April 11 Issue

“All the food you can eat, all the beer you can drink and a nice place to rest your head.”

“I wish we had a more romantic story.”

“These Louisiana boys know exactly what they’re doing.”

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Independent News | April 11, 2013 | Volume 14 | Number 15 | inweekly.net

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publisher & editor Rick Outzen production manager Joani Delezen art director Samantha Crooke staff writer Jeremy Morrison contributing writers Joani Delezen, Hana Frenette, Brett Hutchins, Sarah McCartan, Kate Peterson, Chuck Shepherd intern Victoria Sharp contact us 438.8115

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winners & losers

winners

NAVY FEDERAL CREDIT UNION

With support from Escambia County, Enterprise Florida and the University of West Florida’s Office of Economic Development and Engagement, the Chamber negotiated an incentive package for Navy Federal to encourage its decision to expand locally.

The credit union will be expanding its current facilities, investing $200 million in capital expenditures and developing its campus to accommodate 2,000 employees over the next seven to 10 years.

SUSAN CAMPBELL JEWELRY Jewelry

designed by Pensacola native Susan Campbell Hatler is pictured on super model Kate Bock in the 2013 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition. The charm is from her SAM Collection, which is housed in Pensacola at the SAM Spot, “a charm workshop” in the back of the retail store Susan Campbell Jewelry. The Sam Spot was a finalist in the Pensacola Business challenge sponsored by Quint and Rishy Studer.

EMERALD COAST UTILITY AUTHORITY The utility’s drinking water has been

selected as the “2013 Best Tasting Water” in Northwest Florida in a taste-test competition sponsored by Region IX of the Florida Section/American Water Works Association (FS/AWWA). Region IX is comprised of all water utilities in the four westernmost counties of the Panhandle: Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa and Walton.

April 11, 2013

losers

CITIZENS PROPERTY INSURANCE

The state’s disaster insurance company is poised to raise rates again. Lawmakers are saying Florida residents may see premiums go up as high as $5,000 per year. This is after the company raised insurance costs on homeowners by more than $450 million last year, while reducing billions of dollars in coverage.

AMERICAN BASKETBALL LEAGUE

This professional basketball league was to compete with the NBA Developmental League and develop young talent to play overseas by using the FIBA rules. One of the teams is located in Panama City, Fla.— the Panama City Breeze. As the league’s first season is coming to an end, players, coaches and owners are complaining about not being paid. This all sounds vaguely familiar.

KIM JONG-UN Even though the United Nations Security Council imposed sanctions against his country, North Korea, for its launching of a three-stage rocket in December and its third nuclear test in February, “Little” Kim still continues to say he’s going to attack South Korea and the United States. Most analysts believe that North Korea doesn’t have a missile powerful enough to deliver a nuclear warhead to our mainland or even reach military bases on Guam that are only 2,200 miles from North Korea.

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Florida Democrats are hungrily awaiting the announcement from their newly minted member, Charlie Crist, that the former Republican governor will seek the office again, this time as a Democrat.

Republicans will tell you that he has always been more Democrat than Republican and left the party principles years ago.

The Democrats are the party of lost causes—marriage equality, labor unions, healthcare reform and gun control. Most of these causes Crist has opposed, but he has already begun to distance himself from his past positions, especially when it comes to gun control.

When he announced on Twitter his affiliation epiphany last December, Crist immediately became the Democrat’s frontrunner for the 2014 gubernatorial nomination. A week after his party switch, Adam Lanza fatally shot 20 children and six adult at Sandy Hook Elementary School in the village of Sandy Hook in Newtown, Conn.

In the days after the shootings, Crist joined the chorus of Democrats across the nation calling for gun control.

Great… the only problem is Crist has been a vocal supporter for the Second Amendment and the political agenda of the National Rifle Association for over a decade.

The NRA backed Crist over Marco Rubio in the U.S. Senate race until Crist dropped out of the GOP primary and ran

as an independent. Crist accused Rubio of being soft on guns because he supported a waiting period and background checks.

It was the same tactic Crist used against Republican rival Tom Gallagher in the 2006 race for governor, winning another endorsement from the NRA. Once in office, Governor Crist appointed NRA-endorsed Charles Canady and Ricky Polston to the Florida Supreme Court.

He signed legislation that allowed workers to bring their guns to work and vetoed a move by lawmakers to sweep $6 million from the concealed weapons trust fund to help balance the state budget.

The following year, Crist worked with the NRA to get legislation passed by the Florida Legislature that prevented any further attempts to raid the Concealed-weapons Permit Trust Fund. When he signed the bill, Governor Crist gave the pen he used to Marion Hammer, the former NRA president and its longtime lobbyist in Tallahassee, Now Crist is willing to shed himself of his pro-gun past, almost as easily as he left the Republican Party. Is his change of heart real or is he simply playing to his new party?

Time will tell, but we can expect more such changes in the months leading up to the 2014 election. Crist may even reach the grandmaster level of flip-flopping before it’s over. {in} rick@inweekly.net

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A DAY AT THE PARK WITH JIM REEVES represent the Community Maritime Park Board. Those lawyers represent either the mayor or the city. And so I kind of want to see the background of how that got generated and what the instructions were prior to that opinion being written. Haven’t gotten that request other than an acknowledgement that I asked for it.

IN: In your view, how does it work?

REEVES: Well, how it works is simply we’re the landlord of the park, meaning the Community Maritime Park board is the landlord. Nobody, no lawyer—I’m a real estate lawyer—no lawyer would be happy without having a joinder of the landlord. And we are the landlord, it’s just that simple. All you have to do is look at the title evidence for the Studer piece and you will see that it requires a joinder of the Community Maritime Park Board. So, he’s just wrong.

IN: In this Y deal, where in the process do you think it went wrong?

REEVES: In the process. And that’s not to be a smart answer. It would have been so much easier if we had all worked together and kind of not have excluded anybody.

Don’t exclude council, don’t exclude the mayor and don’t exclude the Community Maritime Park board.

Jim Reeves / photo by Samantha Crooke

CMPA Treasurer Discusses Brouhaha

by Jeremy Morrison In the wake of the YMCA’s walkaway amidst a procedural nosedive, city of Pensacola Attorney Jim Messer has issued a memorandum outlining the legal relationship between the city and the Community Maritime Park Associates. The attorney describes the CMPA as an “alter ego” of the city and indicates that the entity “has no right to deviate from whatever basic concepts are transmitted to it for negotiation.”

With the intention of building a new YMCA on parcel 8 at the Community Maritime Park, Y representatives approached Mayor Ashton Hayward late last year. When he brought the organization before the Pensacola City Council for consideration— with a lease hammered out with Messer in hand—questions arose about process.

Council members wondered why the Y had not come through the CMPA board.

After approving the Y lease—in “concept”—the city council left it to the CMPA board to work out the lease. The park board 66

then decided to direct the YMCA away from the waterfront parcel, which resulted in the organization leaving the negotiating table.

As a result, the city council requested that Messer provide an opinion on how the city and CMPA were to function when dealing with the park. He informed them they could remove all of the CMPA trustees and replace them with members of council or their designees.

In addition, the city recently commissioned an assessment of park finances and operations from former Escambia County Administrator Randy Oliver. The city has also brought aboard a firm to market the park, a job that has been left to the Parks and Recreation Department.

CMPA Treasurer Jim Reeves took a few moments recently to enjoy some sun at the park’s Hunter Amphitheater and talk about the recent issues surrounding the Community Maritime Park.

IN: Why? REEVES: Because there’s four documents that control the Community Maritime Park Board's involvement in this particular park and, and he really asked, in my opinion, the wrong kind of questions to the New York firm. When you’re a lawyer and you want a specific answer, and you’re paying for it, you usually can get whatever answer you want.

“It would have been so much easier if we had all worked together and kind of not have excluded anybody.”

Reeves

IN: Let’s dive into the middle of it.

What’s your opinion on Messer’s most recent opinion?

REEVES: Well, Messer’s most recent opinion is absolutely wrong.

IN: What do you think we will have learned on the other side of the YMCA issue?

REEVES: What I think we have to work together in the spirit of unity, harmony and cooperation. And the problem is you have the executive branch, you have the legislative branch, and then you have this group that was set up primarily in order to get the New Market Tax Credits, and so we just all have to work together. I mean, nobody can dominate necessarily.

IN: What are your thoughts on the paths Messer laid out going forward?

REEVES: First of all, I’ve asked for public record. I’ve made a public records request concerning the writing of the opinion from the exterior lawyers. Those lawyers do not

IN: What do you think of Randy Oliver’s report?

REEVES: [Laughter] He works for the city.

He was instructed by the chief of staff that he was not to negotiate any deals or whathave-you. That report was to go through the mayor. Period.

IN: Do you like any of his recommendations?

REEVES: Oh sure I do, sure I do, but we’re all in this together and, look, if the Community Maritime Park board was broke, who do you think is gonna pick up the tab? The city.

So, we just gotta work together and work this situation out, both for the city’s sake and for the park’s sake. And it can be done.

IN: Isn’t the Community Maritime Park broke?

REEVES: Sure, yeah sure. But, understand, our biggest bill comes from the city of Pensacola. For police, for Parks and Recreation, cutting the grass, it all comes from the city of Pensacola. So, it’s one of those things, they can’t collect the rent from everything that goes down here, and we have all the expenses. It's that simple.

IN: Do you see any of these issues being resolved anytime soon?

REEVES: I hope so.

IN: How do you think this park should be marketed? inweekly.net

REEVES: I’m going to keep from being presumptive. You know, the mayor’s hired a marketing firm, and so I’m gonna kind of wait and see what they say. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were other people looking to locate here, but they know a better way to do it than the last try with the Y. That’s a rhyme.

REEVES: Well, let me put it this way. It’s hard for, in my opinion, government to do what the private sector could probably do better. I don’t want to be critical. I think they’ve done the best they can with what they’ve had to do with. Is that tender enough?

IN: What do think of the Park and Rec’s job so far?

IN: That is tender enough. {in}

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“Another year or two with George would suit me fine,” Commissioner Wilson Robertson had told the board.

Valentino downplayed any controversy surrounding Touart—the interim has served Escambia before, having stepped down amidst a cloud of ethics suspicions— and described him as the “workhorse that’s turned things around.” He said the selection of a county executive should not be driven by public sentiment, that the relationship was “private, more internal.”

“It’s intimate, it’s one one one, it’s collaborative and it’s got to be a chemistry that works for all of us,” Valentino said.

Commissioners Steven Barry, Lumon May and Grover Robinson all spoke against suspending the administrator search and keeping Touart permanently. Robinson said he thought the current batch of 42 applicants should be given another look.

“I could care less if you’ve got 42 or 100, you’re probably only gonna interview five,” he said. “Do you have five good people in here? Yes.” In addition to extending the search for 90 days, the commission also decided to up the salary ceiling being offered, from $150,000 to $165,000. Touart declined any notion of a raise for the remainder of his time with the county.

