What are the Initial Concerns from Staff Regarding the Latest OLF 8 Offer?

 Attorney Alison Rogers sent Board Members the below review of the contract from Tri-W Development, LLC., and CAH Developments, LLC., late Friday afternoon for the purchase of 540 acres at OLF 8.  These points will be discussed Thursday during the board's meeting.

BCC Receives Fresh Offer for OLF-8: $22.5 Million and 6-Months Due Diligence

Commissioners were notified today that the Chairman of the BCC and the county is in receipt of a new offer for OLF 8.  This will be on the agenda for discussion at Monday morning's BCC meeting.  Check out the letter of intent, below.  This is the eighth group that has expressed interest in the property..........

$22 Million: BCC Receives an Updated Purchase and Sale Agreement (PSA) for 290 Acres at OLF 8 by Beulah TownCenter LLC

Conceptual Image of Beulah TownCenter, LLC's development plan for 290 acres of OLF 8

Commissioners were notified late yesterday afternoon of the receipt of a revised offer from Beulah TownCenter LLC for purchase of 290 acres of OLF 8.  The new, 25 page offer ups the good faith deposit to $500,000.00 cash and a $500,000.00 Letter of Credit.  The new due diligence period is 6 months, with an option to extend.  And the new purchase price is $22 Million Dollars for the 290 acres, or $75,862 per acre.

The BCC will be discussing this latest offer from Beulah Town Center LLC at our Thursday meeting.

Some very positive aspects of this offer:

1.  Adhearance to the Master Plan

2.  Leaving 250 Acres on the northern portion of the land for job creation

3.  Retail and Restaurants on the frontage, along with potential for a big box, big name retail store that everyone will celebrate

4.  A Town Center amenity for the community

5.  Area set aside for addition of Tennis Courts adjacent to NFCU's park facility

6.  New revenue for the county via the development of the field which currently generates zero property tax or other revenue for the County.

Some issues which must be worked:

1.  Funding for the design and construction of the Boulevard Entrance

2.  Top line price

3.  Working out the escrow agreement and when the deposit goes "hard."  Exhibit "C" was blank....

I look forward to the discussion this Thursday.  Could be a big step forward for our county!

Read the 25 page PSA here

Beulah Master Plan Charette is TONIGHT!

The design team from Sigma Consulting that is creating a master plan for the Beulah area will hold their third public meeting tonight at Beulah Middle School at 6:00 PM.

This has been a long time in the making, and this event is open to the public and the public's participation is welcomed.

Has the New Auction for OLF 8 Begun?

As I had anticipated would be the case--the BCC has now received a fresh offer for all 540 acres of OLF 8 for the tidy sum of $40 Million Dollars. (and I anticipate several more in the coming weeks)

In this particular, very bare bones, three page offer (see it below)--no mention of the DPZ Master Plan--but multiple requests for full cooperation in rezoning the property, achieving preliminary site plan approvals, and amending the comprehensive plan.  So there is that.

-120 day inspection period requested

-total of $1 Million in earnest money, with an additional $100,000 that goes hard after several steps are taken and after the inspection period.

-Three (3) 30-day extensions requested.

I see some issues with the offer, chief among them is the guidance that the BCC already gave signalling that we will reserve 250 acres for job creation--so I would expect that this offer will have to be re-tooled.

Some of the speakers at recent meeting should be ecstatic.  It is someone other than DR Horton.....

We will see what the full board chooses to do with this offer--as this decision is up to the full 5-member board.

New Proposed Bulid out of OLF 8 Field Results in HALF as many Residential Dwellings as DPZ Hybrid Plan Would Have Allowed......

Less (new high density housing built on OLF-8) is More (better 😊) 

I know that headline is a mouthful.

But what would the total number of residential units be, if some buyer made an offer and built out the OLF-8 field precisely as DPZ stipulates in their Hybrid Plan -  the compromise plan the board adopted two years ago for OLF 8?  How does that number of residences compare to the latest offer/plan submitted by D.R. Horton and Stirling Properties in their revised offer of $24.1 Million for OLF-8?

