Northwest Florida's Business Climate September 2014

SEPTEMBER 2014

THE

CHANGING CLIMATE + The Bail Bonds Business Drone Nation The High Cost of Prematurity State of the Region

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2 | Business Climate | nwflbusinessclimate.com

nwflbusinessclimate.com | Business Climate | 3

from the publisher’s pen

This month, we take an extensive look at climate change’s local impact, as well as the local push to mitigate its harmful effects. It seems that for as long as studies have existed essentially proving mankind’s contribution to increased greenhouse gases and therefore an increasingly unstable climate, politicians have chosen sides in the debate. I can understand their inclination to do so. Decreasing climate change involves regulators on industry and people alike, something that government will most likely have

the local level. Starting on page 22, we take a look at the changing climate of climate change.

Also this month, we talk to three area chamber of commerce leaders to get their opinions on the state of our region. It is interesting to hear differing opinions on similar topics and I hope that the answers they provide, starting on page 14, provide a holistic look at the state of business and economic development in our area.

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to facilitate. Some believe private industry should be left to regulate itself, while some believe that they will not do so without the proper incentives. The story of climate change’s acceptance by the masses and their respective representatives is really a tale as old as time itself, involving the inclinations of human psychology to be neglectful or ignore our personal shortcomings, be reluctant to change, and our inability to plan for the future, especially when that future is decided by small, incremental change.

Nevertheless, a local City Councilwoman, a local climate advocacy chapter, and a local environmentalist are leading the charge to gain broader acceptance of climate change and create a task force aimed at mitigating its effects on

4 | Business Climate | nwflbusinessclimate.com

Drones have been around a long time, but the recent decrease in cost and increase in ease of use have led to a sudden explosion in interest; namely, interest in how privacy will be effected by their seemingly all-seeing eye. But there are many great aspects of drone technology, too, and the advances promise huge benefits for several industries, Starting on page 18, we look at not only the technology but the controversy and legality surrounding the use of drones.

The March of Dimes charity is a non-profit near and dear to my heart. One of my good friends, Buzz Ritchie, plays a huge role in the local chapter that helps improve the chances of babies born prematurely and educate citizens on infant mortality. He writes a passionate piece about the local initiative on page 10.

Finally this month, we look at the bail bonds business. It is a complicated, interesting beast, one that offers its own commentary on the state of our judicial system. Take an inside look at the day-to-day exciting business of bailing prisoners out on page 8.

nwflbusinessclimate.com | Business Climate | 5

contents

22

The Changing Climate

8

The Bail Bonds Business

10 The High Cost of Prematurity

14 State of the Region

In Every Issue

Reader Services Letters We welcome your letters and comments.

Send letters to Ballinger Publishing PO Box 12665 Pensacola, FL 32591 or contact specific staff members under the Contact Us: Staff Info link on ballingerpublishing.com

Writing Opportunities We are always willing to consider article ideas. Please send queries to Josh Newby, business editor, at josh@ballingerpublishing.com, or care of Josh to the postal address.

Around the Region

6 | Business Climate | nwflbusinessclimate.com

28

People on the Move 29 Business Scene

Cover image by Christopher Craig

18 Drone Nation

30

SEPTEMBER 2014

Publisher Malcolm Ballinger malcolm@ballingerpublishing.com Executive Editor Kelly Oden kelly@ballingerpublishing.com BC Editor/Design & Layout Josh Newby josh@ballingerpublishing.com Art Director Rita Laymon rita@ballingerpublishing.com Graphic Designer & Ad Coordinator Guy Stevens guy@ballingerpublishing.com Editor Emily Lullo emily@ballingerpublishing.com Editorial Interns Christian Pacheco, Sarah Walter Sales & Marketing Sharyon Miller, Account Executive sharyon@ballingerpublishing.com Becky Hildebrand, Account Executive becky@ballingerpublishing.com Contributor: Buzz Ritchie

Owners Malcolm & Glenys Ballinger Publisher Malcolm Ballinger · malcolm@ballingerpublishing.com Executive Editor Kelly Oden · kelly@ballingerpublishing.com Art Director Rita Laymon · rita@ballingerpublishing.com Graphic Designer & Ad Coordinator Guy Stevens · guy@ballingerpublishing.com Editor Emily Lullo · emily@ballingerpublishing.com Business Editor Josh Newby · josh@ballingerpublishing.com Sales & Marketing Sharyon Miller, Account Executive, ext. 28 sharyon@ballingerpublishing.com Becky Hildebrand, Account Executive, ext. 31 becky@ballingerpublishing.com Simone Sands, Account Executive, ext. 21 simone@ballingerpublishing.com Website: ballingerpublishing.com Editorial Offices 41 North Jefferson St., Ste. 402 Pensacola, FL, 32502 850-433-1166 · Fax 850-435-9174

Published by Ballinger Publishing: Member of:

NW Florida’s Business Climate and Pensacola Magazine is locally owned and operated. All Rights Reserved.

Reproduction or use of the contents herein is prohibited without written permission from the publisher.

Comments and opinions expressed in this magazine represent the personal views of the individuals to whom they are attributed and/or the person identified as the author of the article, and they are not necessarily those of the publisher. This magazine accepts no responsibility for these opinions. The publisher reserves the right to edit all manuscripts. All advertising information is the responsibility of the individual advertiser.

Appearance in this magazine does not necessarily reflect endorsement of any products or services by Ballinger Publishing. © 2014

nwflbusinessclimate.com | Business Climate | 7

BUSINESS PROFILE

THE BAIL BONDS BUSINESS

BY JOSH NEWBY

THE LIFE OF A

with hundreds of thousands of dollars on the line at any given time, defendants who might be flight risks, and a 24-hour schedule. While television and movies often play up the bounty hunting side of the business, or portray its

BAIL BONDSMAN IS A RISKY ONE,

exciting though inaccurately villainous tendencies, the actual day-to-day life of someone in the industry is much more about helping the criminally accused, the justice system, and even the economy.

It all begins when a defendant is believed to have committed a crime. The officer who arrests them will issue a bond amount based on a bond schedule. The accused can either post that bail or wait to go before a judge, who may increase or decrease the bond amount. The accused must

8 | Business Climate | nwflbusinessclimate.com

BUSINESS PROFILE

THE MEDIAN BAIL AMOUNT IS $25,000.

how he assesses the risk of a bond. “If they don’t show up, I

minus court costs. If, however, the defendant does not return

the right to track down the suspect, arrest him or her, and

to court, they forfeit the bail and he or she’s subsequent bail

bring the individual back to court.

pay the bail in order to convince the court to release him or her from jail. If the defendant returns for trial, the bail payment is returned to the individual,

amount will be twice the previous amount when they are caught.

How the defendant pays the bail amount can go one of two

have to hunt them down.”

That is the kind of life he is now used to living, according to McKeehan. Florida law grants a licensed bail bondsman

Balancing his desire to help people with his desire to stay in business is a difficult task for McKeehan, one that involves a lot of stress.

ways. First, a cash bond, which is paying the full cost of the

“We want them to be able to reenter society,” said

bail upfront, can be paid by anyone. If the accused makes all

McKeehan. “But I also don’t want to go broke. There are mil-

related court dates, they will receive back their money, minus

lions of dollars on the line. It’s very risky.”

any court fees.

