Pegasus Takes Flight in Escambia County!

Dignitaries, citizens, elected officials, and officers from Pegasus Laboratories, Inc. Celebrate the opening of Pegasus' newly acquired facility in Escambia County's Ellyson Industrial Complex on Thursday, April 28, 2022.

It was a clear blue sky and70 degrees in Escambia County's Ellyson Industrial Park this morning as a group of locally elected dignitaries, economic development leaders, business leaders, citizens, members of the chamber of commerce, and the press welcomed the leadership of Pegasus Laboratories, Inc., to their new facility.

The facility, at 9101 Ely Drive, was the former Hitachi Cable Facility.  It is now the property of Pegasus Labs.  They received a $2.5 Million Dollar Award from Triumph Gulf Coast in exchange for their commitment to fund 60 new jobs at the facility paying an average wage exceeding $60,000.00 per year.  In addition to this, Florida West and the PEDC assisted with a financing package which allowed for this company to retrofit and modernize this facility at a cost of over $12 Million Dollars to facilitate the work they do--pharmaceuticals for the veterinary industry.  Then, via a long-term leaseback agreement that's more complex than I'll get into here, the company will occupy this facility and pay rent to PEDC for use of the building they will have renovated.

I was honored to speak today on behalf of the Board
of County Commissioners at the ribbon cutting of Pegasus
Laboratories' newly acquired facility in Escambia 
County

And the winners from this deal will be Pegasus, the community, the county, and the citizens who get jobs at this 520 employee strong (140 locally after the new hires are brought aboard)--employee-owned business that was founded in the mid 1980s and merged with a Kansas City company in the late 1990s.

I met several retired employees of this company after I was given the opportunity to speak to the crowd as a representative of the Board of County Commissioners and after all the other dignitaries had spoken.

One individual told me she is retired at age 50 from the company--and was passionately supportive of the expansion.  Executives from Pegasus, during their speeches, touted the fact that many of the company's original employees had been able to retire comfortably via the growth in their stake of their (employee-owned) company.  Pegasus Executive Chairman Don Chew described the growth he expects from this company in the years ahead "We are a $50 Million Dollar company, going to $100 Million in the next few years--I'm confident of that." 

Another gentleman, Mr. Gary Cushing, (one of the original founders of the company) told us a great story about the early days of the company, operating on a shoestring budget, borrowing money for his first building and getting the builders to invest in the company, and getting the first big-successful product on the street (a drug that's now the leader in the industry for animal incontinence).

David Bear, from Triumph Gulf Coast, addresses the attendees at today's ribbon cutting

According to his recollection of the CDC (veterinary) approval process for this drug (now called Proin)--they (Pegasus) had the preliminary approval of their first of its kind medication for animals, with a primary active ingredient that, at that time, was an over the counter medicine that was and is common-phenylpropanolamine.  The success came quickly, according to Cushing.  "We were doing very well with the product in liquid and chewable formulations--but then the issue of illicit "cooking" of drugs containing phenylpropanolamine for the making of methamphetamine led to limits on the sale of these drugs."  he continued  "Luckily, one of our [Pegasus] guys knew the number for the #2 guy at the CDC, the man who could get us the green light to continue selling our medicine.  So we called him, we spoke to him, and what do you know--he had a pet that had incontinence!" He summed it up by saying "We got the approval we needed stamped that day, in one day!"

He was quick to point out that he's retired now--but I could see the passion in his face as he retold this story.  He also talked about a French company that early on tried to take on Proin.  "Our team of 7 salesmen beat that company--we beat them back and we are still on top." 

Great company, great history, great people.

Economic Development is alive and well here in Escambia County--and this was a great day for it!

Agonizing, Delayed Final Stretch for the Bellview Library Project.....

The Construction of the Bellview Library--District 1's First Public Library--has been beset with calamaties from day 1 to present which will push back the opening to late summer.  But we are now, thankfully, entering the home stretch in the process......

Earlier this afternoon I had the opportunity to tour our currently-under-construction, newest area libray, the soon to open Bellview Library.

Driving by the site, I had seen some progress ----but I had the lingering impression that the project was not progressing as it should.  Come to find out, I was right.  More on that, below.

