Inweekly aug 25 2106 issue

Independent News | August 25 | Volume 17 | Number 35 | inweekly.net

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winners & losers

outtakes

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You can hear their sense of optimism and hopefulness about the future in their music...

cover story

buzz

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7

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publisher Rick Outzen

art director Richard Humphreys

editor & creative director Joani Delezen

contributing writers Duwayne Escobedo, Jennifer Leigh, Chuck Shepherd, Shelby Smithey

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winners & losers

winners VINYL MUSIC HALL One of the corner-

stones of South Palafox Street celebrates its sixth anniversary on Friday, Aug. 26. The venue has become a staple for music, not only here in Pensacola, but along the entire Gulf Coast. Located on what had been a dead corner for over a decade at Palafox and Garden streets, Vinyl Music Hall has reshaped the music scene and played a major role in the revitalization of downtown Pensacola. Most importantly it became an economic catalyst for restaurants and bars in the area.

DIANE LEA To celebrate turning 50 years

RETIREMENT IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER. AND IT’S REALLY HARD TO SEE AROUND CORNERS. Here’s the curious thing about change, we’ll evolve your plan along retirement. Given its enormous with them. So when it’s time to turn size, it has the surprising ability to the corner toward retirement, there sneak up on people. One aren’t too many surprises. minute, it’s 25 years down It’s time to find out what a the road. The next, you’ve Raymond James financial reached the corner of advisor can do for you.

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old, Lea decided to ride her bicycle from San Diego to Pensacola in 50 days while bringing awareness to 50 different causes.

On Saturday, Aug. 20, she completed her 2500-mile ride at Plaza Deluna. Two children with Angelman Syndrome, who the cause was for on Day 11, rode the last two blocks with Lea to join in the celebration.

CONNECT FLORIDA Two locals, Freder-

ick Longmire of the State Attorney's Office and Gretchen Clarke of AppRiver, are in Class VII of Connect Florida's Statewide Leadership Institute. Connect Florida was created in 2007 as a signature program of Leadership Florida and has developed into the premier statewide institute for Florida professionals ages 25-40. Two Inweekly Rising Stars, Hong Tran and Jennifer McFarrin, were in last year's class.

losers GULF ADVENTURE CENTER AT GULF STATE PARK The Alabama Department

of Conservation and Natural Resources will not renew the contract with Gulf Adventure Center at Gulf State Park in South Baldwin County. No reason was given for the decision.

The adventure center contributes more than $150,000 in sales tax annually, employs seven full-time and 48 part-time employees, and has provided revenues in excess of $300,000.00 to the Gulf State Park.

CITIZENS ADVISORY TASK FORCE

State Attorney Bill Eddins announced that four members of the Citizens Advisory Task Force, an advisory board to the Town of Century City Council, have been charged with noncriminal violations of the Florida Government in Sunshine Law. They were charged for having a public meeting that was not properly advertised.

The meeting was scheduled and advertised to begin at 4 p.m. on July 26. Instead, the board met at 2 p.m.

MAYOR'S OFFICE When he learned that the mayor's leadership team was meeting with the county staff to discuss reopening the local option gas tax distribution, Council Executive Don Kraher asked City Attorney Lysia Bowling and City Administrator Eric Olson to sit in on the meeting because any interlocal agreement must be approved by the Pensacola City Council. After waiting two hours for an answer, Kraher was told he would be briefed after the meeting.

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outtakes

by Rick Outzen

CONSOLIDATION MULLIGAN Six years ago, the effort to consolidate our local governments fell short when the proposal failed to garner the support of the Escambia Board of County Commissioners, ECUA Board, and the Century Town Council. The task was too monumental and complex.

Coming off the successful fight to pass a new city charter that put the mayor in charge of city government, some felt consolidation would be easy. Why not have one powerful elected official running all of Escambia County?

Thank goodness, consolidation failed.

However, the ideas of reducing duplication of services and eliminating an extra layer of regulations and overhead do have merit. Maybe we should revisit the issue, but let's focus this time on merging Pensacola city government into the Board of County Commissioners.

The fights over local option gas tax and sales tax dollars would go away. The commissioners already represent the city and county. Why not cut out the middleman?

Eliminating the Pensacola City Council, City Clerk, Legal, and Mayor's Office would save city taxpayers $3.36 million a year, based on Mayor Ashton Hayward's FY 2017 budget proposal.

Pensacola City Hall could be marketed as the headquarters and campus for a Fortune 500 company like Google. It sits on

prime real estate across from the Community Maritime Park and Pensacola Bay. But maybe I'm getting ahead of myself. The first step would be to consolidate city departments with county operations. While some senior leaders might lose their jobs, most of the employees would move over to the county.

Parks & Recreation, Planning & Development Services, and Public Works & Facilities should be the first departments moved over to the county. The planning and inspection functions have become too political in the Hayward administration. The Long Hollow Radio Tower and Manna Food Pantry warehouse are two examples where city staff ignored their policies and procedures.

The fire and police departments would be next. The fire stations would go under the BCC, and the police would move under the Sheriff's Office.

Then financial services department would go under the County Comptroller, and human resources would be under the BCC. The last to move would be the Enterprise Funds—airport, port, gas utility and sanitation. The County Commission could decide whether to keep the sanitation department or sell to the ECUA. Then, the mayor and the city council would vacate city hall, and the "for sale" sign goes up.

This plan is way too simple, but simple plans are usually the most successful. {in} rick@inweekly.net

Eliminating the Pensacola City Council, City Clerk, Legal, and Mayor's Office would save city taxpayers $3.36 million a year...

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DOUG BROXSON: A PRINCIPLED LEADER FOR NORTHWEST FLORIDA

Since 2010, we have trusted Doug Broxson to fight for what’s right in the Florida House. He has fought to rein in government spending, roll back excessive regulation, and lower taxes on hardworking families. His devotion to God and country has made him a consistent champion of life and religious liberty. We can trust him to stand up for:

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Limited Government

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Lower Taxes

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Our Second Amendment

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Traditional Values PAID BY DOUG BROXSON, REPUBLICAN, FOR STATE SENATOR

WE CAN TRUST DOUG BROXSON TO BE THE LEADER WE NEED IN THE FLORIDA SENATE.

C O M I N G S E P T E M B E R 2 0 TH

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IT’S TRUE!

Pensacola Courthouse / Courtesy Photo

ANOTHER COURTHOUSE TOUR In one empty office in the northeast corner of the federal courthouse on the fourth floor sits a trashcan to catch water that bows from the ceiling. Small sand bags line a doorway on the third floor to prevent water flowing in from an outside deck into the building where the moldy carpet has been removed. Fans used to dry carpets and large air purifiers sit in several rooms throughout the 77,000-square foot courthouse that has clear plastic tarps covering many doorways.

