CRESTVIEW — First Judicial Circuit Court Judge Michael Flowers swore lifelong Crestview resident Doug Faircloth into office as a city councilman in a special meeting Monday evening.

Faircloth’s selection from an initial field of 10 applicants filled the seat vacated by Mickey Rytman, who resigned in August.

After Faircloth took his seat on the dais, he participated in a Community Redevelopment Agency meeting and the regularly scheduled City Council meeting.

During the City Council meeting, Faircloth’s was among 11 straight unanimous votes on various issues.

“I like seeing all that green up there,” City Council President Shannon Hayes said, referring to the green “yes” vote indicators on the council tally board.

There were no dissenting votes during the meeting.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Faircloth sworn in as new Crestview councilman

CRESTVIEW — First Judicial Circuit Court Judge Michael Flowers was unequivocal in his remarks before the City Council. The Okaloosa County courthouse may be coming down and will be replaced, but the county seat isn't going anywhere.

Monday evening, Flowers laid to rest rumors that with the planned demolition of the current 1955 county courthouse at the north end of Main Street, Crestview will also lose its historic status as the seat of Okaloosa County.

"There's a couple things that won't happen: The courthouse won't be anywhere that it isn't right now. It's going to happen," Flowers said. And, "This is and always will be the county seat."

COURAGEOUS STEP

Last week the Okaloosa County Board of Commissioners took "a courageous step in voting to fund and rebuild the county courthouse," Flowers said.

The discovery of rampant mold throughout the courthouse, coupled with a failing heating and air conditioning system, leaky roof and inefficient, segregation-era floor plan led the commissioners to abandon original plans to renovate and expand the building and simply start from scratch.

In less than a week, rumors started flying that a plot was afoot to move the county seat to Fort Walton Beach, a notion at which Flowers scoffed, saying it would take an act of the Legislature to change a county seat.

Instead, he said, county and court staff are scrambling to create and implement plans to vacate the courthouse within months, relocate services, and design a replacement building that will reflect Crestview's historic 1910s origins.

"There are many things happening very quickly that should be exciting to the citizens of Crestview and the north end of the county," Flowers said. "I can't tell you how great it is to be the circuit judge in the city of Crestview."

SERVICES IN CRESTVIEW

Flowers said he and Mayor David Cadle have been in discussion about how to maintain a judicial presence in the county's largest city to assure court services are relatively available to north county residents.

Councilmen were pleased with Flowers' message.

"We want to say 'Thank you' for being open to us and giving us some facts," newly appointed council vice president Joe Blocker said.

Cadle said Flowers' remarks will also temper local resentment that county money is perceived to flow to communities south of the Shoal River.

"We've known about the north-south resentments and I think this may go a long way to putting this to rest," Cadle said.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Flowers: Crestview 'is and always will be the county seat'

CRESTVIEW — Reaction to Okaloosa County commissioners' decision to raze Crestview's courthouse and build a new facility on the same site is mixed.

News Bulletin Facebook fans shared these comments after Tuesday's 4-1 vote in favor of the $21 million project.

●"Because remodeling isn't good enough — let's spend $21 million on a courthouse while our community is struggling," Mandy Ducharme said. "Great idea."

●"Well, I guess that means no new road system here — not that we need it anyways. If you need to go to the new courthouse just leave early, right?" Carleen Leatherwood said.

●"They should fix the road problems before wasting money on a court house," Dolan Jones said.

●"Their old courthouse was perfectly fine," Sheena Ratliff said.

Some residents support the decision due to recent discovery of mold.  

●"The courthouse is full of mold and asbestos," Glenda K. Sutton  said. "It is a health hazard to those who have to work there."

●"I hope this (mold) is the reason it's being bulldozed down instead of renovated, because Crestview could use that money on engineering a new road system to alleviate traffic on Ferdon (Boulevard) and other things as well," Courtney Young said.

●"The current courthouse is an eyesore and needs to be dealt with," Corey Winkler  said. "While I agree that there are more pressing issues to tend to, be happy Crestview is at least getting something new from the county."  