So with this as the backdrop of my concern(s)--our office scheduled a site visit and walkthrough at the construction site and we brought in and included the project construction superintendent, the project architects from STOA, the county's project management team, the library services director, Administrator Moreno, and Asst. Administrators Hall and Bowers.  It was an all hands on deck evolution today.  And here's what we found out:

This project is months behind schedule, and more than likely several months away from completion.  If I had to guess--I'd say by the looks of it---- it will be a September or even October rather than a July grand opening.  This is disappointing for a number of reasons, but there are some explanations as to why this project is so far behind that were described by the folks assembled at the site meeting today.

Theft and property burglaries have been a recurrent theme.  "We've been robbed 7 times in the last 6 months on this jobsite!" explained job superintendent Brad.  He continued--"They've stolen tools, broken into storage lockers that had been double-bolted, they've stolen some high-dollar metal products we need for the next steps in the construction along with some tubing they probably thought was copper but that wasn't -- it was lengths of HVAC drain tubing that had a long lead time to order--so that has set us back."   I asked him point blank:  "How much in materials have these thieves made off with?"  To which he replied "The tools were $10K, the metals and other products from one of our subs was more than $15K--but more important than the costs of the materials stolen is the lead time in getting some of these specialized products, and so now we have to wait to finish until we get re-supplied."  he said in an exasperated tone.

Another issue that apparently was a problem was nobody had decided on what type of door to use for an emergency egress point that was found to be necessary during construction.  "Who decides?"  I asked--to which several looked at me for an answer.  So I quickly determined (by asking staff) what door we needed (which will be a $33,000.00 change order the library board will be funding)--and I said "Okay--there's the decision--get that one, the one Todd (Humble) wants."  And the decision got made on the spot.

So there have been construction delays, difficulty getting some odd-shaped windows, difficulty getting the right doors (due to supply chain issues) and we earlier had issues with stormwater and getting the appropriate sized drain lines funded.  Prior to all of this we had several revisions to our plans based on sonme site condition anomolies and other issues.   Then we had COVID and the resulting issues that brought forth. So we are now through with a lot of these problems, issues and setbacks.  And hopefully the visit today will provide some additional impetus on getting this project over the line.  I hope.

Because what I saw of what has been done on the inside, combined with some renderings that I was given during the visit, point to a really, really neat facility once it is finished.  I mean, it will have some really great amenities for the residents, students, and citizens who will utilize this library.

From multiple large meeting rooms, to state of the art computers and video games, to 3-D printers and maker space, to lots of digital media available for checkout from vending machines onsite, to the latest, most recent fiction for our adult citizen users--this facility once complete will have a litte bit of something for everyone.

It's just getting it finished that's the issue now.  We're in the pipe, headed for the checkered flag--but it's an agonizing, delayed final stretch.

SEE ALL THE ADDITIONAL PHOTOS BY CLICKING "Read More" below

The Eagle is Coming to Pensacola

 

The USCGC Eagle, pictured above will be making a 3-day port visit to our area in early June

Escambia County, the City of Pensacola, The Navy League of Pensacola,  and Seville Quarter are teaming up to welcome the United States Coast Guard Cutter Eagle and her crew to the City of Pensacola for a Ship's Party and Reception in Downtown on June 2nd from 5:00-8:00PM.

The Eagle will only be in Pensacola for a three day period, and we intend to honor her crew with a great gathering at the iconic downtown institution, Seville Quarter.

I was asked to help this visit by providing a sponsorship, so I will be bringing a funding request from my D1 Discretionary Funds to the first meeting in May to assist with helping to defray the costs of this port call and the ship's party.

The Eagle was originally built in Germany prior to WWII and after the war the United States took possession of the ship as a war prize.  It has been utilized by the Coast Guard ever since as a training ship for cadets, and is permanently stationed on the Thames River next to the Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut.  This is the 7th ship to carry the name "Eagle" in the history of the Coast Guard.  According to Commanding Officer, CAPT. Michael Turdo:

"Eagle is the largest tall ship flying the Stars and Stripes and the only active square-rigger in U.S. government service. A three-masted Barque, Eagle's foremast and mainmast carry square sails and her mizzenmast carries fore-and-aft sails..A seasoned permanent crew of eight assigned officers and 50 assigned enlisted personnel maintain the ship and provide a strong base of knowledge and seamanship for the training of up to 153 cadets or officer candidates at a time. Augmented by temporary crew during our training deployments, Eagle routinely sails with over 230 hands on board. Eagle offers our future officers the opportunity to apply the navigation, engineering, and other professional theory that they have learned in the classroom. Concurrently, they must handle the challenges of living aboard and working a large square-rigger at sea in order to build the teamwork, character, and leadership skills necessary for success in the service." 