U.S. Congressman Jeff Miller and U.S. Sen. John Boozman (R-Arkansas) took a nearly hour-long tour of the maze of empty and abandoned offices and rooms on Aug. 22 that now houses little more than toxic mold and rodents.

The politicians were led through the building to view problem spots that exist on all five floors by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Casey Rodgers, who started the tour with an air mask on. The courthouse has had innumerable documented water intrusion and mold problems since it was first completed at the corner of Palafox and Garden streets about 19 years ago in July 1997.

Miller and Boozman promised in a press conference that the General Services Administration would make the courthouse useable again.

Miller said in "typical Washington fashion" there exists a few hurdles "until the money flows."

Sen. Boozman, who chairs a subcommittee that controls federal building funds, said the GSA plans to make sure the remediation is done right.

"We are going to make sure it's expeditious and can get going and get completed," he said. "It's such a nice facility it's a shame August 25, 2016

(Pensacola federal courthouse employees) have endured it as long as they have."

Miller put the blame for the shoddy courthouse design on the GSA. Referring to the iconic San Carlos Hotel that was allowed to decay on the same site as the federal courthouse, Miller said, "It would be a tragedy if we have another vacant building standing on this corner."

DON'T BLINK Like UWF, Florida Gulf

Coast University is looking for a new president. Last month, their presidential search committee voted to accelerate the search timeline, moving the final selection from March 2017 to December of this year.

The primary reason for the shorter timeline was the candidates prefer not to have their names exposed to the public for long periods because it could cause issues with their current employers.

The FGCU position will be advertised from Sept. 6-Nov. 8. The committee meets on Nov. 10 to review applications and select a group for onsite interviews. A week later, from Nov. 17-20, the candidates selected for interviews meet with students and faculty and are interviewed by the search committee. A minimum of three finalists are recommended to the Board of Trustees.

On Dec. 9, the Board of Trustees interviews finalists and votes on a new president.

The University of West Florida presidential search timeline is also accelerated.

On Aug. 16, the UWF Search Committee selected 19 applicants for interviews.

Those one-hour interviews will be done Aug. 29-31. At the end, the committee recommends a minimum of three candidates.

Two weeks later, Sept. 12-14, the three finalists visit the campus. On Sept. 15, the UWF Board of Trustees votes on the new president.

The difference in the two selection timelines is FGCU moves quickly through the process of cutting the applicants to three qualified finalists. The FGCU Board of Trustees has two weeks before they vote on the finalists.

At UWF, the final vote by the Board of Trustees is done within 24 hours of when the three finalists visit the campus. {in}

Escambia County has one of the highest Crime rates per capita in the state of Florida.

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inweekly.net

WSRE’s Rally 2016: Where Do Candidates Stand?

WSRE produces “RALLY 2016” as a community service in partnership with the Pensacola Bay Area and Okaloosa County Leagues of Women Voters. Its purpose is to give Northwest Florida voters an unbiased look at the candidates and an opportunity to hear each candidate’s responses to questions on current issues.

With the permission of the WSRE, we have posted some of their responses to help you decide your votes for the local

August 25, 2016

races in the upcoming Aug. 30 primary. We’ve also listed their campaign websites.

The "RALLY 2016" primary election candidate forums, recorded live Aug. 2-4, can be viewed in their entirety at wsre. org/rally. Candidate forums for the general elections in Escambia, Santa Rosa, and Okaloosa counties are scheduled for broadcast Oct. 24-25 at 7 p.m.

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WSRE’s Rally 2016 State Senate, District 1

Escambia County Sheriff

Doug Broxson dougbroxson.com

Ron McNesby

John Johnson

David Morgan (I)

teambaldwin.net

Mike Hill

votemikehill.com

Over 500,000 working poor Florida citizens remain without health insurance.

Would you support tapping federal dollars to cover these people? If not, what kind of plan do you support?

Mike Hill: If you're referring to expanding Obamacare Medicaid in Florida, I am completely against that. In fact, that came before the legislature last year; the Florida House voted against that for a couple of reasons. We simply can't afford it. Right now, health care is a third of our budget in the state, and over a third of that, 37 percent, is Medicaid. Just 10 years ago, it was only 20 percent. That's a trajectory that we cannot afford to continue. How we should do it instead is make sure that we have competition in our health care system to allow people to choose the doctors and hospitals that they prefer.

Doug Broxson: Well, we're already tapping federal dollars. They spend 60 cents on every dollar that we spend for Medicaid, and now, the burden is so great for the citizens of this state that it is tapping into our money for education, roads, and all the things that give us our quality of life. I wish we could solve all the health care problems, but we simply cannot. We do have a safety net, constitutionally, you can go to the emergency room, you can see a doctor there, and we will continue to provide that. One of the major expenses

Doug Baldwin johnjohnsonforsheriff.com

that we go through every year is making sure our safety net hospitals are properly funded.

What steps will you take to bring more industries and jobs into our region?

Broxson: Today, the Governor flew in, and I was proud to stand with him as we celebrated the fact that Florida, in five years, has produced over one million new jobs. That came at a cost.

Florida had to participate. We're in a border state that deals with the State of Alabama.

Alabama spent $300 million to get Airbus, and we're in competition with them. The reason we have Navy Federal is that we were willing to step up and make sure they did not transfer back to Virginia the 10,000 jobs that they're going to have here. We will continue to do that because it's too important to people that they have good paying jobs.

Hill: Instead of using capital cronyism and picking winners and losers to come into the state, I would create an environment that would attract all businesses to come here. The simple formula for that is to reduce taxes and unnecessary regulations. That creates the environment for businesses to want to move here, not taking taxpayers' money and giving it to corporations to come here, because that is taxpayers' hard-earned money. Rep. Broxson voted for that; I voted against it. Instead, I support those things that we know work: lowering taxes and getting rid of unnecessary regulations.

If you are elected to this office, please give us your top priority and how would you address it?

Doug Baldwin: My first and most important priority is addressing the crime problem here. We would do a complete realignment of the sheriff's office--putting more officers on the streets at the bottom end, alleviating some of the positions up top that are consuming a large amount of taxpayers' money. And we will make sure that we have enough officers on the street to cover some of the areas plagued with crime in our community.

John Johnson: My top priority is a threestep process. The first part involves actively reducing the availability of heroin in Escambia County. We have people that are dying in the Escambia County from heroin drug overdoses. The second part is that we have to reach out to the community. We have to improve our relationship with the community, and, specifically, because that enhances the enforcement operations that we're able to conduct. Then, the third part of that process is in preparing the men and women who work for Escambia County Sheriff's Office. The office is not very healthy, and we've got to make some changes to help them do their job better.

Ron McNesby: The biggest problem facing Escambia County today is the drug

mcnesbyforsheriff.com votedavidmorgan.com

problem. I travel around and talk to a lot of people. That seems to be the one thing that's on their minds. The second thing that we need to work on is retention of law enforcement officers. The current administration has told in the request for his budget before the county commissioners that he's having a hard time. He's losing 50 deputies a year. We've got to work harder to keep those deputies and give them a reason to stay in Escambia County--money, benefits, and relationships. That's really important. Part of that is through the officer training program. We need more training, better training than we have today.