County Commissioner Nathan Boyles said the county's seat would receive a "beautiful new, Southern-style downtown courthouse.”

“The goal is to achieve a facility that the citizens up here can be proud of and make sure Crestview will be the home of the county courthouse for the next generation,” he said.

Crestview's Historic Preservation Board members, including president Ann Spann, Graham Fountain, Linda Parker and Cal Zethmayr, stressed the importance of complementing downtown’s historic architecture in the new facility.

“The board gave specific instructions to the design team that we want to take these comments into consideration,” Boyles said.

County Commissioner Trey Goodwin of District 4 voted nay on the new courthouse proposal, questioning the expense.

Boyles said the existing courthouse has served the community well over its more than 60 years, but has outlived its lifespan. Recently discovered mold, a failing heating and cooling system and leaky roof are among challenges that would’ve been faced had the board decided to renovate the building.

Boyles said county facilities currently housed in the courthouse will be vacated within the next two or three months.

While maintaining a temporary court presence in Crestview during demolition and construction is under discussion, judges’ offices will be moved to the Water and Sewer Building in Fort Walton Beach, Boyles said.

Okaloosa County commissioners considered these options before deciding to raze Crestview's courthouse:

●Spend$60,000 to refurbish portions of the courthouse

●Spend $8 million to entirely renovate the courthouse

●Spend $12 or $17 million to totally renovate the courthouse and build an addition

●Spend $21 million to raze the courthouse and build a new facility on the site

EVOLUTION OF COURTHOUSE PLANS

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Okaloosa residents divided on new courthouse decision

CRESTVIEW — Lifelong resident Doug Faircloth was selected Tuesday night to fill the City Council seat vacated in August by Mickey Rytman.

Faircloth was unanimously voted to the dais following a three-hour special session of the council to interview the nine applicants for the seat. Two of the applicants, Wendell Beattie and Brandon Frost, did not attend the interviews.

During his interview Faircloth, who has served on several city boards and is a retired Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office deputy, spoke against raising taxes and expanding business opportunities in the city.

"We going to have to compete with Fort Walton and Destin," he said. "We need to increase the tax base, not increase taxes."

On another hot-button topic, Faircloth said he could only support changing the charter to a city manager form of government if the manager was chosen by the electorate.

"I don't think it should be selected by the council," Faircloth said. "There's too much room to give the brother-in-law a job or the next-door neighbor. Why would the council want to pick someone to do such an important job that the citizens wouldn't be able to get rid of?"

Other applicants interviewed were former City Council members Bob Allen, Robyn Helt and Bill Kilpatrick; Rodney Salisbury, Joseph Earnhardt and Zachary Beasley.

A motion by Councilman JB Whitten to select Helt failed for lack of a second. Councilman Joe Blocker then moved to select Faircloth.

Faircloth could take his seat as early as Monday's regularly scheduled City Council meeting.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Doug Faircloth appointed to City Council seat

CRESTVIEW — The Okaloosa County Board of Commissioners today voted 4-1 to raze the Crestview courthouse and rebuild a new facility on the same site within two years.

Commissioner Trey Goodwin of District 4 voted nay, questioning the expense.

“This is big stuff,” board chairman Nathan Boyles said. “We’re going to demolish the courthouse: bring out our bulldozers, push it away, and spend $21 million on a beautiful new, Southern-style downtown courthouse.”

Boyles said it is important to keep the county’s main courthouse downtown in the county seat.

“The goal is to achieve a facility that the citizens up here can be proud of and make sure Crestview will be the home of the county courthouse for the next generation,” Boyles said.

HISTORIC DESIGN

During discussion at Tuesday’s board meeting, members of the city’s Historic Preservation Board, including President Ann Spann, Graham Fountain, Linda Parker and Cal Zethmayr, stressed the importance of maintaining downtown’s historic architecture in the new facility.

“The board gave specific instructions to the design team that we want to take these comments into consideration,” Boyles said. “We want this to feel like a Southern town square-type of traditional courthouse.”