Interestingly, the whole system of bail bonds actually

Alternatively, purchasing a surety bond for 10 percent of

helps the justice system. If someone is able to post bond

the bail amount can also pay bails. After obtaining a co-signor

quickly and easily, thanks to a bondsmen, this frees up jail

from the client’s friend or family member, the bondsman will

space, officer time and tax-

present the bond to the jail with the understanding that if

payer dollars.

their client does not make their court appearance, they will

“If someone is not sitting

be on the hook to pay the amount of the bail bond, unless

in jail, then they’re able to

they can locate, apprehend and return the suspect within 60

continue providing for their

days of bond forfeiture.

families, working, paying tax

Not surprisingly, the bail bonds business is extremely

dollars, etc,” said McKeehan.

risky, as bondsmen are often pledging hundreds of thousands

“If they skip their court date,

of dollars to the court if the client does not appear. For that

the county doesn’t have to

reasons, banks and insurance companies, the usual sureties

spend money to track them

on bond contracts, do not enter into the bail business. If done

down; we do. We bring them

correctly, however, with proper risk assessment safeguards

back in at no expense to the

in place, the bail bonds business can be a lucrative one.

Sheriff’s Office. It’s also good

“OUR JOB IS TO GET THEM OUT OF JAIL AND HAVE THEM SHOW UP FOR COURT. AND IF THEY DON’T SHOW UP, OUR JOB IS TO BRING THEM BACK TO JAIL. THAT’S A ROUND-THE-CLOCK JOB.”

Matt McKeehan has run his own bail bonds business

for the defendant and their

for the last 20 years. The business is such that he has 12

family because it’s easier to

employees, five of them being bail bondsmen, at least one

come up with a $1,000 bond fee than a $10,000 bail.”

of which is always at their location in downtown Pensacola,

Matt McKeehan Bail Bonds also offers what is called a

including holidays and weekends. This makes for a high over-

rapid intake, which essentially means that if there is a war-

head; however, it enables them to provide around the clock

rant out for a person’s arrest, that person can come to the

customer service for his customers. Matt McKeehan is the

business’s location and the staff there can process everything,

largest bail bond company in the tri-county area.

including their bail bond. This side-steps the entire jail sce-

“Our job is to get them out of jail and have them show

nario, meaning no handcuffs or bars, allowing the defendant

up for court,” said McKeehan. “And if they don’t show up,

to quickly reenter society, assuming they attend subsequent

our job is to bring them back to jail. That’s a round-the-clock

court dates.

job.”

“I teach our bondsmen to be good with and good to

When he is contacted to issue a bond for the bail amount,

people,” said McKeehan. “It doesn’t matter what economic

he essentially enters into a contract with both the client and

background they are from or if they’re black, white, Hispanic,

the court that he is able and willing to pay the bail amount if

or otherwise. These are people who need our help, and if it

necessary.

doesn’t present an unreasonable risk for us to help them, I

“We look at their charge, their job, prior arrests, where

want to do that.”

they were born, everything,” said McKeehan, when asked

THE BAIL BONDS INDUSTRY IS A $2 BILLION PER YEAR BUSINESS. nwflbusinessclimate.com | Business Climate | 9

PREMATURITY The High Cost of

March of Dimes is working for stronger, healthier babies along Florida’s Gulf Coast.

BY BUZZ RITCHIE

Premature birth is the leading cause of death in newborns.

According to the March of Dimes, the leading nonprofit for mother and baby health, nearly half a million babies are born too soon every year in the United States alone, often facing lifelong health problems, including cerebral palsy, intellectual disabilities, chronic lung disease, blindness, and hearing loss.

Along Florida’s Gulf Coast, 1,522 babies are born prematurely each year.

The Florida Department of Health indicates that the premature birth (less than 37 completed weeks of gestation) rates are 16.2 percent in Escambia, 12 percent in Santa Rosa, and 11.9 percent in Okaloosa. Escambia has the fourth highest premature birth rate among all 67 Florida counties, well above Florida’s preterm birth rate of 13.7 percent.

March of Dimes has focused much of its energy to reduce the rate of premature birth and to raise public awareness about the seriousness of the problem. The final weeks of pregnancy are crucial to a baby’s health because many vital organs, such as the brain and lungs, are still developing.

Florida has earned a “D” in the March of Dimes annual Premature Birth Report Card, which shows that in spite of ongoing work, premature birth is still a significant 10 | Business Climate | nwflbusinessclimate.com

problem in our state. Important contributing factors to this low grade are lack of health insurance and smoking habits among women of childbearing age. These factors can be changed, and the March of Dimes is taking the lead in promoting healthy lifestyles and practices for the best outcomes.

In addition to the emotional rollercoaster and heartache that a premature birth can bring to parents and families, the problem also comes with a very high price tag: a 2013 study commissioned by the March of Dimes revealed that while the average medical cost for a healthy baby is $4,389, it spikes up to $54,194 for a premature baby.

Earlier this year, March of Dimes volunteers met with elected officials in Tallahassee to address the high cost of prematurity to business and the need to reduce Florida’s premature birth rate

nwflbusinessclimate.com | Business Climate | 11

non-profit

PreMAtUre BIrth

15

CRI

million babies are born too soon every year.

SIS

China

USA

1,178,600

517,400

Brazil

Nigeria

India

3,519,100

773,600

278,089

Premature birth kills every

1 baby

30 seconds.

Annual deaths in millions in children under 5

More children die as a result of being born too soon than from AIDS, malaria or diarrhea.

AIDS

Malaria

Diarrhea

the survival gap

1.25

1

.75

.50

.25

Premature birth

high-income countries:

10% die*

Where you are born makes a big difference in your chances of surviving premature birth.

Low-income countries:

CAR

90% die*

E

75%

Warmth Skin-to-skin holding and swaddling help babies stay warm.

More than

of deaths can be prevented even without intensive care.

Nutrition Early and exclusive breastfeeding is best.

Breathing At $1 per shot, steroids help babies’ lungs mature in the womb.

Protection Sunflower oil protects babies’ skin and prevents infections.

hygiene A clean environment helps reduce the risk of infections.

preve StoP babies

from being born too soon.

ShAre this

message.

tio

Raise awareness Educate girls and women Educate front-line workers Equip clinics Fund research

facebook.com/worldprematurityday Sources Born Too Soon: The Global Action Report on Preterm Birth. Eds. Howson CP, Kinney MV, Lawn JE. March of Dimes, PMNCH, Save the Children, World Health Organization. New York 2012.

Global, regional, and national causes of child mortality: an updated systematic analysis for 2010 with time trends since 2000. Liu L, Johnson HL, Cousens S, Perin J, et al. Lancet 2012; 379: 2151-61. * Of extremely preterm babies (<28 weeks gestation)

© 2012 March of Dimes Foundation

to 9.6 percent by 2020. Preventing premature birth in Florida could mean an annual savings of up to $2 billion and an estimated annual savings of up to $79 million along the Gulf Coast.