Learn more about the Navy League of Pensacola and this upcoming visit by visiting the League's website here.

Follow the crew of the Eagle on their Facebook page, here.

Learn all about the history of the Eagle here.

Beulah Fire Station Construction Groundbreaking Friday, May 6th at 11:30AM

Exterior Elevations of the soon to be constructed Beulah Fire Station from the latest design drawings

Escambia County will host a groundbreaking for the newest fire station in the County--the Beulah Fire Station, Station 2,  on 9-Mile Road in Beulah.

The station will be modern, state of the art and will have all the amenities necessary to support the Firefighters and all of their equipment.  This location is the current site of Escambia's Station 2, which for decades was an all-volunteer station.

You can read all about what this station will look like and its size and functionality in this blog post from last year.

Recently, the county has paid for a full-time daytime crew of Firefighters, and the volunteers are running calls in the evenings and on weekends.  By all reports the new arrangement is working very well which is great for this community.

It has been a long road to get us to this point, getting the property acquired from the volunteers, getting the design done, cobbling together the funding, taking the project to bid, and now, finally, getting the construction started.

COVID-19 slowed the process significantly--but we are now back on track.

In addition to the groundbreaking, It will be my intention to dedicate the facility to two men and their families who have sacrificed so much over the years to this community and this station.  One of these individuals, Chief Dwain S. Bradshaw, sacrificed his life in the line of duty to the citizens of Escambia County.  The other, Chief Steve McNair, gave over 50 years of service to the Beulah community and helped build the current station 2.

These two men each gave for their community, gave much.  So it is my intention to honor both men with this facility which I will ask the BCC to support as I bring a resolution to name this, our newst ECFR station, The "Bradshaw-McNair" Fire Station.

I intend to bring the resolution and proclamation for naming this facility in honor of Mr. Bradshaw and Mr. McNair  to the regular Board of County Commissioners Meeting on May 5th, and to present the proclamation to Mr. Bradshaw's family and Mr. McNair the following day at the groundbreaking ceremony.

The entire Beulah community and all those who have served the Beulah Community as Volunteer Firefighters are invited and are encouraged to attend.  We will also have current fire personnel and other dignitaries present as well.  This will be a great day for the families of Mr. Bradshaw and Mr. McNair, the community, for Beulah, for ECFR, and for our entire county.

Everyone is invited to come and witness this great day in Escambia County! 

Read about Chief Dwain S. Bradshaw here and here

Read about Chief Steve McNair here 

"There is Hope" Endorsed by State Representative Michelle Salzman to Assist Escambia's Homeless

The letter above was sent out last week and forwarded to me by Mr. Caleb Houston.  Mr. Houston's organization, "There is Hope" is working to help the community tackle the various challenges associated with the homelessness issue we're all seeing throughout the area.  I have not found a webpage for this group, but this appears to be the group's facebook page.

PSC Formally Responds to Escambia BCC's Letter on FPL Rate Increases

I received the below response late yesterday morning to our letter sent to the PSC earlier this month on the topic of FPL's recent rate hikes......

Enigmatic, Complex Problem? or, Is the Criminal Justice System Failing Here? or is This 'Nothing to See Here'--Move Along....?

What would you do if this was happening in your neighborhood?

One of the things I most enjoy about my job as a County Commissioner is the never ending series of complex issues that appear for us to consider and try to solve.

Some are easy.  Many are difficult.  There are those that are achievable and doable. Some are resource intensive and cost prohibitive.  Some have no easy solutions and fester.   Others, still, require close coordination with other offices.

