CRESTVIEW — The near-completion of expanding the city’s wastewater treatment facilities necessitated finding a qualified company to operate and maintain the facility.

After hearing presentations by the top two qualified firms that responded to Public Works’ request for proposals, the City Council unanimously chose its current operator, CH2M Hill.

At Monday evening’s council meeting, CH2M Hill and ClearWater Solutions emphasized their environmental records. CH2M Hill and ClearWater are 99.98 percent and 100 percent compliant, respectively, the companies claimed.

Both companies offered the city “value-added” services at company expense, including video inspection of pipes.

Current CH2M Hill project Manager Jayne Swift described planned projects, including student field trips to the plant to teach students how waste water is reclaimed and recycled.

Swift and some of her engineers have also volunteered to help the Crestview Kiwanis Club refurbish the McMahon Environmental Center, providing engineering and planning services.

“I’m very committed to the community,” Swift said. “Crestview is the first city I worked in since I got out of college in 1985 that I also live in. I've become part of your community and I've become involved in some community projects that you’re interested in."

CH2M Hill’s proposal scored 689 points when ranked by a committee of city employees and residents. ClearWater scored 603, with U.S. Water Service Corp. and Veolia Water scoring 598 and 587.5 points, respectively.

Next, the city will negotiate a contract with CH2M Hill, which daily treats more than 1 billion gallons of waste water for clients throughout the country, including 1.9 gallons daily for Crestview.

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

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: CH2M Hill chosen to operate new wastewater plant

CRESTVIEW — Passionate debate resulted from the City Council’s final budget workshop as City Clerk Betsy Roy sought consensus on a revised budget, resulting in one member temporarily leaving the chamber.

But by a 3-1 vote, with Councilman Tom Gordon dissenting, the council agreed Thursday to move the budget to the first of two public hearings.

Council members Robyn Helt and Gordon criticized the revised version, saying it arrived after the council already agreed last week on what members thought was the final budget.

Though the $29 million budget's amount remained unchanged, the Fire Department’s budget content was revised after firefighters expressed concern that police officers were receiving a bigger raise than they were.

Instead of blanket 3 percent raises for all city workers, Fire Chief Joe Traylor restructured his budget to provide firefighters a 4 percent raise and dispatchers a 5 percent increase.

UNSUSTAINABLE RAISES

Helt, citing a recent city financial audit, said giving such large raises will have ramifications in future budget years and would be unsustainable.

“Our city is basically operating at a deficit,” she said. “It's a trend that's been going on for a long time.”

“We're working hand-to-mouth,” Gordon said. “We don't have anything in reserves.”

“We have been asking employees to make sacrifices for the last four or five years,” Council President Shannon Hayes said. “But what sacrifices have we asked our citizens to make? We're trying to kill the employees but we haven't asked anything of the citizens.”

Asking homeowners to pay a proposed fire assessment fee would be an equitable solution, Hayes said.

“Some of our citizens have been having a free lunch for years and we refuse to ask them to buy a loaf of bread to go with the meat we've been giving,” he said.

“The government is not here to be served by citizens,” Gordon said.

“Our citizens absolutely have given up things,” Helt said. “Many citizens are doing without a job.”

Then, noticing Hayes had leaned back and closed his eyes, Helt said, “I'll just stop because our president is so bored that he chooses to go to sleep,” and left the chamber.

Upon Helt’s return a few minutes later, Hayes asked for a council consensus. Helt agreed to the revised budget.

“I just caution the department heads that next year, when the city is in a more precarious position than it's in, we need to be prepared to make these difficult decisions that will need to be made,” she said.

WANT TO GO?

WHAT: 2014-15 Crestview City Budget Hearing

WHEN: 5:30 p.m. Sept. 9 and 23

WHERE: City Council Chamber, city hall

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

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Revised proposed budget now includes higher raises for firefighters

CRESTVIEW — Resident Bill Cox, a familiar face at City Council and other municipal meetings and workshops, has qualified to run for the Group 2 at-large seat on the council.

The seat’s current occupant, Councilman Tom Gordon, qualified earlier this summer to run for mayor.