“I told them I didn’t want the raise,” the interim administrator said, “and I was satisfied with what I was getting.” {in}

0 60 MONTHS % UP TO

GREAT CAR GIVE-A-WAY

LOOKING FOR A LEADER Escambia County is still searching for an administrator. After being told that initial search results were “a little light”— and discussing keeping Interim Administrator George Touart at the helm—commissioners decided to extend the search for a few more months.

The commission is also forming a five-person committee to help narrow down the final field of applicants when the search wraps up in three months.

Commissioner Grover Robinson said the county should stay committed to bringing on a new administrator by the fall of 2013.

“I think that’s a signal we need to send to the public,” he said.

Commission Chairman Gene Valentino continued to express concern about hiring someone unfamiliar with the local landscape.

“I’m cautious about looking to find someone from the other end of the Earth that doesn’t understand the nuances of Escambia County,” the chairman said, suggesting the county may have too much on its plate to accommodate a learning curve—“I’m fearful with all the dynamic balls we have in the air right now.”

Upon hearing the search report from the Human Resources Department, commissioners had briefly discussed dropping “interim” from Touart’s title and offering a $10,000 raise.

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by Jeremy Morrison Perdido Key is a slender strip of Florida sand that flirts with Alabama. It hides out on the state line, playing it cool—Escambia County’s other barrier island.

The Key is sleepy by most standards to the east and west. Sans observation wheel.

Condos, but no hotels.

For locals, it is home. For others, it is respite from the crowds—or window wallpaper en route to a drink at the Flora-Bama.

Escambia County Commission Chairman Gene Valentino holds the island close to his heart. He lives there—“out there, to the west”—and speaks often of “parity” for Perdido, demanding respect for the Key. “Perdido Key has historically been considered the red-headed stepchild,” Valentino said recently.

April 11, 2013

Perdido Key aerial photo courtesy of Perdido Key Chamber of Commerce The chairman would like to see that change. And he can sense Perdido Key is on the cusp of an evolution. Can almost taste it.

Other residents on the island can sense it too. They’ve been showing up with increasing frequency in downtown Pensacola for county commission meetings.

“In the spirit of what I want to tell you about, please, Gene, and the rest of the commissioners, don’t take offense to this,” Alan Dennis addressed the commission in mid-March.

“I and countless other Perdido Key property owners have been saddened and disap-

pointed by what’s happening on Perdido Key in recent days, specifically the county’s attempt to change the name of Perdido Key and more recently the termination of the master plan contract with DPZ.” The man was among several Key residents who showed up that night. He was followed by Wendy Underhill, who was livid about the possibility of changing Perdido Key’s name to “Perdido Key Beach.” She dove into a stash of Valentino’s emails obtained via a public records request.

“Turning it into urban sprawl is not on my agenda.”

Gene Valentino

“I hold in my hand, 12 pages of emails that passed through Mr. Valentino’s office, dating back to the spring of 2012,” said Underhill. “In these 12 pages, I have counted 28 references to ‘name change.’”

Valentino explained to his constituents that he never intended to change Perdido Key’s name—“I love the name and I love it as is”—and that the county was only trying to get the state to install signage directing interstate driver’s to Perdido’s beaches.

Underhill launched a Facebook page called “We Are Perdido Key” that urged people to protect the island from “rampant commercialization,” and featured a cartoon that casted Valentino as a circus ringleader against a backdrop of snarled beach traffic and a horizon of high-rises.

9

A couple of weeks later, the Chairman reflected on the sentiments expressed

by Underhill’s camp. He described it as “misinformation” and said the public was being misled.

“They walk away feeling we’re bringing Satan into the church,” Valentino said.

LOSTVILLE

Translated into Spanish, “Perdido” means “lost.” In the late 1600s, Spanish explorers first named the strip of sand “Perdido.”

Perdido Key is about 16 miles long and a few hundred yards wide. More than half of that is designated as state or federal parks.

The key wasn’t always an island. It used to be a peninsula, prior to the Intracoastal Waterway being dug in the 1930s.

During the years of segregation, Pensacola Beach was a “whites only” destination.

The Perdido area became popular among African-Americans. Today, a stretch of the beach is named in honor of Army Private Rosamond Johnson Jr., an African-American, Purple Heart recipient and the first Escambia resident to die in the Korean War. In the 1950s, the U.S. Navy’s surplus 700acre Gulf Beach Gunnery Range on the Key was auctioned off to a single developer and later subdivided into 700 lots. The going rate was apparently about $2,700 for a 50-foot beach parcel.

More recently, Escambia County has been eyeing changes on Perdido Key. There are plans for future developments and the widening of the state roadway that runs the island.

Even more recently, Perdido residents pushed the county to bring aboard Duany Plater-Zyberk & Company (DPZ)—a big deal urban planning firm from Miami—to create a long-term vision for the community. That vision resulted in the Perdido Key Master Plan.

Kind of, sort of.

VISIONS WITH VALENTINO

The bugs along Perdido Bay in the late afternoon are vicious and persistent. Like gnats equipped with rows of razor sharp shark teeth and the determination of the IRS. They gnaw at any available patch of skin and leave you scratching furiously for a week.

The bugs don’t seem to be bothering Chairman Valentino. He’s focused on a vision.

Several visions, really.

At the moment, Valentino’s envisioning an eventual extension to his deck. Once his new

ICON seaplane arrives—the craft isn’t ready yet, but he’s on the list, along with Pensacola Beach hotelier Julian MacQueen and actor John Travolta—he plans to revamp his deck to double as a landing pad of sorts. He looks forward to landing the ICON on Perdido Bay and walking in his back door.

It’s a grand plan, something a guy will dream up and never do. But something in Valentino’s voice makes it clear that this dream’s realization is only a matter of details. It will happen and it will be badass.

Valentino disputes such characterizations.

“Turning it into urban sprawl is not on my agenda,” he explains.

Valentino knows Perdido is special—“not like every other concrete slab up and down the Gulf Coast”—and says he doesn’t want to see it dotted with as many hotels as Orange Beach, or even Pensacola Beach.

“But, geez, I think we can support one or two in my lifetime,” the chairman laughs.

Valentino describes Perdido Key as a “quiet and qualitatively growing region of

River Road Bicycle & Pedestrian Path / photo courtesy of Perdido Key Association

“This is America’s best-kept secret, but the secret’s gotten out.”

Valentino For now, Valentino will be satisfied with the ICON model that sits on the coffee table.

But soon he will no doubt be landing a plane in his backyard.

Valentino has other visions, too. He envisions an all-encompassing waterfront management district, and a regional mass transit effort. He also has designs on the future of Perdido Key. Some island residents have vocally painted Valentino as development-hungry.

They fear becoming Orange Beach’s curtain of beachfront hotels and bristle at the thought of traffic riding a four-lane speedway through their community.

the county.” He feels Escambia County needs to help facilitate and guide that future growth.

“This is America’s best-kept secret, but the secret’s gotten out,” Valentino said, “so the trick is to make sure we manage our growth effectively.”

GURU STRADDLING A FOUR-LANE Andres Duany was introduced to the Escambia County Planning Board as a “new urbanism guru, founder.”

“Thank you, Horace,” said Duany. “I’ll have to live that down.”

Duany is a principal of DPZ, the Miami planning firm the county hired to craft a master plan for the Perdido area. His firm services clients around the world, and has worked locally on the coastal communities of Seaside and Rosemary Beach.

Last year, DPZ began working with the Perdido Key community to determine how best to usher the island into the future.

Together they hashed out various issues— making the Key friendlier to pedestrians and bikers and accommodating the Perdido Key Beach Mouse, as well as growth—through a series of charrette-style meetings.

Duany recalled his work with the community, describing the island’s residents as Old Florida holdouts whose jaws were left dropped as condos sprouted up on the Key during the last construction boom.

“I sometimes felt like I was a doctor dealing with a trauma victim,” he said.

The urban planner said that the area had suffered from a lack of vision and guidance— “by the way, your planning department is very well intentioned, they haven’t had the tools”— in past growth. He explained that the Key is on the brink and urged the quick passage of the master plan, explaining that any controversial elements could be worked out later.

“Let me actually bring up what my real worry is, I think Perdido Key is at the absolute last chance it has to become a great place,” Duany told the planning board.

“It’s the last moment—you build a few more condos, you give up a few more intersections, you make a couple of more mistakes it’s gone, it can never be recovered, at least not in our lifetime, it can’t be recovered.”

By most accounts, the resulting plan— which envisioned the Key as kind of a new urbanism utopia with a series of town centers—was a success. Everyone likes it. Key residents like it, county staff likes it, Valentino likes it.

Except for one major aspect: the fourlaning of Perdido Key Drive, or State Road 292.

When DPZ presented their Perdido Key Master Plan in October, the main roadway on Perdido Key did not feature the four-lane design desired by the county. The firm contended that the area’s growth did not merit such an expansion and that it would lead to drivers speeding through the area instead of fostering a pedestrian-friendly feel.

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Horace Jones, division manager in the county’s planning department, said that county staff understood the concerns expressed by DPZ and Perdido residents, but stressed that the four-laning of Perdido Key Drive was nonnegotiable. He said the directive was coming from “upper level administration.”

“We do understand new urbanism and the concepts, as far as the planning department,” Jones said.

“Yet, within the scope of work it states that Perdido Key will be four-laned. There has been an enormous amount of resources, time and energy that predated the master plan... I am just the messenger.”

Some planning board members appeared sympathetic to exploring other options— “sometimes better ideas do come along”—and questioned if Escambia was truly locked-in to a four-lane road.

“How nice to say, I don’t know, ‘Gee, I know it’s planned to spend bucket-loads of money to do that, but maybe we don’t need to spend bucket-loads of money to do that,’” suggested planning board member Karen Sindel.

“Sometimes we have to be responsive to better ideas and to be willing to listen to them, that’s the whole concept of planning—that we look at where we are now, not where we were seven years ago when maybe some decisions were made.”

Jones assured the board that the road would be four-laned. A few minutes later a lady stepped up to the public lectern and read lyrics from Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi.” “‘They paved paradise, and put up a parking lot, with a pink hotel, a boutique and a swinging hot spot,’” the woman quoted the song lyrics, “‘don’t it always seem to go, you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone...’”

A couple of days after the planning board meeting, Escambia County terminated its contract with DPZ.

LOOKING FOR THE SIGNS

In February, the Escambia County Commission approved a resolution requesting that the Florida Department of Transportation change the map-designation of Perdido Key to “Perdido Key Beach.” The end goal was to get the state to place signs along the interstate and secondary roadways directing drivers to Perdido’s beach.

“There were mistakes made by the DOT in Chipley and I’m angry,” Valentino said in early April, a day before he asked the commission to repeal the earlier resolution. “This confusion caused legitimate concern for the citizens.”

