Bellview Neighborhood Cleanup Next Wednesday beginning at 7:00 AM

A neighborhood cleanup for residents in Bellview will take place Wednesday, Jan. 17. This is a chance for residents to dispose of items such as old furniture, appliances and household waste free of charge. Yard debris is eligible for removal during this cleanup.

Only residents in the designated cleanup area can participate in the neighborhood cleanup. Please have all items for pickup at the curb by 7 a.m. on the day of the cleanup. Items left at the curb outside of the cleanup area will not be collected. If you live in the targeted area, you will have received a postcard in the mail with more information.

Residents can view the boundaries of targeted cleanup areas as well as scheduled cleanup dates for 2024 on the Interactive Neighborhood Cleanup Map.

Items eligible for removal include:

• Household appliances and electronics
• Household junk and debris
• Bicycles and toys
• Old furniture and mattresses
• Barbecue grills
• Household hazardous waste (old paint, motor oil, chemicals, batteries)
• Tires (limit 10 per household)

Items NOT eligible for removal include:

• Building materials (concrete, bricks, blocks, roofing, drywall or lumber)
• Explosives or ammunition
• Auto parts
• Dirt or sod
• Vehicles or vessels
• 55-gallon drums of fluids

Not sure if your item is eligible? Contact Max Rogers, Development Program Manager, at 850-595-3499 or mprogers@myescambia.com for questions about the cleanup.

Since 2016, more than 6,385 tons (12,770,000 pounds) of waste have been disposed of through the Community Redevelopment Agency's Safe Neighborhood Program. During neighborhood cleanups, crew members and volunteers visit different neighborhoods in the county to remove a variety of debris and waste free of charge.

Wymart Bridge Project will Improve Traffic and Stormwater Drainage

A huge, $6.5 Million Infrastructure project is underway currently in the Bellview neighborhood in District 1.  This project will improve the Longleaf roadway from Pine Forest Road to Wymart road and will include center medians/turn lanes, sidewalks on the north and south side, improved drainage systems, and a brand new bridge at Wymart which will improve traffic flow and stormwater drainage in the area.

Check out the video, below.

District 1 Neighborhood Cleanup Tomorrow in Bellview

Join us in keeping our neighborhoods clean and safe! A neighborhood cleanup for residents in Bellview will take place on Friday, Jan. 13. This is a chance for residents to dispose of items such as old furniture, appliances and household waste free of charge. Yard debris is eligible for removal during this cleanup. 

Only residents in the designated cleanup area can participate in the neighborhood cleanup. Please have all items for pickup at the curb by 7 a.m. on the day of the cleanup. Items left at the curb outside of the cleanup area will not be collected. 

If you live in the targeted area, you will have received a postcard in the mail with more information.

Items eligible for removal include:

• Household appliances and electronics
• Household junk and debris
• Bicycles and toys
• Old furniture and mattresses
• Barbecue grills
• Household hazardous waste (old paint, motor oil, chemicals, batteries)
• Tires (limit 10 per household)

Items NOT eligible for removal include:

• Building materials (concrete, bricks, blocks, roofing, drywall or lumber)
• Explosives or ammunition
• Auto parts
• Dirt or sod
• Vehicles or vessels
• 55-gallon drums of fluids

Not sure if your item is eligible? Contact Max Rogers, Development Program Manager, at 850-595-3499 or mprogers@myescambia.com for questions about the cleanup.

Since 2016, more than 5,469 tons (10,938,000 pounds) of waste have been disposed of through the Community Redevelopment Agency's Safe Neighborhood Program. During neighborhood cleanups, crew members and volunteers visit different neighborhoods in the county to remove a variety of debris and waste free of charge.

Learn more about neighborhood cleanups here. Follow Escambia County on Facebook and Twitter for updates about neighborhood cleanups and other community events.

On Real News with Rick Outzen this Morning on WCOA

I've been invited to appear on 1370 WCOA's Real News with Rick Outzen--the area's best, most listened-to, most reliable and most dependable morning drive news program.

I've been invited to appear on tomorrow's edition of "Real News with Rick Outzen" at 7:10 on 1370 WCOA.  Rick wants to discuss the county's response to the tragic shooting event Saturday afternoon at the Bellview ball park in District 1.

Tune in later this morning at 7:10 to the area's best, most highly rated and respected morning drive news program on the area's top news talk station, 1370 WCOA.

Once Rick publishes the podcast, I will link it here.

Massive $1.45 Million Sidewalk Project through the Heart of Bellview in District 1 Commences February 28th!

The caption from the front page of the plans, above,  shows the project's path along Saufley Field road in Bellview

A massive state-funded sidewalk and drainage project will be kicking off in District 1 on Monday, February 28th.  