David Morgan: We have an organization that's pointed in the right direction, and that's verifiable by the number of neighborhood watches we have. When I took office, we had 13. We now have 150. We've actually reduced our administration from 55 percent down to 27 percent. We train twice to the requirement of the state standard with our officers. Right now we have 433 sworn positions. I have 417 that are filled, so we have no issue with manpower. I would tell you that community outreach will continue to be the goal here. We've not had the problems in Escambia County that they've had in other areas of the United States primarily because of that. We have a tremendous, tremendous community outreach.

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WSRE’s Rally 2016 What are your plans for recruiting, training and retaining qualified personnel at the sheriff's office?

Johnson: The incumbent has chosen to spend over a million dollars in Law Enforcement Trust (LET) funds. Those funds could be used for training. If those funds are spent in another way, training dollars have to come from salary dollars. Training dollars have to come from the county commission in the annual budget. We wind up paying for that training twice. The funds that were paid out to some other purpose, and then we replace it and spend it again for training.

We also have to develop a retention plan.

We have men and women who have special knowledge and skills to do the jobs that they do, and we need to have a program that keeps them here.

McNesby: It’s a fact around the country that's it's hard to attract law enforcement officers today, and it's getting harder every day, simply because of what we see going on around the country. Officers are in a lot of danger today. It's hard to find people who are willing to take the job for the money that it pays. The officer's starting salary today, according to the sheriff's office website, is exactly the same as it was eight years ago.

We've got to do better for pay. We've got to do better for benefits, but we definitely have to do more for training. We've got to have a better training facility. Our officers shoot firearms down below the garbage dump. Not a very good operation. It should be improved on. It should be more training within the agency and bringing people from the outside to do the training.

Morgan: That's an inaccurate statement.

Our salaries are up to $35,000-$36,000.

We currently had approved by the Board of County Commissioners a salary study to be conducted at the end of this year to make our salaries commensurate with Florida counties that are the like size. Again, we train to twice the state required average on the range and also in our classroom training.

We've upgraded to computer models, which again we have officers in simulated situations, shoot/don't shoot scenarios, and are verbally controlled. We are state of the art when it comes to training. As far as trust funds and LET funds, monies can only be spent for certain items, and I would tell you that our budget is fine, as well as our training dollars.

Baldwin: We have to create a robust training program to attract people across the board, minorities who represent the department in such a way where it helps attract other minorities into law enforcement. We also have to raise the salary of officers. We have to be able to retain officers and pay them a decent salary. If we don't do that, we're spinning our wheels. Training is very important, as well. Those training dollars can come from various sources. We can get grants. We can use the LET funds, but we have to be able to retain these officers.

August 25, 2016

Escambia County Commissioner District 5

Daniel J Smillie, Jr. Steven Barry (I)

Note: Barry was unable to attend. His answers are in separate sidebar.

With unemployment exceptionally high in the Century area, what plan can you offer for using BP settlement funds to provide job training in District 5?

Daniel J Smillie, Jr.: We need to have a community center. We need to have voc-tech training in there. A lot of people up there don't have a chance to learn. If we get some training to teach them voc-tech skills-welding, carpentry, this is going to help. There's a lot of building going on in the future with some companies coming up there, so we need to make sure, if it's voc-tech, if it's computer training, we can get it to them so they'll be ready to do the job, and they'll be the first ones to get a chance to have a job. That's the only way we can build Century up.

Given the transportation challenges in Northern Escambia, what can you propose to address these issues?

Smillie: The evacuation route if a hurricane comes is Hwy 29. There're a couple of places already that flood—at Atmore Highway and just north of Cedar Tree in Cantonment. We're going to have to address it. It's been bad for several years. If a hurricane comes, we can't even get out of here. There was talk about a bypass, but it still comes right back into Highway 29 there at Barren Road. We're going to have to put bridges in. We've got to bypass it. We have to open up the creeks so that the water can flow away because the evacuation route is stopped.

School Board, District 1 Kevin Adams votekevinadams.com

Willie Kirkland, Jr. votewilliekirklandjr.com

As the school district shifts to providing a computer for every student, what should the district do regarding teacher training and technical infrastructure?

Willie Kirkland, Jr. They should make sure that the kids, the parents, the teachers, are all on the same page. They should make sure that the parents have the time and the education to know how to work these items properly. That way they can make sure their kids work them properly.

Kevin Adams: I'm just really pleased that the superintendent and the board are providing these Chrome notebook computers for third graders up. It's great. The technology is just ever increasing. The district has already increased bandwidth. They've improved the network infrastructure. Yes, and the teachers are being trained right along with them. I think we're on the right track.

We'll just keep monitoring it and see if we need to make any more improvements.

What are your ideas related to student discipline that would not require outof-school suspensions or expulsions?

Kirkland: We should utilize in-school suspension, after-school suspension even more. Suspension and expulsion should be our last choice. We should have many other options. That's the word, options.

Suspension and expulsion should be our last option at all times.

Adams: We've got to make sure that the teachers are allowed to teach and that the kids are allowed to learn. Those with chronic behavioral problems, they need to go in another stream with a behavioral management program. Hopefully, outside the after-school or on the weekends or whatever applies to that. The biggest emphasis that I've heard from District 1 voters is discipline in the classroom. If we can control that classroom, that improves the educational environment.

Steven Barry Commissioner Steven Barry, who is running for re-election to his District 5 seat, could not attend the Rally 2006 forum, because of a county commission meeting. Here are his answers to two questions asked on the show: With unemployment exceptionally high in the Century area, what plan can you offer for using BP settlement funds to provide job training in District 5?

Steven Barry: Workforce training is going to be a part of the deployment of the BP RESTORE dollars. When you're looking at areas, especially those struggling socioeconomically, you look first at how can you utilize the assets that the public already owned, whether it's the county, the city, the town of Century, or the school district, or Pensacola State College. There is former school space that can be converted into offices and for training. What I'd love to see is the 40-hour a week programs out there to enhance the actual skilsl in training. Classes in welding and commercial electrical certification are now offered. More classes can directly impact unemployment.

Given the transportation challenges in Northern Escambia, what can you propose to address these issues?

Barry: Making up two-thirds of the county's square mileage, transportation is the single biggest issue, infrastructure-wise, that we deal with in District 5. Local Option Sales Taxes do give us the continuity of the cash flow to finance considerable operations. We've had a great working relationship with Rep. Clay Ingram, chair of the House Transportation Committee, who is helping put FDOT dollars with county dollars on projects such as enhancing the old Chemstrand corridor and the realignment of Quintette Road.

11

WSRE’s Rally 2016 Escambia County Tax Collector

Buck Lee

facebook.com/BuckLeeForTaxCollector Please assess the performance of the Escambia County Tax Collector's Office.