Last year, the chairman was approached by the Perdido Key Chamber of Commerce with a request. They wanted the word beach on Perdido’s state signage, and had been informed by FDOT that the only way to do that was to have the local governing body designate a locale Perdido Key Beach, which the state would then recognize via signage.

This did not go down well. Channel 3 ran a story, people freaked out.

“Please watch the video of last night’s Public Forum,” Valentino wrote to Fred Garth in an email. “What a joke. Disappointing. The very people I’m trying so hard to help are kicking me in the knees.”

Even the chamber flinched.

BP OIL SPILL SETTLEMENTS DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOU STAND BP BP OIL SPILL SETTLEMENTS OIL SPILL SETTLEMENTS DOSome YOU KNOW WHERE YOU STAND? DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOU STAND? of our past clients have been approved for payments

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by the BP Settlement Facility in variety of business categories, for example:

Amusement Seafood $620,715 DOBP YOU KNOW WHERE YOU STAND? $620,715 Movie Theatres: $2,182,086 $1,522,187 $2,182,086 $1,522,187 OIL SPILL SETTLEMENTS Parks: Restaurants: $338,961 $338,961 $1,316,238 $1,273,100 $620,715 $1,316,238 $1,273,100 $2,182,086 $1,522,187 Some of our past clients have been approved for payments

Property Real Estate DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOU STAND? $338,961 Motels:

by Property the BP Settlement Facility in variety of business categories, for example: $1,316,238 $1,273,100 Real Estate Management: Companies:

Andres Duany—the D of DPZ—is widely recognized as a leader in the New Urbanism design field. / courtesy photo

$1,746,310 Management: Property

Motels: $1,255,827

$1,809,528 RealCompanies: Estate

$1,213.086 Some of our past clients Motels: have been approved for payments $1,255,827 Amusement Seafood $420,266 $576,331 Management: Companies: Theatres: $1,809,528 by the$1,746,310 BP Settlement variety of business categories, for example: Parks:Facility inMovie Restaurants: $1,255,827 Timeshare Construction $1,746,310 $1,809,528 $1,213.086 $620,715 Painting Associations: Companies: $2,182,086 $1,522,187 $420,266 $576,331 $1,213.086 Contractor: $338,961 $420,266 $576,331 $2,027,266 $1,429,390 $1,316,238 $1,273,100 Amusement Seafood Timeshare Construction Movie Theatres: $415,000 Parks: Restaurants: Timeshare Construction $1,772,351 $635,045 Property Real Estate Painting Motels: Associations: Companies: $620,715 Painting Management: Companies: Associations: Companies: $2,182,086 $1,522,187 Contractor: Dentist Offices: $1,255,827 Contractor: Bait & Tackle $338,961 $1,746,310 $1,809,528 $2,027,266 $1,429,390 Chiropractor: $1,316,238 $1,273,100 $2,027,266 $1,429,390 Shop: $354,390 $1,213.086 $415,000 $415,000 $420,266 $576,331 $133,394 Property Real Estate $1,772,351 $635,045 $1,772,351 $635,045 $1,416,516 $130,126 Motels: Timeshare Construction Management: Companies: Painting $1,255,827 Associations: Companies: Retail Store: $1,746,310 $1,809,528 Dentist Offices: Contractor: BaitBoat & Tackle Tackle Dentist Offices: Dealership: Bait & $2,027,266 $1,429,390 Chiropractor: $1,213.086 Home Interior: $942,340 Chiropractor: $420,266 $576,331 Shop: $415,000 $354,390 $993,312 Shop: Convenience $1,772,351 $635,045 $354,390 $480,417 $133,394 Timeshare Construction Marina: $1,416,516 $133,394 $130,126 Store: Painting $334,503 Associations: Companies: $1,416,516 Dentist Offices: $130,126 $577,920 Bait & Tackle Contractor: Chiropractor: $743,873 $2,027,266 $1,429,390 Shop:

“I think Perdido Key is at the absolute last chance it has to become a great place.”

Andres Duany

Retail Store: $354,390 The above amounts are stated before the deductions for fees and costs of attorneys and accountants. $415,000 $133,394 Boat Dealership: Retail Store: Home $1,416,516 $1,772,351 $635,045 Interior: $130,126 $942,340 “While you lobbied me hard on this, it was Boat $993,312 Dealership: Home Interior: Convenience $942,340 $480,417 clear you wanted this to be my recommendaRetail Store: Dentist Offices: Bait &Dealership: Tackle Marina: Boat $993,312 Chiropractor: Home Interior: Store: Convenience tion and not seen as coming from you,” Val$942,340 Shop: $480,417 $334,503 $354,390 $993,312 $577,920 Marina: Convenience Our law firm will provide a free evaluation to see if your $133,394 business qualifies for the $480,417 entino wrote the Chamber director. “I would $1,416,516 $743,873 Store: $130,126 Marina: $334,503 BP The Oil above Spill Settlement.

You pay no fees or costs unless we make a recovery for you.

Store: $334,503 $577,920 amounts are stated before the deductions for fees and costs of attorneys and accountants. have appreciated your support of my efforts $577,920 Retail Store: $743,873 $743,873 Boat Dealership: on this, rather than ‘ducking for cover.’”

The above amounts are stated before the deductions for fees costs of attorneys accountants.

Home The above amounts are stated before the deductions for and fees and costs Interior: ofand attorneys and accountants. $942,340 $993,312 Later, on his back deck, the chairman Convenience $480,417 Marina: would be more blunt.

Store: $334,503 $577,920 “The Perdido Chamber threw me under $743,873 Our law firm will provide a free evaluation to see if your business qualifies for the The firm above will amounts are statedabefore deductions for to feessee and costs of attorneys and accountants.

Our law provide evaluation if your business qualifies for the the bus, just like my staff did,” Valentino said. BP Oil Spill Pensacola, FLor costs Call 435-7000 Settlement.

You pay free nothe fees unless we make a recovery for you.

BP Oil Spill Settlement. You pay no fees or costs unless we make a recovery for you.

The chairman assured the public that Our law firm will provide a free evaluation to see if your business qualifies for the there was no name-change afoot. In emails, BP he said Channel 3 had misreported the issue— Oil Spill Settlement. You pay no fees or costs unless we make a recovery for yo Our law firm will provide a free evaluation to see if your business qualifies for the “Channel 3 got it totally wrong not once, not BP Oil Spill Settlement. You pay no fees or costs unless we make a recovery for you. twice, but three times”—and that staff had made a clerical screw-up—“the wording in the Pensacola, FL Call 435-7000 Pensacola, FL Call 435-7000 agenda caused me this heartburn” and “the typo in the agenda caused a near revolution”—and that the county’s only intent was a backdoor realization of some signage the Pensacola, FL CallCall 435-7000 Pensacola, FL 435-7000 Chamber had requested.

By mid-March, Valentino was getting testy. After a heated public session, he let it be known he was done talking about the subject.

“There was never any intent on my part or the staffs in renaming Perdido Key. Period,” Valentino addressed the public gallery. “I will not address the issue personally again.”

According to a county statement released on April Fools’ Day, FDOT had been contacted Feb. 18 and told not to act on the commission’s resolution. Later that week, FDOT informed country staff that the department’s map had, since Jan. 26 apparently, listed the island as Perdido Key Beach.

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April 11, 2013

11

“Disappointing. The very people I’m trying so hard to help are kicking me in the knees.”

Valentino policy, Escambia County is proceeding with the goal of obtaining signage on FDOT interstate and secondary roadways that will inform motorists that there is a fourth exit along I-10 within Escambia County that will direct them to beaches located on Perdido Key.” Gene Valentino “I think they’re trying to figure out exactly how that came to be,” said Ian Satter, FDOT spokesperson, adding that the designation might just be a “placeholder.”

Satter also said that Escambia’s resolutions—passed or rescinded—were neither here nor there to FDOT. The department bases its actions on a permit package, in draft form at this point, it has received from the county.

“Whatever their resolution is, we’re going to look at the permit package,” Satter explained, adding that FDOT was in the process of reviewing Escambia’s package currently.

In its April Fools’ Day statement, the county made clear it still intended to see a signage change: “In accordance with FDOT

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COFFEE WITH ANNIE

She waited at the IHOP halfway between Perdido Key and Pensacola. With her, she carried a disc containing DPZ’s pre-revision plans from October—coveted like precious contraband, or an original, Hand-shot-first version of “Star Wars.”

Annie Griffin was a key player in the master plan process. The Perdido Key Association member was instrumental in bringing DPZ to town.

“Gene was very resistant,” she recalled initial efforts to jumpstart the process. “He just didn’t feel the time was right. He had other things going on and he didn’t feel the time was right.”

Griffin said that the county’s planning department staff was supportive of the master

plan and bringing DPZ to town. She said they recognized the opportunity.

“Lloyd Kerr told me, ‘This is the time, this is probably the last opportunity you’ll get to realize a big vision,’” Griffin said.

“Lloyd went to bat, he really went to bat.

He said, ‘If my people have the chance to work with these people, this is going to be a real learning experience.”

The Key resident was shocked when she got a look at the version of Perdido’s master plan that the county was presenting to the planning board. She wasn’t alone.

“People said, ‘Wait, this isn’t what was presented at the charrette,’” Griffin recalled the community’s surprise when the plan was released. “That was the first visual—the DPZ road design was gone, it was the Atkins design.”

Fans of DPZ remember the charrette process fondly.

Like a cross between the Summer of Love and a Great Gatsby garden party.

“Oh my gosh, it was so exciting,” Griffin said. “The enthusiasm was so exciting. It was a very creative, exciting time.”

While Valentino eventually got on board with the master plan process, he said he did have some reservations initially. The chairman would have preferred to see the county first tie up loose ends—dealing with the

Perdido Key Beach Mouse, a hotel development and resolving issues with the state over the 292 widening project.

“I really didn’t have a problem with the master plan,” Valentino said. “It was the timing that was horrible.”

While DPZ was conferring with the community, Valentino was adamant that the firm not interfere with traffic and design work for the main roadway. Atkins Global had been working that job for years already.

“I wanted to make sure Duany stayed hands-off on the engineering that was already underway,” Valentino said.

Like many residents, Annie was disappointed with the county-mandated revisions to DPZ’s designs. While the official county statement described the termination as a cost-saving measure, she suspected the firm was fired due to the four-lane issue and said she had heard Valentino stepped in to send Duany packing because he found the planner to be “arrogant.”

“He’s got the awards on the wall,” Griffin said. “He can be cocky, he’s brilliant.”

DPZ’s vision ultimately challenged the county’s plans for Perdido Key Drive. It challenged the data the decision had been based on, and stood in contrast philosophically and technically.

“There was never any intent on my part or the staffs in renaming Perdido Key. Period.”

