THE ISSUE: State Road 85 is the only main road for Okaloosa County's largest city. Any traffic accident on S.R. 85 can virtually halt all activity in the city, causing notorious delays. 

LOCAL IMPACT: A state senator is exploring options that could improve the situation. Among them is public transit, which could not only reduce traffic on the overburdened roadway, but also encourage lifestyle changes for some residents. 

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CRESTVIEW — North Okaloosa County traffic is a well-known concern for anyone who travels the area, particularly through Crestview.

State Sen. George Gainer (R) says he wants to do something about it.

"We have got to tell the [Florida Department of Transportation] in Tallahassee what they need to hear," he said. "First of all, I don’t think they understand the gravity of the situation and I hope that I can express that."

“As far as the funding, some of it can come from there, some from the federal government and some can come from the counties who all got $15 million [in oil spill money]. I just think that the opportunity is now that we can make this thing happen, and it is going to take a lot of money, but we got the opportunity to come up with a lot of money now and that will be our number one priority.”

Some residents have questioned whether a western bypass would help, but that would involve nearby Eglin Air Force base. 

“The most important issue with Eglin is the encroachment issue; we have talked about a western bypass for a long time,” Okaloosa Commissioner Carolyn Ketchel said.

“The main thing with Eglin is the mission at the core,” Crestview Mayor David Cadle said. “They don’t want to be a part of anything that would deemphasize why they are here and we understand that. That’s why we try to work with them.

“I think things have changed enough that they see how difficult it is to evacuate their own personnel in time of a hurricane who live up this way. In fact, they have to evacuate days early because of the problems that we have. The last evacuation we had was a complete disaster and we are aware of the problem.”

Crestview City Councilman Joe Blocker said, whatever the solution may be, time is of the essence.

"I want to see something develop here like yesterday to get 100 thousand-million cars off of 85," he said. Can you get an Amtrak to get people off of 85.”

Public transit via train is one option if passenger rail service is revived.Can you get an Amtrak to get people off of 85.”

"Can you get an Amtrak to get people off of 85?" Blocker said. 

Gainer said he wouldn't vote against the measure, but residents should consider the need for safety crossings to get across the tracks.

As for State Road 85, Cadle said, “The major problem with traffic in Crestview is the limited roadway that we have. We want to have one north-south roadway and it is just overtaxed; it is overburdened with people going back to-and-fro from work.

An overturned tanker on State Road 85, the only main road through Okaloosa County's largest city, in 2013 notoriously halted traffic for several hours.

Another factor is the heavy tourist and commuter traffic that fills the main road and even its side streets.

On June 24, a Honda van with an out-of-state license plate crashed into two vehicles while making an illegal U-turn at the intersection where PJ Adams Parkway meets Tom Thumb, slowing traffic in the area for hours while the police conducted an investigation.

Sgt. Josh Grace of the Crestview police department said that out-of-state drivers often ignore traffic signs, such as U-turn notices, in Crestview because it’s not their final destination.

“Crestview is a travel area. People have tunnel vision and they don’t pay attention to the signage because they are using it as a travel way,” he said.

Another notably dangerous intersection, he said, is where Walmart Road intersects with 85.

“Walmart Road and 85 is more of a problem,” he said. “It’s more dangerous there because of the width of the road, there isn’t enough room to make a U-turn.”

It all boils down to 85's limitations.

“So there has to be … more than one roadway — and [Gainer] has some ideas that will help expand what we have never been able to do before, and he thinks there are things that can happen…" Cadle said.

“He is chairman of the powerful transportation committee, he is from Northwest Florida, and he understands the problem, so hopefully we will see some progress in the coming days.”

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Funding traffic solutions is 'number one priority'

CRESTVIEW — The Community Redevelopment Agency held a special meeting Monday evening to decide compensation for its new director.

Alisa Burleson will take over CRA duties from Brenda Smith, who recently retired from the position.