And then there are ones like this..... (here is the abbreviated setup, below)

Several residents of one D1 subdivision have expressed concern over an individual apparently "living" in his truck on his own unimproved residential lot in this same subdivision.  He allegedly parks it every day at around 10:00 PM, sleeps in the truck, then he gets up and leaves during the day.  The location is not far from a park, and very close to a school bus stop.  

Now, that in and of itself may not sound too troubling.  And our county code enforcement supervisor has already informed me that there is no prohibition on an individual sleeping in an operable vehicle on a piece of property that is owned by such an individual.  So our code enforcement folks have no play in any part of this issue so far as I have now been told personally by our code enforcement supervisor and our county attorney.

But the issue gets much more complex than just a guy sleeping in his truck--it always does, right?........

This same individual (who I will not name here) has his name, picture, profile, and address listed on the Florida Department of Law Enforcement's "Sexual Offender Registry" list.   And all the residents of the subdivision know this.  It was a big deal in the press and the neighborhood a few years back.

So I've been called upon by residents to solve it via code enforcement (which cannot be done, see above), and law enforcement has also been contacted.  I have reached out to Law Enforcement personally on this matter as well.

And according to law enforcement sources with whom I have now spoken that are aware of this situation particularly:

"We have made contact with this individual--it is his property, and he does not want to live there but nobody will rent to him and he has no place to go--so he is sleeping in his truck at night on his property until he can rent an apartment or house."  When I asked about the sexual offender FDLE posting, I was told "We made contact with his state probation officer who told us this individual has 'no restrictions' on where he can go---no restrictions"

Okay--here's a logical question one might ask:  If his probation has no stipluations regarding where he can lawfully go (schools, churches, playgrounds, etc.)----then why the hell is he on the sexual offender registry?1?  The two do not seem congruent.  Is it the scarlet letter, or is this guy getting a raw deal?  What is the story?!?

I asked the subdivision resident who initially contacted me  if by chance this association has HOA covenents that might precluded the man from living in his truck on the property daily as he's doing.  I'm told they do not have such covenants.

So this looks like one of those issues with no easy solutions.  Meanwhile--as always--parents need to be vigilant.  

Always.  

Always.

Out To Lunch......

For anyone to say EDATES' profound positive impacts on our community provide no benefit to the average citizen is a postition that is uninformed, ignorant, and incorrect.  It is an opinion that's "Out to Lunch."--and when stated at a public meeting will be immediately challenged with the truth and facts.

Yesterday the Board of County Commissioners unanimously approved the addition of an EDATE (Economic Development Ad Valorem Tax Exemption) extension referendum, for a 10 year period, to be added to the general election ballot this November.  

EDATE's are simply one economic development tool in our "tool kit" of incentives that allow for time limited (10 years maximum) forgiveness of some county ad valorem taxes in exchange for certain committments by large employers in our area.  These are allowed under statute, but the voters must approve these every ten years.  And the tax forgiveness only applies to county taxes--such businesses that receive EDATES must still pay 100% of school taxes from day one.  So these are actually good for us--but even better for the school board.

And not every economic development deal we do includes EDATES.  ST Engineering Aerospace, for instance, didn't get one.  Others have done deals to build jobs here without EDATES.  But still others required the use of EDATES to either keep an employer here, induce an employer to come, facilitate a developer to build (As the case was for Quint Studer's 'SouthTowne' building downtown) or to allow for an existing employer to expand their footprint.

A couple of years back the BCC was being relentlessly attacked by our liberal daily paper's cartoonist over EDATES.  And I pushed back with a three part series of posts that completely and thoroughly explained EDATES, described and provided documents about the then current EDATES the county had outstanding, and in the process totally obliterated ignorant Andy Marlette's position on EDATES.

Now we are asking citizens to renew our ability to offer these selectively and judiciously when and if they are appropriate------- and one member of the board is apparently staunchly, stridently opposed.

That's fine--one member of the BCC can say whatever he wants and in his circle of influence he can

Lexington Terrace Park Sunday Crowds: Some Feel it is "Getting Out of Hand......"

Photos/videos provided by a constituent

I've been contacted numerous times over the last several weeks about large, rowdy, crowds gathering at Lexington Terrace Park every Sunday.  This park, which is in D2 across from the Old Corry Field Post Office, has a large housing community as well as a park and a dog park.