March of Dimes also works toward the best maternal results with Healthy Babies are Worth the Wait, a national campaign to reduce early elective Cesarean sections and inductions before 39 weeks. A 2013 March of Dimes study featured in Obstetrics & Gynecology concluded that hospital-based quality improvement programs can effectively reduce medically unnecessary early deliveries. The study was based on results of a pilot project in 25 hospitals across the country, including Santa Rosa Medical Center in Milton.

Another way the March of Dimes is improving the health of moms and babies is by funding the efforts of community organizations. This year, the Florida Chapter awarded 19 community grants, including one to Escambia County Healthy Start Coalition, to promote the health and well-being of pregnant women and their infants, offering services in key areas, such as smoking cessation for moms, safe sleep practices for babies, and hurricane preparedness for pregnant women.

To accomplish its goals, and raise much needed funds, the March of Dimes hosts Men in Labor annually, where men endure an 18-week ‘pregnancy’ to highlight the important role of the father in a baby’s life, before, during, and after pregnancy. The campaign includes a baby shower, a ‘delivery day,’ and a big benefit night on August 24, sponsored by the Blue Wahoos.

Additionally, March for Babies, the premier March of Dimes fundraiser, will take place on Saturday, Nov. 1 at Fort Walton Beach Landing, and it is an excellent opportunity for community involvement. March for Babies Emerald Coast will bring together family teams, corporate teams, and individuals, to celebrate all babies, while securing much of the funds that enable the March of Dimes to work towards its mission. To register for the walk visit marchforbabies.org.

For more information about the March of Dimes or to get involved in this organization, founded by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt more than 76 years ago, call 850-462-7756, email dbyrd@marchofdimes.com, or visit marchofdimes.com.

A 2013 STUDY COMMISSIONED BY THE MARCH OF DIMES REVEALED THAT WHILE THE AVERAGE MEDICAL COST FOR A HEALTHY BABY IS $4,389, IT SPIKES UP TO $54,194 FOR A PREMATURE BABY. 12 | Business Climate | nwflbusinessclimate.com

nwflbusinessclimate.com | Business Climate | 13

State

of the

REGION The region’s Chamber of Commerce leaders share their thoughts on the state of business development, economic diversity, and future growth in the respective communities.

By JOSH NEWBY. Photographs by GUY STEVENS & LARSEN LIEN.

JERRY MAYGARDEN • PRESIDENT & CEO • PENSACOLA “Eighty percent of our membership has less than 26 employees. They run the range from service-related and retail to technology and healthcare. That’s the plus side. The downside is that they’re fairly small.”

KRISTEN LOERA • PRESIDENT & CEO • GULF BREEZE “We should not look at dividing lines but rather blurring lines to make our region and communities enticing to those considering relocating or starting a business here.”

TINA MORRISON • DIRECTOR • PERDIDO KEY “This region of Northwest Florida is an attractive destination for business growth and serves as home to a wide range of thriving industries.”

14 | Business Climate | nwflbusinessclimate.com

JERRY MAYGARDEN PENSACOLA What is the state of business diversity in your community?

There are efforts to make it more diverse. Unfortunately, we lost a main pillar—manufacturing. It’s declined considerably. There’s an effort now to build it back up. But it’s interesting—we do have a pretty big range. We are a city of small business. Eighty percent of our membership has less than 26 employees. They run the range from servicerelated and retail to technology and healthcare. That’s the plus side. The downside is that they’re fairly small. Military of course is still the golden goose of Northwest Florida.

It’s a $6.7 billion industry. We also have five or six hospitals in the region. So we actually have a lot of diversity, but we do need to round that out.

How does the Chamber assist and enable new business and outside money to find a home in your community?

Well one of the people we’ve recruited to our board is a guy named Lance Cook of Rubber & Specialties. That’s manufacturing. We’d like to use a guy like Lance to help recruit manufacturing. Our effort to create a new industrial commerce park on Highway 90 near Navy Federal is an attempt to create space in our community. I don’t discount the fact that Airbus is going to be in Mobile. Maybe we’ll be able to recruit some ancillary and support industries. But we need space to recruit anybody. That’s a good example of an effort to attract that kind of industry. We’re working on it, but it’s slow.

What plans are in place to sustain growth into the future?

Even though we’ve gotten out of the tourism business, I think what we need to do is get into a mainland tourism strategy and build on cultural heritage tourism. I think we would all be better served by identifying parcels of land

that are good for tourism and then invite the development community to do that. I’d like to see us put together a plan for heritage tourism downtown that is more than soft on the surface and actually puts a plan in motion. That’s one effort. I’m not sure where the Six Pillars will lead us. I know we need a planning platform for the future. We need to be more focused on community building instead of community marketing. Economic development is a two-sided coin; one side is marketing the community, but the other side is how marketable you are. That’s where we really need to put our emphasis. I’m not sure where that’ll lead us.

It may cause us to spend more time in the trenches shoring up things that need help.

What areas of improvement have you identified for the community? What is the Chamber doing to improve those areas?

We’re probably not as strong as we’d like to be in full-time jobs. Companies are sensing the economy is better and they are reinvesting, but they’re reinvesting in part-time jobs.

The regulatory environment is part of that. Part-time ranks are growing, but not full-time.

That’s a little soft spot, but overall I think it’s getting better. Tourism is second in the pecking order of our economy, but a lot of those workers are part-time and seasonal.

How do you believe your community can best leverage the regional resources into a healthy environment for business and residents?

That’s the plan. How do we serve as a convener of community leadership to improve community building? There are people who do that. The university and colleges and school system are out there.

The problem is that they’re not pulling in the same direction. They’re not using metrics that help them. Some of them might be quite successful, but I don’t think they would know that. So we are going to go through that exercise and that is the plan.

nwflbusinessclimate.com | Business Climate | 15

KRISTEN LOERA GULF BREEZE What is the state of business diversity in your community?

Santa Rosa County is rich with business diversity from the beautiful beaches in the south end of the county to the vast farmlands in the north end of the county, but there is always an opportunity to expand when it comes to diversity. Tourism and government, including military, are the two largest industries in our county. The dominance of these two industries bring both positive and negative things with them. The tourism industry tends to be seasonal, leaving a large number of residents without year-round employment and threatening their financial stability.

Government and military jobs tend to be highly specialized, narrowing the labor pool of qualified candidates.

However, on the flip side, this industry supplies highly skilled and trained individuals for our employers after they retire and are ready to start a second career.

Our community cannot rely on these two industries alone to be successful. We must continue to diversify our businesses and focus on industries such as technology to help retain the talent of our young professionals.

How does the Chamber assist and enable new business and outside money to find a home in your community?

The Gulf Breeze Chamber believes in the power of partnership and works with several great organizations to enable new business and outside money to find a home in our community.

We are part of the Santa Rosa Business Development Coalition whose mission is to encourage business growth in Santa Rosa County by strengthening the Countyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s competitive position and facilitating investments that build capacity, generate prosperity and catalyze the economic vibrancy of Santa Rosa County life as a whole. It works cooperatively with the office of economic development and other stakeholder groups to accomplish this mission. We also sit on the Steering Committee for the City of Gulf Breeze Master Plan which includes diversifying the business mix to make the city more attractive to new businesses.

What plans are in place to sustain growth into the future?

We as a business community need to work together with the schools to increase the number and diversity of career academies that are offered at not only the high school but middle school levels. Funding is limited for these academies and they rely on business partnerships.