This project will be constructed by Chavers Construction, Inc., and will include 5-foot sidewalks (north and south side of the road) and some drainage enhancements all along Saufley Field Road from the entrance gate of NAS Pensacola special area Saufley field over past Mobile Hwy to Denver Avenue.

The 7-month, $1.45 Million  project should be completed by October 1st if all goes according to plan.

This large sidewalk project will be connected to several currently-underway county sidewalk projects along the side streets and roads connecting to Saufley Field Road.

This will be a fantastic enhancement to the heart of District 1 in Bellview!

Typical section of the project--showing the 5-foot sidewalks on both the north and south side of Saufley Field road from Saufley Field over to Denver Avenue east of Mobile Hwy.

Tremendous Community Support at District 1 Library Groundbreaking Ceremony Yesterday!

We appreciated the participation of 3rd and 4th grade students from Bellview Elementary School!

Thanks to Sheriff Chip Simmons for taking time out of his
busy schedule to join us for the ground breaking!

From Staff:

"Escambia County held a groundbreaking ceremony today for the new Bellview Library located at 6425 Mobile Highway in Pensacola at 1 p.m. The 12,500 square foot building is expected to be completed Spring 2022.

Thanks to D1 School Board Member Kevin Adams for 
his participation in our groundbreaking!

Escambia County is adding on to a prior bank facility, which was 2,500 square feet and 10,000 square feet will be an addition. The architect for this project is STOA Architects. Hewes and Company is the contractor. The construction cost is expected to be $3.8M for this project.

Speakers included Vice Chairman and District 1 County Commissioner Jeff Bergosh, Escambia County Administrator Janice Gilley, West Florida Public Libraries Director Todd Humble, Escambia County School Board Member Kevin Adams and Escambia County Sheriff Chip Simmons.

Vice Chairman and District 1 County Commissioner Jeff Bergosh said, "One of the things that I always wanted to see happen in District 1 was for us to have our own public library. We're the only district of five that did not have one. There are a lot of folks who worked hard to make sure we had the funding available and the resources in order to bring this all to fruition. I want to take a minute to thank the Library Board of Governance Division. One of the things I like about taking this four-acre property and doing what we're doing with it is we're taking a building that wasn't being used and we're now going to repurpose it for a good use. Instead of building brand new, we're repurposing, so that is a good thing. The other thing I like about this property is that there's plenty of space so once we're all done building this brand-new library and putting the parking in and stormwater retention, there's still room and some more things that we're intending to do with this property. Hopefully and eventually, there will be more than just a library.  I want to thank STOA Architects who have put together really a fantastic design for this library. A year from now, we will see the vision, and it's going be an amazing day for Escambia County, for the students and the citizens of District 1."

The main portion of the library will consist of a large open space that is divided into areas such as a lobby, a story time area, a youth area and an adult reading area. This large open space will provide entrances to other support spaces such as multiple study rooms, staff rooms, a PC area and a STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) room. The development of the building’s façade was inspired by origami, the art of folding paper, which is why there are angles throughout the building.

Longleaf Drive--Two Year Countdown to MAJOR Improvement!

Before (above) and after (below)--renderings of the proposed traffic improvement project that commences this week for Longleaf Drive in District 1.

 Longleaf Drive in District 1 is frequently a very congested road.  With houses, businesses, and four schools located on this short stretch of roadway--several times daily this road can become a parking lot.

That's why in 2007-2008 the BCC under then board member Mike Whitehead's leadership drew up a project to turn Longleaf from a 2 lane into a 4-lane road.  The area was growing, four schools were on the road, UPS had its distribution hub there, many residents used it as part of a "cut-through" between Bellview and Wedgwood, over to Hwy 29 and Interstate 10.

So at that time, the thought was that Longleaf would evolve to become part of a regional East-West thoroughfare in the county, part of a regional evacuation route out  of the County for disasters--with the Wedgwood connector being completed separately.

$13 Million from the Local Option Sales Tax, third renewal (LOST III) was set aside for this portion (Longleaf Drive) of the project, specifically. 

So what happened in the 12 years since the project was developed?

What was predicted in 2008 to occur by 2017 on this roadway did not occur.  Specifically, a 100% plus increase in daily trips from 7,700 daily in 2008 to more than 17,000 by 2017 did not happen.  The actual daily volume on this road has actually decreased by about 1% per year.  This is due in part to multiple factors, including the closure of the West Florida High School campus on this street, the abandonment of the county-wide east-west connector project, the delay of the Pinestead connector portion of this project through Wedgewood, and a shift in growth patterns more north and west from the Bellview area.

With this all said---the need for a 4-lane road with dedicated sidewalk on Longleaf has not materialized--and a better, more streamlined project can be completed with no further right of way (ROW) acquisition needed; a three lane project with a dedicated central turn lane throughout, along with sidewalks on both sides of the road can be accomplished within the currently controlled ROW the county owns. 

