Editorial Archive

One year ago, Johnny Lee Akins of Crestview, Florida sought treatment for severe mental health issues at a hospital with a psychiatric receiving facility, and despite his wife’s desperate pleas, the facility released him because he apparently did not meet commitment criteria.

Moving traffic through or around Milton isn’t a new concern. The city considered building a second bridge over the Blackwater River to connect Berryhill Street to U.S. Highway 90 and create a bypass at least 20 years ago.

But now that the Florida Department of Transportation is moving ahead with a plan to widen Caroline Street (U.S. 90) from two to four lanes between Stewart Street and Ward Basin Road, the debate over downtown’s future has taken on a new urgency.

The Holley Navarre Water System board of directors is once again a divided mess.

Unfortunately, the board members demanding transparency to the membership are in the minority. The other half of the board is being as transparent as mud.

It is with great sadness that we report on the loss of the historic Berryhill Elementary School building this week.

Students and teachers roamed its halls for 64 years, between 1926 and 1990, and many residents have fond memories of earlier, more innocent days spent there.

It’s almost impossible to understand it if you weren’t here then.

One April morning in 2010 the Gulf of Mexico exploded. Hundreds of millions of gallons of oil roared up out of an undersea volcano and smeared across 70,000 miles of ocean.

Following the 2020 Census, Florida could have secured:

• Extra yearly federal funding;
•  An additional congressional seat; and
•  Reliable data to guide statewide business and economic development, workforce infrastructure, social services, and decision-making for the years to come.

It’s not especially large; it’s tiny compared to its modern counterparts.

And it’s not fancy. Whatever beauty it might hold comes from its simplicity, a square room with hardwood floors and whitewashed walls, natural light streaming in from rows of simple rectangular windows.

You know the math. Most of the money spent in Navarre stays in Navarre. It really is that simple.

When you shop locally, you’re really getting cash back in the form of lower taxes.

Way to go, Santa Rosa County Commissioners. 

You discussing abortion upset a PNJ letter writer.

As we gather to celebrate Independence Day, it’s a good time to reflect on how our most fundamental freedoms have served this nation well.

It’s an even better time to think about what would happen if those liberties were taken away.