CRESTVIEW — The City Council unanimously agreed at its Jan. 26 meeting to discuss participation in the new Okaloosa County Public Transit Cooperative.

City Clerk Betsy Roy told the council that only one bus line, the Wave Express to South Okaloosa County, now serves Crestview.

The cooperative would consist of representatives, primarily city council members, from Crestview, Laurel Hill, Cinco Bayou, Destin, Fort Walton Beach, Mary Esther, Niceville, Shalimar and Valparaiso.

The Crestview City Council will discuss transportation needs at a public workshop 5 p.m. Feb. 9 before the regular 6 p.m. council meeting.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Council to discuss county transportation cooperative

CRESTVIEW — At Police Chief Tony Taylor's request, the City Council unanimously approved accepting the donation of approximately $25,000 worth of K-9 and other police equipment.

The donation includes two K-9 outfitted patrol vehicles, which Taylor said the agency would use as backups should the existing Crestview K-9 vehicles become inoperable.

In addition to the vehicles, the donation included an assortment of policing equipment including five fingerprint kits, three tint meters, three M26 Tasers, four spike strips, three shotgun racks, a Hazmat bio suit, a radar unit and an in-car camera system.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview accepts donation of K-9, other police equipment

CRESTVIEW — The City Council unanimously agreed to vacate former alleyways that ran through land on which the American Legion post on U.S. Highway 90 currently sits.

The legion is remodeling its facility, and the financial institution backing the project required original signatures on easement and vacation-of-rights documents, City Clerk Betsy Roy said.

Because the original resolution documents granting the vacation, approved by the council on Oct. 11, 1948, are unavailable, the current council had to vacate the no longer existing alleyways again.

The council unanimously adopted the new ordinance on its first reading, moving it to a second reading and probable approval at the Feb. 9 council meeting.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Council agrees to vacate alleyways — again

CRESTVIEW — Councilwoman Robyn Helt’s effort to establish a committee to advise city officials on developers’ horticultural requirements has hit a snag.

At the Jan. 12 meetings of the Community Redevelopment Agency and the City Council, Helt proposed reactivating the dormant Beautification Committee, which last met in 2004.

Helt suggested staffing the committee with horticulturists, county extension agents, Crestview Garden Club members and landscapers to help rewrite current landscaping requirements that stipulate specific varieties of trees and shrubs.

There's a reason for that.

“Many of our business owners have found that in implementing the code, they're being required to plant things that are going to be chopped down by Gulf Power or they're going to grow up so well they block the view of the business,” Helt said.

However, unlike most city committees, the Beautification Committee’s mandate is delineated in the economic development portion of the city’s comprehensive plan. To change it would require the state's approval, administrative assistant Teresa Gaillard said.

Upon realizing that the committee’s mandate also includes presenting awards for landscaping excellence, Helt said, “I don't know if standing up the former Beautification Committee is what we need.”

Helt suggested the city take a different direction to avoid complicating the matter.

“Let's forget what was said about beautification and create a committee to advise on landscaping,” she said. “I just don't want us telling people they have to plant a specific species of trees that they're going to have to cut down in two years because it doesn't grow right.”

Gaillard said her department is already working on revising city codes, including landscape requirements, as part of the Evaluation, Appraisal and Recommendations Report the city is required to file with the state every seven years.

“Mrs. Helt’s got a good idea and a great direction,” Gaillard said. “It is one of the same directions we’re running. It’s a little different process. Like everything else, we have to follow the code itself.”

Email News Bulletin Staff Writer Brian Hughes, follow him on Twitter or call 850-682-6524.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Councilwoman: City needs horticultural experts' advice

PENSACOLA — WSRE, PBS for the Gulf Coast, wants Northwest Florida residents' questions for Thursday’s broadcast of “Legislative Review: Dialogue with the Delegation.”

The program, moderated by Jeff Weeks, will air live 7-8 p.m. Thursday on WSRE-TV and WNRP News Radio 1620 AM. State legislators will answer constituents’ questions about local issues and priorities for the 2015 legislative session.

Participating legislators include Sens. Don Gaetz (District 1) and Greg Evers (District 2), and Reps. Clay Ingram (District 1), Mike Hill (District 2), Doug Broxson (District 3) and Matt Gaetz (District 4).

Questions may be submitted to questions@wsre.org or wsre.org/facebook. Every question must be accompanied by the person’s name and city of residence.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Questions sought for legislative review program