Valentino

inweekly.net

(850) 912-8669 Ste C, 5912 North Davis Highway (behind Rooms to Go)

Monday-Thursday: 11am - 10pm Friday-Saturday: 11am - 11pm Sunday: 11am - 9pm Photo courtesy of Perdido Key Association “At one point in the charrette,” Griffin recalled an aside with Andres, “he told me, ‘It’s not ethical—putting in that roadway will kill this island.’”

ENGINEERS WILL DIRECT ME

Dropping DPZ will save the county about $16,000 on the firm’s $300,000 contract.

But that’s not why the planners were let go.

Escambia’s relationship to DPZ was severed because of the firm’s subversive attitude when it came to the four-laning SR 292.

“Unbeknownst to me,” Valentino said, “Larry Newsom fired them when he found out they were in such discussions with citizens.”

Newsom, Escambia’s assistant administrator, was the county’s chief of traffic in 2006 when people began taking a look at widening Perdido Key Drive. The county, along with the Atkins firm, has long worked with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Florida Department of Transportation to study the project’s necessity and feasibility.

Newsom said DPZ was instructed to collaborate with Atkins in order to make sure everyone was on the same page.

“To make sure what you’re presenting to the people isn’t false hope—can it be done?” he explained. “To make sure there were no items brought forth that didn’t jeopardize seven years worth of work.”

The administrator contends that the existing studies indicate that a four-lane road stretching across Perdido Key is needed. He cites safety and capacity issues, and points out that the road is a hurricane evacuation route.

“But they wanted to present alternatives,” Newsom said.

The administrator feels that it was unethical for DPZ to have cast doubt on existing roadway studies—charging that, for instance, data had been collected at hotspots like the Flora-Bama and was not a true reflection of traffic patterns—and said that even if traffic counts have decreased during lean economic times, the numbers will head north again eventually.

“The traffic will not go away,” Newsom said. “It’s not going to.”

Valentino said he has no preconceived notions about the widening of Perdido Key Drive.

“I have no opinion if it should be two lanes or 20 lanes, the engineers will direct me,” the Chairman said. “I want what’s safe, first and foremost.”

$3 Cocktails Tuesday & Wednesday $2 Well Drinks Wednesday 5 pm-close Live Music at Shark Fin every Tuesday Night with Jones & Company

ANDRES, FROM MIAMI

Down in Miami, the folks at DPZ are in a daze. Getting fired is not something the firm is accustomed to.

“It’s very unusual,” Duany said. “We’ve never been fired. This is just completely unusual.”

The planner can only go on Escambia’s termination letter—which did not provide a reason for the firing—and the county’s official, cost-saving statement provided to the press.

He’s still referring to the job as “up in the air.”

“Unfortunately, at this point, I don’t know what’s happening,” Duany said. “I wish I could talk to you, it would be great fun, but I just don’t know.”

When informed the firing seemed to be connected to the four-lane controversy, the planner didn’t appear surprised—“I have no doubt that this is true”—and said he considered the Atkins design to be ill-advised.

“Do I think it’s a bad idea?” Duany said, considering the four-lane option. “I’m just trying to calculate if that’s a bad idea or if it’s even in the top 10 bad ideas.”

But what about the charrette process, the community involvement, the realized vision?

That was all beautiful, it was Escambia’s politics that blew the DPZ planner’s mind.

“Insofar as the citizens were concerned, superbly,” Duany said recalled the process.

“Insofar as the staff goes, superbly. Insofar as government? I have no idea.”

“At one point in the charrette he told me, ‘It’s not ethical—putting in that roadway will kill this island.’”

Annie Griffin

April 11, 2013

CHARGING THE GAVEL

When Perdido Key residents drive into town to address the county commission, their reception by Valentino has not always been encouraging. He has grown weary—dare say, pissed—discussing matters such as the signage/name change issue.

13

THE BINGO SYNDROME

Escambia County hired DPZ, a Miami-based planning firm, to work with the Perdido Key community. / courtesy photo

“We’ve never been fired.

This is just completely unusual.”

Duany “The guy flies off the handle pretty easy,” said Doug Underhill, Wendy’s husband.

The Perdido recalled how Valentino had declared he would not be commenting on the signage issue anymore. It was exactly the kind of sentiment that drives the Underhills crazy.

“That’s not for him to say—it’s totally Gene, and it’s totally inappropriate,” Underhill said. “He believes that gavel keeps him from hearing the people, but that’s not how it works in a democracy.”

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Dissatisfied with the headway being made approaching Valentino, Underhill said disgruntled Perdido residents are now directing their concerns to other commissioners on the board.

“When we speak, we’re not speaking to Gene Valentino,” he said.

“We’re speaking to the other members of the board and I believe we have three members who have become embarrassed by Gene’s behavior.”

Underhill mentions Valentino’s narrow victory in his commission race. He mentions his camp has made the rounds to other commissioners’ offices, where the reception was “a little bit chilly, but not so chilly to slam a door in your face.”

“I think people are starting to understand that Gene Valentino is a lame duck,” Underhill said. “He’s not reelect-able.”

Griffin can pinpoint the moment of schism between Chairman Valentino and a chunk of his Perdido Key constituents.

“What really brought all this to a head was the bingo controversy,” the PKA member said.

A few years ago, it was discovered that Valentino was attempting to bring gambling— via the Creek Indian tribe—to Perdido Key. There were plans for 500 bingo machines, a four-star hotel within a year, maybe a water park down the road.

“It was absolutely absurd, but Gene was behind it,” Griffin recalled. “He called it a bingo-parlor, but it was going to be adult gaming machines.”

Underhill remembers the bingo episode well.

“That was kind of a game-changing moment for a lot of us out there on the Key,” he said, describing the time as revealing. “Gene Valentino is hell-bent on developing Perdido Key in a way a lion’s share of the people do not want.”

The Key resident views the recent flaps over the master plan, four-laning 292 and the name change as symptoms of what he refers to as Valentino’s “pattern of behavior.”

“He works things in the background and springs them on us and treats them as foregone conclusions,” Underhill said.

“It’s just a long pattern of Gene working in the background, and people just trying to figure out what the heck is going on.”

And what is it exactly that Valentino is aiming for? What is his vision?

“I think people are starting to understand that Gene Valentino is a lame duck. He’s not reelect-able.”

Doug Underhill “A clear mixed-use of commercial and residential,” Valentino explained. “Said differently, we need more jobs.”

The Chairman envisions a Perdido Key that accommodates future growth. An island that strides boldly—but not gaudily—into the future. He understands such accommodations come with inherent risks, but he’s confident they can be circumvented.

“C-1 would allow for tattoo parlors, C-1 would allow for bingo halls, C-1 would allow for used car lots—all of those C-1 uses would be allowed,” Valentino said.

“I don’t support that. I couldn’t stop it, but I don’t support that feel, that character, that panache.”

The Chairman is sure future development can be accomplished responsibly. He knows he won’t get everything he’s looking for, and said he’s open to compromises—to a point.

“I take offense to the person that says ‘No growth at all,’” Valentino said. “They’re kidding themselves.” {in}

inweekly.net

15

April 11, 2013

WEEK OF APRIL 11-18

Arts & Entertainment art , f ilm, music, stage, books and other signs of civilization...

The Sounds of the South Meet the Heart of Mobile

By Sarah McCartan

Presented by Back Forty Beer Co., SouthSounds returns to the heart of downtown Mobile, Friday, April 12 through Sunday, April 14. In its second year, the festival has expanded its reach and is generating a buzz throughout the entire Southeast.

“SouthSounds is about three things,” explains Hayes. “It’s about fostering relationships between artists. It’s about music lovers who want to be exposed to new music, and it’s about up and coming musicians.

And of course it’s for Mobile—I love this city.”

Modeled much like Austin’s South by Southwest (SXSW), SouthSounds is hosted across a

“We want to be that kid that goes into show and tell with a shiny new toy and says, ‘Look what I’ve got.’”

It started with a single question. “Why don’t we have accurate representation of our local talent at area music festivals?” asked SouthSounds cocreator/director Emily Hayes.

Recognizing the missed opportunity of our region’s festivals in showcasing the best up and coming Southern bands, Hayes joined forces with fellow music pioneers Ted Flotte and Kris Skoda. The answer then began to blossom in the form of two, single-day festivals—Loda Live and Coastline Chronicles.

From here, with the trifecta’s combined forces, three-day SouthSounds Music Festival was born. As the name suggests, SouthSounds sets out to represent the sounds of the South, or according to Hayes, “all points of the Southeast where music is appreciated.”

El Cantador / photo by James Anthony Grillo “This year the bands have been coming to us, and a lot of that comes from the way the artists are treated,” said Hayes. “They get the star treatment while still getting treated like true Southern boys (and girls)—all the food you can eat, all the beer you can drink and a nice place to rest your head.”

“This is our second year playing SouthSounds and we are more than excited to be included with all this great talent,” said Jason Leger, of Pensacola’s Pioneers! O Pioneers!

“It's a great platform to hear and be heard.

I'm excited to see Gashcat for the first time, and I always love watching Jesse Payne and El Cantador."

Birmingham-based Jesse Payne returns

Emily Hayes variety of local establishments, with many of the artists playing multiple time slots and locations, including free daytime shows in Cathedral Square on Dauphin Street. Due to the close-knit proximity of participating venues and thanks to the added convenience of staggered show times, festival attendees have the opportunity to soak up as much music as humanly possible.

The Pollies

to SouthSounds this year bringing along new band members and new songs from the upcoming album, “Heirloom.”

“SouthSounds is one of the best festivals we've played,” said Payne. “Everyone we are in contact with is super helpful and a pleasure to work with, and the lineup that they put together is like no other festival. There is so much great music coming out of the South these days, it's nice to have a spotlight on it.”

“A lot of these bands are our friends,” said Hayes. “We want to be that kid that goes into show and tell with a shiny new toy and says, ‘Look what I’ve got.’ But we don’t just want to keep it to ourselves. We want everyone else to enjoy it too.”

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inweekly.net

Great Peacock As much as SouthSounds is about the bands and the listeners, it is also about the local businesses that welcome the festival with open arms, and benefit from the increased traffic it brings. In show of their support, Hayley’s, one of the event sponsors and the official bar of SouthSounds, will be offering drink specials throughout the weekend.

Still the thrills don’t stop here. This year SouthSounds introduces comedy into the lineup. These performances are held at Alchemy Tavern, an arena quickly becoming a hub for the growing scene. SouthSounds also runs concurrently with Mobile’s premier performance arts festival, Arts Alive!, hosted in Cathedral Square.

THE OFFICIAL LINEUP

With staggered start times and multiple performances, there are no excuses to miss any of this year’s festival acts. Here are just a few of the bands that have made their way onto the IN’s shortlist.

El Cantador—Mobile, Ala. These tried and true, Mobile music veterans have recently released a new EP, “Translation Wave.” Listen at elcantador.bandcamp.com.

Saturday: 11:15 p.m. – 12:00 a.m., Alabama Music Box Sunday: 1:15 p.m. – 2 p.m., Cathedral Square (Free) Great Peacock—Nashville, Tenn.