At the start of her contract, Burleson will earn a $60,000 annual salary with an increase of $5,000 after she has received state CRA certification. 

Councilmember Bill Cox said, “it’s unclear [at the present time] whether the additional $5,000 will be a bonus or a salary increase."

Crestview’s CRA district, established in 1995, today encompasses much of downtown, plus Twin Hills Park and Martin Luther King Avenue, areas that were added when the district expanded in 1998.

It aims to combat blight. 

The agency's duties end in 2025, unless the board requests an extension from Okaloosa County.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview Community Redevelopment Agency sets new director's salary

CRESTVIEW — City Council President J.B. Whitten said during the July 10 city council meeting that 10 proposed projects have been approved to receive money from the Triumph Gulf Coast fund.

The fund — which distributes money owed following the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill — has allocated $300 million to the state of Florida, $15 million of which is going to Okaloosa County.

A significant portion of the projects, he said, “had to do with enhancing the marina on Okaloosa Island.”

On July 29, 2016, development officials and city council members from several municipalities met in Fort Walton Beach to discuss allocation of the Triumph Gulf Coast fund.

Whitten said, “The consensus around the room was why don’t you get together and link it together to make it the regional project they were looking for.”

Another topic on the evening's agenda was the outcome of a recent Okaloosa-Walton Transportation Planning Organization meeting. The city council has asked the TPO to place a high priority on widening State Road 85 from 123 coming into Crestview to I-10. The next OWTPO meeting is July 20 in Niceville. 

Also, in the second reading, the council voted to extend the moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries for six months. The moratorium includes any person or entity who is not approved except where inconsistent with Florida law.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview Council gives updates on BP settlement funds, 85 widening

LAUREL HILL — The City Council voted unanimously to maintain the ad valorem tax rate at 3.5 mills for the upcoming budget year. The amount brings in approximately $58,000 a year to the city.

Councilman Scott Moneypenny opened the topic for discussion during the July 8 meeting.

He said, “Understanding how the property values work and the number of properties that don’t pay it, we shouldn’t take advantage of the people who do pay it. If we lower it, we are going to get hurt on grants; we want to take care of ourselves first.”

Another topic on the evening's agenda was how the city plans to propose projects that would receive funding from the Triumph Gulf Coast Oil Spill Trust Fund that allocated approximately $6.7 billion to the state following the BP oil spill of 2010. 

According to Moneypenny, an estimated $15-$16 million of the settlement has been allocated to Okaloosa County, but getting the money may be difficult because Gov. Rick Scott still needs to appoint two members to Triumph Gulf Coast, at which point the board will decide how to dispense the money throughout the county.

“The county will divvy it up as they see fit. Escambia’s county commissioner said that nothing will go to the cities,” Moneypenny said.

“The cart is before the horse here,” he said.  “We have the money, but we need to know how they are going to award the money to the city and it has to be ‘transformational.’”

Two potential projects that the city council may attempt to seek funds for include Steel Mill Creek Road improvements and extending sewer system.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Laurel Hill to maintain ad valorem tax rate; oil spill projects discussed

Okaloosa County Board of County Commissioners Chairman Carolyn Ketchel has been appointed to the Vice-Chair position for the Florida Association of Counties’ Finance, Tax and Administration Committee, as well as a 2017 Presidential Advocate.

According to the FAC, the title of Presidential Advocate is awarded to those “county commissioners who have shown exceptional leadership in partnering with the FAC during the 2017 session to advance the legislate agenda.”

A statement from the FAC said, “Chairman Ketchel's willingness to advocate for counties was not only essential to the success of FAC’s legislative efforts, but it was also of great service to the citizens of Okaloosa County. The commissioner’s advocacy was invaluable in helping ensure that local governments are provided the flexibility and tools they need to meet the needs of Florida’s citizens.”