Over the last several Sundays--the crowds coming out on Sunday afternoons have become larger and larger.  Now cars are parking illegally, blocking some roads, preventing citizens from entering, threatening some, and trying to "charge" a cover charge from others, allegedly.

The issue is boiling over and blowing up into complaints of which I am now hearing.

One constituent (a District 1 constituent that likes the Lex Terrace Dog Park and who frequents it) states:

"Good evening commissioner Bergosh, I hope you're having a great Easter.  I apologize for interrupting your weekend but I had to update you about the Lexington Terrace park situation.  The parties have gotten so large that people who want to use the dog park are being turned away by the party's "security."  This has gotten way out of hand and the County Commission needs to do something about this.."

he went on.. "As we're sitting in the park--the party started shooting off fireworks which caused panic at the dog park....Several people have called the sheriff's office over the past few weeks and each time the sheriff's office have said that the organizers had a permit there's nothing they can do..."

I've confirmed now that nobody had a permit.  Nobody has the right to block entrance to the park. Nobody has the right to charge an entrance fee, either.

Anecdotally, I've also heard allegations of numerous noise complaints associated with these parties--with some exasperated residents allegedly complaining, and I'm paraphrasing, that they "shouldn't have to listen to loud, obnoxious music where there is profanity, the "N-Word" over and over and language about Mother f-ing that  F-ing  "P word", etc. etc."---blasted so loud the words can be heard by nearby houses and families.

Nobody should have their quiet Sunday afternoon, at their own house, interrupted with loud music with this sort of language.  There's no permits issued for this sort of situation and this type of amplified "music".

Several residents have expressed such anger that I'm told there may be a presence of angry residents at the next BCC meeting this Thursday.  We will see I guess...

Meanwhile, it is my understanding that staff is investigating this and have asked the sheriff for assistance if necessary to ensure the park's rules are being followed and folks are not violating rules or laws with the gatherings.

What Can 7th Grade Students' Creativity and Problem Solving Skills Do to Help Local Government?

A local teacher has offered an interesting idea:  Let her 7th Grade Class tackle a tough county issue or two.....

This month is County Government Month.  I'm a bit ashamed to say it, but I did not know this until I was contacted by a teacher late yesterday afternoon who informed me of this.  In her email,  Ms. Amy Parker,  a 7th Grade History teacher at Pensacola's Creative Learning Academy, put forward an interesting idea:

"Dear County Commissioners,

As you know, we are in the midst of County Government Month. Do you happen to have a county problem that my students could research and help problem-solve? I know broadband access has been in the news recently. I am open to just about any subject - jail, public transportation, fire service, etc... I would love for them to research the problem, propose a solution that is within your budgetary parameters, and present their ideas to you. My students are extremely bright 7th graders. 

I recognize this is a big ask, but I want them locally engaged in government in a meaningful way. 

Sincerely,

Amy"

To which I responded:

"Hi Amy-

 Thanks for reaching out and I think this is a great idea!   I’ll work with my aide, Debbie Kenney, to come up with several challenging, real-life scenarios with which we are dealing currently that your students might want to tackle.  As a former school board member who has seen what these young students are capable of—I would not put it outside of the realm of reality that they might have some really creative, out of the box ideas that could help.

 And, they will learn from this exercise as well—which is probably the biggest plus.

 We will send some ideas over by the end of the week for your consideration.

 

Sincerely,

 Jeff Bergosh"

Why not give the students a crack at some tough issues?  Everyone knows the trope about parents going to their 13 year olds to make their technology work.  Many have heard about the CIA and NSA student summer camp where brilliant students crack codes.  Young students today--particularly the exceptional ones--look at things differently than the rest of us that are over 50.  They are creative, they are smart, they work together well, and they think differently about solving problems.  So I will take up Ms. Parker on her idea.

Some Potential Issues for their Consideration?

1.  Homelessness Issue in our community--and the Best way to spend $4 Million to effectively address this chronic problem in a way that is both sustainable and measurable?

2.   Societal/Social Issues in our community and country that lead to a county like Escambia spending more than 90% of its Ad Valorem tax revenues on Law Enforcement and Incarceration/Corrections--what solutions to lower this cost given the current conditions?