As if being listed as one of the “100 Great Bands to See at SXSW” by Paste Magazine wasn’t enough, this duo’s track “Take Me to the Mountain” from their Debut EP is listed by Paste as one of “The 25 Best Songs of 2013 (so far).”

Listen at greatpeacock.com.

Saturday: 3:15 p.m. – 4:00 p.m., Cathedral Square (Free) 7:15 p.m. – 8:00 p.m., Callaghan’s Jesse Payne—Birmingham, Ala. Performing three times throughout the weekend, Jesse Payne brings new band members and new music to SouthSounds. Listen at jessepayne. bandcamp.com.

Friday: 9:15 p.m. – 10:00 p.m., Alchemy Tavern Saturday: 12:15 p.m. – 1:00 p.m., Cathedral Square (Free) 8:15 p.m. – 9:00 p.m., Malaga Inn The Pollies—Muscle Shoals, Ala. Also fresh off of SXSW, The Pollies are back.

Fun fact—The Pollies share a keyboardist with Alabama Shakes when they are not on tour.

Listen at polliesband.com.

Saturday: 9:15 p.m. – 10:00 p.m., Malaga Inn; 12:15 a.m. – 1 a.m., Alabama Music Box Pioneers! O Pioneers!—Pensacola, Fla. One of Pensacola’s very own, Pioneers consistently couples genuine lyrics with memorable melodies. Listen at pioneersopioneers. bandcamp.com.

Saturday: 7:15 p.m. – 8:00 p.m., Blind Mule For the full lineup of artists, list of participating venues and to download the official festival schedule, visit Southsoundsfest.com. {in}

SOUTHSOUNDS MUSIC FESTIVAL 2013

WHEN: Friday, April 12 – Sunday, April 14 WHERE: Cathedral Square, Alabama Music Box, The Blind Mule, Callaghan’s Irish Social Club, OK Bicycle Shop, Alchemy Tavern, Haberdasher and Malaga Inn DETAILS: Advance tickets are available for purchase online at southsoundsfest.com.

Tickets will also be available onsite at the event. Ticket levels are as follows: General Admission: $10 in advance; $15 day of show. Includes entry into Alabama Music Box, Blind Mule, Alchemy Tavern, Haberdasher and OK Bike Shop.

Callys Gold: $25 in advance; $35 day of show. Includes entry into all venues covered by the General Admission ticket with additional entry at Callaghan’s Irish Social Club.

Southern Music Lover VIP Package: $100 includes entry for two. Limited availability.

17

April 11, 2013

DIFFERENCE MAKER Jazz Society Of Pensacola’s 2013 Student Jazz Competition Winners The live finals of the Jazz Society of Pensacola’s 2013 Student Jazz Competition were held in March at the Ashmore Fine Arts Auditorium on the campus of Pensacola State College.

The competition included three divisions: College Instrumental, High School Instrumental, and Jazz Vocal. The winners were:

College Instrumental:

1st Place: Jackson Willis, trombone, junior at University of West Florida 2nd Place: Michael Danielson, double bass, senior at University of West Florida 3rd Place: Jacob Dearrington, trumpet, freshman at Pensacola State College Honorable Mention: Derick Masters, bass, freshman at Northwest Florida State College Honorable Mention: Marquis Soles, drums, sophomore at Pensacola State College

High School Instrumental:

1st Place: Jacobi Williams, guitar, senior at Pine Forest High School, Pensacola 2nd Place: Kyle Polhlopek, alto sax, senior at Baker School, Baker

Jazz Vocal:

1st Place: Gabbi Lindley, sophomore at Northwest Florida State College 2nd Place: Isabelle Peterson, sophomore, homeschooled 3rd Place: Destiny Howard, sophomore at University of West Florida Honorable Mention: Mary Gleason, junior at Northwest Florida State College Honorable Mention: Alexander George, senior at Tate High School, Pensacola The award money will be applied to furthering the student’s jazz education through tuition assistance in a jazz education program, private instruction with a jazz educator, jazz camps, instrument purchase and repair, or other music education programs.

Sponsored by Quint and Rishy Studer

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music

inweekly.net

by Brett Hutchins

Improv Jam Rock Hits Handlebar IN: How did the guerilla campground set at Aura come about?

S.P.O.R.E.: Doing a set like that is something we’ve wanted to do ever since we all started making music together. Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park is such a special place. We have all been regular attendees of the park for years and love it. There’s something magical about that place that has you craving a return as soon as possible. When we found out that Aura was moving there, we knew it was the time. It was our first time doing it and we plan on doing it again whenever possible.

S.P.O.R.E.: Absolutely! The way Alex Grey and Salvador Dali both approach their art is a big inspiration to us.

IN: What’s the hardest part of being in a band that’s just getting on its feet?

S.P.O.R.E.: Being broke and getting five people together on the same page. Building a fan-base also takes a lot of patience. We’ve learned that it doesn’t happen overnight.

IN: What about the difficulties being in a band that’s primarily improv-based?

S.P.O.R.E.: The toughest part is getting everyone together and meshing to where we’re able to blend structure with freedom. Without verbal communication, it takes a while to get everyone to a point where you can follow one another.

“There is a structural skeleton to our music and then we improv around that.” courtesy photo There comes a time at every music festival where you reach your breaking point.

Three days of non-stop music, dancing, and being at the mercy of the weather takes its toll on the human body. I was at that point of utter exhaustion Sunday night of Aura Music Festival in Live Oak, Fla. One high-energy renegade campground set by the psychedelic dance rock band S.P.O.R.E. changed all that.

The IN caught up with the band to talk about the difficulties of being in a band that’s still in its toddler stages and the creative way the band reaches current fans and gains new ones.

IN: Where did the S.P.O.R.E. name come from?

S.P.O.R.E.: It stands for Spontaneous Progression of Recurring Energy. I wish we had a more romantic story, but the original three members had been jamming under the name Spore for a while when we found out there used to be a band in the ‘80s with that name. We figured we

might as well put more thought into it to avoid any troubles in the future.

IN: How and when did the band come together?

S.P.O.R.E.: Our keyboard, bass and lead guitar players had all been jamming together for years when our drummer came in to an open jam night at a local Jacksonville bar. This all happened last year. It was the first time Chris had met any of us, but we all clicked immediately.

IN: What is the importance of building a fan-base through grassroots measures? I know the bands of the Jacksonville scene are very supportive of one another.

S.P.O.R.E.: Since the beginning, our friends and local family have been our largest supporters and advocates. Jacksonville is a huge city and the reason our fan-base has grown so large and so quickly is all by word of mouth.

S.P.O.R.E. IN: What was said to get it shut down? I know the crowd was enjoying the hell out of it.

S.P.O.R.E.: Some of the local camping residents weren’t stoked about the volume, plus the noise ordinance had kicked in. The park officials actually came out and were digging what we were doing, so they let us go much longer than we were supposed to.

IN: What are five of the band’s “stranded on a desert island” records?

S.P.O.R.E.: STS9 – “AD Explorata”; Pink Floyd – “Animals”; Particle – “Launchpad”; Lotus – “Germination”; The Grateful Dead – “Europe 72.”

IN: Are there other types of art that inspire you?

IN: How much of your sets are improvisational?

S.P.O.R.E.: About 50 percent.

There is a structural skeleton to our music and then we improv around that. It’s always fun discovering where the music takes us.

IN: How do you prepare for your sets?

S.P.O.R.E.: Beer, whiskey, and a lot of hanging out and goofing off with each other. The fact that we truly love one another makes our sets that much better. Trust plays a big part in this type of live music. {in}

S.P.O.R.E.

WHEN: 9 p.m. Saturday, April 13 WHERE: The Handlebar, 319 N. Tarragona COST: $5 limited presale (purchase at Revolver Records); $7 day of show; $2 surcharge for under 21 DETAILS: crypticproductions.com or soundcloud.com/spore904

FOREVER DIETING? TIME TO CHANGE THE WAY YOU THINK ABOUT FOOD.

unique & affordable

Join us for Wine Tastings Thursdays 5-7 p.m.

A LUMINOUS LIFE HYPNOTHERAPY

SUSAN DUNLOP, MA, CHT

INTERNATIONALLY CERTIFIED HYPNOTHERAPIST

850-346-7865 EAST HILL www.luminouslifehypnotherapy.com

11 East Romana Street w w w. a t t o r n e y g e n e m i t c h e l l . c o m

27 S. 9th Ave.

433-WINE or 433-9463

www.aragonwinemarket.com

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happenings

Ears & Fingers

by Jason Leger

isn’t easily shaken. Personally, the highlight of the album is the single, “In The City,” which was released online a couple of months ago. One listen to this song excited me for the album. Reminiscent of ‘80s gods Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins, “In The City” is a song that can be played on repeat daily, and never seems to get old. That really applies to the majority of this album; if you’re looking for a party, look elsewhere. However, if winding, cascading anthems appeal to your palette, look no further. “Caveman” is out now via Fat Possum Records.

CAVEMAN – ‘CAVEMAN’

Shimmering, introspective and smooth as hell, the eponymous sophomore effort from New York’s Caveman will have any listener indulged in a 48-minute dream world. Lush layering, tasteful rhythms and soaring melodies define the album from beginning to end. There are hazy lulls and searing peaks, but it is clear that an idea rife with anthemic glimmer was the intention. Some songs on this album are inescapable. Closer, “The Big Push,” at first listen seemed repetitive, but around the third spin, something strange happened, I was singing along. It’s infectious. Several songs from “Caveman,” like “Shut You Down,” “Over My Head,” and “Pricey,” have this similar groove which digs down into the ear and

THURSDAY 4.11

‘RETURN TO CLAY AND FIRE: WOOD FIRED CERAMICS BY BEN TWINGLEY’ 8 a.m. Gallery 88, inside WUWF 11000 University Pkwy. Through April 26. 474-2787 or wuwf.org.

JASON PINCKART 10 a.m. Through April 20.

Blue Morning Gallery, 21 S. Palafox. 429-9100 or bluemorninggallery.com.

HISTORIC PENSACOLA TROLLEY TOUR 10 a.m. & 2 p.m. Pensacola Visitor Center, 1401 E. Gregory St. 941-2876 or beachbumtrolley.com.

LUNCH AND LEARN 11:30 a.m. Florida Blue presents “Do You Know What’s in Your Medicine Cabinet?” with Suzanne Kelley. Learn to correctly take your medications, plus dispose of them safely. Lunch provided. Reservations required.

Florida Blue, 1680 Airport Blvd. 202-4188.

PLAY HAPPY HOUR 4 p.m. Play, 16 S. Palafox, Suite 100. 466-3080 or iplaypensacola.com.

