Florida

Florida Senate puts up $5 million for Pensacola’s effort to acquire old Baptist Hospital

Published

2 years ago

February 1, 2024

Florida Senate puts up million for Pensacola’s effort to acquire old Baptist Hospital

The Florida Legislature appears set to back Pensacola’s effort to redevelop the old Baptist Hospital property with $5 million.

Florida House and Senate committees backed their version of the state’s budget plans — $115.5 billion on the House side and $115.9 billion on the Senate side — and included in the Senate version was $5 million for “Live Local Pensacola” the name of the city effort to acquire and demolish the old Baptist Hospital property.

The city’s working plan is to clear the property and find a developer who can transform the campus into a new mixed-income community with all levels of affordable housing.

Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves’ funding plan to demolish the old hospital in a single year included at least $5 million from the Florida Legislature.

Also included in the Senate version was $2.2 million for funding for Bay Bluffs Park and $1 million for a terminal expansion at the Pensacola International Airport.

The House version of the budget contained $750,000 for funding for the airport.

Reeves thanks Sen. Doug Broxson for the inclusion of the projects in the Senate version of the budget, which was published on Friday.

“This is just the first step in seeing if these projects end up getting funded,” Reeves said. “They have dollar amounts tied to them, but there’s a lot more work yet to come.”

The lack of inclusion of the Baptist Hospital project in the House version of the budget comes after Rep. Alex Andrade, R-Pensacola, said he couldn’t move the project forward because the city had not committed to using the dollars if the state allocated them.

The issue has strained the working relationship between the mayor and Andrade, whose district contains the entire city limits of Pensacola except for the new Baptist Hospital campus on Brent Lane.

Andrade’s view had not changed when he spoke to the News Journal in a text message on Wednesday.

“It shouldn’t have been a surprise I didn’t put money in my budget for it,” Andrade said. “The city didn’t do what I needed them to do to justify putting it into my spreadsheet. I did put money in for the airport because they committed to using it.”

That doesn’t mean Andrade is not supporting the project, however, as the budget is far from final.

Andrade said he still plans to support the project when the House and Senate versions of the budget get to a conference to unify the two spending plans.

“So long as I have the funds, my plan is to match (the Senate’s version) at $5 million when I go into conference negotiations,” Andrade said.

If the funds are approved and survive Gov. Ron DeSantis’ line-item veto, the city will have won a large portion of the $16.4 million it says it needs to accept the property from Baptist Hospital.

Last week, Reeves announced his full funding plan for acquiring the property. It would still require Baptist Health Care to contribute $3 million and Escambia County to contribute $2 million. The Pensacola City Council will vote next week to pledge $1 million to the project.

Proposed funding breakdown:

Pensacola: $1 million
Other grants: Up to $5 million for commercial property
Escambia County: $2 million
Baptist Health Care: $3 million
Sale of land to affordable housing developer Paces Foundation: $2.9 million
Florida: Between $5 million and $8 million
Total: $13.9 million to $16.9 million

Source link

Click to comment

Florida

Florida starts redistricting talks in a growing battle for House control in 2026 elections

Published

2 hours ago

December 4, 2025

Press Room

Florida starts redistricting talks in a growing battle for House control in 2026 elections

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida’s Republican-controlled House is holding the first meeting of its select committee on congressional redistricting Thursday, as the state becomes the latest to consider redrawing electoral maps amid a partisan battle for every edge in next year’s midterm elections.

The national wave of redistricting efforts was instigated by President Donald Trump, who hopes to buck the historical trend of the president’s party losing seats in midterms, and his allies are wagering that his adopted home state could yield three to five more seats for Republicans. Each seat is crucial, because Democrats need a net gain of just three to control the chamber.

But the push for redistricting faces major challenges in Florida due to bitter infighting between Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and leaders in the GOP-dominated Legislature, along with a provision in the state Constitution that explicitly bars redrawing maps with the intent to “favor or disfavor a political party or an incumbent.”