3.   Public Transportation:  Necessary according to most but too costly considering the revenue generated and the low number of persons served according to some.  Are there different ways we can serve the transportation-challenged while becoming more efficient and eliminating the reliance on Federal Grants and potentially eliminating or drastically reducing our 4 cent per gallon gas taxation on the citizens?

Sorrento Road Needs to be FIXED! Part I: I Heard You Loud and Clear

At my recent town hall meeting (minute 49:30) in Perdido/Innerarity--I heard the citizens loud and clear:  "FIX the Sorrento Road MESS!"

And I have heard from many constituents since then all saying the same thing:  Sorrento Road is dangerous, dilapidated, and insufficient to handle the traffic it currently has--FIX IT!

Sorrento Road is the name of state road 292 that leads from Blue Angel over into Perdido--becoming Perdido Key Drive at the intersection of Sorrento, Gulf Beach Highway, and Perdido Key Drive.

It is a road that is travelled frequently by locals and visitors alike--and it is a road that has a series of tremendous car collissions, including several fatal ones, over the last decade and a half.

At one point from 2011-2014--there was a real possibility of 4 laning Sorrento Road as the part of a larger project to provide a four lane evacuation route from Perdido Key Drive, through Sorrento Road, to Blue Angel, and ultimately out of Escambia County headed East.  That project did not come to fruition and was all but killed upon the changing of Leadership in Escambia's District 2 in 2014.

Meanwhile, the project to improve and 4 lane Sorrento Road has languished far down the priorities rankings on the Florida Alabama Transportation Planning Organization's (TPO) priorities list.  

So I told the audience at the town hall and others who have contacted me about Sorrento Road that now that it is within District 1 and I can lobby for this to be done as the commissioner representing this area and I understand the pressing nature of getting this road enhanced for safety--I am going to work as hard as I am able to get this bumped up on the priority list at the TPO so that this state road can be improved and the carnage on this roadway can end.

At last week's TPO meeting - we had a robust discussion with the panel as well as with FDOT's Bryant Paulk--culminating in my request for a formal safety audint of this state road by FDOT.  The below email was sent after the meeting by county roads division director Chris Phillips to Mr. Paulk:

"Bryant,

 This email is to follow up with written communication regarding Commissioner Bergosh’s request for a safety audit to be conducted on Sorrento Road (SR292) from Blue Angel to Innerarity Point / Gulf Beach Hwy intersection.  As discussed after the meeting, if you could provide results of the prior safety audit, it would be beneficial for my information to see what was examined for increase safety.  It would also be of benefit to see if the addition of the paved shoulders coming with this current mill and resurface project is a result of that previous safety audit.  I anticipate that since construction is about to commence for the mill and resurface and additional turn lanes at Bauer, the safety audit may take place after that construction is complete.  If there is any chance to look at the corridor sooner than later to potentially work some improvements into the current project, we would welcome that..." 

On Area's Best, Top-Rated Morning Drive Radio Show-- Real News with Rick Outzen on AM1370 WCOA-- this Morning at 7:10

I've once again been invited to appear on the area's #1 rated, most entertaining, enlightening, and informative morning news program, 1370 WCOA's "Real News with Rick Outzen", later this morning at 7:10 AM.

I've once again been invited to appear on the area's most informative, influential, and most highly rated morning drive news radio station 1370 WCOA and the morning drives best, most informative and highly rated program "Real News with Rick Outzen" later this morning, at 7:10.

I've been asked to appear on the show as the lead- off guest, discussing last week's committee of the whole where the BCC discussed the following:

1.  Rural Broadband

2.  Jail Medical Malpractice Insurance (costs are going up on everything concerned with jail medical)

3.  Homelessness in the area and the best ways for Escambia County to spend our $4 Million allocation earmarked for homelessness solutions.

4.  "American Magic"--the Nation's leading contender to re-win the "America's Cup" sailing competition and their intention of making our community and bay their training headquarters.

It should be a great conversation--lots of issues within these four topics to discuss.

Once the podcast is created--I will link it here

71st Coffee with the Commissioner Event: Deep Dive on Public Safety and County Administration

Yesterday morning's Coffee with the Commissioner featured Administrator Wes Moreno and Public Safety Director Eric Gilmore and was a long-form discussion on county governance/administration and public safety.  It was a very informative chat.  Watch the video of the event here, below.