And this streamlined project can be completed in just 24 short months at a savings of $6 Million plus dollars---which can be applied to other desperately needed D1 infrastructure projects.

In a recently presented staff PowerPoint on this project - this modified proposal was presented, along with several scenarios where the cost savings monies can be applied to other D1 projects.

This is the direction we are going, and staff is moving this forward.

I look forward to a much better roadway through this area by late 2022!

What is the Hiccup with our Bellview Library Project? A 2+ YEAR delay is UNACCEPTABLE!

After weeks and weeks of no movement whatsoever on the fully-funded, District 1 Bellview Library project--I requested a meeting this week with staff to go through the issue in detail to figure out what the holdup is.

Apparently the parking on the facility as it sits has been deemed insufficient and so additional parking has been contemplated and added to the project.

But the addition of this additional parking apparently triggers the requirement for the addition of stormwater mitigation--due to the creation of an additional, impervious surface.  And this, in turn, is triggering a cascade of delays that could push this project back by more than 2 YEARS!

After the meeting, a new timeline flowchart was provided, (above) illustrating what could be up to a yearlong delay ----if additional parking is tied to the project---before any of the project could even be put out to bid!!

I believe this is unacceptable and I am having staff research two possible work arounds so that we can get this project jumpstarted:

1.  Beginning the work on the facility alone---with the parking/stormwater project continuing on a separate track and as a standalone project.

2.  Making the overflow parking (over and above what is currently on the property) of a type that is porous and therefore not a feature that would trigger the necessary stormwater mitigation that an asphalt parking lot would.

I'll make a follow-on post that details what the new plan going forward will be.

WOW! Take a Look at The Video "Flythrough" Rendering of the Soon to Be Constructed D1 Bellview Library!

This video, above, walks the viewer through a rendering of what we believe the Bellview Library will look like once completed.  This project is moving forward, stay tuned for the groundbreaking in late summer.

Wow--it is going to be something else!  I can't wait for this to open!!

Thanks to Director Todd Humble and his staff for forwarding this to me and for all the hard work going into getting this project moving.

Expected completion, 2021.








****(NOTE: the video has no music---- so just imagine a favorite, catchy tune playing while you watch.  for me-
I think "My Own Worst Enemy" by the band LIT would sound very cool played behind this video 😀

District 1 Bellview Library Update

An initial rendering of what the layout of 
the Bellview Public Library in District 1 
may look like upon construction 
later this year. (Courtesy of Todd Humble)

I have recently had several conversations with Escambia County's Library Services Director Todd Humble on the topic of our soon-to-be built library in District 1.  Specifically, I wanted to know where we are in the planning/design stage, and what the timeline is going forward for construction.

Artist's initial draft rendering of what the
entrance to  District 1's soon to be
constructed Bellview Public Library may look like
(Courtesy of Todd Humble)

Mr. Humble came to our 30th Coffee with the Commissioner event last Wednesday, and gave the citizens in attendance an update in person.

(those who are on Facebook and would like to watch the video and hear Todd Humble's comments  directly can find the video of the coffee here)

Artist's initial draft rendering of what the
entrance to  District 1's soon to be
constructed Bellview Public Library may look like
(Courtesy of Todd Humble)

According to Director Humble, we should complete the design in early March, at which point it will be put out for bid and that process will take approximately one month.  Upon the award of the bid, we will do a groundbreaking event at the site for the public to attend if they wish in the May/June time frame.



Folks have asked about the size of the facility--and according to Director Humble "We believe we will be between the size of our current Southwest Branch (7,500 SF) and our Tryon Branch (12,000 SF) but it is too soon to say for sure which one we will be closer to in size.  Obviously the costs of construction are a concern and we have a finite budget."

The branch will have meeting spaces for adults and children and the branch will have ebooks and magazines available to library card holders--meaning thousands of book titles will be available for download to a user's individual tablet, cellphone, or laptop device.  "There will also be roughly 250 different e-magazines available to download for free as well--many titles with which most will be familiar" said Humble.

Artist's initial draft rendering of what the
main reading room at District 1's soon to be
constructed Bellview Public Library may look like
(Courtesy of Todd Humble)

We all look forward to the opening of this facility with eager anticipation.

Read more about West Florida Public Libraries here.

Bellview Ballpark Renaissance

It began last year with a concerted effort by the County's Parks and Recreation Department to work on modernizing, cleaning, and upgrading Bellview Park off of Longleaf Drive.  Crews came in, trash was cleared, a new Scoreboard was installed at the football field for the Bellview Packers, and the baseball fields were re-sodded, cleaned and painted.

Now, I'm told we are getting interested travel teams and other baseball and softball programs (the number of which had declined sharply in recent years due in large part to the condition of the facility) coming back to Bellview.