I wanted to know so I asked staff to do an analysis--which they recently completed and sent back to me.

"We’ve broken down the numbers of the plans into overall residential densities. The Horton (new) plan doesn’t include the mixed residential/commercial category as in the hybrid plan, and it proposes much lower overall densities.

 The total residential density in the [DPZ] hybrid plan is 40 units per acre. This comes from the total densities for each zoning district and the total acreage of those districts. It’s probably higher than what could be built given the variables but it’s the same way we calculate density for all zoning districts.

 The total residential density in the new[Horton/Stirling] plan is 6.7 (rounded from 6.6) units per acre. This was calculated with the 170 acres of residential and the total residential units of 1,133."

Okay so just as pictured, the lasted proposed build out consists of a town center, green spaces, commercial, retail, residential AND 241 acres for Economic Development/Job Creation.  And the total number of residential units is 1,133.

Under the DPZ hybrid plan adopted by the board--the 61 acres  set aside for residential development allowed for up to 40 units per acre.  So, multiplying the 61 acres for high density residential dwellings in the DPZ hybrid plan (and not including any of the hundreds of residential over retail in the DPZ plan's 47 acre set-aside for mixed use)==you get more than 2,400 residential units on OLF 8!! 

So the latest Horton/Stirling plan cuts, by more than half, the total number of traffic exacerbating, infrastructure taxing high-density residential dwelling units on the field while still providing retail, a town center, green spaces, restaurants, and other amenities---as well as a significant amount of space for job creation.

Remember--most that live out here in Beulah, like I do, wanted NO RESIDENTIAL on this field, as we have plenty of high density residential development all around this area already.

Just more to consider as we look at what is proposed.

But for my vote---LESS residential and more amenities is bettter.

Here's the Deal......

Numerous folks have asked for it, I have asked the county attorney if it is a releasable public record and she told me it is---so here it is.

Read the latest offer from D.R. Horton to the BCC for the purchase of 297 acres of OLF 8.

$24.1 Million

Read it here

Dystopian, Fearful, Defeatist, Pessimistic Emails---and My Enthusiastic, Positive, and Realistic Response!

Dystopian, Fearful, Defeatist, Pessimistic, and emotionally-charged emails to me regarding OLF-8's pending development will, in return, receive factual, rational, educated, enthusiastic, and emotionally neutral (Think "Spock-like") responses!  

I've lived the OLF 8 issue since I bought my house right across from the field nearly 20 years ago.  At that time, it was people complaining about the noise of the choppers.  Little did I know then that a nearly decade-long effort was already well underway for the county to acquire that property for jobs from the Navy.....but it was.

Fast forward 11 years to 2015 and I became well aware of the history of the project---and I campaigned in support of a world class, high-tech, clean tech commerce park on OLF-8 to create and provide high-tech, clean-tech, high-paying jobs for the entire region--along with amenities along the 9-Mile Road frontage for nearby residents----as I successfully ran for and won the D1 seat on the BCC.  

Yes--I've lived this issue for a long time now.

Although some will now attempt to re-write history, the facts are the facts:  I supported jobs, and I vehemently DID NOT support any, not one, residential dwelling on that field. NONE.

But then came the upswelling of anger and frustration from neighbors, politically connected companies, and stong special interests----and the original plan went out the window faster than lightning in favor of a watered down footprint for jobs--favoring a much larger mixed use development and some amenities. And yes, some residential on the field was incorporated into this "new direction"--even though very few in Beulah wanted any more residential built there on OLF 8.  Even my most ardent, staunchest political enemies in the area agreed with my assessment that we should NOT be competing with the private sector by sourcing land for homebuilders on OLF 8 because there was too much residential being built in Beulah already and the infrastructure couldn't support more on OLF 8.  