The career academies are the starting point at which our kids, our future work force, are learning skills needed to be successful when they graduate, and many times are graduating with certifications that give them a competitive advantage. We need to align our career academies with the industries we want to attract to our communities so we are training a work force to meet the needs of businesses.

What areas of improvement have you identified for the community? What is the Chamber doing to improve those areas?

One of the areas for improvement in our community is the availability of affordable office space and shovel-ready sites. It takes small businesses longer to become profitable due to high rent; and this paired with insufficient capital, for many startups, is a recipe for failure.

The process to permit and start a new business can sometimes be cumbersome and lengthy at the local level as well. The Chamber is working with County officials to discuss those steps it takes for a new business to get established and see how we can speed that process up together.

How do you believe your community can best leverage the regional resources into a healthy environment for business and residents?

We can best leverage our resources if we work together as a region to attract new businesses and talent to our area. We should not look at dividing lines but rather blurring lines to make our region and communities enticing to those considering relocating or starting a business here. Just as we do not stay or live within a five-mile radius of where we work, but enjoy life throughout our region, it is important for those on the outside looking in to see the diversity of what we have to offer.

16 | Business Climate | nwflbusinessclimate.com

TINA MORRISON PERDIDO KEY What is the state of business diversity in your community?

Our diversity is evident in several ways including business size, type and location. Out of our 350 business members, 95 are large businesses with six or more employees and 204 are small businesses with five or less employees. We have a very diverse membership as far as business types - everything from vacation rentals to interior design to 50 different non-profit businesses. We also have reciprocal memberships with all of our local area Chambers, including the Gulf Coast African American Chamber. Our community’s local beach, Johnson Beach, is named after the first Escambia resident to die in the Korean War, and it is part of the African American Heritage Trail. We have worked with officials from the Gulf Islands National Seashore and recently gotten the first Saturday in every May designated as Rosamond Johnson Day. How does the Chamber assist and enable new business and outside money to find a home in your community?

Our member surveys continue to show that we are a very approachable Chamber with a small community feel. We help our new members get connected with the right people through networking, referrals, business contacts and the appropriate associations to join. Our new website launching this fall will have a “Move to Perdido Key” landing page which will assist those looking to start a business in Escambia County. It will also link to commercial properties available for sale. A lot of our new residents and businesses came here first as tourists, so we continue to increase our yearround tourism by focusing on shoulder season events and our growing snowbird population.

What plans are in place to sustain growth into the future?

Perdido Key’s bed taxes collected has shown a 61 percent increase from 2010 to 2014. Since the majority of our Chamber Members’ businesses are tourism based, our number one focus is our Chamber members’ satisfaction.

This excellent

customer service will result in member retention and growth of new members. Our new business development leader Lynn Mortimer is going to start “rounding” to spend quality time with our members to see how we may better serve them in 2015 and make sure we are focusing on their priorities for growth.

That will not only help their business grow, but make everyone at that business feel like they are an integral part of the community.

We are also very excited to be included in marketing partnerships with Showcase Pensacola and Visit Florida.

What areas of improvement have you identified for the community? What is the Chamber doing to improve those areas?

Our lodging contributes roughly 20 percent of Escambia County’s overall bed tax collections and that is being accomplished without a hotel. The acquisition of a hotel, so our guests have more choices for nightly stays, will greatly improve the community and the overall bed tax collected. Perdido Key also needs improved basic infrastructure like pedestrian crosswalks, sidewalks and bike paths. Our Chamber is very active and works closely with local and state officials to be advocates for our visitors, residents and business members.

How do you believe your community can best leverage the regional resources into a healthy environment for business and residents?

This region of Northwest Florida is an attractive destination for business growth and serves as home to a wide range of thriving industries. We work very closely with the Greater Pensacola Chamber and their “Choose Greater Pensacola” website is a union of pro-business partnerships for economic development.

The growth and unification that the various Escambia County Chambers has embraced in the past few years is certainly paying off for both businesses and residents. The tourism promotional dollars resulting from the Gulf Oil Spill of 2010 has brought worldwide attention to the Gulf Coast area and I believe it is our time and duty to use this to our advantage to create a more healthy and prosperous yearround destination.

nwflbusinessclimate.com | Business Climate | 17

18 | Business Climate | nwflbusinessclimate.com

DRONE NATION

*

* (1) AN UNMANNED AIRCRAFT OR SHIP THAT CAN NAVIGATE AUTONOMOUSLY WITHOUT HUMAN CONTROL, FOR USE IN AGRICULTURAL, SEARCH AND RESCUE, PHOTOGRAPHY AND REAL ESTATE APPLICATIONS; (2) A SOURCE OF PRIVACY CONCERNS AND HEIGHTENED FEAR OVER SURVEILLANCE AND UNRESTRICTED ACCESS.

STORY BY JOSH NEWBY HOW DO WE MAINTAIN OUR FREEDOM AND PRIVACY WHILE HARNESSING THE EXCITING ADVANCES THAT DRONE TECHNOLOGY PROMISES?

nwflbusinessclimate.com | Business Climate | 19

U

TECHNOLOGY

NMANNED AERIAL Systems, or drones as they are more colloquially known, are fast becoming a more pervasive part of everyday life in America.

The declining cost of drone technology, coupled with a trend toward automation and machine dependence, has largely been the cause of these machines’ transition from military hangars to civilian garages. Their applications are far reaching and include everything from search and rescue and aerial photography, to agricultural inspections and product delivery. In an age of increasing government intrusion on privacy and concern for airspace safety, however, this new technology has led to often-increased fear and paranoia.

While there is talk of nationwide, same-day product delivery courtesy of Amazon drones and mass destruction and violence courtesy of drones from governments foreign and domestic, the local use of drones is far more comforting and less complicated. Locally, drones are used mainly for aerial photography and videography, though those applications carry with them privacy concerns.

Thomas Scott, who runs local aerial photography company Tower Drones, said that the benefits of drone usage are expansive and inexpensive.

“Drones are revolutionizing many industries, including search and rescue, agriculture, power line inspections, aerial photo and videography, real estate and more,” said Scott. “For most of these industries, drones are easy to use, quick, save time, energy and money, as well as prevent harm and potential danger.

We’re even using drones for advertising.

We attach vertical banners to the drones and fly at events or heavily populated areas.”

Now, teams can use drones to safely look for lost people, animals and items; farmers can use it to check on their crops and inspect their property from their living room; utility companies can keep a closer, less expensive eye on delivery channels, and of course aerial photography and videography will be cheaper and more widely accessible than ever.

The technology on these devices is really unrivaled. Each drone comes equipped with up to 13 GPS satellites, which allows the user to maintain constant control and awareness of the drone’s location. Drones also come equipped with a “go home” feature that automatically sends the system to its takeoff location if signal is ever broken.

The devices also come with parachutes 20 | Business Climate | nwflbusinessclimate.com

FOR MOST INDUSTRIES, DRONES ARE EASY TO USE, QUICK, SAVE TIME, ENERGY AND MONEY, AS WELL AS PREVENTING HARM OR PUTTING PEOPLE IN POTENTIAL DANGER.

to increase safety both for the device and whatever is down below.

