News Archive

Holley Navarre Fire District is expanding into Holley. A new fire station, which will be known as ‘Station 44,’ is currently under construction across from Holley Assembly of God.

Even with delays due to recent snowfall, the station’s construction is expected to be complete this April. According to HNFD Fire Chief Kevin Lewis, the station will feature an engine and equipment bay, storage, sleeping quarters, office space and a fire pole.

The question of which proxy votes will count in the Holley Navarre Water System annual meeting election was at the center of a special meeting held Monday, Feb. 10. The controversy began with reports that proxy forms not issued by the system were being handed out at places around Navarre. A proxy is a form which authorizes another member to vote on your behalf. Through HNWS, proxy forms are given out after membership in the system is verified. With a different proxy form, some members argued, there might be an opening for fraud or unethical practices related to obtaining votes on behalf of candidates.

Navarre Beach Leaseholders and Residents Association (NBLRA) are looking for a new lease on life for their neighbors and themselves. Although, lease might not be the most operative word.

The association met Jan. 18 to hear updates on various things affecting the beach community. One update is a plan to pursue residential ownership of beach properties through fee simple title, a long-held desire both on the beach and in Santa Rosa County government.

Potters gathered from across the Southeast in Holley Saturday, Feb. 8, for the 20th rendition of Woodstoke Pottery Festival. The annual event is held at Holley Hill Pottery and is organized by Gulf Coast Kiln Walk Society, a nonprofit promoting arts and culture in Santa Rosa County and throughout Northwest Florida.

A Navarre Beach hotel development planned for 8469 Gulf Blvd. might be on the chopping block.

Keeping Navarre and nearby waterways clean is a goal of many in the community. Tracy Glaze, the environmental project chair for the Santa Rosa Women’s Club, is one of those people. For the past couple of months, Navarre Park has been home to a five-foot-tall recycling receptacle with a large turtle sculpture affixed to the top of it. Nicknamed “Crush,” an ode to the turtle from the Disney movie “Finding Nemo,” the receptacle accepts aluminum cans only and has a can crusher attached to the side.

The Florida Attorney General’s Office’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit secured more than $2.2 million for the Florida Medicaid program from Acadia Healthcare Company, Inc. Acadia, a health care provider based in Tennessee, alleged to have violated the Federal False Claims Act and the Florida False Claims Act by submitting false or fraudulent claims for inpatient behavioral health care to Medicaid and Medicare.

Early childhood is a time of immense importance in the development of children, physically and intellectually. According to the Harvard Center for the Developing Child, brain development occurs over time, from the bottom up, meaning the first few years of life are critical for creating a solid foundation.

A cacophony of celebration ignited inside Kayla Stanford’s fifth-grade classroom Tuesday, Feb. 4, as Santa Rosa District Schools Superintendent Dr. Karen Barber and others surprised Stanford with the announcement that she was District teacher of the year. The announcement came as happy news to teacher and students alike, although for different reasons.

On Saturday, Feb. 8, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., United Way of West Florida will be hosting a distribution for children’s coats at the Pensacola State College Century Campus in Building 1, 440 E. Hecker Road in Century. This event is open to Santa Rosa County residents.