But I was outvoted.  

And then I went through the master planning, swallowed hard, held my nose, gagged and in the spirit of compromise went along with the rest of the board in supporting the master plan as the blueprint going forward for this parcel. It was a hard-fought compromise that left a little something for everyone, a lot of stuff a lot of people didn't want, and very little of what a few people wanted.  Nobody was 100% happy-it was the epitome of a compromise.

That's the fact, Jack.  That's how this happened, and that is how we came to be where we are today, period, end of story.

And now that we have chosen a group with which to partner-----as only one group came to the drop dead meeting yesterday-----I am receiving some emails that are negative.  I am also receiving some that are positive.  The negatives outweigh the positives roughly 2-1.  Here, below, is an example "negative" email and my upbeat, positive, rational, and factual response:

"Jeff,

Please [do] not [use]DR Horton (sic), he is a cheap builder and will add nothing to our area and OLF-8. It would be nice to have decent restaurants. Would be great to have a Post Office,  but as you told me the USPS is closing offices, although there are 2 close together on 29. I go back to MLK and Fairfield by the School District Warehouse to purchase stamps and do mailing. Very inconvenient.

But we say no to DRA Horton(sic), not that it matters. Sounds like a done deal. And traffic will be horrific with more homes and apartments. Oh well, the end of paradise.

Thanks,"

My response:

"Thanks for the email.  I believe we did the best we could-- given the fact that the stronger bidder (Breland) didn’t show up to the selection meeting and given the fact that DR Horton is now teaming with Stirling and upped their offer significantly.  Additionally, to their credit, DR Horton acquiesced to our insistence that they accept a deed restriction limiting their ability to build residential on the light industrial/commercial areas of the parcel.  And they did set aside a 20 acre piece of the parcel for potential sale to the school board for a school if the school board decides they want to pursue that.  And their plan has a town center, Class A medical and office buildings, retail, restaurants, and other amenities for the Beulah community. The half-hearted Breland “rendering” sent to us the night before the meeting that they did not attend indicated a small, miniscule retail parcel on the nine mile frontage, a tiny, miniscule parcel for job creation (commercial, light industrial) on the northeast corner----and the entire balance of the land residential.  It was DOA the minute I saw it, so it was wise they ghosted us and did a no show.

 Remember XXXXX—from the get go I powerfully advocated against ANY residential on that field.  I wanted amenities, retail, restaurants on the frontage and the balance of the land for the creation of high-tech, clean tech jobs (like NFCU in aesthetically pleasing buildings).  But due to the pressure put on my counterparts by local residents, and powerful and politically connected special interests,—that original plan (you know, the reason we spent $18.5 million and 25 years working on this project in the first place—as a regional jobs generator) was thrown out the window.  Over my objections.  That is the true history, well documented, of how we got where we are today. So we did the master plan which I ultimately endorsed and voted to support, in the spirit of compromise.

 With that as the backdrop, we are where we are now with one interested party.  And while the plan is not perfect, I do think this team will work with us.  And over the next 6 months or so we will hammer out an agreement that will result in between a $20-$27 Million dollar “profit” for the taxpayers—which proceeds can be used throughout Beulah, District 1, and the county to address deficiencies in stormwater and traffic infrastructure as well as other quality of life needs.  And remember this, as well:  We have a $155 Million Dollar interchange coming in Beulah which will divert half of the current 9-mile road traffic which all utilizes exit five.  Additionally, Beulah Road—now a state road—will be widened in that plan.  The state is currently constructing significant upgrades on Mobile Hwy from Blue Angel all the way to 9 Mile road through Beulah.  And the Governor’s newly-announced Florida Forward initiative earmarks $162 Million for an ambitious 6-year plan to 6-lane 1-10 through Beulah from the weigh station to Pine Forest road along with a significant re-work of the entire interchange at exit 7.  So infrastructure upgrades and modernization projects are in the works right now and have been in planning since I first took office 6 years ago.

