LAUREL HILL — The City of Laurel Hill chose Jack Dorman as its temporary planning official June 7 and will re-advertise it's request for proposal for a planner due to a lack of response.

City Clerk Nita Miller said Dorman will advise people on land development code compliance on an as-needed basis.

The city is also drafting ordinances to increase water and fire facility fees. "Once we are finished we will advertise and let the public know water rates will be increasing. We haven't had a water rate increase sine 2008, and the fire facilities fee has not been increased since 2011," Miller said. The current rates no longer completely fund city water and fire services. 

Laurel Hill may also have a contractor to make upgrades to the Gene Clary Park. They received a $50,000 state grant for the upgrades.

Finally, Laurel Hill received a water line grant from the Northwest Florida Water Management District to connect a water line on Millside Road with State Road 85. The city is waiting to hear from Okaloosa County before the connection, as the county wants to straighten and pave Millside so the water line will no longer be on private property.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Laurel Hill selects temporary city planner

SHALIMAR — The Okaloosa County Board of County Commissioners passed a proclamation in support of National Social Worker Month at their Tuesday meeting. Commissioner Carolyn Ketchel, a licensed clinical social worker herself, presented a copy of the proclamation to Monica Koetters, MSW and Jennifer Steinmeier, LCSW in recognition of the event.

Ketchel praised the profession of social work as “leaders, advocates and champions for the most vulnerable in our society.”

In the proclamation, the commissioners agreed “Social workers are the largest group of suppliers of mental health services in the United States.”

The profession of Social Work is expected to gain almost 650,000 workers over the next seven years, a faster-than-average growth rate.

For more information, please contact Christopher Saul at csaul@myokaloosa.com

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Okaloosa County honors social workers

CRESTVIEW — The Shoal River Republican Club's next meeting will feature Okaloosa County Commission Board Chair Graham Fountain.

The meeting starts 6 p.m. March 13 at Hideway Pizza, 326 Main St., Crestview, with business at 6:30 p.m.

Fountain is the District 1 commissioner for much of Crestview, Laurel Hill, and unincorporated portions of the county within them. The meeting is a chance to get an update on county business and ask questions.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Local meeting to feature commission chair

DEFUNIAK SPRINGS — Governor Rick Scott stopped in Northwest Florida Feb. 28 to promote his $500 million school safety plan.

The governor met with sheriffs from five area counties at the Walton County Sheriff’s Office in Defuniak Springs on Feb. 28, the first day Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School students returned to school following the Feb. 14 mass shooting at the school.

What happened at Stoneman Douglas in Parkland, Fla. has reinvigorated the national conversation on school safety. Gun control, mental health and increasing security within schools are among a range of issues being discussed. Scott called on experts in these fields for input.

The visit was part of the governor’s statewide tour to talk about his plan to increase school safety. Scott stood alongside law enforcement officers to do so.

“The money will be spent really primarily in three areas: more law enforcement, significant law enforcement presence at all of our schools; mental health counselors at our schools; hardening of all of our schools; and on top of that, some money for Department of Children and Families to have more teams to go out and work with our youth,” Scott said.

Walton County Sheriff Michael Adkinson introduced Governor Scott.

“What you have here is a united, dedicated front saying we believe the proposal made by Governor Rick Scott is the most significant improvement to the safety and well-being of our children proposed in my 25-year career,” Adkinson said.

The governor said that the state has the money to fund the $500 million dollar proposal and that it was important to pass the legislation during the current session.

Okaloosa County Sheriff Larry Ashley was one of the area sheriffs invited to appear with the governor. Ashley was enthusiastic about the plan and appreciated that the governor took the input of local sheriffs into account in developing the plan. Ashley said addressing this issue is vital to maintaining the public’s trust that children will be safe attending public schools.

“Every parent in the state—every parent in our country—should be very comfortable when they send their child to school; their child is going to come home safely,” Scott said.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Gov. Scott unveils three-pronged school safety plan

CRESTVIEW — The Crestview City Council discussed plans to rebuild the John McMahon Environmental Center at the meeting Monday night.

The center is located at the corner of Mapoles and First Avenue on Butler Circle.

The proposed plans call for rebuilding the center and preserving keepsakes inside.

“It is in sad shape … it has asbestos issues, squirrels eating the inside," said Jeff Morgan, president of the Crestview Kiwanis Club, which proposed the plans. "We’re going to lose it if we don’t do something with the building.”

If approved, the funding will come from the city's park reserve account. The Kiwanis Club also plans to donate between $20,000 and $30,000 for playground equipment at the park.

The plans also call for installing fencing and restocking the park's fish pond. Last year, the Kiwanis Club completed a project to create walking trails at the park.

"I was fortunate enough to know Mr. McMahon,” Councilman Doug Faircloth said. “Having the park named after him pleased the family greatly and letting it deteriorate is on us.”

The council is scheduled to vote on the plans at the next council meeting in February.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview City Council discusses rebuilding John McMahon Environmental Center

CRESTVIEW — The Crestview City Council on Monday continued talks to rewrite the city's rules for storage of recreational vehicles.

Currently, the city follows the county's ordinance, which prohibits RVs and campers from being kept inside the city. The rule has largely gone unenforced.