Devin Suggs, the director of Public Policy for the FAC, says, “We are honored to recognize [Chairman Ketchel] for your strong commitment to address important local government issues during the 2017 Legislative Session. Your dedication to improve and maintain a high quality of life for all Floridians and to strengthen public policy is especially appreciated.”

Ketchel was recognized publicly at the Florida Association of County’s Annual Conference and Educational Exposition’s Awards Luncheon in Palm Beach, Florida.

Ketchel also received certification from the FAC as a Certified County Commissioner. The award recognizes her completion of voluntary education programs specializing in training for Florida county commissioners.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Florida Association of Counties recognizes Ketchel

CRESTVIEW — The Crestview City Council’s Monday workshop included discussion on Crestview’s “2017 Community Redevelopment Agency Comprehensive Master Plan.”

Crestview’s CRA district, established in 1995, today encompasses much of downtown, plus Twin Hills Park and Martin Luther King Avenue, areas that were added when the district expanded in 1998.

The CRA’s Comprehensive Master Plan allows for development within the CRA District. It was approved for conformity with the Comprehensive Plan for the City of Crestview 2020 by the Local Planning Agency.

At the July 10 City Council meeting, Ordinance 1623, for adoption of the updated 2017 CRA plan, will be presented to the City Council for first reading.

Also discussed at the workshop were traffic impact fees. Ordinance 1419, which was adopted Jan. 26, 2009, created Article V — Traffic Impact Fee in the Crestview Code of Ordinances. An impact fee is a fee imposed by a local government on a new or proposed development project to pay for all or a portion of the costs of providing public services for that development.

Ordinance 1603, adopted by council on June 13, 2016, waived the traffic impact fee for a period beginning June 13, 2016 and ending Sept. 30, 2017. If the council wants to increase the fees from the existing 2009 level by any increment, it must be accomplished with the adoption of an ordinance by July 31.

In other council news:

•City leaders received status updates on working projects in a presentation from Growth Management Director Teresa Gaillard. The City Charter Review Committee met for the first time June 13 for an orientation meeting. All meetings are open to the public and held in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 198 Wilson St. N. The next meeting will be held June 29 at 6 p.m.

•City leaders discussed the proposed schedule for rezoning the Downtown Mixed Use District. Meetings are as follows: June 30, certified letters to property owners shall be mailed; July 10, Public Notice Signs shall be posted within the district; July 21, two open forum public information meetings shall be held in the Council Chamber of City Hall — the first will take place 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and the second at 5-7 p.m.; Sept. 11, a city council meeting will be held at 6 p.m. for the ordinance’s first reading. If approved, there will be a request for a special meeting for Sept. 25, at 5 p.m., for the ordinance’s adoption.

•There are openings on the City Board of Adjustment, Code of Enforcement and the Planning and Zoning Board.

•Crestview Historic Preservation Board member Marsha Johns is retiring this week. She received a plaque honoring her 16 years of service to the board.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Council talks area master plan, impact fees

PENSACOLA — Airports in Okaloosa and Escambia counties will receive $2,618,796 in federal grant money from the United States Department of Transportation, Congressman Matt Gaetz announced.

The money will go toward airport improvements, including taxiway and apron improvements in Okaloosa County, and demolition work for a commerce park in Pensacola.

The Eglin Air Force Base/Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport will receive $2,107,000 to rehabilitate a combined 2,000 feet of taxiway.

The Bob Sikes Airport in Crestview will receive $270,000 to fund designs for rehabilitating 38,000 square yards of existing apron.

The Destin Executive Airport will receive $198,000 to prepare for rehabilitating 65,000 square yards of existing apron.

The Pensacola International Airport will receive $43,796 to fund removal of structural obstructions on land acquired for further airport development.

“It is critical to invest in our airports. Maintaining and upgrading airport infrastructure, while giving them room to grow and expand, will help our airports better meet the needs of travelers,” Gaetz said.