 And the built up field will create jobs and generate significant new ad valorem tax revenue for the county and the school board—which is the real, long horizon plus of this deal.  This added revenue allows us to maintain what we have done this past year:  ensuring our sheriff’s deputies, EMTs, paramedics, firemen, and corrections guards are the highest paid in the region.  All of this without raising the year over year millage (property tax) rates.  Growing the economy allows us to do these great things while keeping the tax burden low.

 So thanks for your email of concern, and please know I am going to do my level best to shepherd this deal toward a finale that produces a huge win for Beulah (where I have lived for 20 years right across from OLF 8), the county, and the region.

 Happy Easter, and have a great weekend."

 

Revised Offer for OLF 8 Just Received: $42 Million with 100 Acres retained by Escambia County for Jobs

The folks from DR Horton were at this morning's meeting.  And they listened to the concerns of the board.

This evening right before the start of our regular meeting, a final, revised LOI was sent to all commissioners--an offer that reflected the morning discussions and addressed these concerns.

This last offer raises the price for the parcel to $42 Million Dollars and sets aside 100 acres for the county to retain, subject to negotiation on the price, for job creation.  The offer also, importantly, recognizes and will substantially comply with the Master Plan for OLF 8 and the offer also accepts the imposition of restrictive covenants on the deed.  These will be necessary to limit additional residential construction in the areas zoned for commercial which could be flipped to residential under the latest Tallahassee law that was just passed (Live Local Act)--which bypasses and preempts our zoning restrictions on such decisions.

Breland did not show up at tonight's meeting, and they did not come to the morning meeting either.

We will be voting on this in the next 15 minutes.......

 

What's Up with the Sign? What's Happening at OLF 8?

This sign is posted at OLF 8 Currently

Several folks have asked about the sign up at Escambia County's OLF 8 site in Beulah.  Many have expressed interest in what is being built out there.

We have owned the property since early 2019, and the master plan for this parcel was completed and submitted in 2021.

But with the economic slowdown that has occurred since then, with COVID's resurgence--the property has not received a whole lot of attention from the development community.  According to staff, when the recent meeting at the county was held for interested developers--only three (3) showed up.

So I spoke with Debbie Bowers about this situation a while back, as many of us are surprised that there has not been more interest in this property given all the attributes of this growing area and given the master plan is ready to go.

We have reached out independently and sent packages out to dozens and dozens of firms and yet the property sits and nobody has made an offer.  I'm told via web traffic and word of mouth to include our in-house efforts at marketing this property--we've been contacted about 4 dozen times.

Anecdotally it was reported to me that several initially interested developers passed on the parcel because of the master plan requirements.  But the master plan does represent the compromise that the board agreed to, so for my vote (I'm one of five) I am supporting development that comports with the master plan.

With this as the backdrop at our meeting in August---a commonsense question was put to staff:  Why is there not a sign up at the property announcing it for sale?  It was a question without a good answer so the board directed staff to put a sign up and staff did that.  I am told the sign itself has generated numerous calls and leads---including from a motivated out of state developer that I am told flew in this past Friday to tour the property and meet with staff about this opportunity--specifically on the jobs creating portion.

Additionally--I am aware of two different (2) firms that are also looking at building on the site in the designated commerce portion (phase I).  Each company is looking at 20-30 acres for their buildings and the jobs they intend to bring.

In addition to this--I am aware that there may be interest from the school board in purchasing a portion of the site for Beulah High School--more to come on that I am sure.

And we are all aware of the value of the frontage parcels on 9-Mile Road adjacent to the NFCU properties and the opportunities these parcels present for recapturing the county's investment in OLF-8.

So while things are not moving as swiftly as many had hoped, there is movement and incremental progress.  I still believe that we will more than recoup the taxpayers' investment in this property once we have sold the final parcel, and I also am confident we can all get a win from this field once it is eventually built--with ammenities for nearby residents AND jobs creation for the whole county.

