How it Happened, Part II

This is what the zoning map for the Northwest portion of district I looked like prior to 2015.  In speaking with county staff--the impetus at the time the decision was made to simplify and consolidate the zoning designations--- was to not diminish the property rights or zoning rights of existing property owners.  So, when we went from this zoning, below,

There existed a panoply of zoning designations for properties located in the Northwest Portion of Escambia County's District 1 prior to 2015.  After 2015--these designations were consolidated.  The plan was to not diminish the property rights of existing land owners while simultaneously simplifying the zoning designations.  This change in 2015 was a contributing factor in the out of control growth of this section of District 1

to what the zoning districts look like today, below, we now know what the thought process was that drove the decision making.  This is, below, what the zoning for this same section of District 1 looks like today.

Today's current zoning in District 1 is much less complex than it was before 2015.  This was done by the board deliberately in an attempt to streamline the zoning designations while simultaneously NOT taking any rights from, nor diminishing, property rights from existing area property owners....

The decisions were driven by noble intentions--e.g.--not diminishing existing property owners' rights.

Unfortunately-----this well-intentioned, well-meaning strategy also led to the conditions that we are seeing today in Beulah.

Growth that is out of control.

Below is a table describing, in detail, the "before and after" zoning designations and changes.

A quick read of these will illustrate, very quickly, the conditions by which the growth was facilitated by this well-intentioned action.

What we see today in 2019 is a result, in part, of this change.  See the before/after zoning changes below....

How it Happened, Part I

Beulah has grown exponentially over the last 10 years.  "How has this happened?" is a question I am hearing a lot.. so we are looking at all the reasons and factors that have led to where we are today with the growth in Beulah...

I attended a community meeting on Saturday in Beulah.

The subject of the meeting was another subdivision being contemplated out in this fast growing community of Escambia County--and more importantly--what the impacts of this new subdivision would bring to the existing residents.

As the meeting began, the developers unrolled construction drawings illustrating the vision for the subdivision off of Hurst Hammock Road.  Several residents had questions about the impacts on drainage, the wetlands, and traffic.  Many wanted to know where the retention ponds for this development would be placed.

Several asked rhetorically--"When will enough be enough?"

"When will "they" say we don't want or need any more subdivisions out here?"

"And how did this area's growth get so out of control anyway?" was a recurring question we heard from the assembled group of about 15 nearby residents.

The answer to these questions requires that we look back in history and also that we look at some votes that have been made by the county over the last 10 years.

Everyone knows that growth is happening and that economic forces and the economy drive the market for housing--- which is the catalyst for growth and for impacts on the existing infrastructure of a community.

But growth is inevitable--here in Escambia County and in America as a whole.

We will get into some of the specifics of this in follow-on posts...

Who Wants to be Escambia's Next Administrator?

The following list was provided by staff.  This is all of the applicants that met at least the minimum requirements for the job.

Deer Run in Beulah: Wetlands Damage Remediation Plans moving Forward Quickly

County staff and developer DR Horton are working toward a resolution of multiple environmental issues at Phase I of the Preserve at Deer Run in Beulah.

Over the last several days there has been a flurry of activity on Phase 1 of the Preserve at Deer Run subdivision in Beulah.

Several Issues have plagued that development over the last several months, culminating in penalties being assessed by the North West Florida Water Management District (NWFWMD)

(The four holding ponds in phase one were not/are not draining properly--that issue is being worked via a re-design and that work to correct the issues with the ponds is moving forward so far as I have been told)

A consent order between NWFWMD and DR Horton, the builder, is slated to be signed by this Friday.

Meanwhile, county staff and the environmental engineer hired by DR Horton (Wetland Sciences) have been going back and forth via email.

A very detailed draft mitigation strategy document has been put forward by the DR Horton's environmental contractor, and county staff has read it and added additional stipulations that must be met before the county issues Certificates of Occupancy (CO) for five homes that are poised for closing before the month's end.

(County staff are standing firm that the CO's will not be issued until the remediation plan is accepted by all parties and the work to remediate the wetlands and wetland buffer zones begins)

Stipulations that the county is requiring, over and above what has been put forth in the document from DR Horton's environmental engineer, include the following:

• Monitoring for the restoration areas shall be for 5 years, including annual reports, and annual replanting (if needed) to assure 80% survival during each reporting period
• For areas proposed for restoration within the wetland buffer, weed free mulch that is a minimum of a 2” thick, 18” diameter shall be installed around each plant unit to enhance survivability and minimize competition*  
• With the proposed sizes of trees and shrubs offered, trees should be on 12’ centers and shrubs on 6’ centers*
• A alternating planting diagram will need to be submitted and approved to be able to verify counts and appropriate location
• All nursery stock shall be Florida Grade 2 or better and documented as such

* If larger plant stock is proposed, then plant unit spacing and mulch requirements may be reconsidered

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

Coffee With the Commissioner Tomorrow Morning

Tomorrow morning we will host our monthly coffee with the commissioner event at Hardees at Wilde Lake Blvd and Pine Forest Road. (Exit 7 off of I-10)

We will be there from 6:30-7:30AM and all are welcome to attend.

This is a low-key, relaxed forum where individuals can bring issues, ask questions, and provide feedback to their elected representative without having to drive downtown and fill out speaker forms.

For those unable to attend, we will be live-streaming the event on our commissioner's Facebook page here

Deer Run: County Staff, State Officials, DR Horton Reps and Local Environmental Consultants and Engineers Met Today

A closed-door meeting about the Deer Run Subdivision in Beulah was held at the County's Development Services facility

The Preserve at Deer Run, a subdivision in Beulah, has had some issues.

Earlier this month, after a series of citizen complaints, the builder DR Horton was hit with a hefty fine by the state.

Several retention ponds were not functioning properly and some wetlands and boundary areas had silt and muddy water infiltration.

A consent order had been drafted and delivered to DR Horton by the NW Florida Water Management District--however this document had not been signed as of today.

This afternoon, County staff, state officials, DR Horton reps, local Environmental Consultants, myself and the project engineer all met at the County's One-stop building off of Fairfield Dr.

The meeting was not open to the public, and although Channel 3 had a crew at the site, they were not permitted entry to the closed-door meeting.

The primary issues discussed today were getting this development back on track, getting the four retention ponds in phase one functioning properly, remediating several areas of wetlands and boundaries that had been infiltrated by muddy runoff, and getting the boundary areas of 6 lots remediated so that five families that have already purchased these houses can move in. (The county will not issue the Certificate of Occupancy for these five lots until the remediation is approved and underway.)

The engineer of record for the project stated that he had completed initial plans for fixing the retention ponds, which he described as not functioning properly due to lateral ground water flow at all four pond locations.

An environmental engineer hired by the builder stated he would have the remediation plan for the wetlands infiltration on this project and in this phase prepared as early as tomorrow, Tuesday the 26th of March.  He acknowledged the fact that it would need to be run through DR Horton corporate personnel before it would be sent to the county--and this process would take a few additional days.

The initial 2-week period given by the Northwest Florida Water Management District (from March 5th-19th)for DR Horton to sign the consent order had expired;  upon my asking why, it was disclosed that DR Horton had asked for a brief extension of time to review this consent order.  I asked point blank when it would be signed, and I was told it would be done "By this Friday."

A 9 page consent order has been issued to DR Horton by the NW Florida Water Management District.  It will be finalized by this Friday according to state officials with whom I spoke today..

So we will see what happens next.  According to one staff member that actually lives in this subdivision, the builder has, over the last several weeks, attempted to do a better job of protecting the wetlands.