When an otherwise ordinary guy like Edward Snowden becomes a household name overnight, you know that his story is about more than whether he’s a good guy or bad guy for leaking information of U.S. and British government surveillance programs to the press.
Navarre Beach Sand Sculpting Festival is this weekend, September 27-29 and it’s the 4th annual competition and Soft Pack National Championship on Navarre Beach. Amateur teams and individuals (limited to the first 20 applicants) will compete for prizes. Ten of the world’s top soft sand sculptors are coming to compete so there is sure to be some sand sculpting that will impress you.
I stated at the September 9th Santa Rosa Board of Commissioners meeting during the discussion of procedure used in determining ranking of proposals that the Navarre Beach Pier Request for Proposal stated selection shall be made based on the criteria in F.S. 287.055 (2). Florida Statutes section 287.055 (2) is the definitions applicable for acquisition of professional architectural, engineering, landscape architectural, or surveying and mapping services therefore the reference to F.S. 287.055 (2) in the RFP appears to be a clerical error. During the September 9th board discussion of the ranking of Navarre Beach Pier proposals there was no mention of a proposer protesting the clerical error after the issuance of the RFP.
The county recently held a public meeting asking for input on improvements the community would like to see made at Navarre Park. It was a smart, and necessary move. Now we’ll see if the county listened.
Enjoy the Taste of Pensacola Beach featuring Andrew Zimmern this Saturday and Sunday. It’s a free family event showcasing signature dishes from local chefs, kid’s activities, live music on Sunday, and even a Mermaid Parade! See their ad in this issue and visit TasteofPensacolaBeach.com for the full schedule of events.
The responsibilities of a newspaper go much deeper than simply writing stories that entertain and inform. The words public service and watchdog are often tossed around, and rightfully so.
Get ready for Navarre’s only 10K! The 2013 American Cancer Society Man Up 5K/10K is at 4:30 p.m. on September 14 on Navarre Beach. Runners are encouraged to dress in the lightest blue and/or wear the funniest beard! There is an after party at Juana’s. You can register now at active.com. See their ad in this week’s issue for more details.
The selection process of the management of the Navarre Beach Fishing Pier is turning out to be much like a fishing expedition. Lines are cast, but you never know what’s going to come back.
Monday is Labor Day, which means that summer is coming to an end. We have had relatively cool mornings with low humidity this week and the days without rain seem brutally bright and hot. I haven’t looked at my July 2012 power bill as compared to July 2013, but I’m sure it is a lot lower due to the rain and cloudy days. So, there is something good to say about all of the rain we had this summer. However, the rain brought to light the fact that many neighborhoods in Navarre are lacking in stormwater protection. The handling of stormwater is not a new topic. In fact, the ancient Greeks collected storm water. However, if you bring it up around here, the concept of taking care of stormwater and the fact that it should be part of basic infrastructure is “Greek” to some. The City of Tampa actually has a “Stormwater Division.” They have 600 miles of stormwater pipe, more than 250 miles of ditches and culverts, and more than 100 treatment ponds. And get this…the staff annually cleans 21,000 miles of curbed roadway with a fleet of street sweepers to reduce flooding by preventing sediment and debris from entering the drainage system. And, I bet they have a vacuum truck that sucks up standing water so that it doesn’t “muck-up” the culverts and swales that do exist. I know Tampa is a lot bigger than Santa Rosa County, but the basics are the basics. Panama City is close by and they own a vacuum truck. We need a vacuum truck for times like these. There is still standing water and we haven’t had an extended hard rain in more than a week. The reason there is still standing water is because of the muck that will never perk water again, and because a lot of the holding ponds are full to the brim. Have you seen the ponds to the side of High School Road? It almost looks like the water is standing higher than the road. We need to be praying that we don’t get any more tropical moisture this season — and heaven forbid the “H” word.
