The end of summer, the passing of the primary, and what's next
And just like that, summer is on its way out. Eventually. We've had our first fake fall — where the temperature drops just enough to make us think we won't keep baking for days on end. Locals know that's not true.
But fake fall does signal a few things. The impending end of summer, for one. Kids going back to school, for another. That's a big one this year for my family, with one starting her first full semester of college, and the other now a freshmen in high school. Plus we now have a new voter in the household.
We've also seen the primary election come and go. It was a big one for Escambia County, with some pretty big shifts. That happens sometimes. Change is good, I think. And we'll know more after the general election in November. As a reminder, that's the ballot we'll be on.
And there have been a couple major announcements from the City that are worth noting:
Repaving city streets
First up was a pretty major plan from the City for paving city streets. A 2023 study of nearly 5,000 blocks has ranked the condition of streets, and a slew of our roads in District 1 are slated for work in Fiscal Year 2025.
That means roads like Leesway, Capri and Bonway. Flintwood and Soto Grande. Hilltop and Langley and Agincourt. Potosi and its offshoots.
It's definitely worth checking out the full interactive map.
Stormwater grants
I've said before that the City's recent work in securing grant funding may well be one of the more important things it's done. The latest example is $3.35 million in two grants that will help pay for major stormwater improvements.
Some $2.6 million of that is coming to our district to improve the drainage on the 620-acre basin affected by Langley Avenue. The gist is that the existing infrastructure is just too small and needs to be expanded. That's badly needed, and has been a long time coming. Kudos to the City for securing that additional funding.
A few other things ...
- I had a great time speaking at the Pensacola Propeller Club's July meeting. I literally would not be here if it weren't for the Port of Pensacola — it's why my family came to Pensacola generations ago.
- The city’s fall soccer season is getting underway, with just about 900 kids signed up, which is incredible. And it’s all happening in District 1.
- American Magic is doing its thing off the coast of Barcelona. (One of my favorite cities I’ve visited for work. It’s amazing how much you can still see of Spain in Pensacola.)