Dave Dunwoody

Coronavirus rates in Pensacola appear to be easing a bit, according to Mayor Grover Robinson, but still hovering in that ten to 18% range.

“It would be better it we could keep [the COVID rate] down, but we would seem to be daily in that occurrence,” said Robinson during his weekly virtual news conference. He added that some of the new case numbers have seen some leveling or decline – the latter in hospitalizations.

Florida lawmakers are gearing up for the 2021 regular session, with a full plate awaiting them in Tallahassee. WUWF’s Dave Dunwoody spoke with two members of the local delegation –first up, a veteran state legislator.

Doug Broxson, a Republican from Gulf Breeze, is beginning his second term in Florida Senate District-1, after defeating Democratic challenger Karen Butler in November. Prior to that, he served two terms in the House. 

A suspect in the January 6 siege at the U.S. Capitol has made an appearance in Federal Court in Pensacola.

FBI agents and agents from the Florida Department of Law Enforement and the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office arrested Jesus D. Rivera, 37, of Pensacola at his home Wednesday morning, said Lawrence Keefe, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

Rivera was taken into custody without incident.

North Escambia County is farm country, and a different type of farm is blooming. Cotton Creek Solar Energy Center is going up on 550 acres, with a second farm nearby also on the drawing board.

“We are now part of Florida Power & Light; we’re drawing on their solar progress, to install 30 million solar panels across the state by 2030,” said Gulf Power spokeswoman Kimberly Blair. “The two solar sites that we have in Escambia County are part of the ’30 by 30’ plan.”

Repairs continue on the new Three Mile Bridge over Pensacola Bay, which was damaged in Hurricane Sally by the storm itself, and by barges that broke loose and slammed into it.

The work is underway on the span, with one milestone reached last Wednesday, according to Ian Satter at the Florida Department of Transportation.

The federal government is mostly to blame for what some people see as a slow distribution of COVID-19 vaccines in Florida. That according to the state’s Emergency Management Director.

Appearing before the newly-minted House Pandemics and Public Emergencies Committee on Thursday, Jared Moskowitz said the feds have been dragging their feet in releasing enough supply to Florida to meet demand.

After more than two years of discussion, could the city of Pensacola be ready to put its money where its mouth is in regard to the homeless?

Mayor Grover Robinson is asking the City Council to approve spending $200,00 to pay for "homeless initiatives" such as a day-use center, which is part of a similar initiative by the city of Tallahassee and Leon County.

As the number of coronavirus cases continue to climb, Pensacola Mayor Grover Robinson is out with a repeat of restrictions within the city limits.

Speaking at his weekly virtual news conference, the mayor said it’s being made necessary by a “fairly significant” jump in positivity and hospitalizations over the past few days.

Owing to the pandemic and after discussions with local partners and officials, organizers of Pensacon are pushing back the annual event to later this year, at least.

Originally set for Feb. 26-28, organizers are now searching for new dates.

“Obviously, the first concern is safety; we’ve seen a spike where we’re sitting at the worst we’ve been since this pandemic began in cases and deaths. We just don’t think it’s the right time. We want to make sure everybody’s safe, first and foremost,” said Pensacon founder and CEO Mike Ensley.

Damage caused by runaway barges during Hurricane Sally – and what to do about it – will be discussed at a pair of forums this weekend.

About 30 construction barges owned by Skanska USA broke loose from the new Three Mile Bridge site during the storm, not only damaging the bridge but also private property when 22 of them washed ashore or struck other vessels.

Older residents in Escambia County lined up at Olive Baptist Church in Pensacola on Wednesday, to get their first COVID-19 vaccination in the two-shot Moderna protocol.

On a sunny, chilly day the line formed outside the church’s activities center. It was appointment-only, and they filled out the paperwork as they waited and inched forward towards the basketball courts that housed the check-in, the vaccinations and the check-out.

The event also played host to a number of state officials, including Gov. Ron DeSantis.

The checks and direct deposits are going out for the new, $600 COVID relief payments, with more possible from the new Biden administration. And that means scammers are not too far behind.

“It doesn’t take long for something to come out in the public that scammer’s going to take advantage of it and try to get money out of somebody who is just trying to get by,” said Tammy Ward at the Better Business Bureau in Pensacola.

In his first virtual news conference of 2021, Pensacola Mayor Grover Robinin disclosed his bout with COVID-19 during the holidays. Meantime, statewide vaccine distribution in Florida is beginning to ramp up.

Robinson announced that he was exposed to the coronavirus four days before Christmas by his son, who unknowingly brought it with him from law school.

The 2020 election cycle saw an exodus of officeholders deciding to step down, rather than seek another term. Among them is Bill Eddins, the State Attorney for the 1st Judicial Circuit that covers Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa and Walton Counties.

Eddins, who’s 74, began his 48-year legal career as an assistant state attorney in Milton; three years later he began a 25-year stint as a defense attorney before returning to the prosecutorial side for two reasons.