DeSantis has voiced support for redistricting and even called for a redo of the 2020 U.S. census, claiming that Florida was shortchanged in the count, which determines how many congressional seats each state gets.

“We are going to press this issue,” DeSantis said in August.

This week, in an interview with online outlet The Floridian, DeSantis floated the possibility of calling lawmakers back in a special session if they do not get redistricting done in the regular session, which is scheduled for Jan. 13 to March 13.

The state Senate has declined to wade into the fray so far.

Senate President Ben Albritton, also a Republican, has said there is “no ongoing work” on the matter in his chamber, citing the governor’s desire to address it in the spring.

Civil liberties and voting rights organizations say any redistricting for partisan gain in Florida is unconstitutional, and their supporters plan to pack committee meetings to voice opposition.

“To redraw the lines for partisan reasons is illegal. Period, full stop,” said Genesis Robinson, executive director of the voter engagement organization Equal Ground.

Florida has 28 congressional seats, with a Republican-Democratic split of 20-8.

Nationwide, midcycle redistricting has resulted in nine more congressional seats that Republicans believe they can win and six that Democrats think they can win. The redistricting is being litigated in several states, however, and there is also no guarantee that the parties will win the remapped seats.

___

Kate Payne is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

Source link

Florida

USF to hire Brian Hartline, one of the architects Ohio State’s ‘WRU’

Published

14 hours ago

December 3, 2025

Press Room

USF to hire Brian Hartline, one of the architects Ohio State’s ‘WRU’

One of college football’s most heralded assistants has gotten his first head-coaching job.

Ohio State offensive coordinator at wide receivers coach Brian Hartline is expected to be hired as the next head coach at South Florida, according to multiple reports on Wednesday, Dec. 3.

He’ll replace Alex Golesh, who left the Bulls to become the head coach at Auburn three days earlier.

According to Yahoo Sports, Hartline has signed a six-year deal with South Florida and will remain with Ohio State for the upcoming College Football Playoff.

Hartline has been at Ohio State since 2017 and has been instrumental in the Buckeyes’ rise as an offensive powerhouse centered around college-turned-NFL stars at wide receiver. Among the players Hartline has coached are Jeremiah Smith, Marvin Harrison Jr., Chris Olave, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Emeka Egbuka and Garrett Wilson. Over the past four years, five wide receivers that Hartline coached have been taken in the first round of the NFL draft.

A former Ohio State wide receiver himself, the 37-year-old Hartline is in his third season as the Buckeyes’ offensive coordinator. He shared the title last season with Chip Kelly when Ohio State won the national championship.

This season, with Hartline as the sole offensive coordinator, the No. 1 Buckeyes are averaging 37 points per game heading into Saturday’s Big Ten championship game against No. 2 Indiana. It’s the 13th-highest mark among 136 FBS programs.

South Florida is 9-3 this season and went 23-15 in three seasons under Golesh. Given the size of the school, the program’s location in a talent-rich state and the opening of a new stadium in the next few years, South Florida is widely considered one of the best jobs outside of the Power Four conferences.

Source link

Florida

Five key takeaways from Florida’s 1-point loss to Duke

Published

1 day ago

December 3, 2025

Press Room

Five key takeaways from Florida’s 1-point loss to Duke

No. 15 Florida lost a tight game against No. 4 Duke, 67-66, on Tuesday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

The Gators were the better team for all but eight minutes of the game, but a 19-5 run from the Blue Devils to close the second half proved to be the difference. Once again, poor shooting doomed the Orange and Blue. Florida shot just 37.3% from the field and 25% from 3-point range.

Thomas Haugh did all he could to win, with 24 points, six rebounds, an assist, a block and a steal. It wasn’t enough. Cameron Boozer, who looked every bit the best player in the country, matched Haugh and then some. Boozer finished with 29 points, six rebounds, two assists and a steal.