Boyles said the existing courthouse has served the community well over its more than 60 years, but has outlived its lifespan. Recently discovered mold, a failing heating and cooling system and leaky roof are among challenges that would’ve been faced had the board decided to renovate the building.

“The commission had the will to say, ‘the heck with all that. Let’s push it into a pile.’”

CRESTVIEW PRESENCE

“We can rebuild it just as quickly and have a much more functional, durable and beautiful facility for the citizens of Okaloosa County by starting with a clean slate in the county seat and downtown,” Boyles said.

Boyles said county facilities currently housed in the courthouse will be vacated within the next two or three months.

While maintaining a temporary court presence in Crestview, due to the mold treatment, is under discussion, judges’ offices will be moved to the Water and Sewer Building, known as the “Taj Mahal,” in Fort Walton Beach “because the rent is free,” Boyles said. “The goal is to have some level of presence up here.”

EVOLUTION OF THE COURTHOUSE PLANS

First idea: $60,000 to refurbish portions of the current courthouse

Second idea: $8 million to renovate the courthouse entirely

Third idea: $12 million to totally renovate the courthouse and add an addition

Fourth idea: $17 to totally renovate the courthouse and add an addition after further planning

Latest idea: $21 million to raze the courthouse and build a new facility on the site

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Okaloosa County Commission votes to raze, rebuild Crestview courthouse

LAUREL HILL — It’s about time Okaloosa County’s northernmost municipality joins other cities in having an official website, City Councilman Scott Moneypenny says.

“There’s no denying the internet has changed the way we communicate forever,” Moneypenny said during Thursday’s monthly council meeting. “Most people would rather visit your website then the local city hall.”

Moneypenny said in addition to keeping residents informed about city events and services, “this is an opportunity to get our name out to bigger businesses that might want to put something in our industrial park.”

 “Can that incorporate paying a water bill online?” resident Mike Hanula asked, adding, “not that I don't like coming in and visiting.”

“Absolutely,” Council Chairman Larry Hendren said, eliciting applause from Hanula.

Moneypenny said when contacting potential businesses, the first question he’s asked is, “Do you have a website we can go to?”

Moneypenny has researched other similar-sized municipalities’ websites and cited Freeport and Paxton’s online presences, noting Freeport’s would be worth emulating, but Paxton’s is not regularly updated.

Daily updates are essential, he said, but given City Hall’s small two-person staff, an outside web provider would be needed. He said 30-A Media Group offers can create and maintain a website for about $1,400 a year, which is lower than other companies he researched.

Hendren invited other website developers to contact the city and share their expertise as well.

Moneypenny proposed establishing a basic site, or “shell,” then building it based on resident input.

“Everything about our website should support our community needs, goals and aspirations, which is why it has to be built around our citizens,” Moneypenny said.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Laurel Hill considering official website

CRESTVIEW — When festivals take place downtown, the sponsoring organization — often the city — sometimes must rent portable staging.

That might soon change.

Community Redevelopment Agency and Main Street Crestview Association director Brenda Smith proposes purchasing a retired shipping container and converting it to a mobile stage.

CRA board members like the idea — and, by a 3-1 vote, with board member Joe Blocker voting nay on Monday, approved allocating $7,550 toward the project. The plan's supporters learned after the meeting that the goal might be achieved easier and cost less.

Crestview Public Works director Wayne Steele, whose machine shop would have performed the conversion, said assistant director Carlos Jones has located used mobile stages for sale.

“We have found some that are already made,” Steele said. “Rather than us building it, we might find something that meets our vision for a lot less.”

Steele said Smith found a container that weighs 5,000 pounds, which was almost twice as heavy as what he was envisioning and would prove a challenge for the Public Works machine shop.

Blocker asked to see design renderings before the container was converted to assure it was aesthetically presentable.

“If we're going to have something like that, let’s have something that has good first impressions,” he said.