L.A. GUMBO FEST 4 p.m. Kick-off the L.A. Gumbo fest with the unveiling of the World’s Largest Pot of Gumbo. Up to 48 foodies and professional chefs from both states are expected to compete in a series of gumbo cook-offs for $4,000 in cash prizes. Among the other activities attendees can expect to enjoy over the three-day festival are arts & crafts, kids’ activities, music, cooking demonstrations and voting for People’s Choice and Best Overall Booth in the gumbo cook-offs.

GENERATIONALS – ‘HEZA’

“I could not remember. I took a hammer to my head. I cursed the walls around me. You said, ‘It doesn’t matter.’” Remember that party I said to look elsewhere for in the above review? You would be safe landing on Generationals’ new album, “Heza.” These Louisiana boys know exactly what they’re doing.

“Heza” is equal parts fun and intelligent, whimsical and bright, hazy and on point, Laurel and Hardy. While the album certainly contains plenty of dance-worthy jaunts, don’t be fooled into thinking this is a lighthearted affair. These songs contain heartache and introspection, as any good album should. “Every single night, you’ve got me aching all the time,” is the mournful hook on “You Got Me,” one of the album’s more comparatively pensive moments. “Put A Light On” and

Alabama Gulf Coast Zoo, Animal Planet’s “Little Zoo that Could,” will also be at the festival with an amazing variety of animals from alligators to kangaroos. Proceeds from the event will be shared between Louisiana’s charity of choice, Cypress Springs Mercedarian Prayer Center, and Alabama’s charity of choice, Faulkner State Culinary School and Christian Service Center. The event is free and open to the public with tasting tickets for a cup of gumbo at $2 for an individual serving, or $20 for 30 servings. The Wharf, 4830 Main St. Orange Beach, AL. gumboforlife.com.

WINE TASTING AT AWM 5 p.m. Aragon Wine Market, 27 S. Ninth Ave. 433-9463 or aragonwinemarket.com.

COUNTRY AND BLUEGRASS 5:30 p.m.-7 p.m.

Video/discussion series on American music presented by West Florida Public Library. Moderated by Don Snowden, Chair of Performing Arts Department of Pensacola State College. Free.

West Florida Public Library meeting room, 239 N. Spring St. 436-5047 ST. CHRISTOPHER’S CONCERTS 6 p.m. The Reunion Band performs at the seventh season of the free Spring concert series presented by St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church. Bring lawn chairs and blankets to listen on the lawn at this family-friendly event. Concessions are available.

St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church, 3200 N. 12th Ave. 433-0074 or scpen.org

album opener “Spinoza,” are two tracks that I will have on spin through at least the entirety of the summer, but more than likely for a while to come. In an odd way, something about this album feels like home for me. I can’t quite put my finger on it. It’s not only because I have a lot of family in Louisiana, though that probably has something to do with it.

There is something deeper. “Heza” is an easy album to connect to because of its poppy simplicity, but for me every song just feels familiar, like a bittersweet memory. I think—hope—this is also something that will come across to most listeners, because it’s something one can be hard pressed to find. “Heza” is out now via Polyvinyl Records, and be sure to catch Generationals June 28 at Vinyl Music Hall—you won’t be disappointed. {in}

VEGAN DINNER AT EOTL 6 p.m. End of the Line Café, 610 E. Wright St. 429-0336 or eotlcafe.com.

AFRICAN DRUMMING CLASSES 6:30 p.m. $2$5. Gull Point Community Center, 7000 Spanish Trail. For more information contact, 291-2718, 324-4928 or hurreyupstageandfilmworks.com.

live music

BO ROBERTS, RHONDA HART, AND MARK SHERILL 5 p.m. Cornbred 9:30 p.m. Florabama, 17401 Perdido Key Dr. 492-0611 or florabama.com.

THE DAVENPORTS 6 p.m. The Leisure Club, 126 S. Palafox. 912-4229 or tlcdowntown.com.

LUCAS CRUTCHFIELD 6 p.m. The Deck at The Fish House, 600 S. Barracks St. 470-0003 or fishhouse.goodgrits.com.

STEVE FLOYD 6 p.m. Peg Leg Pete’s, 1010 Fort Pickens Road, Pensacola Beach. 932-4139 or peglegpetes.com BRAD BARNES OPEN COLLEGE JAM 7:30 p.m.

Goat Lips Beer Garden, 2811 Copter Rd. 474-1919.

KARAOKE WITH BECKY 7:30 p.m. Sabine Sandbar, 715 Pensacola Beach Blvd., Pensacola Beach.

934-3141 or dalesbigdeck.com.

DUELLING PIANOS 8 p.m. Rosie O’Grady’s at Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. 434-6211 or sevillequarter.com.

KRAZY GEORGE’S KARAOKE 8 p.m. Lili Marlene’s at Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. 434-6211 or sevillequarter.com.

ALVERADO ROAD SHOW 9 p.m. End O’ The Al-

020 2

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happenings Willie’s, 400 Quietwater Beach Rd. bamboowillies.com ROBOTICS OPEN HOUSE 4 p.m. -7 p.m. Some of the world’s most advanced robots will be on public display at the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition Robotics Lab in downtown Pensacola.

IHMC research scientists will be on hand to answer questions. Part of the annual National Robotics Week, April 6-14 this year, the Robotics Lab Open House will feature innovative, cutting-edge robots being developed by IHMC in collaboration with leading universities, government agencies and innovative private companies. The robots on display will include FastRunner, a two-legged, fastmoving platform inspired by the ostrich; M2V2, a humanoid robot designed for use in urban environments; and the NASA-IHMC X1 exoskeleton, designed to help astronauts exercise in space, and crippled humans walk here on Earth.

The open house will also Make Your Own Ornament, Flower, Paper Weight Or Swedish Bowl feature live, interactive demat First City Art Center onstrations of various robots.

The Robotics Lab, 100 S. Alcaniz ley Bar at Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. St. 202-4480. nationalroboticsweek.org 434-6211 or sevillequarter.com.

PENSACOLA’S 2ND ANNUAL WINE FAIR DANCE PENSACOLA 9 p.m. Phineas Phogg’s at Zimmerman’s International Wines sponsored by Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. 434-6211 AGORA, hand crafted beers, gourmet appetizor sevillequarter.com. ers and desserts, olive oil tasting, cigars for sale.

BLACKWATER 9 p.m. Chan’s Nightclub, 610 E. Paul’s on the Bay, 670 Scenic Hwy. RSVP: agora.

Nine Mile Rd. 477-9961 or chanspensacola.com. themarket@gmail.com. Cost: $20 at the door.

COLLEGE DANCE NIGHT: DJ TONY C 9 p.m.

432-5001.

Phineas Phogg’s at Seville Quarter, 130 E. GovSOUTHSOUNDS MUSIC FEST 6 p.m. Southernment St. 434-6211 or sevillequarter.com.

Sounds is a project of the Mobile Arts CounEXTREME KARAOKE WITH G.C.P.C 10 p.m. cil with support from the Downtown Mobile Play, 16 S. Palafox, Suite 100. 466-3080 or gulfAlliance and City of Mobile. SouthSounds will coastpartycrew.com. provide free showcases of the best in up and coming Southern talent in Cathedral Square during the day. In the evenings, the festival will branch out into participating venues. Those ven‘RETURN TO CLAY AND FIRE: WOOD FIRED ues are Alabama Music Box, The Blind Mule, The CERAMICS BY BEN TWINGLEY’ 8 a.m. GalHaberdasher, Callaghans Irish Social Club and lery 88, inside WUWF 11000 University Pkwy.

Ok Bicycle Shop. SouthSounds is also pleased Through April 26. 474-2787 or wuwf.org. to announce the addition of stellar comedians TAI CHI AT FLORIDA BLUE 8:30 a.m. Free. to be showcased at Alchemy Tavern. Cathedral Florida Blue, 1680 Airport Blvd. For information, Square, 300 Conti St, Mobile, AL. SouthSoundscall 202-4188.

Fest.com JASON PINCKART 10 a.m. Through April 20.

FIREARMS, SELF DEFENSE, AND THE PUBLIC Blue Morning Gallery, 21 S. Palafox. 429-9100 or INTEREST: 6 p.m.- 7 p.m. The University of bluemorninggallery.com.

West Florida’s Department of Justice Studies DAUMIER: ART FOR THE MASSES 10 a.m. will sponsor a speaking event with Gary Kleck, Through June 30. Pensacola Museum of Art, 407 the David J. Bordua Professor of Criminology S. Jefferson St. 432-6247 or pensacolamuseuat Florida State University. The event is being mofart.org held to share research on important criminal MAKE YOUR OWN ORNAMENT, FLOWER, justice topics with members of the local comPAPER WEIGHT or SWEDISH BOWL 10 a.m.-3 munity. Dr. Kleck will entertain questions from p.m. $25-$95 The workshops offer a short but the audience following his presentation. He is comprehensive introduction for people to widely recognized as one of the top criminolobecome familiar with the process of working gists and gun control experts in the country. He molten hot glass. Students will be able to pick will discuss his research on gun control and what out their color then design and create a piece its implications are for public policy. The event is of glass with the assistance of our professional open to the public. Museum of Commerce, 201 glass artists. First City Art Center, 1060 N. E. Zaragoza St. uwf.edu.

Guillemard St. For information or to sign up for LIVING FAITH @ HOME 6 p.m. -8:30 p.m. workshops call 429-1222 or visit firstcityart.org.

The Santa Rosa Baptist Association presents BAMBOO WILLIE’S CRAWFISH FEST 2 p.m. two-day conference , Living Faith @ Home, with The best party in April! Beachside event with speakers, Tom Blackaby and Worship Leader, a ton of family fun and amazing food! Bamboo

FRIDAY 4.12

Jeff Slaughter. Tom Blackaby is the author of The Family God Uses: Leaving a Legacy of Influence and he encourages and equips parents to be spiritual leaders at home. Jeff Slaughter has been a worship leader and songwriter for many Vacation Bible School (VBS) series for the past 26 years. Jeff’s heart is to help children discover a passionate relationship with Jesus.

Pizza Dinner & Biscuit Breakfast are included.

This is a free Ticketed Event, pre-registration is required. Free child care for children birth through 5 years old for all who pre-register by April 10th. Children 5 years and older will participate in the conference. First Baptist Church, 6797 Caroline Street, Milton. 623-8873 or srassociation.org STARGAZING AT FORT PICKENS 6 p.m.- 10 p.m. Weather permitting, volunteers from the Escambia Amateur Astronomers’ Association will set up several telescopes for public viewing of the stars, planets and constellations. Free.

Battery Worth Picnic Area, Fort Pickens, 1400 Fort Pickens Rd. 934-2600 PLAY HAPPY HOUR 4 p.m. Play, 16 S. Palafox, Suite 100. 466-3080 or iplaypensacola.com.

WINE TASTING AT SEVILLE QUARTER 5 p.m.

Palace Café at Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. 434-6211 or sevillequarter.com.