Where is the office performing well? Where are opportunities for improvement?

Buck Lee: I'll bring my experience from Jack Lee Buick, which is customer service.

That's what we have to do with any government building. People hate to walk into a government building. I walked into one of the government buildings the Tax Collector had. I had to wait an hour, didn't like that, and people shouldn't have to do that. Also, people don't realize that the Tax Collector handles concealed weapon applications.

When I told friends of mine that I was endorsed by the NRA, they said, ‘What does the NRA have to do with Tax Collector?’

Well, we do the applications. In my first 90 days, I'll meet with every employee. They're right there on the front line. What is your suggestion to make this more efficient and more customer friendly, and then we'll move from there.

Scott Lunsford: I'm very proud of the opportunity we've had at the Tax Collector's Office. We have developed programs to help our homeless veterans, and we've reached out into community to bring good service. Most of the time, our wait is less than an hour. Most customers spend 10 to 15 minutes waiting in line. We have a new queue-less system where you can check in online and do your waiting from home or while you're doing errands. You arrive at our office in just enough time to get it to the counter, and you'll get your service, and you'll be gone. I'm very proud of what we're doing, and we've got a lot of improvements to come. Our customer service is always

Scott Lunsford scottlunsford2016.com

priority, and it certainly will be my priority as your Tax Collector.

The Tax Collector's Office has a wide variety of duties to carry out. What training would you recommend for staff to perform theses duties effectively?

Lee: Well, when I got to the Island Authority 10 and a half years ago, I met with all the employees and found exactly what their duties were. I'd do the same thing with the Tax Collector's Office. Go in there and meet with the individuals, ask them what they do, is there a way that you can do it more efficiently, more customer friendly, and we'll move forward that way. I don't mind making changes, and I work with the coworkers. I don't call them employees or staff. They're coworkers, and we're going to make this thing work.

Lunsford: The Tax Collector's Office has a very robust training program for new employees. We take them to a training program for about 11 weeks. They learn how to read the paperwork, how to process the paperwork, how to interact with our customers. We teach them fraudulent document recognition so that forged documents do not get to our system. We teach them how to identify stolen vehicles, and vehicles with altered VINs for example. Where I would make an improvement as your Tax Collector would be having an ongoing system. I would rather see us bring them back in on a more regular basis, hit the key points, focus on customer service training and things like that to make sure that they're armed to help the customers today.

Escambia County Commissioner, District 1

Jesse Casey jessecasey.net

Jeff Bergosh

bergosh2010.blogspot.com

With the destruction of the jails, Escambia County is housing inmates in other counties and facilities at a cost of $450,000 a month. How can this situation be improved before the construction of a new jail?

Jeff Bergosh: Well I think first and foremost you've got to look at the most cost effective way to manage that, it's my understanding that there was an offer made by Walton County for a significantly lower cost to house the inmates, as well as transport them. If Walton County's willing to do it for a lower cost, then we should have done that.

It's also my understanding that that figure is a bit inflated because there are fixed costs with housing the prisoners, whether they're here or over there. And the other issue that hasn't really been discussed is that with prisoners so far away, and not able to see their public defender, it's really becoming a burden on the court system.

Jesse Casey: We already know what the footprint of the jail was going to be, and we should already have a workable set of blueprints. We could accomplish that within nine months and then once we've located the land we could move forward there. Time is money, and we should already have that accomplished.

Karen Sindel: First of all, we need to look at how do we lock in the price? The price has fluctuated since we started doing this, so we need to review our current process and determine why is the price moving and how do we lock it in. The other thing we need to look into is what other opportunity is there to save money. If we part of that price is fixed, just with the inmates being there,

Karen Sindel karensindel.com

does it include travel and transport time?

Can some of this be handled through video interview or a camera opportunity? Part of not having a plan puts us in this kind of crisis management. We didn't have a plan, we moved into crisis management, we did what we had to do, but this is going to take a while so we need to step back and we need to reevaluate.

What is you top priority for use of the BP settlement funds the county expects to receive?

Bergosh: After you get through all the environmental projects, and you get down to economic development, the number one project on the list is the OLF Site 8 Economic Development Project for a commerce park. We've got to look, as soon as possible, at getting the master plan done. The item has been budgeted, line-itemed in the application, $650,000. We get that done and find a way to tie it to a master plan for all of that area of town. Then we find a way to get that project moving. That project will bring high paying jobs, it'll be done right, the residents around there will benefit from some services like a walking trail and a bike path.

Casey: They've had a committee to look at that, and they've ranked various projects, et cetera in line, so that's pretty much already in place there. Number one would be safety of the people and the residents who live in Escambia County. But I'm all about jobs; there's a lot of safety issues where there's roads, red lights, and jobs. Jobs are important.

Sindel: Since January when I announced I was running for office, I started the conversation very openly and very publicly that we need a master plan for Navy OLF 8, which

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is the 640 acres next to Navy Federal. This is our, as a community, big opportunity for job growth, for economic development, but there's no plan on how to handle the potential traffic. My suggestion was picked up by both the Chamber of Commerce and

Florida West, who wrote a letter of support to the Board of County Commissioners strongly suggesting that one of the top priorities with BP money for economic development needs to be defined, master plan for OLF 8.

Who Replaces Jeff Miller?

By Rick Outzen State Rep. Matt Gaetz, State Sen. Greg Evers, Cris Dosev, Brian Frazier, James Zumwalt, Rebekah Johansen Bydlak, Mark Wichern and Gary Fairchild—the Okaloosa County man who has done no visible campaigning—are the Republicans competing to replace Congressman Jeff Miller.

Gaetz, a Fort Walton Beach lawyer, has relied on his state legislative record of cutting taxes and regulations. He has pledged to support Donald Trump, build a wall and "kill Muslim terrorists."

"America's in trouble," said Gaetz, during the first political forum held in June. "I will go and fight and win for the conservative causes that are most important to the people of Northwest Florida."

Evers, a farmer from Baker, has touted that his constituents can always reach him and freely gives out his cell phone number.

He has the most name recognition in the race, having served most of the districts voters while in the Florida House and Senate.

"On Friday afternoon or Saturday morning when you need somebody to be your representative to cut through the red tape of government, you have the ability to make that phone call," said Evers. “I ask you, each one of you, to vote for Greg Evers, and my cell number is 850-240-0646."

Frazier, Dosev, and Zumwalt tout that their military expertise makes them the best fit to represent the region.

Frazier, a retired Navy captain that lives in Gulf Breeze, entered the race before Miller announced he was not seeking reelection in March. He contends he's the only candidate who has the national security expertise for the job.

"I've flown the border, walked the border, conducted anti-terrorism operations all over the globe and domestically," said Frazier. "I understand the problems that face America today."