Scott works extensively with IHMC (Institute for Human & Machine Cognition) to further innovate these marvels of technology and make them safer. Daniel Duran, a research associate at IHMC, has been critical to the development of the technology.

“A drone is made out of two main parts: a mechanical system that achieves flight in some manner (i.e. aircraft, helicopter, quadcopter, etc.) and some on-board electronics with pre-loaded software that act as an autopilot system (‘the brains’),” said Duran. “The autopilot system controls the mechanical system and keeps the drone stable in the air performing some specific task.

Regardless of the level of autonomy a drone will always relay its state together with other sensor data to a ground station. The ground station will always have ultimate control over the drone acting as a ‘high level controller.’”

The possibilities, according to Scott

and Duran, are really endless. Tower Drones is even working with businesses on the beach to develop a system of drone delivery systems where a patron can have food or drinks delivered to their destination via a phone application or GPS. Scott and Duran also work together to educate the public on this emerging technology and the implications it has on business and privacy.

“We have partnered up with Pensacola Young Professionals, Pensacola Association of Realtors and more to bring our community some clarification and to demonstrate how we can benefit from drones in our community,” said Scott.

Right now, there are some federal and state guidelines in place to govern private drone usage. For example, when flying a UAV, the user must take care to keep the drone below 400 feet and not within five miles of airports. However, as government is still rushing to respond to drones’ increased popularity, there are

LAWMAKER OPINIONS “Presumably at some point you could have one the size of a mosquito that has a battery that operates for weeks and you could have the mosquito following you around and not be aware of it.” Sen. Al Franken

“I think there is real concern that the day-today conduct of American citizens going about their business might be monitored, catalogued, and recorded by the federal government.”

Sen. Ted Cruz

“The technology is way ahead of our ability to know how to cope with it.” Sen. Dianne Feinstein

Photo: Don McCullough

not many other regulations in place.

In 2012, Congress passed the FAA Modernization and Reform Act, which calls for integration of unmanned aircraft into the national aerospace system.

The law calls for the FAA to develop more specific guidelines and policies by September 2015.

“This grey area is being coined ‘the wild west of drones’ simply because at this time there are no solid regulations for small UAVs,” said Scott.

“There are many legal implications to this technology and the FAA is not very satisfied yet on how to handle the unexpected growth of the drone technology for civilian use,” added Duran.

Perhaps the greatest concern right now involves privacy, as most drones can easily be outfitted with light-weight, high-resolution cameras. While the U.S. Constitution’s Fourth Amendment protects citizens against intrusions into reasonable expectations of privacy by their government, the courts often lag behind technology, leaving some questions about the government’s limits. Some Supreme Court decisions, including a 1989 decision that government helicopters could be used for surveillance if at least 400 feet in the air, reveals a seemingly unpredictable judicial perspective of what does and does not constitute invasion of privacy. Another 2012 opinion about police’s use of GPS monitors was decided based on 18th century trespass laws and dodged the relevant question of monitoring through cell phones.

From the area of Constitutional law,

according to ACLU attorney Benjamin Stevenson, the government is limited by the Bill of Rights.

“The Bill of Rights was created to protect us from government intrusions into our private lives,” said Stevenson.

“However, the Constitution does not protect us from a private person using a drone to infringe on other’s privacy.

Trespass and invasion of privacy laws and lawsuits do that.”

To further codify the fact that government cannot use drones as a form of surveillance without a warrant or in special circumstances, laws in Florida restricting police use of drones have passed recently. On April 25, 2013, the Florida state legislature passed the Freedom from Unwarranted Surveillance Act, which requires a judge to approve drone usage in nearly all cases of local and state law enforcement. “[This Act] maintains a balance between the need for law enforcement to protect our citizens against credible threats and imminent danger while ensuring that the privacy of Florida families is protected,” said Gov. Scott.

On the federal level, at least a dozen bills have been introduced in Congress over the past year restricting the use of drones over fear of privacy invasion.

While government is currently restricted from using drones to violate a person’s “reasonable expectation of privacy,” according to adaptive language from the Supreme Court’s famous Katz v.

United States decision, this does not do much to placate fears over private drone

Photo: Lima Pix

usage, especially when 7,500 drones are predicted to be active in the country’s airspace by 2015 and 30,000 by 2020.

Nevertheless, as the law stands now, any individual or company using a drone to trespass on another’s privacy would be subject to the same laws that govern them had they not been using a drone.

“As far as privacy, the laws still remain and any one infringing on others’ privacy is still against the law,” said local drone engineer Thomas Scott. The future of drones remains uncertain, as government is struggling to keep up with the new technology. The technology and applications thereof are only expanding, even as experts predict that future regulations will require photography certifications and piloting licensure.

“The advantages of this technology are just tremendous from any perspective,” said Duran. “However, at the rate at which this technology is growing you can expect more legal and safety implications. Drones are great and can provide incredible advantages to our ways of living, but they can also be dangerous in many ways if they are not operated safely. For this reason, education on this topic is crucial.”

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THE

CHANGING CLIMATE Behind the growing local initiative to acknowledge the science and change the future.

By JOSH NEWBY. Photograph by CHRISTOPHER CRAIG.

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ENTION CLIMATE CHANGE, AND THE response you get will very much depend on to whom you are talking. If scientists, the subject is a foregone conclusion long ago decided. If politicians, the idea depends largely on their party and constituency. If an average citizen, the concept is one not fully grasped, though opinions on it are prevalent and strong, both in support of and against the idea.

Climate change is a contentious issue, an environmental fact, an economic fear, and a social disaster waiting to happen. The movement toward broader acceptance of and action on the science has been one of the most drawn out and politically charged concepts of the 21st century. The science of greenhouse gases and rising sea levels, the psychology of change and human opinion, and the politics of government intervention and geographically-based beliefs: all are involved in telling the story of climate change not only on a worldwide and national level, but also on a local level in Northwest Florida.

The idea of the human raceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s impact on the world we live in can be traced as far back as ancient Greek and Roman philosophy. More recently, though, and largely as a result of the Industrial Revolution, science and research have given those abstract musings more weight. Ever since archeologists discovered that there had been an ice age and that the climate changes perennially, the cause for those dramatic shifts has been a large focus of environmental science.

Greenhouse gas as a contributor to global warming was first theorized in the late 19th century. As light from the sun enters our atmosphere, about 70 percent of the energy stays on the planet and is absorbed by the surface to create warmth necessary to life. About 30 percent is reflected back into space.

However, in the presence of more greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide, some of that reflected heat gets trapped on its way back into space, thus making earth slightly warmer.

Earth goes through these cooling and warming stages, and in fact the planet has been warming ever since the last ice age, about 15,000 years ago. The rate of increasing warmth has been greatly accelerated, however, since the Industrial Revolution, leading scientists to believe that the burning of fossil fuels like nwflbusinessclimate.com | Business Climate | 23

THE CHANGING CLIMATE

LOCALIZED CLIMATE CHANGE INITIATIVES What other cities have done to combat climate change.

MIAMI Broward County restricts development in areas at risk of a two-feet sea-level rise. The town has invested in $70 million pumps to divert stormwater back into the ocean. The county has pledged to cut greenhouse emissions by 80 percent by 2050 and get 20 percent of Miami’s electricity from renewable resources.

SALT LAKE CITY Under new legislation in Utah, all government vehicles must reduce their emissions and half must be converted to alternative fuels or plug-ins.

PORTLAND Over 17 years ago Portland began working to combat climate change – and as of 2008, local carbon emissions were 19 percent below 1990 levels on a per person basis. The city instituted a Climate Action Plan that encouraged citizens to take classes, get politically active, buy green power and support innovative, green business.

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coal increases greenhouse gas emissions, thus thickening the atmosphere through which reflected heat must escape.

“It’s important to note that warmth on earth and greenhouse gases are a good thing,” said Christian Wagley, a local environmentalist and coordinator of a local climate change initiative.

“It’s necessary to sustain life. Too much though leads to manmade climate change which can have serious economic, environmental and social ramifications.”

This increased warmth in earth’s atmosphere leads to all sorts of chain reactions. Glaciers, for example, have been melting at a greater volume than usual, leading to an influx of fresh water into the world’s oceans, which leads to rising sea levels and various weather problems. Warm objects expand, which means that water will also expand when warmed. Since sea currents and temperature determine much of the earth’s weather, this leads to harsher weather and more rainfall. Similarly, greater carbon dioxide levels mean that water can hold less oxygen, which make it acidic and less sustainable to fish and wildlife.

T

he economic impact. The economic impact of climate change, the preferred term by scientists and researchers, is far-reaching but not always immediately recognizable.

In Northwest Florida, where heat is fact of life that we deal with for about nine months out of the year, the perception may be that we have already learned to live in high heat and conduct business regardless. The truth, however, is far removed.

For example, Northwest Florida’s temperature traditionally exceeds 95 degrees about five days a year. Thanks to climate change, we can expect about 60 days like that every year by 2050. Higher, more prevalent heat, leads to less time outside and therefore less time shopping at local stores and sustaining local business. Higher heat also means increased air conditioning and insulation cost, greater demand for filtered water, and so on.

Additionally, climate change leads to more frequent and disastrous weather conditions. Experts say we can expect more rainfall like the kind that caused widespread flooding in late April. About 27 percent more rain per storm is expected to be a reality in the Southeast in the near future. Whereas rainfall and flooding that caused in excess of $50 million in damage maybe previously happened once every 100 years, climate change may result in that type of downpour occurring once every 10 years.

And that’s just the beginning. Northwest Florida, and Pensacola, Destin, and Ft. Walton Beach especially, are reliant on a healthy oceanic ecosystem for tourism and commerce. The Northwest Florida beach tourism industry accounts for almost $6 billion a year, and about 85 percent of the area’s visitors come here for the beaches. About 77 percent of the state’s population lives near the coast or relies on it for personal income. Fishing is responsible for about another $1 billion in revenue each year for Northwest Florida. About 20 million people made fishing trips to Florida in 2011.

“This area’s beaches have already been harmed by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill,” said Wagley. “Our ecosystem could maybe mitigate the effects of climate change without the oil spill, but with it, the ocean is simply not resilient enough.”

With climate change effects such as projected sea level increases of two feet or more, greater chance of storm surge, and salty seawater making its way into drinking water resources, the state could lose as much as $4 billion in taxable real estate, according to the Southeast Florida Regional Climate Control Compact. In order to make beaches accessible and resilient in the face of encroaching sea levels, communities will have to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to rebuild and maintain infrastructure, or lose out on business. Right now, the state

Photo: USFWS Headquarters

“THIS REALLY AFFECTS EVERYTHING IN SOME WAY,” SAID WAGLEY. “I THINK CLIMATE CHANGE IS THE MOST CHALLENGING ISSUE OF ALL TIME.” spends $200 million of public funds on beach protection and restoration every year. That number will multiply with expanding erosion. Even a one-foot increase has the potential to erode 100 to 200 feet of the states beaches.

With warmer weather comes the certainty of more category-4 and category-5 hurricanes, which can wreak havoc not only on people’s lives but on local economies and insurance companies, as well. Right now, an average hurricane year has a $3.7 billion negative economic impact. In 2050, with climate change in full swing, that number increases to between $24 billion and $49 billion, according to a 2006 study on the subject.

“The Pacific coast doesn’t really have this problem,” said Wagley. “They have huge cliffs that protect them from a few feet increase in sea levels. On the Atlantic and Gulf shores, though, we are much more sloped and susceptible to encroachment.

Nature moves, the ocean travels. When you have a building in the way, though, that’s a conflict that results in a loss of money.”

Though insurance companies do not yet factor climate change predictions into their policy calculators, that is expected to occur soon. Businesses and residents near the coast could see a spike in their rates as insurance companies adjust their calculations to account for rising sea levels and other coastal effects of climate change.

Genworth Life Insurance Company recently issued a statement on climate change, saying, “Genworth recognizes that

climate change poses significant potential risks to the environment, the global economy and to human health and well being.

We also recognize that human activity contributes to global warming.”

T

he environmental impact. The environmental impact of climate change has already been occurring for decades now, though the consequences will continue to be more and more pronounced. Sea level rise has already impacted and is expected to continue to impact coastal habitats important to Florida’s coastal fisheries, waterfowl, shorebirds, sea turtles, manatees, and other wildlife species.

Climate change is also expected to lead to an increase in marine diseases and harmful algal blooms. “Red tide” could see a reemergence as fish begin to experience vibrio-related illnesses.

Acidification and higher water temperatures are also essentially death warrants for Florida’s corals, plankton, and other organisms that serve as the base of many fish’s food chains.

All of this leads to a vicious cycle. Nature is endowed with certain measures meant to prevent the harmful effects of climate change. Seagrass, for example is useful at mitigating water acidification. However, with recent environmental disasters like the oil spill, those seagrass beds are in short supply along the Gulf.

“This really affects everything in some way,” said Wagley. “I think climate change is the most challenging issue of all time.” nwflbusinessclimate.com | Business Climate | 25

THE CHANGING CLIMATE Agriculture is affected, too. With warmer weather comes intensified wildfire and insect outbreaks in warmer climates with drier soils and longer growing seasons. These harsh conditions result in fewer quality crops, and with a nation that will already be lacking in fish resources, this is bad news for American’s already lackluster diet and health condition.

Photo: Mikael Miettinen

T

he social impact. Climate change’s social impact is vast and closely tied to its economic effects. Like most systemic challenges, climate change disproportionately affects the poor and less fortunate both in this country and around the world.

Public health will likely suffer as people without access to considerable resources are faced with environmental conditions outside the norm. Climate change leads to increases in infectious diseases like malaria and dengue fever, caused by a redistribution in pests and pathogens away from the equator and toward the poles. As health and stability decrease, those without insurance and medical care will be the first to suffer.

Those who are poor and live in areas especially susceptible to climate change will have limited resources to cope with the direct effects of heat, as well. They will not have the financial stability needed to relocate or evacuate if need be and will be ill-equipped to respond to the increase in food prices that results from decreased supply. Escambia County is already among the poorest counties in the state, with a huge homeless problem.

Increased heat and rain, coupled with the area’s less-than-ideal infrastructure, is a recipe for disaster among the economically immobile of the region.

Older adults are projected to be most at risk to the adverse effects of climate change. Older residents make up a large share of the population in Northwest Florida’s already warm areas and may not have the strength, capacity or health to relocate. It is estimated that more than 40 million people worldwide have already been displaced by climate change. Usually these are

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residents of small, poor countries, forced from their home by richer nations’ industry and greenhouse gas emissions.

Young children are also susceptible to the negative effects of climate change, as their immune system and bodily systems are more sensitive to extreme heat.

Climate change’s societal impact is most severe in coastal areas, according to the World Meteorological Organization. In fact, the cost of adapting to climate change doubles every 10 years, due to the increased cost of construction and expanded city density. As those costs increase, so does the cost of living, leaving the poor and disabled in an even worse condition to financially deal with higher heat and more powerful storms.

The social problem extends to public psychological health, as well. Experts have identified three key ways our collective psychology will be impacted. Direct effects are rare but include acute and traumatic responses to changes in environment.

Indirect effects are far more likely and include threats to emotional wellbeing based on observing the impacts and uncertainty

“WHAT WE DO AFFECTS OUR NEIGHBOR AS WELL AS PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD. WE CREATE THE FUTURE EVERY MOMENT.” about the future, as well as future risks. Finally, psychosocial effects involve the chronic social and community effects of heat, drought, extreme and concentrated rainfall, migration, climaterelated conflicts, and post-disaster adjustment and adaptation.

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aking a change. All three of these impact areas—economic, environmental and social—are interconnected and depend on a holistic, unified strategy to mitigate negative effects. There are two schools of thought on climate change response: adaptation or mitigation. Adaptation involves doing nothing to prevent further climate change and simply adapting as best we can to the new world we will live in. Mitigation involves stopping climate change from occurring beyond what has already happened. Luckily, there are national and local plans in place to decrease climate change causes and effects.

Nationally, President Obama has set a goal for carbon emissions in 2020 to be 17 percent lower than 2005 levels, as part of a set of objectives and action items developed by a task force of 26 governors, mayors, commissioners and tribal leaders.

Patsy Parker, a mayor in Perdido Beach, Ala., served on the task force. Her experience as mayor of a city along the Gulf Coast that has had to deal with increased hurricanes and flooding leant her a unique perspective on the matter.

“There have been more severe events in the past few years than in the history of our area,” said Parker. “Our shoreline is receding at a rate of two feet per year, and the bottom line is that we need to be prepared. Preparedness and resilience is what it’s all about.”

Parker has experience with climate resilience plans for local cities prior to serving on the national task force, and found that when a majority of people do not believe in the science of climate change, they are more likely persuaded when they can see the effects.

“When people see the effects, it helps them get on board with doing something, even if they don’t all agree on the cause,” said Parker. “They have to be assured it’s in their interest and you have to placate the fear that outsiders—government or otherwise—have an ulterior motive for these changes.”

Parker explained that what we do has great effect on everyone else, as we are all a part of the same ecological system.

“What we do affects our neighbor as well as people around the world,” said Parker. “We create the future every moment, which is why these task forces are so important.”

Right now, the national task force is concerned with three main objectives: remove barriers to resilience, modernize grant and loan programs, and provide information and tools. There is also a need for local adoption of national initiatives, Parker stressed. Fortunately, there are programs that coordinate change on the local level.

350.org is such an organization. Dedicated to building a global climate movement, the organization relies on online campaigns, grassroots organizing, and mass public actions coordinated by local chapters. Pensacola has such a chapter, which has been working with Wagley to implement a City Council-approved climate change task force. The final report of the Committee for a Sustainable Emerald Coast specifically called on local governments to work together and mitigate the harmful effects of climate change. The local 350 chapter believes that formation of this task force is in line with that directive.

A resolution that begins the process of establishing a climate change task force was introduced by Councilwoman Sherri Myers and approved by the larger council on August 28. The resolution calls on the City’s Environmental Advisory Board (EAB) to recommend membership and the scope of the task force’s work, with the EAB reporting back to the Council by December 1. The task force would then begin creation of a strategic plan for how Pensacola should confront the impacts of climate change.

Based on similar task forces in other communities, the plan could include programs that fund or incentivize energy conservation and renewable energy for homes and businesses, retrofitting streets and neighborhoods to make them safer and more pleasant for walking and cycling, strategic plantings of trees to shade streets and buildings, enhanced stormwater infrastructure, public health programs to monitor disease incidence, and much more.

Myers is hopeful that the presence of a task force will help ensure more state and federal funding and grants to help mitigate the cost that climate change preparedness would cost local taxpayers.

“We can have the best plan in the world, but it ultimately all comes down to money,” said Myers. “This task force will better position us to get infrastructure money.”

On another local level, Florida has instituted a Building Resilience Against Climate Effects (BRACE) program with the Florida Department of Health. BRACE has been working to develop and conduct a health impact assessment of current policies and propose interventions to address effects of extreme weather on the local level, with regional sensitivity.

“Because there are currently multiple efforts assessing sea level rise and extreme heat, especially in south Florida, they wanted to focus on something a little different, like extreme precipitation/flooding in the Panhandle,” said Keith Wilkins, who sits on the Technical Advisory Committee for the Department of Health. “Escambia County has also just commissioned with the Nature Conservancy and Texas A&M University on a Coastal Flooding and Resilience Model to assess our damage potential going forward as compared to events of the past 10 years.”

These plans place a burden on local government to mitigate climate change on a local level, as opposed to blanket legislation from Washington. Wagley is optimistic about this new direction.

“Right now, local governments look to the Fed for infrastructure replacement and reimbursement, which disincentives the local government to make any changes,” said Wagley. “With dwindling federal resources, however, local government will have to take a more proactive role.”

350.org, Parker, Myers, and Wagley are optimistic about the local changes taking place, especially in a part of the country where climate change is still often debated.

“It’s hard sometimes to see such gradual changes, and to acknowledge that our own greed may be responsible for those negative changes,” said Wagley. “Hopefully in the future, we will see solar and wind become a larger part of our energy sources. We will also see more energy conservation efforts on buildings and homes, and communities designed to require less driving—and therefore less energy use. All of this will help mitigate impacts of climate change, and also dramatically improve human and environmental health by reducing the massive impacts from burning coal, oil, and natural gas.” nwflbusinessclimate.com | Business Climate | 27

around the region

Chamber to celebrate 125 years of service to NWFL business community The Greater Pensacola Chamber, a business association devoted to promoting and improving the region through economic progress, public advocacy and workforce development, will be hosting an anniversary gala to celebrate 125 years of commitment to growing regional prosperity. The event – which will be emceed by News Radio 1620/Cat Country 98.7’s Brent Lane – will take place on Wednesday, Sept. 24, from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Versailles Event Center, 1504 W. Intendencia St. The celebration will highlight the historic milestone and will feature music, an open bar, a silent auction and a “roast” of the Chamber in which the organization will be subjected to a little good-natured ridicule by some of the area’s most influential community leaders.

Tickets to the gala are $75 per person or $125 per couple, with business/ cocktail attire required. Sponsorship opportunities are still available. To RSVP or for more information, visit PensacolaChamber.com/Events or contact Maegan Leonard, the Chamber’s Assistant Director of Programs, at (850) 438-4081, ext.

232, or at mleonard@pensacolachamber.com.

Business directory updates The Greater Pensacola Chamber is compiling information for the 2015 Business Directory in partnership with Ballinger Publishing. There will be several changes in this year’s directory, including the opportunity for partners/members to provide the Chamber with a short description (250 characters or approx. 30 words) to describe their business. It is important that the Chamber makes sure all of your contact information and main category information are listed correctly in the directory. Please take a moment to log into your profile through our Update Your Contact Information link on the website, PensacolaChamber.com, to update/verify your business information, as well as provide a brief description that you would like to be featured in the directory.

Yahoo! ranks Destin as No. 1 most popular U.S. beach Destin was recently ranked No. 1 in Yahoo!

Travel’s 10 Most Popular U.S. Beaches list for “its clear water and fine white sand, which washes down from the Appalachian Mountains.”

Fort Walton Beach was also recently recognized, being featured in FlipKey’s Top Gulf Coast Beaches to Visit post and was called “a panhandle beach destination that has something to enjoy for all ages.”

UWF public relations students win top FPRA state award Ten public relations students from the University of West Florida were recently honored with a Golden Image Award and a Grand All Golden Image Award from the Florida Public Relations Association for their rebranding campaign for the Imogene Theatre in Milton.

The awards were presented at the 2014 Golden Image Awards Gala on Aug. 12 in Orlando, Fla. The annual competition recognizes outstanding public relations programs in Florida to encourage and promote the development of public relations professionalism in the state.

The students were a part of the PR Campaigns class, led by instructor Eileen Perrigo, APR. The class, also known as Wellspring PR, provides students with a simulated agency experience as they compile an extensive public relations campaign for a local nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization.

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United Way to announce campaign goal and pacesetter results United Way of Escambia County and local corporate and community partners are invited to join Oliver Sumlin, United Way Campaign Chair, and other volunteers as United Way kicks-off the 2014-2015 annual workplace campaign.

Sumlin is excited to be a part of the positive change generated by those passionate about helping others. He encourages all to attend the Breakfast of Champions on September 18, 2014 at the Pensacola Bay Center from 7:45 am to 8:45 am.

Cram the Van school supply drive helps students at 55 area schools With the help of our generous community, $58,295 in school supplies was collected and distributed to 55 area schools as part of this year’s Cram the Van school supply drive. The 22,842 students on Free and Reduce Lunch will be provided supplies by the teachers who can quickly identify their needs.

New data shows exports are critical to Florida economy The U.S. Department of Commerce recently announced new data indicating that exports are driving the Florida economy. Goods exports from Florida supported 275,221 jobs in 2013 – and merchandise exports from two metropolitan areas in the state ranked among the top 50 last year. The MiamiFort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach metropolitan area registered $41.8 billion in goods exports in 2013, ranking it seventh in the nation.

Exports have driven nearly a third of economic growth since mid-2009, and account for nearly 14 percent of our economy. Since the launch of the President Obama’s National Export Initiative (NEI), the United States has experienced four consecutive years of record exports. In 2013, total U.S. goods and services exports were $2.3 trillion, and supported 11.3 million jobs nationally.

PEMCO expands operations, opens Pensacola branch

people on the move

Nemours Children’s Clinic-Pensacola announces new pediatric cardiologist

Nemours Children’s Clinic-Pensacola is expanding its cardiology services for families in Northwest Florida with the addition of Dr. Matthew Steiner. Steiner will focus on treating Progressive Employer children with heart disease and provide services in the cardiopulmonary laboratory, Management Company performing testing for pulmonary function and treadmill stress testing. Steiner attended (PEMCO), a leading professional medical school at the University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine. He did his pediatric employer organization (PEO) residency at Jackson Memorial Hospital; Holtz Children’s Hospital and completed his headquartered in Sarasota, fellowship training at the University of Arkansas/Arkansas Children’s Hospital.

Fla., announced it will expand Rick Harper joins Studer Institute as director its operations to Pensacola to accommodate growing demand for its business solutions.

The Studer Institute and the University of West Florida have created In July, the company also a partnership that will allow Rick Harper, the University of West announced it had expanded Florida’s assistant vice president of economic development, to operations to Orlando. become Director of the Institute. The Institute’s President and With this expansion, CEO Randy Hammer announced that Harper will help supervise PEMCO, an Inc. 5000 company, the Institute’s staff and work while continuing to serve as the combines its expertise in payroll director of the university’s Office of Economic Development and administration, employee Engagement. As director of the Studer Institute, Harper will be benefits, workers’ compensation responsible for research and the development of a dashboard of social insurance and human resources and economic metrics that will allow people to evaluate the Pensacola management with the Metro’s performance and standing relative to other communities. convenience and face-to-face Chief Operating Officer appointed for Lakeview Center service of a Pensacola branch.

Steve Dickson, PEMCO’s senior business consultant, will Allison Hill has been promoted to the newly created role of chief operating officer for oversee the Northwest-Florida Lakeview Center. A certified public accountant, Hill has been the organization’s chief operations. financial officer and vice president of finance for the past 11 years. She has been with Lakeview since 1999.

Allison will assume responsibility for insuring Neighborhood Service Department earns FRPA effective alignment and translation of strategic vision into daily operations, deriving economies Excellence in Sport of scale and synergy across our diverse areas Tourism awards of operations, fully leveraging our investment in technology and facilities to support continued innovation The City of Pensacola’s and service line expansion, Neighborhood Services and enhancing our community department was a recipient of awareness, advocacy and the Florida Recreation and Park mission support.

Association (FRPA) Excellence in Sports Tourism Awards for the Small Sport Market, presented by the Florida Sports UWF welcomes new chair for the Foundation, at the annual FRPA Department of Teacher Education and Conference in Orlando.

Neighborhood Services Educational Leadership received this prestigious award because of the hard work and The University of West Florida recently dedication after the heavy rain announced Dr. Jerry Johnson as the chair for fall during the historic April the Department of Teacher Education and flood, when more than two Educational Leadership. Johnson will support feet of water fell in 26 hours. the educational mission of the University and In just 48 hours after the rain, the College of Education and Professional Exchange Park was scheduled Studies by providing leadership for the to host the 2014 FCSAA State department.

Softball Championships. The A former high school English teacher and Neighborhood Services staff principal, Johnson taught in educational worked together to restore leadership programs for 12 years and served the fields to normal playing from 2003-2006 as policy research director conditions in order for the for the Rural School and Community Trust, a tournament to continue only a national non-profit organization addressing the day behind schedule. crucial relationship between good schools and thriving communities.

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business scene AT UWF’S INNOVATION INSTITUTE GRAND OPENING...

BENTINA TERRY, ROBERT JONES, MORT O’SULLIVAN, JUDY BENSE, MARTHA SAUNDERS & PAM NORTHRUP

JERRY MAYGARDEN, BRENDAN KELLY, MARTHA SAUNDERS & PAM NORTHRUP

JUDY BENSE

THE CROWD GATHERED TO WATCH THE RIBBON-CUTTING

MARTHA SAUNDERS

CRAIG LANGMAN & PAUL TOBIN

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