REGGAE FESTIVAL 5 p.m. We Be Jammin’ at Seville Mon! The spirit of Jamaica returns to the End of the Alley Courtyard and on the Main Stage in the Party Plaza at Seville Quarter. The three day Festival will be Jammin’ with Reggae inspired music and food. Headlining the Reggae Festival are Local & Nationally known acts. The Reggae Festival will flow into streets in front of Seville Quarter will the first ever Seville Quarter Average Joe Boat Show, a special showcase of Local Boat owners, showing & selling (or hopefully selling) their trailered in boats. We will also be featuring many festival merchandise booths, filled with tie-dyes, hair braiding, hair feathers, festival art & jewelry and much, much more.

Head to the End O’the Alley Courtyard this weekend and grab a Red Stripe Beer and prepare to Celebrate the Sprits of the Islands all weekend long. We will feature a creative Reggae Menu full of the great tastes of Jamaica. It will be a laid back weekend at Seville Quarter. 434-6211 or sevillequarter.com WINE TASTING AT CITY GROCERY 5:15 p.m.

City Grocery, 2050 N. 12th Ave. 469-8100.

WINE TASTING AT EAST HILL MARKET 5:30 p.m. 1216 N. Ninth Ave. Meter Rentals $5. T.T. Wentworth Museum, 330 S. Jefferson. 595-5985 ext 111.

FOOTLOOSE THE MUSICAL 7:30 p.m. Presented by Gulf Breeze High School. Saenger Theatre, 118 S. Palafox Pl. 595-3882 SNOOPY 7:30 p.m. A musical comedy based on the comic strip Peanuts. This sequel to the musical You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown focuses more on the life of Snoopy. This charming, warm-hearted musical is full of laughs and life lessons on friendship and believing in yourself. You’ll be delighted to see all your favorite characters back on the PLT stage. Tickets starting at $14. Pensacola Little Theatre, 400 S. Jefferson St. 434-0257 3 GAME SPECIAL 8:30 p.m. $12, includes shoes.

DeLuna Lanes, 590 E. 9 Mile Road. 478-9522 or delunalanes.com.

SWING DANCING 8:30 p.m. $5. American Legion, 1401 Intendencia St. 437-5465 or pensacolaswing.com.

‘STAND UP COMEDY SHOW’ 9:30 p.m. Big Easy Tavern, 710 N. Palafox. bigeasytavern.com or 208-5976.

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April 11, 2013

happenings COSMIC BOWLING 11 p.m. DeLuna Lanes, 590 E. 9 Mile Road. 478-9522 or delunalanes.com.

live music

TANYA GALLEGHER 12 p.m. Continuam 7 p.m.

Peg Leg Pete’s, 1010 Fort Pickens Road, Pensacola Beach. 932-4139 or peglegpetes.com LUCAS CRUTCHFIELD 5 p.m. The Deck at The Fish House, 600 S. Barracks St. 470-0003 or fishhouse.goodgrits.com.

TRUE BLUE 6 p.m. Paradise Bar & Grill, 21 Via de Luna, Pensacola Beach. paradisebar-grill.com.

BILL BARROWS 6 p.m. The Oar House, 1000 S Pace Blvd. 549-4444 or the-oar-house.com.

DOWNTOWN BIG BAND 6:30 p.m. Gregory Street Assembly Hall, 501 E. Gregory St. 307-8633.

RAISING KARMA 7 p.m. Hub Stacey’s the Point, 5851 Galvez Rd. 497-0071 or hubstaceys.com.

KARAOKE WITH BECKY 7:30 p.m. Sabine Sandbar, 715 Pensacola Beach Blvd., Pensacola Beach.

934-3141 or dalesbigdeck.com.

MIKE BOCCIA 7:45 p.m. Goat Lips Beer Garden, 2811 Copter Road. 474-1919.

SCOTT KOEHN 8 p.m. The Grand Marlin, 400 Pensacola Beach Blvd. Pensacola Beach. 6779153 or thegrandmarlin.com.

THREE BEAN SOUP 8:30 p.m. Tin Cow, 102 S. Palafox. For more information, call 466-2103.

DENOUNCER, XHONORX, SOUTH FOR THE WINTER, BAD HABITS 9 p.m. The Handlebar, 319 N. Tarragona St. 434-9060 or pensacolahandlebar.com.

BLACKWATER & LAST CALL RODEO 9 p.m.

Chan’s Nightclub, 610 E. Nine Mile Rd. 477-9961 or chanspensacola.com.

WHISKEY DOWN 9 p.m Paddy O’ Leary’s. 49 Via De Luna Dr. Pensacola Beach. 916-9808 or paddyolearysirishpub.com.

LIVE MUSIC 9 p.m. The Deck at The Fish House, 600 S. Barracks St. 470-0003 or fishhouse. goodgrits.com.

MIKE JENCK BAND 9 p.m. Sandshaker Lounge, 731 Pensacola Beach Blvd., Pensacola Beach.

932-2211 or sandshaker.com.

DJ MR. LAO 9 p.m. Phineas Phogg’s at Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. 434-6211 or sevillequarter.com.

SCHOFIELD 9 p.m. Apple Annie’s at Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. 434-6211 or sevillequarter.com.

ALVERADO ROAD SHOW 9 p.m. Lili Marlene’s at Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. 4346211 or sevillequarter.com.

table set up with gift baskets and a baked goods booth. Food will be available from Becky’s Eatery. This is a free event. Sacred Heart Cathedral, 12th Ave. and Mallory St. 438-3131 3RD ANNUAL PADDLE FOR PREEMIES PADDLE BOARD FUN RACE 9 a.m.- 12 p.m.

Paddle board event to support the Neonatal Intensive Care Nursery at Children’s Hospital at Sacred Heart. A 3-mile fun race will begin at 9 a.m. for ages 13+, while a 1-mile rookie race also will begin at 9 a.m. for ages 13+. The 1-mile kids’ race will start at 10 a.m. for ages 12 and under.

Early registration is $35 until April 11, or $40 on event day. Fitness Onboard dock, 165 Ft. Pickens Rd. Pensacola Beach. 416-4660 or active.com LIVING FAITH @ HOME 9 a.m. -12 p.m. The Santa Rosa Baptist Association presents twoday conference , Living Faith @ Home, with speakers, Tom Blackaby and Worship Leader, Jeff Slaughter. Tom Blackaby is the author of The Family God Uses: Leaving a Legacy of Influence and he encourages and equips parents to be spiritual leaders at home. Jeff Slaughter has been a worship leader and songwriter for many Vacation Bible School (VBS) series for the past 26 years. Jeff’s heart is to help children discover a passionate relationship with Jesus.

Pizza Dinner & Biscuit Breakfast are included.

This is a free Ticketed Event, pre-registration is required. Free child care for children birth through 5 years old for all who pre-register by April 10th. Children 5 years and older will participate in the conference. First Baptist Church, 6797 Caroline Street, Milton. 623-8873 or srassociation.org JASON PINCKART 10 a.m. Through April 20.

Blue Morning Gallery, 21 S. Palafox. 429-9100 or bluemorninggallery.com.

MAKE YOUR OWN ORNAMENT, FLOWER, PAPER WEIGHT or SWEDISH BOWL 10 a.m.-3 p.m. $25-$95 The workshops offer a short but comprehensive introduction for people to become familiar with the process of working

SATURDAY 4.13

AUDUBON FIELD TRIP TO FORT MORGAN 7:30 a.m. Participants will look for spring migrants at one of the best birding locations on the northern Gulf Coast, and visit the Hummer Bird Study Group’s bird banding location. Bring lunch, drinks, insect repellent and a chair. Free, open to public, $4 per person admission to enter Ft. Morgan Park. Donations to Audubon education fund are appreciated. Pre-registration is recommended. Meet in parking lot of Food World, 4051 Barrancas Ave. 968-4516.

‘RETURN TO CLAY AND FIRE: WOOD FIRED CERAMICS BY BEN TWINGLEY’ 8 a.m. Gallery 88, inside WUWF 11000 University Pkwy.

Through April 26. 474-2787 or wuwf.org.

PALAFOX MARKET 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza, N. Palafox St. palafoxmarket.com.

13th ANNUAL ‘CELEBRATE THE OUTDOORS’ LAWN, GARDEN, & CRAFTS SHOW 8 a.m.- 2 p.m. Presented by the Cathedral of Sacred Heart Sanctuary Society. A relaxing one-day show featuring vendors showcasing plants, flowers, garden and craft items. There will be a raffle

Robotics Open House at IHMC

850-432-5226 997 S Palafox St

Jaco’s Bayfront

Bar & Grille

On Palafox Marina Overlooking Our beautiful Bayfront

Come down and enjoy our one of a kind view, and try one of our April Specials

Glazed Salmon

Sunday Brunch starting at 10 Perfect Sunsets...Nightly! jacosbayfrontbarandgrille.com

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happenings

molten hot glass. Students will be able to pick out their color then design and create a piece of glass with the assistance of our professional glass artists. First City Art Center, 1060 N. Guillemard St. For information or to sign up for workshops call 429-1222 or visit firstcityart.org.

DAUMIER: ART FOR THE MASSES noon.

Through June 30. Pensacola Museum of Art, 407 S. Jefferson St. 432-6247 or pensacolamuseumofart.org SOUTHSOUNDS MUSIC FEST noon. SouthSounds is a project of the Mobile Arts Council with support from the Downtown Mobile Alliance and City of Mobile. SouthSounds will provide free showcases of the best in up and coming Southern talent in Cathedral Square during the day. Cathedral Square, 300 Conti St, Mobile, AL. SouthSoundsFest.com BAMBOO WILLIE’S CRAWFISH FEST 2 p.m.

The best party in April! Beachside event with a ton of family fun and amazing food! Bamboo Willie’s, 400 Quietwater Beach Rd. bamboowillies.com WALK MS 3 p.m. Presented by the North Florida Chapter of The National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Walk MS draws hundreds of people from the North Florida area to enjoy festivities, food, music, contests and games with the purpose of creating awareness about multiple sclerosis and raising funds toward a world free of MS. Funds raised from each event will benefit the Society and go toward research, programs and services for people affected by MS. An estimated 18,000 people are affected by multiple sclerosis in the North Florida area. This year, the North Florida Chapter hopes to raise more than $230,000 toward a world free of MS. Registration is free and fundraising is encouraged. Festivities will begin

at 3 p.m. and the walk will begin at 5 p.m. Seville Square, 311 East Government St. (904) 332-6810 or walkMSnorthflorida.org.

PLAY HAPPY HOUR 4 p.m. Play, 16 S. Palafox, Suite 100. 466-3080 or iplaypensacola.com.