We worked hard to acquire this property, we went through a challenging set of circumstances to get it master planned (and the final master plan product from DPZ is very, very nice),--so now it is time to move to the next step and get it sold and developed.

So When Will the OLF-8 Master Plan be Finished?

Over the weekend commissioners were emailed the above timeline-- showing the estimated completion of the OLF-8 Master Plan by DPZ and significant benchmarks we will hit on this path.  Interestingly and significantly:  first draft of potential plans for BCC approval will come to us next month. 

From the staff email:

"A change order has been written to extend the DPZ contract from Jan. 21, 2021 to May 3, 2021 to allow time to complete the project.  Reasons for the schedule slip is due to cancellation of the August COW, Hurricane Sally, and unavailability of the Nov. COW.  The attached timeline identifies a path forward and allows the project to wrap up in the April timeframe."

 

Two Huge Decisions Today at BCC Special Meeting and Transportation Workshop

At this morning's special meeting of the Escambia BCC we selected the firm that will complete the Master Planning of our OLF 8 Property in Beulah.

The Escambia Board of County Commissioners held two very important and profound meetings this morning at which 2 key decisions were made that will set the tone for some very important progress going forward.

1.  We voted to select a firm to do the Master Planning for OLF 8 in Beulah, the 636 acre land that the board acquired from the Navy last January.  DPZ CoDesign LLC was selected by the board.  This was a huge decision with major implications for this county land in the months and years to come.  I look forward to watching this process move forward.  In addition to choosing this firm and voting them officially as the finalist- staff has already advertised the associated project manager position for this project and that the effort to bring this person aboard should be completed within the next 3-4 weeks.  

2.  We took a straw vote and unanimously supported the State/County "Road Swap" of Beulah Road for Perdido Key Drive.  The purpose for this swap was for the county to maintain forward progress on the Beulah Interchange project--a project that is moving forward with lots of momentum and that is understood by all the commissioners to be one of the most important, large scale transportation projects in our area for the foreseeable future.  By a memorandum of understanding that will be ratified on September 5th, responsibility for maintenance and ownership of these two roads will be swapped and I predict the vote will be unanimous for this.

On WCOA This Morning Discussing OLF 8, Beulah, NFCU, and Non-profit Funding

I'll be on the radio later this morning on WCOA discussing OLF 8, today's special meeting to select a master-planning firm for that project, Beulah, the NW District 1 Master Plan, and other topics of interest for District 1 and Escambia County.


Listen to the Podcast here.

OLF 8: What's the Latest Information on the Master Planning of the Field?

The NFCU/BCC joint selection committee has narrowed the field for master planning OLF 8 down to a short list of just three firms for the BCC's consideration at an upcoming special meeting. 

The joint-BCC/NFCU committee charged with evaluating these eight planning firms and whittling down the list to the top three firms has met multiple times recently.

They have selected the top three firms from the list of eight, and this group of three planning firms will be invited to present their vision (s) for the developed OLF 8 to the public, and to the full Board of County Commissioners, at a special meeting on Monday, July 1st from 9:00AM-12:00 Noon.

Although I was not present, I was told the members of the joint committee charged with selecting this short list was given information on each of the firms that submitted applications for this work.

I'm told that there was not a whole lot of discussion;  the members of the committee ranked the slate of firms from 1-8 and the top three got the nod to move forward to the full BCC for our consideration and final selection at the special meeting July 1st.

I'm told the score between the #3 and #4 firms was razor-thin, and that there was a virtual tie for #4.

So who knows if it will just be three firms that present on the 1st---maybe one or two others will be added?  We shall see.

For my part- I only want to see the best, most qualified firm that will stay true to the guidance document we hammered-out get selected to do this work.

Read about the committee here.

Read about the 8 firms that submitted for this work here.

Here are all the local subcontractors who have partnered with the planning firms, here.