A strong second half made things close. Boogie Fland and Alex Condon got going, offensive rebounds led to second-chance opportunities for Florida and strong defense forced more misses from Duke. The Gators took a two-point lead with 32 seconds left, but Duke returned the favor on a broken play. Urban Klavzar hadn’t left Isaiah Evans for most of the second half, but the last-minute scramble led to an open look.

Still, Florida proved that it’s still worthy of a top 10 ranking and that it can hang with the best teams in the country. It’s a work in progress, even if 5-3 looks ugly in the standings.

Someone has to help Haugh

Florida couldn’t buy a bucket in the first half, unless Thomas Haugh was shooting. Haugh played all 20 minutes before the break and scored or assisted on 19 of Florida’s 24 points. Boogie Fland and Xaivian Lee went a combined 1-of-11 from the field, and the only make was a lucky roll off the back of the rim. In fact, if you take away Haugh’s shooting, the team went 4-of-26 from the field in the first half. Ugly.

Haugh can only do it by himself for so long. Eventually, Duke figured out that he was the only threat and all of Florida’s plays were designed to get Haugh driving to his right. Considering the poor shooting, it’s a miracle that Florida kept the game knotted at 19 through the first 12 minutes. The next eight minutes were all Duke. The Blue Devils went on a 19-5 run, leading by 12 at the break.

Florida should have won this game

Several little things buried Florida. Besides the forced 3-pointers, Condon was called on a lane violation to nullify a missed free throw from Cameron Boozer, and a blatant no-call on Duke goaltending was the difference on the scoreboard.

Coaches and players who point to referee errors are often labeled whiners, but sometimes it’s warranted. The ball hit the backboard and was then blocked. A year ago, a timeout gets called and the play is reviewed. The exact butterfly effect isn’t worth going into, but in a one-point loss, that moment looms large.

Of course, a better end to the first half from Florida makes all of this a non-issue.

Too little, too late from Boogie Fland

Fland was Florida’s leading scorer in the second half. Part of that is Duke adjusting at halftime to slow down Haugh, but he also seemed to find an offensive rhythm that hasn’t been present all season. He finished the day just under 50% shooting and had three steals. Four turnovers ot one assist isn’t great, but he had just one and one in the second half.

The change came once Fland stopped forcing 3-pointers. He came around screens quickly and found plenty of buckets inside the arc. For Florida to be successful, Fland must play that brand of basketball.

It’s an encouraging sign to see Fland figure it out, but it came way too late. Again, this could have been a multi-possession victory for Florida had the first half gone even a bit better.

Xaivian Lee does his Jekyll and Hyde routine

All the confidence Xaivian Lee built up in the second half against Providence might be gone. A 1-for-10 night with just one assist is not what starting point guards in the SEC do. Lee said he “was in a dark place” before that breakout game. He mustn’t return to the shadow realm.

The saying goes: play with emotion, not emotion. Lee can’t lose his “joy” every time the shots don’t fall. He was nearly a non-factor in this game, and there’s a reason Golden played Klavzar 15 minutes to Lee’s 10 in the second half. A bench role still feels right for Lee, at least until he gets his head on straight.

No shade. Adjusting to this pace is hard. But it’s what he came here to do.

Florida can win a national championship

Gator Nation is going to leave this one with a bad taste in their mouths, and rightfully so. But so-called moral victories will turn into real victories if this team continues to get better, as it has through the first month of the season.

Losing in November and December doesn’t matter if you don’t lose in March. Forget about TCU for a moment. Arizona and Duke are potential Final Four teams with elite freshman big men. The first thing Boozer said after the game was how good Florida’s frontcourt is.

It’s the backcourt that needs work, and they are improving. Back-to-back breakout games from transfers show what the Gators are capable of. If Fland plays like that for the whole game, or Lee doesn’t fall back into a slump, it’s a Florida win.

Todd Golden’s job is to get these guys firing on all cylinders before the NCAA Tournament. Seeding doesn’t matter. UConn is Florida’s last chance on the non-conference schedule to add a meaningful win. That complete team performance has to come next Tuesday.

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Source link