Escambia County gets over $61 million to fund projects benefiting residents
ESCAMBIA COUNTY, Fla. (WKRG) — Escambia County has received over $61 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding.
Pensacola Habitat for Humanity opens NWFL Community Land Trust application
According to a county news release, the $61,829,151 in ARPA funding will be used for a variety of initiatives and projects that will benefit residents.
Officials said they have allocated the entire amount of funding, besides 65 cents, to different projects in the county.
'This funding is monumental for Escambia County, and we have worked hard to make sure every dollar will stay here and benefit our residents,' County Administrator Wes Moreno said.
The projects being completed with the ARPA funding include:
16 stormwater projects
Seven new infill houses for low-income families
Public safety fleet improvements, including new fire trucks and ambulances
ADA accessibility improvements on Pensacola Beach and Perdido Key
Parks and Recreation facility improvements
Broadband connection improvements for northern Escambia County
New libraries and community centers
Lawsuit filed against Northwest Florida doctor, hospital staff accused of deadly wrong organ removal surgery
'I'm excited to see these projects come to fruition and continue to enhance our quality of life here in Escambia County,' said Moreno.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
School in Scranton celebrates new playground designed with pupils' input
SCRANTON — Pupils at the John F. Kennedy Elementary School in South Side who helped design the transformation of a parking lot there into a vibrant schoolyard with a modern playground also helped cut the ribbon Friday during a grand opening. In the works for the past three years, a former asphalt lot at the rear of the school now has become an oasis for play, as well as a community park space for the 2,500 residents who live within a 10-minute walk of the school fronting on Prospect Avenue. A collaboration of the Scranton School District, the city of Scranton, the local nonprofit Valley in Motion and the nationwide Trust for Public Land, the project two years ago called upon third-graders to give input on what they would like to see in a playground replacing the parking lot along Winfield Avenue. 'This is even better than I pictured. You guys did such an incredible job,' Scranton Mayor Paige Gebhardt Cognetti said to pupils who helped design the new schoolyard and attended the grand opening Friday. Tess Lewis, 11, a fifth grader at the South Scranton Intermediate School, was one of the pupils of the John F. Kennedy Elementary School in Scranton who as a third-grader helped design the new schoolyard at the JFK school and attended the ribbon cutting with classmates. She said she is very happy with the transformation of the space. 'We wanted all the playground parts to be on softer ground,' because the surface previously was all paved. The $775,000 cost of the JFK Elementary School project is funded with $500,000 from the city, from its federal American Rescue Plan Act dollars. The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, Moses Taylor Foundation, Scranton Area Community Foundation, The Robert H. Spitz Foundation and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation also contributed. Commenting on the numerous entities and sponsors involved, Cognetti said, 'Everybody put the team together, to put the puzzle pieces in there to make this happen. The most important thing was that you guys got to be involved and we're so proud of the work that you did.' School officials spoke of playtime as a key component of education. 'These are the kinds of things that make coming to school more enjoyable and have that small fraction of the day where you step away from traditional learning to be able to learn in a whole new environment,' Scranton School District Superintendent Erin Keating, Ed.D. said. The poured-in place rubbery surface will need a few days to cure before children can use the playground. 'Play is really the work of childhood,' JFK school Principal Nora Phillips said. 'Our children at JFK are now able to get to work' at play in the revamped schoolyard. Gus Fahey of Valley in Motion noted how the schoolyard is no longer an old-school kind of space. 'We were used to just sort of flat, asphalt playgrounds. Now we're not going to accept that anymore. This is the new standard that we are going to give to the children of the next generation,' Fahey said. Owen Franklin of The Trust for Public Land described the schoolyard as an asset for community development and strengthening connections. 'This is a model for partnership and impact,' Franklin said. Fahey also referenced two similar schoolyard playground transformations ahead, at the Whitter and Willard schools. The city has federal American Rescue Plan Act money earmarked for the Whittier project, he said. A $350,000 federal Environmental Protection Agency grant for the Willard school project was awarded via a nationwide competition, but that funding recently was eliminated, Fahey said, noting he was announcing that loss. 'That money that we won was taken away from us on a national level,' Fahey told the crowd. 'So what are we going to do? Are we not going to build the next playground?' Several people in the crowd responded 'No,' meaning that project will get done somehow. 'We're going to figure it out,' Cognetti replied. * Gus Fahey, president of Valley in Motion, makes remarks at the opening of a new community schoolyard June 6, 2025, at John F. Kennedy Elementary School in South Scranton. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO) * John F. Kennedy Elementary School students listen to speakers talk about a newly build playground at the school. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO) * Children who two years ago while in third grade helped design a new community schoolyard playground at John F. Kennedy Elementary School in Scranton participated in a ribbon-cutting during a grand-opening celebration of the schoolyard on Friday, June 6, 2025. (JIM LOCKWOOD / STAFF PHOTO) * The new community schoolyard playground at John F. Kennedy Elementary School in Scranton during a ribbon-cutting and grand-opening celebration on Friday, June 6, 2025. (JIM LOCKWOOD / STAFF PHOTO) * Scranton Mayor Paige Cognetti listens to remarks at the opening of a new community schoolyard June 6, 2025, at John F. Kennedy Elementary School in South Scranton. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO) * Owen Franklin of Trust for Public Land discusses the dedication of a new playground at at John F. Kennedy Elementary School in South Scranton. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO) * Gus Fahey, president of Valley in Motion, makes remarks as Trust for Public Land, Scranton School District and Mayor Paige Cognetti open a new community schoolyard June 6, 2025, at John F. Kennedy Elementary School in South Scranton. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO) * Scranton Mayor Paige Gebhardt Cognetti, at podium, introduces and shakes hands with Gus Fahey of Valley in Motion during a ribbon-cutting and grand-opening celebration of the new community schoolyard playground, in background, at John F. Kennedy Elementary School in Scranton on Friday, June 6, 2025. (JIM LOCKWOOD / STAFF PHOTO) * The new community schoolyard playground at John F. Kennedy Elementary School in Scranton during a ribbon-cutting and grand-opening celebration on Friday, June 6, 2025. (JIM LOCKWOOD / STAFF PHOTO) * The new community schoolyard playground at John F. Kennedy Elementary School in Scranton during a ribbon-cutting and grand-opening celebration on Friday, June 6, 2025. (JIM LOCKWOOD / STAFF PHOTO) * Tess Lewis, 11, a fifth grader at the South Scranton Intermediate School, was one of the pupils of the John F. Kennedy Elementary School in Scranton two years ago while in third grade there helped design a new community schoolyard playground at the Kennedy school. Tess and former Kennedy school classmates participated Friday, June 6, 2025 in a ribbon-cutting during a grand-opening celebration of the new schoolyard. (JIM LOCKWOOD / STAFF PHOTO) Show Caption 1 of 11 Gus Fahey, president of Valley in Motion, makes remarks at the opening of a new community schoolyard June 6, 2025, at John F. Kennedy Elementary School in South Scranton. (CHAD SEBRING/STAFF PHOTO) Expand
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Habitat for Humanity invites public to celebrate Davenport home dedication
The public is invited to help celebrate the dedication of Habitat Home #141 on Saturday, June 7, according to a news release. The brief ceremony will take place promptly at 10 a.m. at 1436 W. 8th St., Davenport. Guests can tour the home after the ceremony. This home build has been supported, in whole or in part, by federal award number 21.027 to the State of Iowa by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. The referenced award was a result of the American Rescue Plan Act. This was a unique opportunity provided to Habitat for Humanity affiliates across the state of Iowa, thanks to the work of Habitat of Iowa, the state support organization for local affiliates. This is the third home Habitat QC was able to build in Davenport thanks to these funds. Habitat's affordable home-ownership program is a long-term solution to the current affordable housing crisis. Habitat partner families must complete a minimum of 250 volunteer hours of sweat equity and attend mandatory home-ownership preparation classes with the support of a volunteer mentor. When their home build is finished, partner families purchase the home from Habitat with affordable monthly payments on a zero-interest mortgage. About HFHQC Habitat for Humanity Quad Cities is dedicated to building thriving communities. For more than 30 years, the local Habitat for Humanity affiliate has served low-income families with the construction of affordable homes. Habitat also operates a home repair program and an accessibility ramp program for low-income homeowners. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Yahoo
Loved ones gather at balloon release to honor father killed in Saenger Theatre shooting
MOBILE, Ala. (WKRG) — Green and black balloons filled the sky in honor of Carl Williams III, who was killed Sunday night during a children's dance recital in Mobile's Saenger Theatre. Baldwin County linemen 'Light Up Navajo' with something they have never had before: electricity Dozens of people gathered at Doyle Park in Mobile to remember Williams' legacy and saying this life was taken too soon, and his two daughters, Cherish and Brooklyn, are now left without a father. 'I wish he never died,' Cherish said to the crowd when asked to speak about her dad. Williams was an avid Philadelphia Eagles and Florida Gators fan, so he always loved the color green. Family, friends and those who knew him dearly said he was not only a joy to be around but also always demonstrated great character. 'I just want to tell all my young people, like, let's get right with God, because one thing we know that before he left here, he knew God,' a friend of Williams said. 'He did not leave here sad, so we're going to continue on that legacy. We're going to be happy. We're going to love on each other. We're going to continue on what Carl would want us to do.' A 2015 alum of B.C. Rain High School, Williams had his own clothing line and was a role model for students who wanted to go down the same path. 'Omari is my 16-year-old son, and Carl took him under his wing and was helping him start his own clothing line,' one woman explained. 'So when he took his fashion class in school, they told him to choose a famous designer, and he called his cousin, and he said he wanted to do the project on him.' 'Everybody knew who Carl was — and what he was to us,' a former classmate said. 'All of the jokes, everybody knew Carl as humble. We knew a completely different side to Carl, but Carl was our friend, and he didn't deserve that.' 'He's been a friend to all of us,' Williams' friend Darius Howard said. 'More like a brother to all of us. So coming like from 2015, class man, everything was always jokes. You never seen him down; you never seen him frowning.' Since losing her brother, Williams' sister Destiny said that the overwhelming amount of support is what made this process a bit better for her family. 'I knew everyone loved my brother, but for me to see it with my own two eyes, it's amazing,' Destiny said. Milton police officer assaulted, put in headlock during domestic violence call Williams' family is still working on finalizing funeral arrangements. They plan to lay him to rest on June 14. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.