REGGAE FESTIVAL 5 p.m. We Be Jammin’ at Seville Mon! The spirit of Jamaica returns to the End of the Alley Courtyard and on the Main Stage in the Party Plaza at Seville Quarter. The three day Festival will be Jammin’ with Reggae inspired music and food. It will be a laid back weekend at Seville Quarter. 434-6211 or sevillequarter.com ‘A JUBILANT SONG’ 7:30 p.m. The Choral Society of Pensacola presents a concert titled “A Jubilant Song”.The 60-member Choral Society of Pensacola will be joined by the Fiesta Barbershop Chorus, the Pensacola State College Chorale and the Pensacola State College Jazz Choir for a lively and diverse evening of choral music. Tickets for the concert are $20.00 for reserved seating, $15.00 general admission, and $5.00 for students.

Patrons may also attend the rehearsal of “A Jubilant Song” at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 13 at Cokesbury United Methodist. Admission for the rehearsal is $5.00 per person. Tickets can be reserved prior to the performance or purchased at the door. Cokesbury United Methodist Church, 5725 N. 9th Ave. 484-1806 FOOTLOOSE THE MUSICAL 7:30 p.m. Presented

by Gulf Breeze High School. Saenger Theatre, 118 S. Palafox Pl. 595-3882 SNOOPY 7:30 p.m. This sequel to the musical You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown focuses more on the life of Snoopy. Tickets starting at $14.

Pensacola Little Theatre, 400 S. Jefferson St. 434-0257 COSMIC BOWLING 11 p.m. DeLuna Lanes, 590

SECOND ANNUAL

Paired wine dinners featuring master sommeliers and vintners from coast-to-coast

Toast of the Coasts

E. 9 Mile Road. 478-9522 or delunalanes.com.

live music

JOE OCCHIPINTI SMALL GROUP JAZZ 10 a.m.

The Drowsy Poet Coffee Company, 86 Brent Lane. 434-7638.

LEE MELTON noon Dave and Joe Show 7 p.m.

Peg Leg Pete’s, 1010 Fort Pickens Road, Pensacola Beach. 932-4139 or peglegpetes.com SARAH PEARCY 6 p.m. The Oar House, 1000 S Pace Blvd. 549-4444 or the-oar-house.com.

PAUL KILLOUGH 6 p.m. Crabs We Got ‘Em, 6 Casino Beach. 932-0700 or crabswegotem.com.

CURT BOL BAND 6 p.m. Paradise Bar & Grill, 21 Via de Luna, Pensacola Beach. paradisebar-grill. com.

WES HEATH & THE WHISKEY BAND 8 p.m.

The Grand Marlin, 400 Pensacola Beach Blvd.

Pensacola Beach. 677-9153 or thegrandmarlin. com.

DUELLING PIANOS 8 p.m. Rosie O’Grady’s at Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. 434-6211 or sevillequarter.com.

WILLING TO DREAM 8:30 p.m. Tin Cow, 102 S. Palafox. For more information, call 466-2103.

KARAOKE WITH NICK 9 p.m. Hub Stacey’s Downtown, 312 E. Government St. 469-1001 or hubstaceys.com.

TRUNK MONKEY 9 p.m. Sandshaker Lounge, 731 Pensacola Beach Blvd., Pensacola Beach.

932-2211 or sandshaker.com.

REDDOG AND FRIENDS 9:30 p.m. Hopjacks Pizza Kitchen & Taproom, 20 S. Palafox. hopjacks.com.

PETER B’S KARAOKE WITH DJ CHRIS UPTON 9 p.m. DeLuna Lanes, 590 E. 9 Mile Road. 4789522 or delunalanes.com.

LIVE MUSIC 9 p.m. The Deck at The Fish House, 600 S. Barracks St. 470-0003 or fishhouse. goodgrits.com.

BLACKWATER, ELYSE THEROSE 9 p.m. Chan’s Nightclub, 610 E. Nine Mile Rd. 477-9961 or chanspensacola.com.

DJ MR. LAO 9 p.m. Phineas Phogg’s at Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. 434-6211 or sevillequarter.com.

SCHOFIELD 9 p.m. Apple Annie’s at Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. 434-6211 or sevillequarter.com.

ALVERADO ROAD SHOW 9 p.m. Lili Marlene’s at Seville Quarter, 130 E. Government St. 4346211 or sevillequarter.com.

PETTY CASH 9 p.m Paddy O’ Leary’s. 49 Via De Luna Dr. Pensacola Beach. 916-9808 or paddyolearysirishpub.com.

KRAZY GEORGE KARAOKE 9 p.m. Hub Stacey’s Downtown, 312 E. Government St. 4691001 or hubstaceys.com.

S.P.O.R.E. 9 p.m. The Handlebar, 319 N. Tarragona St. 434-9060 or pensacolahandlebar.com.

SUNDAY 4.14

‘RETURN TO CLAY AND FIRE: WOOD FIRED CERAMICS BY BEN TWINGLEY’ 8 a.m. Gallery 88, inside WUWF 11000 University Pkwy.

Through April 26. 474-2787 or wuwf.org.

JASON PINCKART 10 a.m. Through April 20.

Blue Morning Gallery, 21 S. Palafox. 429-9100 or bluemorninggallery.com.

for more listings visit inweekly.net

Hook & Ladder Vineyards Thursday, April 18: three wines, 4-course dinner with Michael De Loach, principal, Hook & Ladder Winery

Seating is limited.

Reservations required. $65 per person. Event begins promptly at 5:30 p.m.

View the full menu online!

(Plus tax and gratuity)

Michael De Loach grew up in the wine business. He started working in the vineyard at age 11 and in the cellar at 15 at his family’s first winery. His family now owns and runs Hook & Ladder Winery, a small, family winery that employs a simple philosophy — craft exceptional wines, from the highest quality grapes, that people love to drink. Reservations: (850) 433-9450.

FI SH HO USE: (850) 470-0003, O PE N DA ILY AT 11 A.M. · AT LA S OY S TE R H O U S E: (850) 437-1961, O P E N M O N.– S AT. 5 P.M., S U N. 11 A.M. · 600 S. BA R RAC K S S T. · C REDIT CARDS OK · WWW.GOODGRITS.COM

23

April 11, 2013

news of the weird UNDOCUMENTED LIVING Undocumented immigrant Jose Munoz, 25, believed himself an ideal candidate for President Obama’s 2012 safe-harbor initiative for illegal-entry children, in that he had been brought to the U.S. by his undocumented parents before age 16, had no criminal record and had graduated from high school (with honors, even). Since then, however, he had remained at home in Sheboygan, Wis., assisting his family, doing odd jobs and, admittedly, just playing video games and “vegging.” Living “in the shadows,” he found it almost impossible to prove the final legal criterion: that he had lived continuously in the U.S. since graduation (using government records, payroll sheets, utility bills, etc.).

After initial failures to convince immigration officials, reported the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel in March, Munoz’s lawyer succeeded -- by submitting Munoz’s Xbox Live records, documenting that his computer’s Wisconsin location had been accessing video games, day after day, for years.

GOVERNMENT IN ACTION! Among the lingering costs of U.S. wars are disability payments and compensation to veterans’ families, which can continue decades after hostilities end. An Associated Press analysis of federal payment records, released in March, even found two current recipients of Civil War benefits. Vietnam war payments are still about $22 billion a year, World War II, $5 billion, World War I, $20 million, and the 1898 Spanish-American war, about $1,700.

• Each year, Oklahoma is among the states to receive $150,000 federal grants to operate small, isolated airfields (for Oklahoma, one in the southern part of the state is so seldom used that it is primarily a restroom stop for passing pilots). The payments are from a 13-year- old congressional fund for about 80 similar airfields (no traffic, no planes kept on site), described by a February Washington Post investigation as “ATM(s) shaped like (airports).” Congress no longer even requires that the annual grants be spent on the actual airports drawing the grants.

by Chuck Shepherd

• During the massive February Southern California manhunt for former Los Angeles cop Christopher Dorner, nervous-triggered LAPD officers riddled an SUV with bullets after mistakenly believing Dorner was inside.

Instead there were two women, on their earlymorning job as newspaper carriers, and LAPD Chief Charlie Beck famously promised them a new truck and arranged with a local dealership for a 2013 Ford F-150 ($32,560). However, the deal fell through in March when the women discovered that Beck’s “free” truck was hardly free. Rather, it would be taxable as a “donation,” reported on IRS Form 1099, perhaps costing them thousands of dollars.

GREAT ART! Sculptor Richard Jackson introduced “Bad Dog” as part of his “Ain’t Painting a Pain” installation at California’s Orange County Museum in February. Outside, to coax visitors in, Jackson’s “Bad Dog’s” hind leg was cocked, with gallons of yellow paint being pumped onto the building. “We’ll see how long it lasts,” he told the Los Angeles Times, “but you never know how people will react.”

“Sometimes, people feel they should protect their children from such things, then the kids go home and watch ‘South Park.’”

• Australian dilettante David Walsh’s 2-year-old Museum of Old and New Art in Hobart is acquiring a reputation for irreverence. Among the exhibits is Greg Taylor’s “My Beautiful Chair,” which invites a visitor to lie next to a lethal injection chair and experience a countdown, mimicking the time it takes for execution drugs to kill (and then flashing “You Are Dead”). Also, at 2 p.m. each day, a “fresh fecal masterpiece” is created by artist Wim Delvoye, in which a meal from the museum’s restaurant is placed into a transparent grinder that creates slush, turns it brown, and adds an overpowering defecation-like smell. The resulting “masterpiece” is channeled into (also transparent) vats. {in}

• Thursday, May 2, 7:00PM • Pensacola Carmike, Destin Rave • More information available at wuwf.org

Exquisite Edible Art

From Universal Press Syndicate Chuck Shepherd’s News Of The Weird © 2013 Chuck Shepherd

Send your weird news to Chuck Shepherd, P.O. Box 18737, Tampa, Fla., 33679 or weirdnews@earthlink.net, or go to newsoftheweird.com

learn to meditate in half a day Saturday April 13, 10am–1pm This beginner friendly course will include practical, hands-on meditation instruction in each session, group discussion and time for Q&A. Cost: $20

OPEN HOUSE 1:30-3pm FREE

Celebrate our 1 Year Anniversary and see our center, meet the teachers, ask questions, and enjoy a vegetarian lunch!

www.meditationinpensacola.org The Historic Old Sacred Heart Building 1010 North 12th Ave #221 Pensacola 32501 (850)450-1878 www.meditationingeorgia.org a branch of

We promise you the most memorable meal Runner Up Best Japanese Cuisine & Best Sushi

Ichiban Japanese Restaurant 850-494-2227 5555 N. Davis Hwy www.ichibanpensacola.com

Come in and try Chef Frank Taylor’s new Snapper Tapas as featured in his recent visit to the James Beard House.

“James Beard Snapper” Red Snapper Crusted with House Chorizo, Saffron and Manchego Rice, Mojo de Cilantro, Sauce Romesco, Cornmeal Fried Oysters

Tues - Thurs - 5pm thru 9pm • Fri & Sat - 5pm thru 10pm

27 South Palafox Place • 850.469.9966 Independent News | April 11, 2013 | inweekly.net