The proposed revision would allow RVs to be stored in the rear and side yards of single-family homes, but prohibit anyone from living in the vehicles and hooking up vehicles to water and sewage lines. Only one RV would be allowed per home.

There were also proposed enclosure and fence requirements, which were nixed during the discussion.

“We need an honest compromise that shows we’re looking out for all our citizens," said Councilman Shannon Hayes.

The ordinance would allow RVs to be lived in only during temporary emergencies, such as floods or fires. Residents would need to apply for a permit during such situations, which would be valid for 180 days with a possible 90-day extension.

During emergency uses, RVs would need to be pumped out by a licensed and bonded wastewater hauler or taken to a licensed wastewater receiving station.

The council plans to vote on the final ordinance at the February council meeting.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview Council talks new RV rules

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Shoal River Republicans install new officers

CRESTVIEW — The City Council on Monday night voted unanimously to hold a joint public meeting with the Okaloosa County Commission to discuss the Community Redevelopment Agency Comprehensive Master Plan.

The commission objected to portions of the updated plan, which the CRA submitted on Nov. 27 of last year, prompting the county to request a special meeting to discuss those concerns.

After a lengthy discussion of whether to agree to the public forum involving the full city council and county commission or hold a smaller mediation involving representatives and attorneys from each governing body, the council voted to approve the full meeting.

Mayor David Cadle expressed his frustration with the process.

"Some of the criticisms that we’re getting from some commissioners is that that money has been put aside for the downtown area of the CRA district," Cadle said. "The criticism is that we’re not spending the money, and we can’t come to an agreement on much of anything, just like tonight."

Cadle was referencing the earlier CRA board meeting where the council members, who also serve on the board, delayed further discussions on a plan for new gateway signs.

"That is one of the reasons that we’re having to go into this negotiation is that we drag our feet," Cadle said, admonishing members of the council. "Now please forgive me if I’m hurting your feelings, but I’ve watched this for 11 years now and it just drags and drags and drags. Nothing gets done very quickly."

The public meeting will be held 2 p.m. Jan. 17 in the City Council chambers. Council members and commissioners would then convene separately to vote on any agreement that comes out of the meeting.

Also on Monday:

• Crestview Area Chamber of Commerce board member Dino Sinopoli made a special presentation to the council on the Triple B Festival. He asked that the council allow alcohol sales to be added to this year’s event, which is planned to be held at Spanish Trail Park for a second consecutive year.

  Councilman J.B. Whitten raised the issue of insurance and whether the city could be held liable in the event of an alcohol-related incident, but made it clear that he did not object to the idea of alcohol sales at the event. The council then unanimously approved the use of park facilities for the festival without charge.

• Other council business included the approval of a settlement agreement with the Perez family of Crestview, stemming from an incident in 2014 where a retention pond berm failed during a flood. The incident caused a large amount of silt to wash into a lake adjacent to the property, where the family owned a dock.

  The settlement involves the city building a new dock for the family, rather than attempt to remove the silt, which would be a much costlier alternative. The council voted to approve the settlement by a unanimous decision.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: 'We drag our feet'

CRESTVIEW — New city gateway signs could be in Crestview’s near future. The Community Redevelopment Agency discussed the idea of replacing the signs located around the downtown area.

CRA Director Alisa Burleson’s idea for three new signs includes a monument-style sign located at South Main Street and Highway 85, an archway at North Main Street and Highway 90, and a stone column design in the small triangle at the intersection of Highways 85 and 90.

"Gateway entrances are very beneficial to a district," Burleson said. "If you all will think about when you build a subdivision, one thing that attracts buyers to the subdivision is the pretty entrance."

Burleson estimates the cost of the new signs will be at least $100,000, or half the available funds in the CRA Master Plan budget for parking, land, signage, buildings and security. She also noted that the current signs are beginning to show their age, prompting the need for an upgrade.

"I’d like to say we should move pretty quick on this," board member Ron Gautney said. "We’ve delayed this for so long now; at least we’ll get started on it."

The board agreed that there should be an extended meeting or a special workshop to discuss the issue further.

A proposed partnership with ePropertyPlus was also on the CRA agenda. ePropertyPlus is a northern Virginia-based company that works with governments and land bank trusts to store and manage property data.

"It’s a larger scale of what Zillow does," Burleson said. "The best way I can kind of describe it is like you’ve got several file cabinets, and each file cabinet has different information on a property. This puts all that information in one compiled area that can be on the city’s website."

Many board members were skeptical of the need for the program, and expressed concern that they had not seen enough evidence that it would be beneficial. They requested more information on the project, specifically cases from other localities that have used the program.

Burleson promised to get more data for the board. She also stated that she believes the issue encompasses more than just the CRA, and asked for approval to present the proposed partnership to the city council.

Another item discussed was a recap of the city’s Christmas retail promotional program that raised money for the Crestview Police Department’s Christmas toy fund. The promotion involved the sale of coins redeemable for discounts on eligible items at participating downtown retailers. A total of $271 was raised in sales and donations, according to Burleson.

The city will continue to sell the promotional coins while supplies last; they retail at $5 for large coins and $3 for a smaller version.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: CRA board considers new gateway signs