“Northwest Florida has always been a popular destination for tourism, business and governmental travel. The $2.6 million in grants from the Department of Transportation will allow Northwest Florida’s popularity as a travel destination to continue to grow, now and in the years to come.”

The grant money is expected to be disbursed before September.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Northwest Florida airports receive $2.6 million in grant money

CRESTVIEW — People dissatisfied with the direction the two dominating political parties have taken in America can learn about the Constitution Party of Florida. 

A meeting is set 6 p.m. June 15 at Hideaway Pizza, 326 Main St., Crestview.

"The members of the Constitution Party believe this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions but on a foundation of Christian principles and values," a media release states. "For this very reason peoples of all faiths have been and are afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here."

Party members believe government must be bound by the Constitution of the United States, and that the Declaration of Independence, US Constitution, and Bill of Rights are the founding documents of the US. 

The press release states, "Party members believe in the following seven principles:

1. Life — Life for all human beings: from conception to natural death.

2. Personal liberty — Constrain the government to its enumerated powers so it does not impede the liberty of the people whom it serves.

3. Property rights — Each individual possesses the right to own and steward personal property without government burden.

4. Originalist interpretation —Interpret the founding documents according to the meaning originally intended by the founding fathers.

5. Family — Family is the bedrock of a healthy society. It is imperative that government maintains a favorable position to the divinely instituted nuclear family, not one that leads to its destruction.

6. Personal responsibility —Americanist ideals are rooted in self-sustenance. Government social and cultural policies have undermined the work ethic, even as the government’s economic and regulatory policies have undermined the ability of citizens to obtain work.

7. Sound money and constitutional banking — End the Fed and return to the stability of gold- and silver-based money."

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Constitution Party sets Crestview meeting

CRESTVIEW — A concerned resident broached the topic of public transportation during a June 8 town hall meeting hosted by Okaloosa Commissioners Nathan Boyles and Graham Fountain.

Becky Brice-Nash, the facility director at Crestview Manor, approached commissioners and several other county and city officials to voice her concerns about Okaloosa County’s transportation company, Maruti Fleet and Management LLC.

'I AM EMBARRASSED' 

Crestview Manor, an assisted living facility with 62 residents, has been having issues with Maruti that include drivers not picking up residents on time and making them late to doctor's appointments multiple days in a row, and abandoning elderly patients at doctor's offices for hours, according to Nash.

According to Nash, this is not the first time she has approached the county about these issues; she has been to four county commission meetings this year and her problems have been going on for at least 18 months.

The newest issue Nash brought to the attention of the commissioners was that Maruti hadn’t paid 65 employees on June 5, and the employees still hadn’t received their money by June 8.

“I don’t have the staff and I don’t have the money to get [62] people to doctors,” Nash said at the meeting. “I know that the road is an issue, but these people here are not getting paid … I am embarrassed. I’ve said it over and over again how embarrassed I am for this county … No more. These people need to be paid.

Two Maruti employees attended the meeting and told the council about the issues they have been having for several months. Although one employee said she loves her job, she stated that it is hard to continue working when she’s not getting paid.

RECCURRING ISSUES

According to Elliot Kampert, Okaloosa County’s growth management director, the problems are being taken care of.

“The explanation that has been given to me—and apparently all the employees have received their pay—was that they switched to a new bank, Wells Fargo, because they are setting up a direct deposit system, Kampert said. “They haven’t put that into effect yet, they’re saying it’s going to be available to you June 20.

“However, because it’s a new bank, they’ve just opened this Wells Fargo account, when they transferred money to [First National Bank], Eglin Federal Credit Union and the Teacher Federal Credit Union, a security hold was put on several of the accounts because they didn’t recognize the Wells Fargo account.”

When contacted by a News Bulletin reporter, a Maruti representative said they would send a formal statement on Monday, but the statement never arrived.