Look at the score sheets and tabulations, including the names of the 3 top finalists,  here. and below

We will see you all on July 1st!

Big Night Last Night in Beulah for the NW District 1 Advisory Committee

The NW Section of District 1--indicated above-- is the fastest growing area of Escambia County

Last night a very significant meeting was held in Beulah related to the growth of the NW portion of District 1.

The NW District 1 Advisory Committee has been meeting since last September-- and last night this committee took the next steps toward formulating a plan to address the rapid growth out here.

The PNJ attended last night's meeting and did a good write-up that will probably appear in tomorrow's print edition.

With Navy Federal Credit Union experiencing rapid growth of employment--the surrounding area has also exploded with growth in residential housing development.

The committee developed a list of questions over the last several months in order to ask residents directly what they want to see out here with respect to a plan for managing growth intelligently.

The Board of County Commissioners approved a $4,700.00 expenditure from D1 discretionary funds this past Thursday to engage UWF's Haas Center to take the list of questions and disseminate these to the community over the next several months.  UWF will conduct the survey and evaluate the data, reporting back to the NW District 1 Advisory Committee in late September or early October.

Members of the NW District 1 Advisory Committee discuss growth in Beulah at an April, 2019 meeting.  (r to l, Dr. Laura Bryant,chair., Joey Poitevin, David Liechty, and Paul Flores)

On September 9th--the NW District 1 Advisory Committee will meet to begin the building of an RFP for the planning, and the committee will also vote in a new chairman and vice-chairman for the committee. (The committee will take the months of July and August off to allow UWF to conduct the survey).

This data from the UWF survey will inform the construction of an RFP which will be utilized to engage a professional firm to create a plan for this area of Escambia County--either a traditional master plan or an overlay district--whichever makes more sense according to the survey and as determined by the advisory committee in conjunction with county staff.

I will hold a town hall in Beulah, at Beulah Middle School, on Monday, July 15th to hear from the residents and to encourage their participation in this entire process.

Who are the Subcontractors that will be Working With the Master Planner?

As I discussed here, we now have our selection committee, we have our short list of 8 firms that want to be chosen to master plan OLF 8, and now we know which subcontractors each finalist will be utilizing on their respective team(s).

This document lists all the 8 firms that have put in for this work and all their identified subcontractors--local and out of state.  This document also lists many of each firm's past projects, clients and accomplishments.  This is very interesting information that those who are truly interested in this project should and will analyze.

The effort to do a world-class master plan will be thorough and most importantly it will be guided public input by citizens and by the compromise document that was voted upon by the BCC in a rare but meaningful 5-0 vote.

I'm extremely pleased that we have multiple award-winning, world-class design professionals seeking to do this work.

This process is now moving forward and this is a good thing.  Once the 7-member committee vets these firms, they will provide the BCC a short list of finalists for our consideration--and the full BCC will make the final selection of the firm that will do the master-planning of OLF 8.

List of Master Planning Firms for OLF 8 Released

The solicitation dictated that all firms interested in submitting for the master-planning of OLF 8 do so no later that Midnight, April 12th.

Eight firms made that deadline and will be considered.  One of these eight firms will be tasked with master planning the last remaining, large parcel in Beulah that will be developed.

The selection committee that will rank these firms for BCC consideration has been set and we are moving forward.  Later today I will post the complete list of these firms' associated local subcontractors.

Who will Serve on the BCC/NFCU Selection Committee for the Master Planning of OLF 8?

A recent rendering of the actual wetlands boundary on OLF 8 (above) indicates that a significantly smaller portion of this 636 acre parcel is wetlands.  This increases the acreage that can be developed, which increases the value of this land.  Soon, the county will begin the process of master-planning this parcel working in conjunction with Navy Federal Credit Union

The Board of County Commissioners will select three members of the seven-member committee that will be tasked with narrowing down the firms that compete for the contract to master-plan OLF 8.