What's the State of our Current County Staffing Initiatives?

We are making some good progress on hiring but we have much work to do on filling our massive number of vacancies.

County HR Director Crystal Dadura sent us the county's most recent vacancy report earlier this week.  The summary snapshot is above, the full report listing all the jobs that need to be filled can be found here.

Administrator Wes Moreno discusses some of the strategies we are employing to fill the vacancies--to include our hiring fair this month on the 23rd all day at the civic center--beginning at minute 6:00 of this video.

Board of County Commissioners Installing Bus Driver Safety Enclosures on our ECAT Buses for Operator Safety

Escambia County has begun the process of installation of Bus Driver safety compartments on ECAT buses.  This one, pictured above, is among the first installed in our local fleet.

Bus Driver Safety has been an issue discussed for the last several years among the members of the Board of County Commissioners and drivers who have attended our meetings.

First, it was incidents of violence and abuse toward drivers that was concerning.

Then it was and has been COVID-19.  (Physical barriers don't protect drivers from COVID-19)

Several drivers around the country and in other parts of Florida have been seriously injured and/or killed on the job by violent passengers.

Justin McGriff murdered Tampa Bus Driver
Thomas Dunn in 2019--plunging a large knife
into the neck of the defenseless driver

Drivers locally have not escaped abusive rider behavior and conduct.

Safety on the job is a paramount priority---among the drivers and the Board of County Commissioners.

So the Board approved the purchase and installation of driver safety compartments on our ECAT buses.

The first of these enclosures was recently installed.  

According to one driver  "...we now have bus operator compartment barriers to protect us from potential assaults.  👍"

71st Coffee with the Commissioner this Wednesday Morning at 6:30

 Join us for our 71st Coffee with the Commissioner event this Wednesday, April 13th. The live stream will take place from 6:30-7:30 a.m. To join the meeting, visit our D1 Facebook page here: www.facebook.com/CommissionerBergosh/. 

Attendees for the coffee will be Interim County Administrator Wes Moreno and  Public Safety Director Eric Gilmore; Moreno will give an update on county business and Gilmore will share the latest public safety information for Escambia County. 

We will focus our coffee this month on important issues of Escambia County governance and a "deep-dive" discussion on public safety and administration.

Residents are encouraged to send virtual questions and comments they would like to discuss during the event through Facebook. 

For more information, contact District 1 at 850-595-4910 or district1@myescambia.com. For District 1 updates, follow @MyDistrict1 on Twitter.

On 1370 WCOA's "Real News with Rick Outzen" Radio Show Later this Morning

I've been invited to appear this morning on the area's number 1 rated morning drive radio program on the area's #1 talk radio station.

I'll be a guest later this morning at 7:10 on the area's #1 morning drive news program-- "Real News with Rick Outzen" on Pensacola's top rated Talk Radio station 1370 WCOA.

I've been invited by Rick to discuss and recap last Thursday's BCC meeting.

Big topics from the meeting that will likely be discussed include:

1.  FPL Letter on Rate Increases

2.  Rural Broadband--Magellan Study

3.  Jail Issues

4.  $4.1 Million in funding to address homelessness in the county

5.  Jail Medical RFP--increasing costs

6.  Johnson's Beach Roundabout cost increases

....as well as other topics that may come up.

Once posted, I will link the podcast here

Draft BCC Letter to the Public Service Commission Regarding FPL's Rate Increases

Below is the draft of a letter I have written to the Florida Public Service Commission. I will bring this item to this Thursday's BCC meeting.  This is the draft of a letter I discussed with the board at our March 24th meeting and at which time I received the approval from my peers to draft for their consideration at this meeting.

This is all about the FPL rate increases and the hardship this issue is bringing to many of the citizens and businesses we serve.

This is just a draft.  My counterparts may suggest edits, revisions, or even that we not send a letter.  We will see what the discussion on this topic leads to this Thursday--at which point we will do what the majority of commissioners feel is most appropriate.  

For my part I am open to any suggestions from the board--no pride of authorship issues here at all.

Here is the draft letter and one attachement, below: