News Archive

Santa Rosa County Property Appraiser Greg Brown II wants residents to mark their calendars. From Jan. 1, 2025, to March 1, 2025, residents can file for a homestead exemption. Two other exemptions, one for persons 65 and over and the other for deployed servicemembers, has a five-month filing window from Jan. 1, 2025, to June 1, 2025. According to the Property Appraiser’s website, all persons who own and reside on real property in Florida on January 1 and make the property their permanent residence is eligible to receive a homestead exemption up to $50,000.

A church in Navarre has found their new home. Founded in 2017 as a plant of the Evangelical Free Church of America (EFCA), COMPASS Community Church has met for services at several locations over the years. First in the homes of its congregants, then at the Holley by the Sea recreation center’s Beach House, and finally, at the old Pet Stylers building in Soundview Plaza (8540 Navarre Parkway). On Jan. 5, 2025, the church will hold its first Sunday service at Gulf Pointe Latin School, a Christian school located at 7624 East Bay Blvd. in Navarre. According to Michael Bannon, the church’s pastor since its inception, the move was expected.

Live trees are a festive and fragrant holiday decoration for many families during the Christmas holidays, and Santa Rosa County Public Works offers an environmentally friendly option for disposal. Residents who would like to “treecycle” their tree for mulch may drop off their clean Christmas trees in the designated areas listed below by Jan. 20:

A convenience store with fuel pumps is planned for 6827 Gulf Breeze Parkway, on the southside of Highway 98, near the southern terminus of Edgewood Drive. According to plans submitted to Santa Rosa County Development Services, the store will be approximately 6,372 sq. ft. with a 9,909 sq. ft. fuel canopy. Under the fuel canopy, there will be 10 pumps.

Waterfront Mission is spreading joy and compassion this holiday season by offering Christmas Lunch to those who are hungry or alone on Wednesday, December 25th, from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM at both the Pensacola and Mobile Mission locations.

Florida Highway Patrol Traffic Homicide Investigations is looking for information and witnesses regarding a fatal crash that occurred in Pensacola, Florida.

“A catastrophic failure.” Those were the words Holley Navarre Water System used in a customer alert concerning a break in a 30-inch water transmission main belonging to FairPoint Regional Water System (FRUS). The break occurred Friday, Dec. 20.

Turtles in Focus

Two photos taken by Navarre resident Jeff Waldorff have been selected to appear in Sea Turtle Conservancy’s annual Sea Turtle Calendar contest for 2025. The photos showcase a sea turtle eating a jellyfish and two hatchlings making their way to the water. Waldorff is known for his nature photography.

Navarre resident makes Broadway debut in ‘MJ’

Julius Raymond Weems IV, 10, is starring on Broadway in the role of Marlon Jackson in “MJ,” a musical based on the life of Michael Jackson. Weems and his family have moved to New York for Weems’s career, but maintain a residence in Navarre. The ten-year-old’s acting career began less than a year ago with the help of acting coach Jossie Harris, an actress and dancer known as one of the “Fly Girls” on the 1990s sketch comedy show, “In Living Color.”

Navarre family gets home renovated through Make-a-Wish project

Kye and Selena Keenam have been taking care of their grandson, Sawyer Johns, since 2019. Johns, 7, has Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome (LGS), a condition which causes seizures and developmental delays. Johns has also suffered from other health issues, which have left him in need of constant care from an in-home nurse. His primary nurse, Crystal Chastain, contacted Make-a-Wish about his story and Johns now has a brand new room and bathroom because of it. Multiple local businesses helped with the remodel, including Off the Walls Murals.