Cox has been a strong proponent of widening P.J. Adams Parkway and completing the P.J. Adams-Antioch Road corridor to alleviate traffic in the heavily populated southwest section of the city.

City and county officials have expressed admiration for Cox’s grasp of the complexities of municipal government and his quiet, polite yet persistent pursuit of public services improvements.

Most recently city Parks and Recreation workers initiated refurbishments at Countryview Park following Cox’s documentation of problem areas and presentation to the City Council.

Cox and his wife, Debbie, have four children, and are members of the Audubon Society’s Choctawhatchee chapter and the National Wildlife Federation. He is district sales manager for Dietz Supply Company.

Cox is a U.S. Marine Corps Reserve veteran, and majored in industrial management at the University of Cincinnati. He sits on the Crestview Board of Adjustment. Cox’s March 2013 run for the council Precinct 2 seat was unsuccessful.

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

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Countryview resident qualifies for City Council run

CRESTVIEW — Gov. Rick Scott’s only Okaloosa County campaign stop will be next week in Crestview. Local members of the North Okaloosa Republican Club are helping coordinate the visit.

“It’s his ‘Let’s Keep Working’ bus tour,” club President J.B. Whitten said. “He’ll be coming in along with the lieutenant governor.”

Whitten said in addition to Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera, other members of Scott’s administration, including Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, might also be at the Sept. 11 Crestview event.

Though Jack Reid, Scott’s regional political director, liked Warriors Hall when Whitten gave him a tour of local venues, Scott’s campaign headquarters vetoed using the municipal auditorium in favor of a business location.

Holding the campaign stop at a local car dealership better suited the tour’s “Let’s Keep Working” theme, and also prevented the perception of the city providing support for a political campaign, Whitten said.

Whitten said the only drawback to the Lee Buick GMC dealership venue was the 3:30 p.m. event time coincides with the start of evening rush hour traffic on State Road 85 in front of the business.

“It’s absolutely the worst time to be on Ferdon Boulevard,” Whitten said.

WANT TO GO?

WHAT: Gov. Rick Scott Crestview campaign stop

WHEN: 3:30 p.m. Sept. 11

WHERE: Lee GMC Buick, 4300, S. Ferdon Blvd.

COST: Free

NOTES:This will be the governor’s only stop in Okaloosa County during his bus campaign tour

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

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Scott's only Okaloosa campaign stop to be in Crestview

CRESTVIEW — The Give Me Liberty conference, a multi-city tour to promote constitutional rights, is coming to Crestview on Sunday.

The approximately two-hour event — which has already visited Wilton Manors and Lake Placid — swings to Marianna and Panama City on Friday and Saturday, respectively, before coming to Woodlawn Baptist Church.

Featured speakers will include renowned pastors and political leaders, among others, who will discuss the U.S. government's biblical origins and solutions to the country's perceived "dilemmas," according to a news release.

It's not a partisan issue, according to supporters.

"It is not Republican vs. Democrat — it is liberty vs. tyranny," an event poster states. "God-fearing patriots have been rallying around the party to 'take back' Washington for over 30 years, but nothing ever changes. DC keeps getting bigger and more powerful, and the voice of 'we the people' falls on deaf ears."

The country has shifted from supporting traditional values to growing increasingly hostile toward the Bible, according to supporters.

Terrance Shoemaker, a Mary Esther resident and Panhandle Patriots Tea Party supporter, said there are reasons for that.

"Christians are not showing up to vote," he said. "Most of the churches fear, to the point of silence at the pulpit, talking about faith and moral issues that might just be a little political."

Such fear comes from the threat of losing tax-exempt status. "Consequently, we're not doing voter registration drives, we're not promoting from the pulpit," Shoemaker said.

Evangelists Rick Scarborough and Dexter Sanders, along with Alan Ross, founder of Kingdom Companies, a nonprofit organization that calls on business leaders to maintain Christian principles in the workplace, are among the conference's guest speakers.

WHAT: Give Me Liberty conference

WHEN: 6 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 7

WHERE: Woodlawn Baptist Church, 824 N. Ferdon Blvd., Crestview

COST: Free

Learn more about the tour here>>

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: 'Give Me Liberty' conference promotes faithful citizenship