The solicitation will have been on the street for 30 days and will close in the second week of April--and shortly thereafter this committee will start to meet and will begin the selection process of a master planner for OLF 8--for which NFCU has agreed (under certain reasonable terms) to pay up to $2 Million for AND for which the BCC will have the final say and decision.

Navy Federal Credit Union has identified their 4 members:

1. Kim Aderholdt
Supervisor, Facility Planning & Project Management
Navy Federal Greater Pensacola Operations

2. John Porter
Vice President
Corporate Facilities and Support Services
Baptist Health Care


3. Virna L Reynoso
President/CEO
REYCO Contracting Solutions LLC

4. Brian Wyer
President/CEO
Gulf Coast Minority Chamber of Commerce

The full BCC will discuss and select the county's three members for this committee at our upcoming meeting on April 4th.  While the full board will have final say on these three members, the initial slate of three candidates from the BCC, a slate for which I will advocate and support and which staff has been considering, will be:

1. Scott Luth
Executive Director 
Florida West Economic Development Alliance

2.  Andrew Holmer or Horace Jones
Development Services
Escambia BCC

3.  David Forte
Division Manager, Transportation and Traffic Operations Division
Escambia BCC

Draft MOU in the Works: NFCU willing to Pay Up to $2,000,000.00 of Master Planning Expenses for OLF 8

NFCU has agreed, under certain terms and conditions
to reimburse up to $2,000,000.00 toward our
master planning expenses related to OLF 8 in Beulah

County Staff and Officials at Navy Federal Credit Union (NFCU) are working on a draft MOU that will delineate terms and conditions for NFCU to reimburse the County up to $2,000,000.00 dollars in expenses related to the master planning of our recently acquired property out in Beulah known as OLF 8.

The generous offer from NFCU --- to pay these costs --- allowed the County to shift $1.3 Million of Restore Act funds from the master planning of OLF 8 over to the ST Engineering Aerospace Jobs project (project Titan) at the Pensacola Airport.  This shift enabled the County to cobble together the additional $5 Million dollars necessary to secure that deal with the City, Triumph Gulf Coast, and ST Engineering Aerospace.  (Once that deal gets rolling--it will be a MASSIVE economic development win for our entire county!)

If the NFCU draft is acceptable to the BCC, the master planning efforts for OLF 8 could begin to move very, very  quickly.  Because this is simply an initial working draft, I am not linking the document here.  Once it is in it's final draft form, I will link the final draft document to this blog.

Some Specifics of this particular draft MOU:

*  Calls for the creation of a new position and the hiring of this newly created billet-an "Independent Project Manager" --by the County, with the specific task of managing this particular master planning project (NFCU and County to split the costs 50/50).

*  Calls for a 7-Member selection committee to rank the top three firms. (3 county staff, 4 NFCU appointees)  BCC will have final say in final ranking and final selection, with NFCU reserving the right to provide input and comments.

*  Calls for public input throughout the process

*  84-Acre purchase of a portion of OLF 8 by NFCU shall be "outside" this process and not subject to

On WCOA's Good Morning Pensacola Today

I'll be the guest later-on this morning on WCOA's top-rated Good Morning Pensacola radio show.

The singular topic of discussion will be OLF 8, jobs, and the County's $30 Million Dollar Triumph Gulf Coast Grant Application--and how all of this ties in with the HUGE victory we had in our recent special meeting by approving a compromise RFP document for this property that:

1.  Still focuses on using this field to create good jobs for the county.

2.  Still focuses on the Triumph Grant.

3.  Allows for the planner to incorporate aspects of Regional Significance into the plan (in order to help us win the Triumph Grant)

4.  Allows for the incorporation of some amenities that have been requested by local Beulah Residents and Navy Federal Credit Union.

This compromise document represents a win-win for Beulah Residents, NFCU, and the citizens county-wide!


Listen to the Podcast Here