Nickelsen Celebrates 100Th Birthday
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
EDUCATION SPORTS School starts Splash! Magazine honors in just 4 days Pelicans’ mascot ‘Scoop’ Read the latest The Pensacola Pelicans’ zany information from mascot ‘Scoop’ celebrates a Oriole Beach, birthday Friday. Splash! will Pensacola Beach, be there helping blow out Woodlawn. Section B the candles. 5C A W A Call 934-6200 R D jmillers.com ● Gulf Breeze ● W ● Pensacola I ● Destin N N I N G 50¢ YOUR COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER August 20, 2009 Zoo closed now but could reopen Friday Nickelsen ■ Administration ed last Friday on www.gulf- hopes to get donation breezenews.com – was sched- uled to last through today, Aug. from Tourist Council 20. But if The Zoo does not get celebrates a pledge for funding at a county BY PAM BRANNON Tourist Development Council Gulf Breeze News (TDC) today, the doors could [email protected] stay closed permanently. 100th Zoo Director Danyelle Lantz The Zoo Northwest Florida was deeply disappointed with closed Monday for what the last week’s turn of events. staff hoped was only a tempo- “I am hopeful. That is the birthday rary situation. The closing – initially report- See ZOO, Page 2A ■ Beloved Gulf Breeze resident marks milestone WEEKEND City plans with big bash at St. Ann’s Weather THURSDAY to raise BY JOE CULPEPPER 8/20 Gulf Breeze News Iso. T-Storms [email protected] O high 90 2 tax One by one, for the good part of an hour, family, low 77O friends and fellow parishioners at St. Ann Catholic Church hugged, shook hands, laughed and smiled FRIDAY 8/21 rates as they celebrated with B.J. Nickelsen on the Scat. T-Storms occasion of his 100th birthday. BY VICI PAPAJOHN Last Thursday’s party in the fellowship hall O Gulf Breeze News bearing Nickelsen’s name attracted more than high 86 [email protected] low 75O 100 well-wishers that included Most Rev. The Gulf Breeze City John H. Ricard, Bishop of the Pensacola- Council culminated months- Tallahassee Diocese. SATURDAY 8/22 long discussions at multiple A trio performed live music as Scat. T-Storms budget hearings concerning the Nickelsen greeted each and every visitor. high 88O need to rebuild reserves and “They sure are making a fuss over this,” Nickelsen said. “I’m low 73O fund long-delayed capital improvements with unanimous so happy to have all these votes to raise both the wonderful people as my SUNDAY 8/23 Municipal Utility Service Tax friends. It’s something that Partly Cloudy (MUST) and Communication they came all the way over O high 89 Service Tax (CST) rates. B.J. Nickelsen See NICKELSEN, Page 4A O low 73 See RATES, Page 3A INSIDE ‘Claudette’ springs Midway Fire, union Classifieds 3D to life, then fizzles agree to contract Crossword puzzle 3B ■ The weak and somewhat dis- ■ and the Midway Professional Community 3-8A Weak tropical storm Labor agreement makes landfall nearby, organized system brought winds gives firefighters more Firefighters (MPF) union Entertainment 2B of between 45 and 50 miles per (Local 4192 of the International Felonies 2A but its effects minimal hour, but very little precipitation negotiating leverage Association of Fire Fighters) Island News 1D was detected in the Gulf Breeze signed the first labor contract in Back to School 1B BY JOE CULPEPPER area overnight. By mid-morning BY JOE CULPEPPER the organizations’ history. The Gulf Breeze News Gulf Breeze News Opinion 6A Monday, winds gusted over one-year pact, which runs [email protected] [email protected] Sports 1-8C Santa Rosa Island, blowing through Sept. 30, 2010 and will sand onto the Casino Beach Talk of the Town 5A Claudette wasn’t ‘all that,’ Two local fire service organi- be reviewed annually, gives the thank goodness. parking lot and across parts of zations last week entered into a 21-member union more security “Mailing Statement Tropical storm Claudette, the Fort Pickens Road and J. Earle historic new era of labor rela- in terms of personal benefits, on Editorial Page” third of three named Atlantic Bowden Way. tions, solidifying an already grievance protocol and But mostly, Claudette was a FOUR SECTIONS Basin tropical storms to form Joe Culpepper/GBN strong working association that increased bargaining power. dud. VOL. 8, NO. 34 Saturday and Sunday, made Lifeguards switch warning ultimately benefits the residents MFD and the constituency it “We did have some high AUGUST 20, 2009 landfall at Fort Walton Beach at flags to red as Claudette of Gulf Breeze/Midway. serves in a 26-square-mile area See STORM approximately 1 a.m. Monday. , Page 3A kicks up sand at the beach. Midway Fire District (MFD) See LABOR, Page 2A home! your Call 932-8986 today Call 932-8986 today Enjoy your community paper community your Enjoy mailed directly to mailed directly GULF BREEZE NEWS (850) 932-8986 