By an overwhelming majority--Escambia County citizens that were recently surveyed said they DON'T want additional residences constructed on the county's OLF-8 property.
By a massive 85% vote in this same survey--Escambians surveyed supported the county's continued push to support high-paying, high wage jobs. See the entire survey and all cross tabs here.
Interestingly--I've had several Beulah residents reach out to me and let me know what they want to see in the park. This one, below, comes from a couple that live right across the street from the OLF-8 and NFCU campus in the Nature Trail Subdivision. From their email:
"Your commuting maps plainly tell the tale – lots of people commute into Beulah to work, but they don’t live here. In fact, I’m told a majority of Navy Federal employees live in Santa Rosa County – their commute may be a bummer but they haven’t been eating dirt for over four years already. We think the wishes of those of us who live in Beulah should carry more weight.
The OLF-8 Property in Beulah was acquired by Escambia County from the Department of Defense for the express purpose of job creation. We taxpayers were sold by the original plan to create high paying jobs; we did not sign up to provide shopping experiences and residences. The county has submitted a preliminary application with Triumph Gulf Coast, which could lead to a $30 Million Dollar award for the county if we can create a minimum of 1000 good paying jobs on this property. We don’t want smokestack industries, of course, but the County needs revenue from the land in the form of property and sales taxes. We suggest:
High-tech
Manufacturing such as Aerospace/Medical devices:
Precision
machined parts, electronic assembly, etc.
Stents, shunts, ventilator filters, scalpels, etc.
Large Asset Management/Financial
Services/Mortgage Lender
JP Morgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, etc.
Tech
Companies/Cyber Security
Salesforce (they have 1900 job
openings!)
Networks
of Florida
Raytheon
Technology Integration Group
We’ve heard that many people want a “world class”
biking/walking trail around the perimeter. World class, according to the Capital
Trails Coalition, means:
1.
It must meet the Americans with Disabilities Act
(ADA) guidelines - be hard-surfaced for wheelchairs, recumbent bikes, and even
strollers.
2.
It must be at least 10 feet wide with wide turns
so bikes and walkers can pass safely.
3.
Have proper drainage in the lowland on the west
side.
4.
Be separated from vehicular traffic – don’t want
a child to end up in the roadway!
5. The trail could also have benches, informational signs, and even exercise equipment.
What we do NOT want:
1. Residential: Houses/apartments/condos don’t create high-wage jobs and they cost more for public services than they pay in property taxes. OLF-8 is ringed by residential development - the private sector is building plenty of houses, apartments, and condominiums in the area (some 2000 approved or under construction,) so we taxpayers don’t need to contribute. Besides, residences create cars – we have enough traffic.
2. Retail: Nine Mile Road is lined with retail from Beulah Road to University – grocery stores, fast food/restaurants, coffee shops, banks/credit unions, tire/oil change/auto repair, consignment shops, nail/hair salons, formal wear stores, gas stations, convenience stores, department stores, veterinarians, doctors, hospitals, eye care, and Lord knows what’s going in at the corner of Beulah and Nine Mile. I say Lord knows because no one else is going to be able to get into or out of that shopping center.
3. Buildings which are exempt from property taxes: no public schools, churches, government/military buildings. Such places generate traffic but no revenue.
Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Respectfully,
4 comments:
I agree with the resident from Nature Trail on no residences! I disagree with them on some of the land being used for governmental offices. While they don't generate revenue it is county land and therefore no additional expenditure other than construction will be necessary for that purpose. That in itself will save some money.
I also agree with the type of jobs mentioned to be pursued in order to qualify for the grant from the Triumph board. For years people have complained about no decent paying jobs, and our kids moving out of the area because of it. This would help keep some closer to home, no doubt. I encourage the BCC to pay heed to the citizen input on this project.
No one in Beulah wants to drive down 9 mile road past HWY 29 to get to retail shopping. Please.
I think at the end of the process we will have a compromise that provides something for everyone that is interested, countywide. I certainly feel there will be some form of retail component on the frontage of this property and 9-mile road-which will help us offset our acquisition costs. I would love a trail all around the field for use by citizens and a regional park with playgrounds for children and tennis courts for adults, like the Beulah park on Mobile Hwy.. I'd even agree to a small parcel to be set aside for use as an elementary school. But the lion's share of this property must be reserved for job creation---as was the original plan and the reason why we spent $18 Million to acquire this land....not to build condos, townhomes, subdivisions, agricultural sites/displays, a mall, a mini city, a lake, or any other thing. I believe in keeping my word to the people and taxpayers that paid for this property and expect us to create good-paying jobs with it for all citizens, countywide. So at the end of the sausage hopper, I strongly feel we will all get something.
Did you see the latest from the local democrats and socialists/communists?
What's Happening Pensacola facebook group is running an organized effort to get the tickets for the POTUS visit then discard them and be no show--and more
Look at the names. They are what is wrong with our country.
Perhaps the local republicans and organizers of the event and law enforcement should be aware of this in advance.
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