts would be revoked if certain outcomes aren’t being reached after certain measures are taken. The ECSO has vague outcomes and offers no measurements. However, the ECSO proposal isn’t unique in these deficiencies.
After the referendum passed, PNJ reporter Kevin Robinson interviewed two supporters of the initiative, Julian MacQueen and Kim Krupa. He wrote, “The funding from the new trust will be contract- and performance-based. That means programs and initiatives will be given certain measurements and outcomes to reach, and those that fail to meet those targets can see their funding withheld or contracts canceled.” Kim Krupa is on the Trust’s staff.
In October 2020 before the vote, Krupa explained the services the Trust would fund: “It’s wrap-around (services) our communities need, our kids and families need, to be able to pull Escambia up from those negative outcomes.”
A month after the vote, she appeared before the Board of County Commissioners and told them the trust would make generational investments that would have a real impact on the community. “We are talking about matching these egregious disparities with the type of deep systemic investments they deserve. That’s the only thing that’s going to pull us out of the bottom.”
It appears the Trust may have lost its way.
Hey Gary! FYI I’ve been off Facebook for a couple of months. So don’t go thinking I blocked ya. :)
Your comments here were spot on by the way–so happy to see it.
For the youth-challenged among us, here’s a link to Mr. Haney’s best hits:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-sT5vHnYNE
Melissa…hadn’t heard from you in a while since I had to delete my facebook page…..for about 5 months….up and running again but haven’t sought to add a lot of folks to it…..what a mess it was…..but Just like Bo…..I know….in this case more than land…..stay tuned changes are in my future….less than 3 months I bet!
Land stretchin out so far and wide, Gary.
Keep Manhattan just gimme that countryside.
“The road to he’ll was paved with good intentions”.
It was a dumb idea pushed for years by a non profit leader wanting to get his hands on the public cash flow stream…..because people are big hearted and still believe the Mr. Haneys’ of the world (Green Acres reference for the younger generation).
We complain about the stewards of our tax dollars not producing, but every do gooder idea that comes along we eagerly sign up for ( because we don’t see the Mr. Haney behind the snake oil) …..good at heart, we may be, but good at commen sense we aint. We made our bed and now we are living in it. We will be California eventually because we can’t help ourselves. But I ain’t moving….I otherwise love it here.