www.gulfbreezenews.com 2A August 20, 2009 GULF BREEZE NEWS Thursday, August 20 City Hall, 1070 Shoreline Drive, Gulf Gulf Breeze Area Chamber Breeze of Commerce Monthly Breakfast 7 a.m., Andrews Performance Research Wednesday, Pavillion, Andrews Institute, August 26 Gulf Breeze Early Learning Coalition of Gulf Breeze Area Santa Rosa County Chamber of Executive Committee 9 a.m., Commerce Board of Early Learning Coalition Office, Directors noon, 6555 Caroline Street, Milton Chamber Headquarters, Santa Rosa County Local 409 Gulf Breeze Joe Culpepper/Gulf Breeze News Mitigation Strategy Meeting Parkway, Gulf Breeze In a show of solidarity, the Midway Fire District Commission and Midway Professional Firefighters join for a group photo 1:30 p.m., Conference Room, Santa Rosa County after last Tuesday’s signing of the first labor contract between the two entities. 6051 Old Bagdad Highway, Affordable Housing Milton Advisory Committee 3 : p.m., Conference Room, 6051 LABOR ‘This negotiation Monday, August 24 Old Bagdad Highway, Milton Santa Rosa Island was not about money’ Santa Rosa County Authority Committee 5 p.m., Commission Committee SRIA Headquarters, 1 Via de Continued from page 1A Beach. Of those, only Midway 9 a.m., County Administrative Luna Drive, Pensacola Beach Center, 6495 Caroline Street, Santa Rosa County Parks and Milton have labor contracts. Milton and Recreation 5:30 p.m., of south Santa Rosa County will Nearby, union firefighters have TEAM Santa Rosa County Administrative Center, benefit from higher department a contract with the city of Economic Development Milton morale and cohesiveness, key Pensacola Fire Department but Council Board of Directors components in quality service not with the Escambia County 11:30 a.m., TEAM assurance. Fire Department. Headquarters, 6491 Caroline Thursday, August 27 “What’s basically addressed Street, Suite 4, Milton Last week’s agreement cul- Santa Rosa County Santa Rosa County minated nearly two years of pur- are the operation procedures for Commission Regular 9 a.m., Municipal Service Benefit suit by the union and 17 months the department, the groundwork County Administrative Center Unit Public Hearing 6 p.m., of negotiations with the MFD for the union as far as things they ,6495 Caroline Street, Milton Commission. The union did not can expect from their employer,” County Adminstrative Center, 6495 Caroline Street, Milton Santa Rosa County School seek employee pay raises, but said Joe McPherson, MFD Board 10 a.m., District benefits agreements in the con- Commission Chairman. “The Headquarters, 5086 Canal tract are expected to cost MFD manual of operations is built into Tuesday, August 25 Street, Milton an additional $20,000 to the contract. There is a level of City of Gulf Breeze Board $30,000 a year. comfort knowing if you belong of Adjustments 6:30 p.m., “This negotiation was not to a union just what can and can- Joe Culpepper/Gulf Breeze News about money,” MPF President not happen. There is a way to Midway Fire District Commission Chairman Joe McPherson Lou Jones said. “We understand pursue grievance procedures. (left) looks on as Midway Professional Firefighters President Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office Report the state of the economy, and “No one person can say, Lou Jones signs the historic labor agreement last Tuesday. that’s why we didn’t ask for ‘Hey, go clean out your locker Information provided by the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office. raises. We didn’t want to finan- and take a hike.’ Up until this ship we had with them before. for more money and are think- Felonies Gulf Breeze, violation of probation. cially put a burden on the dis- time, the Fire Chief essentially “We’ve changed our relation- ing just about ourselves,” Jones Lewis, Matthew Grant, W/M, trict and negotiate wages and had that power. The power has- ship so that it’s more common to said. “There’s so much more to 8/11/2009 43, 3300 block of Doddie Lane, that kind of stuff. n’t changed; the Chief can still every other organization out it than that. We do a lot of char- Maddox, Christian Ferril, W/M, Navarre, drug possession. “We are happy where we are dismiss somebody, but it would there that has fulltime employ- ity work and give back to the 18, 2700 block of Creeks Edge right now. But we did desire to be a little more difficult because ees. That’s just the right thing to community.” Lane, Navarre, aggravated battery. 8/18/2009 secure collective bargaining of procedure.” do. We had the power not to do Said McPherson: “We have a Rice, Brandon Jeffrey, W/M, Baringer, Mark Edson, W/M, power. The district’s working Past Commission Chairman this, but we did choose to do it, lot of money invested in each of 20, 9900 block of Parker Lane, 45, 2700 block of Bay Club Drive, Navarre, violation of probation.