“I have personally seen some creative repurposing of shipping containers and they’re only limited by your imagination,” board member Bill Cox said.

Steele said he, Jones and Smith will evaluate the used stages Jones found before making another recommendation to the CRA board.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Retired shipping container may become Crestview stage

CRESTVIEW – Ten candidates have submitted applications to fill the remainder of resigned City Councilman Mickey Rytman’s term of office, which ends in March 2017.

Among applicants are former City Council members Robyn Helt, Bob Allen and Bill Kilpatrick.

Other applicants include Wendell Beattie, Brandon Frost, Zachary Beasley, Joseph Earnhardt, Rodney Salisbury, Doug Faircloth and Robert Helm.

The council will interview the applicants at a special 6 p.m. Oct. 6 meeting at City Hall. If a new member is selected at that time, he or she will be sworn in and seated at the regular Oct. 12 City Council meeting.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: 10 apply for vacant Crestview City Council seat

CRESTVIEW — With the Okaloosa County courthouse about to be closed indefinitely for mold mitigation, Mayor David Cadle asked for a City Council consensus to allow court to be held at Warriors Hall during the cleanup.

"I don't want to see a precedent set to remove county business from the county seat," Cadle said.

Cadle said he has been discussing the issue with Board of County Commissioners chairman Nathan Boyles, a Main Street business owner.

"Warriors Hall has been part of the conversation to retain a legal presence in the city," Cadle said, noting the court system would use the hall just for a few days each month.

City Clerk Betsy Roy said few if any daytime hall rentals would be affected during the next several months.

"I think this would be an excellent opportunity for the city to demonstrate its willingness to maintain a court presence in Crestview," Cadle said.

The council unanimously agreed.

"Mr. Mayor, the court will not be moved from the city of Crestview," Councilman Joe Blocker declared.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: County court may temporarily relocate to Warriors Hall

CRESTVIEW — The Crestview City Council came close Monday night to resorting to the rollback millage rate when the body deadlocked 2-2 on passing the previously approved 6.9466 millage.

But after discussion, both the millage and the proposed 2015-16 city budget passed 3-1, with Councilman JB Whitten voting against both resolutions.

Whitten and Councilman Joe Blocker voted against the resolution authorizing the increased millage following several residents' opposition to the rate.

"I feel there are some things in the budget we can reduce," resident Wendell Beattie said.

Following the deadlock, City Clerk Betsy Roy said unless the millage was adopted, the city would default to the 5.8743 rollback millage, which would lop more than $1 off the budget.

"I'm astounded at this vote," Councilman Bill Cox said. "Right here and now this puts the city in turmoil and it shouldn't be that way. This was the second vote to move this forward. One councilman has changed his vote from last time. I have no reason why."

Blocker, who changed to a "nay" vote from last week's first hearing on the millage, asked city attorney Ben Holley for his advice.

"You're going to have to pass a millage rate and a balanced budget," Holley said. "All of this has to be done by Oct. 1."

BUDGET ADJUSTMENT

Roy told the councilmen that once passed, they can adjust the budget more to their satisfaction if they wish.

Asked by Council President Shannon Hayes, who favored the millage and budget, what he suggests doing, Blocker shifted his stance.

"All we can do to stay out of trouble with the state and pass this millage rate, then do everything possible to lower the budget a million dollars," Blocker replied.

Blocker then moved to rescind the first vote, which passed 3-1, with Whitten voting nay. Cox moved to pass the millage again, which then passed 3-1, with Whitten again voting against it.

Discussion then turned to the proposed $29,593,225 budget. Resident Thomas Simms spoke against it, singling out expenditures such as $200,000 earmarked for future fire engine purchases as a "slush fund for the fire department," and questioning a 5 percent city worker pay raise.

Simms also dismissed a new computer system to replace the police department's failing system as "spending a million dollars on a data base that wouldn't even be talked about if it wasn't for the election," though the system actually will cost $775,856.

After discussion, the budget passed 3-1, with Whitten again voting nay.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview millage, budget barely pass City Council