As an example of this, a High School softball game and a High School baseball game were scheduled this week in the evening on the same night;  East Hill Christian High had these two remodeled (pictured above) diamonds rented for their baseball and softball games -and they have several games scheduled here this year. 

The complex has also been rented a lot over the last several weeks with youth baseball season approaching-a far cry from 1-2 years ago with very little activity at this park.

Kudos to Michael Rhodes and the county parks department for sparking this renaissance!

A Visit to the Pit

A view from the shooting stations at the bottom of the pit off of Longleaf Drive, facing Northwest November 19,2017

After a series of complaints by neighbors regarding bullets being found in and around their property (s)--I wrote a series of blog entries that were picked up and reported on by local media.

Folks were finding bullets and bullet holes in their fences, cars, and in the bottom of their pools.

But where were/are the bullets coming from and who is firing the shots?

This is the million dollar question that has yet to be fully answered.

What we do know is that there is some target shooting happening at the old borrow pit owned by Eager Beaver. Primarily it is the owner of the property, his friends, family, and some members of the Escambia County Sheriff's Office.

Yesterday afternoon, the owner of the pit, H.C. Jacques, texted me and asked if I wanted to come out to the pit and see the layout and what has been going on.  My answer was yes and so yesterday I made a visit to the pit.

A view to the targets from the 100 yard rifle stations at the pit  November 19, 2017

After opening the gate, driving through, and then re-closing it behind me, I drove down the paved road about a quarter of a mile to a clearing at the bottom of the pit.  A trailer was on my left, a large warehouse type structure was on my right, and several vehicles were parked directly ahead of me.  I pulled over, parked and was greeted in short order by Mr. Jacques, a military veteran, small business owner, and shooting enthusiast.  After we shook hands and said hello, we got down to the matter at hand that concerns both he and I.

"I get it, I know the neighbors are concerned and I get that.  But we are not the source of the bullets that are being found in the neighborhoods up on Wymart" Mr. Jacques stated flatly.  "We are safe down here, we know how to properly handle our weapons and we are focused on safety." he continued. "We are also at least 20 feet down in a pit, below the level of the houses--and we are shooting down on the targets--so how could it be our bullets hitting these structures?" he asked. "I'm told that the bullet hole in the car from the news was from a .45--and nobody down here shoots a .45 except me.  And I also heard that what was found in the pool was shell casings--not bullets--which means someone was firing their guns up there--that is the only way casings would be there" He continued.

As we walked down further into the pit, he showed me where they conduct their target practice.  "There is where we shoot.  that table there is 100 yards (from the target), the one back behind us is 200 yards, and the one back there up on that knoll is 400 yards.  But that is where we are shooting, that direction."

"What is beyond that target area, that berm where you have the targets?"  I asked him.  "11 acres of woods." was Jacques' reply.

Aerial View of the shooting area from Google Earth (targets as depicted larger than actual so they can be seen on map)

On my left was a series of berms, and as we walked over that direction-- I asked if those were ever used for practice.  "Sometimes we set up targets over there, but we haven't lately.  That area is for pistols, 9MM.  But we don't use that area anymore"  he stated.

As we walked back toward the main rifle target berm, he pointed out some spent 9MM casings as well as shotgun shell casings.  "We do some trap-shooting down here as well sometimes, but that type of shot is not going out of our property" He continued.

While I was talking with Mr. Jacques, he received a phone call from a member of the Sheriff's Office Swat Team.  They spoke for a moment and then the call ended.  "They came in 4th place in an

Bullets over Bellview

First and foremost--I have been an NRA supporter for years, I am a conservative, 2nd Amendment supporter.  I also own guns.

Secondly--I strongly support law enforcement, and I always have (despite how some folks lately want to inaccurately portray me.... Just read this editorial I wrote two and a half  years ago and you will see where I stood on law enforcement then and where I still am today)

With this out of the way--my number one concern is safety.  Number one.  That's why I have been trying to find out who has been firing live ammunition in an abandoned borrow pit near Longleaf Drive.

I have had a rash of phone calls from concerned residents in the Bellview area, particularly the residents that live off of Wymart Road, complaining of bullets raining down on their property.

One resident called just yesterday and said last Saturday there was so much firing she called 911 because bullets were whizzing through her trees in her front yard.  "I'm afraid to let my kids out of the house!" she exclaimed.  She says she has called 911 about the problem and nothing is being done.  This past Saturday, she claims the responding officer said "Nothing can be done about this--the swat team is down there practicing"

Another resident has found a bullet hole in his car, another resident had a bullet lodged in the side of his house, and another resident has fished 3 bullets out of his backyard pool.  Channel 3 did a feature story on this yesterday. 

So with the revelation that in addition to airsoft and paintball guns being fired in the pit-- 9MM pistols and AR15s are also being fired down there--I am concerned.  I have also confirmed with the owner of the pit that  he and some Sheriff's Office personnel are using this location for shooting