Dosev, a real estate developer and Marine Corps veteran that has contributed $110,000 to his own campaign, has been unafraid to challenge Gaetz and Evers for being politicians. He believes his military service and small business background give him the real world experience to represent the district.

“We're going to start sending patriots to Washington and not politicians," said Dosev.

"We're going to start defending our rights in Washington, especially when you elect me to be your next congressman."

August 25, 2016

Zumwalt, a former Navy bomb-squad commander who served two tours in Iraq, is capitalizing on his military career and time Congressman Miller's adviser. His family name may be familiar to many veterans. His grandfather was an admiral who oversaw the Navy during the Vietnam War "America's under attack, and it's no longer an exaggeration to say Americans are dying," said Zumwalt. "I humbly ask for the opportunity to fight for that freedom for Northwest Florida and the Republic in Washington."

Bydlak, a 25-year-old with deep family roots in North Escambia County, has a very direct conservative message, more in the vein of Ronald Reagan and Ron Paul, for whom her husband served as fundraising director, than of Trump. She seeks to reduce federal spending and get government out of the lives of its citizens.

"I'm running for Congress because we have a problem in this country," said Bydlak. "Whether we're talking about federal involvement in education or healthcare or your gun rights, Washington must be opposed."

Wichern, a Santa Rosa Beach businessman, has a plan to restore the Republic.

He sees two problems with the federal government— non-constitutional expansion of the federal government and the Federal Reserve Bank.

"It's a private bank. I don't know how we've allowed this to happen for the last 100 years, but we need to fix it," said Wichern.

Candidate Websites: Rebekah Bydlak rebekah2016.com Cris Dosev crisdosevforcongress.com Greg Evers gregevers.com Brian Frazier brianfrazierforuscongress.com Matt Gaetz mattgaetz.com Mark Wichern wichernforcongress.com James Zumwalt zumwaltforcongress.com

13

U.S. Senate Race

By Rick Outzen

Democratic Primary

Democrats see Florida's U.S. Senate seat as one they can win as the party moves to retake a majority of the Senate this election cycle.

Two congressmen, Alan Grayson and Patrick Murphy, have dominated a field that includes Pam Keith, a labor attorney from Miami; Orlando developer Roque "Rocky" De La Fuente; and personal injury attorney Reginald Luster of Jacksonville.

Grayson has garnered support from the Bernie Sanders progressive wing of the party. Murphy has the backing of the White House and mainstream leadership of the Democratic Party. Keith is the only candidate that has spent much time in Escambia County this summer.

Both Grayson and Murphy have taken hits in the weeks leading up to the Aug. 30 primary. Grayson lost several endorsements from progressive groups because of domestic-abuse allegations by his ex-wife.

Murphy has faced allegations that he inflated his resume.

Keith, who served as a judge advocate in the U.S. Navy, wants to break the gridlock in Washington, D.C. by focusing

on helping the middle class. De La Fuente sought the Democratic Party's nomination during their presidential primaries and failed to win a delegate. Luster, former assistant U.S. attorney during the Clinton administration, promotes himself as an outsider who will create jobs and reform the federal government.

Libertarian Party of Florida

Augustus Invictus and Paul Stanton face off in a rare Libertarian primary.

To say that Invictus is controversial is an understatement. LPF chairman Adrian Wyllie resigned from his position when Invictus announced his campaign because he felt Invictus was a "violent Fascist and Neo-Nazi." In March, Canadian Border Service Agents held Invictus for three hours and denied his entry into Canada, citing possible protests and the likelihood of violence.

Stanton is the standard Libertarian candidate. He wants to end the U.S. involvement in the Middle East and advocates for an end to the “War on Drugs” and an overhaul of the federal tax system.

Republican

Incumbent Marco Rubio planned to take a break from politics after he dropped out of the presidential race, but party leaders pulled him back into the U.S. Senate race, when it became apparent that none of the prospective Republican candidates could guarantee a victory in November.

The top contenders dropped out and immediately endorsed Rubio. Carlos Beruff, Ernie Rivera and Dwight Mark Anthony Young stayed in the race. Of the three, Beruff is the only serious challenger to Rubio.

Beruff, a wealthy south Florida homebuilder, has run a Donald Trump-type campaign blasting Rubio for missing Senate votes and not committing to complete his second term if re-elected. On the campaign trail, Beruff, who has plowed over $4 million of his own money into his campaign, has said that Rubio is simply setting himself up for another presidential run in 2020 should Trump fail to win the White House.

Rubio has avoided a war of words with Beruff. He has said his office stayed on top of key issues while he is on the campaign trail.

He has touted a list of accomplishments, such as the sanctioning Hezbollah and pushing for more accountability at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Candidate Websites: DEMOCRATS Roque "Rocky" De La Fuente rocky2016.com Alan Grayson senatorgrayson.com Pam Keith pamkeithforsenate2016.com Reginald Luster reginaldluster.com Patrick Murphy murphyforflorida.com LIBERTARIAN PARTY OF FLORIDA Augustus Invictus invictusforsenate.com Paul Stanton stanton2016.com REPUBLICANS Carlos Beruff carlosberuff.com Ernie Rivera ernierivera.com Marco Rubio (I) marcorubio.com Dwight Mark Anthony Young dwightyoungforsenate2016.com

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Inweekly's Picks

By Rick Outzen

Since we published our first election guides in 2000, Inweekly has published its endorsements. Overall this year's slate of candidates is one of the best we've seen in the eight elections, three special elections, and 15 primaries that we've covered.

U.S. SENATE

Democrat: Pam Keith Keith is the only Democratic candidate to spend any significant time in Pensacola.

She is a military veteran. She traveled the globe as a child while her father served in the U.S. Foreign Service. Keith brings a unique perspective to the office.

Libertarian: Paul Stanton The Deland, Fla. native is the only true Libertarian in this race. He is committed to an agenda based on the principles of peace, individual freedom and a common sense approach to taxes.

Republican: Marco Rubio (I) Rubio is far more qualified than any of his opponents. He helps the Republican Party connect with the growing Hispanic population while pushing for his Conservative ideals.

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVE,

DISTRICT 1

Republican: Matt Gaetz Gaetz has been a talented state lawmaker that led the fight to cut taxes and regulations while helping the private sector create hundreds of thousands of jobs. As conservative as his political stances have been, Gaetz has been a big advocate for medical marijuana in Florida. His passion and compassion impress us.

FLORIDA STATE SENATE, DISTRICT 1

Republican: Doug Broxson During the BP oil spill, Broxson challenged the claim process by visiting their Ohio facility. He has fought to improve infrastructure and bring jobs to our region. Broxson will help build a cohesive Northwest Florida legislative delegation.

ESCAMBIA COUNTY TAX COLLECTOR

Republican: Scott Lunsford The job of tax collector needs to be an apolitical job. It demands more on technical knowledge about how the system works than most constitutional offices. Lunsford has put his time in the office and knows its ins and outs.

SHERIFF

Republican: David Morgan (I) Morgan told all of us that he would only serve two terms. Unfortunately, his work is not done. Escambia County is safer today, and the public trusts him to run an honest, straightforward law enforcement agency.

August 25, 2016

COUNTY COMMISSIONER, DISTRICT 1

Republican: Karen Sindel Sindel brings a different outlook to the county commission. She has served as the vice president of Development for the National Flight Academy and understands the need to plan better and avoid knee-jerk reactions to problems.

COUNTY COMMISSIONER, DISTRICT 5

Republican: Steven Barry As chairman, Barry dealt with the Confederate flag controversy by allowing everyone to speak while keeping tempers from flaring. His cool, steady demeanor has been refreshing for the county commission.

SCHOOL BOARD, DISTRICT 1

Nonpartisan: Willie C. Kirkland, Jr. Kirkland is a successful businessman, whose kids have all attended the Escambia County public schools. The district needs more business people on its board to help pull it out of the bottom of the state's rankings.

ECUA, DISTRICT 1

Republican: Vicki H. Campbell (I) Campbell has been a champion for recycling since she was elected. ECUA launched its state-of-the-art compost operation and built its recycling center under her watch.

ECUA, DISTRICT 3

Democrat: Clorissti Mitchell Mitchell is a rising star in the Democratic Party. She has served her community in several roles over the years and knows her district well. District 3 needs a board member who lives in the district.

ECUA, DISTRICT 5

Republican: Jim Taylor The ECUA board also needs new faces. The incumbent, Larry Walker, was first elected to the board in 1988. That is more than enough time for any board member.

STATE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT

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DIFFERENCE MAKERS THREE UWF CHEMISTRY STUDENTS RECEIVE NATIONAL AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY SCHOLARSHIPS, NAMED ACS SCHOLARS FOR 2016-17 Three students from the University of West Florida Department of Chemistry were recently selected to join the National American Chemical Society Scholars Program. A total of 12 UWF students have been named ACS Scholars since 2013, receiving more than $100,000 in renewable scholarship funds.

“The success of UWF students in the ACS Scholars program is a direct result of the students’ hard work and our departmental mentoring and advising efforts,” said Dr. Karen Molek, assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry. “It is absolutely a group effort by all of our students and faculty.”

De’Zhanae McCall-Butler, Constance Smylie and Aaron Mena were awarded scholarships of up to $3,000 each and invited to join the prestigious ACS Scholars program, which encourages students to maintain high academic standards and work with a mentor to ensure success in the field of chemical sciences following graduation.

McCall-Butler, a sophomore biochemistry major, received a $3,000 scholarship for the 2016-17 academic year. A member of the UWF Chemistry Club, UWF Chemistry Scholars Program and Phi Eta Sigma National Honors Society, she said the award will not only allow her to focus on her studies and research without having to worry about finances for the upcoming school year, but will also provide valuable educational and professional development opportunities.

“Being in the ACS Scholars program alone is beneficial to my academic career because I will have many opportunities I wouldn’t have otherwise, like being mentored by professionals in the chemistry field,” she said. “Being an ACS Scholar also motivates me to work and study harder to meet the standards set by predecessors.”

Smylie, a sophomore biochemistry major, was awarded $2,000. She said she is looking forward to the experiences she will gain through the ACS Scholars program that will prepare her for her future career as an MD/PhD physician scientist with research interests in pharmacology and molecular sciences.

“The ACS Scholars program will enable me to expand my network and gain diverse experiences through my participation on projects with individuals in different specialties,” she said. “It will also allow me to become more knowledgeable in my field, further impacting my future.”

Mena, a senior chemistry major, received a $1,000 scholarship for his last year as an undergraduate. For the current research assistant, UWF Chemistry Scholar and tutor, and president of the UWF Chemistry Club, becoming an ACS Scholar is one more achievement to add to an undergraduate education characterized by success.

“I was most interested in becoming an ACS Scholar for the program’s emphasis on promoting diversity in sciences,” he said. “It’s something I’ve really focused on during my time at UWF. As a Latino, I want opportunities to be open to all ethnicities. I also want there to be diversity across the fields. This year, I’ve opened the Chemistry Club up to students in any science, technology, engineering or math field, because I believe we all have something to learn from each other.”

The ACS Scholars program was established in 1994 to attract African-American, Hispanic and American-Indian students considered underrepresented in the chemical sciences by the National Science Foundation to pursue careers in the field. The program also aims to help build awareness of the value and rewards associated with careers in chemistry and assist students in acquiring skills and credentials needed for success.

For additional information about the ACS Scholars program, visit www.acs.org. To learn more about the UWF Department of Chemistry, visit www.uwf.edu/chemistry.

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WEEK OF AUGUST 25 - SEPTEMBER 1

Arts & Entertainment art, film, music, stage, books and other signs of civilization...

Space-Pop Has Landed

by Shelby Smithey

Translating this generation's love affair with all things sci-fi, The Landing, or songwriter and solo artist Jon Bell, combines infectious indie synth-pop with an ode to a style of music popularized by composers of the 1950s and 60s, at the height of the Space Race.

Bell refers to his genre as "space-pop," and started his project from his bedroom studio in Brooklyn. Originally from Arlington, Virginia, Bell relocated to Brooklyn where he began releasing songs in 2013.

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As for details on his personal life, Bell said that he likes to keep the focus on the music.

"I recognize that no one does something by themselves, everything from getting second opinions from my roommates to the people that come to shows have an effect," he said. "I don't want to just put the focus on me."

Bell said that the project in general is malleable and always changing.

"I'm not The Landing," he said. "Everyone at the show and partaking in the activity is The Landing. I don't want people getting

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future in their music, which I strive to recreate caught up in who I am, instead focusing on in a more modern/current soundscape with what the songs are about. It's an all-incluThe Landing." sive sort of thing."

Bell said that he thinks his EP "We Are" is a Bell said that his fascination with all things more introspective approach to these universal astronomy and science fiction didn't really themes, while "How Strange To Be" is a bit pick up until just a few years ago. He started more of a celebration of them. obsessively listening to the lectures of science "Both EP's are an effort to explore the utter popularizers like Neil DeGrasse Tyson and improbability, the absolute miracle that is life Lawrence Krauss, reading the non-fiction of on Earth, and are an attempt at reaching Carl Sagan and Fritjof Capra, and the fiction of a broader, Cosmic perspective in which to Isaac Asimov and Robert Heinlein. place our existence," Bell said. "Whether it "I felt, and still feel, a cultural shift of comes close to any of this, I make no claims, renewed interest in these areas," Bell said. "In but aside from this intention the songs on pop-culture, we've seen the releases of movies these two EP's are my personal spacey-spin like ‘Gravity,' ‘Interstellar' and of course ‘Star on the indie-pop tune.

Wars.' On television, we've seen the revamping Bell said that he tours as a three-piece with of Carl Sagan's popular mini-series ‘Cosmos' his good friends Adam Price, a classical and hosted by Neil DeGrasse Tyson but this time jazz clarinetist who plays keys/synth and the on a major network and during primetime, Space-Clarinet, called an EWI in the band, also the return of ‘The X-Files' and the recent and Jeff Hatcher, a formally-trained jazz popularity of ‘Stranger Things.' Not to mention drummer playing kit, electric drum pads and how the NASA missions to Pluto and Jupiter, backing vocals. the reporting of water on Mars, the discovering The tour has been absolutely amazing," of gravitational waves, which all seem more in Bell said. "We actually stopped in Pensacola on the public consciousness than ever before in our way to SXSW this past March and had such my lifetime." an amazing time playing Sluggo's; we knew we Bell said that he is heavily influenced by needed to come back." {in} jazz and 20th-century classical music, which he thinks makes its way into the studio when he's working on this project.

"In particular, I draw from a genre of music now referred to as Space-Age WHAT: The Landing with Crystal Coast, Nebular Pop, which was the style of American Theory and Christina Cusack big band composer/arrangers of the WHEN: 9 p.m. Friday, Aug. 26 1950's and 60's during the height of the WHERE: Sluggo’s, 101 S. Jefferson St. Space Race," he said.

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calendar THURSDAY 8.25

WORK ON FLORIDA TRAIL 8 a.m. Regular meet

up of Western Gate Florida Trail Association to work on National Scenic Trail and side trail.

Meet at Blackwater River Forestry Center, 11650 Munson Highway. meetup.com/ftawesterngate

LUNCH AND LEARN: BALANCE HORMONES NATURALLY 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. $10-$15.

Ever'man Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org WINE TASTING AT AWM 5 p.m. Aragon Wine Market, 27 S. 9th Ave. aragonwinemarket.com TOASTS OF THE COAST 5:30 p.m. $65. Beverages paired with coursed dinners. Fish House, 600 Barracks St. fishhousepensacola.com NATURAL HEALING/ CANCER STUDY 6-8:30 p.m. Free. Ever'man Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org BLUE WAHOOS VS. MOBILE BAYBEARS 6:30 p.m. $7-$54. Blue Wahoos Stadium, 315 W. Cedar Ave. bluewahoos.com. Watch live on BlabTV. DANCE LESSONS 6:30 p.m. Ballroom, Swing, and Country. Professional partner dance instruction for all skill levels. DanceCraft, 8618 Pensacola Blvd. $10. dancecraftfl.com

FRIDAY 8.26

TOOLS TO QUIT SMOKING 3-5 p.m. Support group. Ever'man Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org WINE TASTING 5-7 p.m. Out and about in East Hill on Friday night? Stop by City Grocery for their free weekly wine tasting. City Grocery, 2050 N. 12th Ave. HAPPY HOUR COOK OUTS 5 p.m. Drink specials, free cookout. Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. sevillequarter.com VINYASA YOGA FLOW 6-7 p.m. Support group.

Ever'man Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org DATE NIGHT DANCING 6:30-8:30 p.m. Learn the basics of several romantic ballroom and country-dance styles in unique group classes that keep partners together. DanceCraft, 8618 Pensacola Blvd. $10. dancecraftfl.com BLUE WAHOOS VS. MOBILE BAYBEARS 6:30 p.m. $7-$54. Blue Wahoos Stadium, 315 W. Cedar Ave. bluewahoos.com. Watch live on BlabTV. PENSACON PRESENTS: DRESS UP OR DRESS UP COSTUME BALL 7-11 p.m. $25. Pensacola Little

Theatre, 400 S. Jefferson St. pensacolalittletheatre.com

818 1

COUPLES COOK: BRAZILIAN FLAVORS OF SUMMER 7-9 p.m.

$50 per couple. Pensacola Cooks Kitchen, 3670 Barrancas Ave. cookingschoolsofamerica.com/pensacolacooks

VINYL 6-YEAR ANNIVERSARY PARTY 7 p.m. Free. Vinyl

Music Hall, 2 S. Palafox. vinylmusichall.com

THE LANDING, CRYSTAL COAST, NEBULAR THEORY, CHRISTINA CUSACK 9 p.m.

Sluggo's, 101 S. Jefferson St. facebook.com/sluggospensacola MONTHLY ANIME NIGHT 9:30 p.m. Free. Treehouse Cinema, 1175 Gulf Breeze Pkwy. treehousecinemagulfbreeze.com

SATURDAY 8.27

First Annual Glass Seconds Sale / Photos Courtsey of Joe Hobbs & 3Heads Glass

SANTA ROSA FARMERS MARKET 8 a.m.-1 p.m.

Fresh local produce, honey, baked goods and live music. Pace Presbyterian Church, Woodbine Road, Pace.

CLEAN UP AT FORT PICKENS All supplies are provided. Meet at the fishing pier parking lot at the very end of Ft Pickens Road, 7-8 miles from the park entrance. For more information, contact oceanhourfl@gmail.com or baybluffscleanup@gmail.com.

PALAFOX MARKET 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Fresh produce, live plants, baked goods, fine art and antiques are just a few of the items offered at the weekly Palafox Market. Items originate directly from participating vendors, including dozens of local farmers, home gardeners, and area artists. Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza, N. Palafox. palafoxmarket.com FIRST ANNUAL GLASS SECONDS SALE 10 a.m.-5 p.m. The sale features one-of-a-kind glassworks created by Joe Hobbs, John Shoemaker, and 3Heads Glass at dramatically reduced prices. First City Art Center, 1060 Guillemard St. firstcityart.org.

DEBBY'S KITCHEN 11 a.m.-1 p.m. $10-$15.

Chicken Piccata. Ever'man Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org REAL EYES ALBUM RELEASE 1-4 p.m. The Music Box, 3960 W. Navy Blvd. facebook.com/musicboxpensacola CANNING 101 2-4 p.m. Free. Ever'man Educa-

tional Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org

THE JACKSONIAN GUARD COLORS CEREMONY

MONDAY 8.29

6 p.m. Free. Every Saturday through August.

Plaza Ferdinand VII, Palafox between Government and Zaragoza.

BLUE WAHOOS VS. JACKSONVILLE SUNS 6:30 p.m. $7-$54. Blue Wahoos Stadium, 315 W. Cedar Ave. bluewahoos.com. Watch live on BlabTV.

SEVILLE QUARTER MILERS 5:30 p.m. Runners meet in front of Seville Quarter for a run around downtown. Free pasta and drink specials after the run at Fast Eddie's. Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. sevillequarter.com AROMATHERAPY BASICS 6-7 p.m. Ever'man Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org

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BLUE WAHOOS VS. JACKSONVILLE SUNS

SAENGER CLASSIC SERIES: NORTH BY NORTHWEST 7 p.m. $5. Saenger Theatre, 118 S. Palafox.