The same issue happened in June 2016 when 73 local Maruti employees were not paid. According to Boyles, the county’s public transportation, once provided by a private, not-for-profit company known as Okaloosa County Transit, has been provided by Maruti for approximately two years; they are under contract for five years.

Boyles said that less than a year into the contract with Maruti, they started seeing serious issues, particularly with the paratransit service; the fixed-route system was improving while paratransit was falling apart.

“That appears to be largely relative to Maruti’s consistent challenges in recruiting and retaining a qualified workforce,” Boyles said. “If you don’t have good people, you’re not going to have a good system.”

The commission has put the company on probation numerous times, and they have seen bouts of improvement followed by reoccurring issues, according to Boyles.

“There have been improvements in service; you have these individual situations … and they’re egregious,” Boyles said. “What you have to look at when you’re trying to make decisions about whether this provider keeps their contract, it’s kind of bigger-picture stuff.

“Whether or not they can improve quickly enough to the level that we expect them to, that’s an open question.”

Boyles said that the commission has directed county staff to prepare contingency claims in the event that a transition away from the current provider is required; however, because federal dollars are involved, there are procurement limitations, and because this is a contract that requires continuous operation, the very act of transitioning to a new provider can be very challenging.

“The general direction of the commission has been to try and bring this contractor into compliance because that is likely to be less disruptive to the users of the system than terminating this provider and trying to find a replacement on an emergency basis,” Boyles said.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: County revisits issues with public transportation

CRESTVIEW— A West Florida businessman has offered to commission a poll for city residents free of charge. Now for the question: Will the council accept?

Quint Studer—a Pensacola businessman, philanthropist, the owner of the Pensacola Blue Wahoos and owner of the health care consulting company, Studer Group—recently contacted Mayor David Cadle and offered to pay a polling company to survey residents, a value of approximately $37,000.

Cadle says the proposal is worth considering.

 “If he’s interested in us, there’s a reason,” Cadle said. “Maybe something good can come out of this for the city, maybe more jobs… I encourage the council to reach out, or I can, and let them do the survey.”

If that happens, the project’s supporters hope the proposal will be warmly received the second time around. Larry Harris of Mason-Dixon Polling and Research presented the survey to the council earlier this year; several council members and the mayor criticized his execution, which they believed belittled the area.

To prevent the same occurrence, some council members say they have questions for the philanthropist.

“My question is, what type of survey is this going to be, and is it going to be beneficial to the city?” Councilman Joe Blocker says.

Councilman Doug Faircloth says he is skeptical about the survey because if it asks any questions about government, he doesn’t want the survey to get in the way of the Charter Review Committee’s duties. The committee currently is determining whether the city should have a referendum on restructuring local government.

Councilman Bill Cox says he would like to respectfully decline from any involvement with Mason-Dixon because nothing is free; there are always strings attached.

According to Councilman Shannon Hayes, the survey should have nothing to do with the government but be geared toward businesses and what residents want to see come to the city.

Further, he believes Studer is well-intentioned.

“There are things where strings aren’t attached,” Hayes says. “Sometimes there are just naturally good people in the world.”

The city’s attorney, Ben Holley, says the council should first find out what kinds of questions will be on the survey before making any decisions, and that it should be acceptable as long as it doesn’t have anything to do with the government.

Time is of the essence.

City Council President J.B. Whitten says waiting too long could mean losing the opportunity. According to Whitten, the offer was sent in January, and Whitten said he is afraid if the city pushes it off any longer Studer will have better things to do.

“The citizens will be disappointed if we turn this down,” Hayes said.

THE ISSUE: A West Florida philanthropist wants to pay $37,000 to a polling company to survey Crestview residents.

LOCAL IMPACT: Quint Studer's offer could help Crestview, Okaloosa County's largest city, reach its full potential. This would be the first study of its kind in the burgeoning city, and data could help city leaders make decisions that fuel economic development.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: The $37,000 question: Should Crestview's Council accept Quint Studer's offer?