ERIC LINDELL 8 p.m. $15. Vinyl Music Hall, 2 S.

Palafox. vinylmusichall.com DANCE PARTY 8-midnight. Strictly ballroom.

DanceCraft, 8618 Pensacola Blvd. $10. dancecraftfl.com AT THE HEART OF IT, CHRISTIAN ROCK, CASPER, NELSON GATLIN 9 p.m. $5-$10.

Sluggo's, 101 S. Jefferson St. facebook.com/ sluggospensacola

SUNDAY 8.28

WAKE UP HIKE 7 a.m. Meet at Bay Bluffs Park, Scenic Highway at Summit Ave., for a brisk one to two-hour walk with brunch to follow at an area restaurant.

BLUE WAHOOS VS. JACKSONVILLE SUNS 4 p.m. $7-$54. Blue Wahoos Stadium, 315 W. Cedar Ave. bluewahoos.com. Watch live on BlabTV.

6:30 p.m. $7-$54. Blue Wahoos Stadium, 315 W. Cedar Ave. bluewahoos.com. Watch live on BlabTV.

TUESDAY 8.30

LUNCH AND LEARN: PASTA TUESDAY 11:45

a.m.-12:30 p.m. $25. SoGourmet, 407-D S. Palafox. sogourmetpensacola.com FUNKY YOGA FLOW 6-7 p.m. Free. Ever'man Educational Center, 327 W. Garden St. everman.org DANCE LESSONS 6:30 p.m. Country, Swing, and Ballroom. Professional partner dance instruction for all skill levels. DanceCraft, 8618 Pensacola Blvd. $10. dancecraftfl.com

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news of the weird VIRTUAL FANDOM The phenomenal Japanese singer Hatsune Miku (100 million YouTube hits) is coming off of a sold-out, 10-city North American concert tour with high-energy audiences (blocks-long lines to get in; raucous crowd participation; hefty souvenir sales), except that "she" isn't real. Hatsune Miku is a projected hologram on stage singing and dancing (but her band is human), and her May show in Dallas, according to a Dallas Observer review, typically ignited frenzied fans who know the show's "every beat, outfit ... and glow stick color-change." Her voice, a synthesized "vocaloid," is crafted in pitch, timbre and timing to sound human. (The latest PlayStation brings Hatsune Miku into the home by virtual reality.)

THE FINER POINTS OF LAW Make Up Your Mind, Feds: On Aug. 11, the federal government's Drug Enforcement Agency famously refused to soften the regulation of marijuana, leaving it (with heroin) as a harsh "Schedule I" drug because, citing Food and Drug Administration findings, it has "no medical use." However, as the Daily Caller pointed out, another federal agency—Department of Health and Human Services—obtained a U.S. patent in 2003 for marijuana-derived cannabinoids, which HHS pointed out have several medical uses (as an antioxidant and for limiting neurological damage following strokes).

TOURISTS GONE WILD (1) Tourism officials in Iceland recently posted "hundreds" of signs at visitor attractions showing a squatting person in silhouette, with a small pile on the ground underneath —and the familiar diagonal line (indicating "don't"). Critics of the signs reluctantly admit Iceland's chronic shortage of public restrooms. (2) In a YouTube clip released in July, a Disney fan posted shot after shot of "rude" Chinese tourists at Shanghai Disneyland, coaxing their small children to urinate in public rather than in restrooms.

(3) The Tourism Bureau of Japan's Hokkaido island recently rewrote its etiquette guide for visitors to underscore the inappropriateness of "belching or flatulence" in public.

LEADING ECONOMIC INDICATORS Suspicions Confirmed: (1) A New York Times reporter, describing in June the rising prices of prescription pharmaceuticals, noted that a popular pain reliever (probably describing oxycodone) was available on the Paterson, New Jersey, black market for $25 a pill, while heroin was going for $2 a baggie. (2) The economic growth rate in Ireland for 2015 was revised—upward—in July. Growth of its gross domestic product was originally estimated at 7.8 percent, but subsequently—adding the paper value of several "inversions" (U.S. companies "moving" to Ireland to reduce U.S. taxes)—Ireland found that it was actually growing at 26.7 percent.

AWESOME! (1) Investigators revealed in July that an off-duty Aurora, Colorado, sheriff's

by Chuck Shepherd

deputy had justifiably fired his gun to resist a parking lot mugging—and that, furthermore, one of the bullets from Deputy Jose Marquez's gun had gone straight into the barrel of one of the handguns pointed at him. The investigators called the shot "one in a billion." (2) Matthew Lavin, 39, drew internet acclaim in July after he was gored through his left thigh while "running with the bulls" in the annual spectacle in Pamplona, Spain. Interviewed in his hospital bed by Madrid's The Local, he called it "the best time ever" and said he looked forward to another run next year.

WAIT, WHAT? The Borough Council of Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, was surprised to learn in June that, because of an existing local ordinance, dogs were not permitted in its brand-new Pompton Lakes dog park, created with great fanfare in an area of Hershfield Park.

The council vowed to fix the problem. (2) In June, a police watchdog agency in Dublin, Ireland, asked officers ("gardai") across the country to try to carry out house raids at "reasonable hours" so that they do not disturb the occupants. (In one complaint, gardai staged a 3:15 a.m. raid to search for evidence of stolen vehicle accessories.)

IRONIES Gary Durham, 40, was shot to death during a heated road-rage incident in Plant City, Florida, on Aug. 10. Durham had served 10 years in prison after an aggressive road-rage episode in 2001 in which he pursued another driver and knocked him to the ground, causing the man to hit his head, fatally, on the pavement. (Included in Durham's 2002 sentence was an order to take anger management classes.)

THE PASSING PARADE (1) The Elanora Heights Public School (a primary school in Sydney, Australia) recently banned clapping during student assemblies in an effort to help pupils with noise anxieties. To show audience approval, students are asked to "punch the air," "pull (on their) faces" or "wriggle about." (2) In July, The Nairobian newspaper reported the remarkable career of "Rosemary," reputed to be the Kenyan capital's oldest prostitute —still going strong at 64 after more than 5,000 clients.

She said she could make it through 40 on a good day, but never missed church on Sunday.

LEAST COMPETENT CRIMINALS Didn't Think Ahead: In July, Joshua Jacobs, 30, accidentally knocked down a traffic sign at 12:45 a.m. in Vero Beach, Florida, and, spotting a sheriff's deputy, sped away. The deputy gave chase -- especially, he said, given the fullygrown marijuana plant resting in the bed of the pickup. Jacobs was arrested. {in}

From Universal Press Syndicate Chuck Shepherd’s News Of The Weird © 2015 Chuck Shepherd

Send your weird news to Chuck Shepherd, P.O. Box 18737, Tampa, Fla., 33679 or weirdnews@earthlink.net, or go to newsoftheweird.com August 25, 2016

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Independent News | August 25, 2016 | inweekly.net

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