TWIN CREEKS CROSSING SHOPPING CENTER IN NORTH CRESTVIEW TAKING SHAPE

Twin Creeks Crossing Shopping Center is taking shape on the North side of Crestview across the street from the Crestview High School. With the completion of the 10 Screen Movie Theater, Johnny “O’ Quigley, and now the starting of the next Phase, it should help meet the needs of all of the new home owners moving to this side of town, as well as, the many new business setting up at the Crestview Industrial Airport. Hats off to Jack Jernigan and company for their efforts in moving this project forward. As many residents and future residents will till you. It is a long time coming.

WIDENING OF STATE ROAD 123 (ROAD PROVIDING A SHORT CUT BETWEEN CRESTVIEW AND FORT WALTON BEACH) PROPOSAL REVEALED

To update you on the below announcement, I must throw out some observations:

The overpass being constructed to make access from Crestview to the South part of the county, which is adjacent to the Fort Walton Beach airport and the F-35 Training Squadron is on schedule for completion early next year. For the record, this project was a Senator Don Gaetz initiative. Therefore, I expect the next logical piece of the puzzle in making Crestview more accessible to the South part of the County and Eglin AFB (F-35 Squadron) would be to get this State Road 123 (By Pass) road funded.

Another factoid, this is Senator Gaetz District and he has been selected as the next President of the Senate for the State of Florida. In his acceptance speech, he made job creation and the military a priority.

State Road 123 proposal revealed
By LAUREN SAGE REINLIE
Northwest Florida Daily News 315-4445 lreinlie@nwfdailynews.com  
NICEVILLE — State transportation officials and contractors met with residents last week to unveil estimated costs and environmental impacts of a proposed widening of State Road 123. The five-mile stretch of road connects State Road 85 around Niceville. The proposed project would widen SR 123 from two to four lanes by adding two lanes along the west side of the existing road through Eglin Air Force Base property. Construction costs are estimated at $16.2 million. Funding has not yet been allocated for construction. Tommie Speights, district spokesman for the Department of Transportation, said the project is needed to improve safety and relieve congestion at the north end of SR 123 at SR 85. If the project is completed the intersection will no longer require a traffic light, he said. “It bottlenecks there,” Speights said. “We’re trying to relieve that congestion and make it much safer.” Between 2002 and 2009, there were more than 100 vehicle crashes on SR 123, which is higher than expected, according to HDR Engineering, the company hired to manage the project. The south end intersection already is being rebuilt with a flyover just south of Northwest Florida Regional Airport. The proposal calls for new two-lane bridges to be built over Tom’s Creek, Turkey Creek and an unnamed tributary to Turkey Creek. The creeks are home to the Okaloosa darter, an endangered freshwater fish. A Biological Assessment has been submitted for review to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services to determine any effects on the darter. Speights said the bridges will allow the darter to pass under the road and minimize impacts on their habitat.
At the meeting residents were encouraged to submit comments on the proposed project. “The idea is for the public to get input,” Speights said. “We do hear what they are saying. It doesn’t fall of deaf ears. We take the comments and try to incorporate them into the project.” Wayland Davis of Choctaw Beach spoke at the meeting. He asked that the road be renamed the Purple Heart Memorial Highway because it connects Eglin and the Army Special Forces cantonment south of Crestview. Speights said the naming of state roads is generally overseen by the Legislature and it has already approved the name Robert J. Clary Highway. The project hasn’t garnered a lot of attention, mostly because it doesn’t affect any private property, Speights said. “The general public can appreciate the relief they are going to get by building this project,” he said. Comments on the project and the Environmental Assessmentcanbesubmitted untilOct.3.Submitcomments to Alan Vann, Department of Transportation, by mail at 1074 U.S. Highway 90, Chipley, FL 32428, or by email at alan.vann@dot.state.fl.us  .

ENROLLMENT IN OKALOOSA COUNTY SCHOOL ON THE RISE (BIG SURPRISE ?)

Enrollment increases in Okaloosa County Schools, and this is a surprise to the area. You have a couple of thousand new 7th Special Forces directed to come here and hundreds more of F-35 permanent party personnel coming, as well, on top of the normal military personnel moving in and out every year. Having recently attended a couple of local briefings regarding the 7th Special Forces, F-35 Training Squadron, and others, and more importantly working some these folks in acquiring their new homes, I am pretty confident, you haven’t seen anything yet. Because of quality and affordable housing not available in the numbers needed today, a number of these folks are making alternative plans in their housing situations until those quality and affordable homes become available. Remember, their home purchase is one of the biggest decisions of their life and many are making sure it will be the right one, if they have the time to do it. Some of our recent clients and others I have met are like deer in the headlights. Low supply of quality homes for sale, and hardly any rentals available to fall back on. Interesting. Yes, Crestview is where, not only the 7th Special Forces is heading in large numbers, but other folks, as well. Crestview is not the quite town of the North County, I knew as a kid. It is fast becoming, one of the most desirable areas to live. All I can say, is stay tuned. I warned many in the past of this situation. It will get more interesting in the very near future.

PS – EGLIN DESTROYS CLOSE TO 1800 HOMES RECENTLY WITH NO REPLACEMENTS IN SITE. DON’T YOU THINK THIS MIGHT HAVE SOMETHING TO DO WITH THESE NUMBERS ON WHERE THESE KIDS ARE GOING.

Enrollment increases in Okaloosa schools
Special Forces has brought students to the north end, officials say
By KATIE TAMMEN
Northwest Florida Daily News 315-4440 ktammen@nwfdailynews.com  
Preliminary attendance numbers show Okaloosa County schools are seeing some growth this year. As of the third week of September, the school district had 29,441 students enrolled, according to figures compiled by the district. There are about 800 more students compared to last October’s official numbers. That is the district’s highest enrollment since the fall of 2009. “We are very pleased with the uptick in the enrollment and we’d like to see even more,” Superintendent of Schools Alexis Tibbetts said. The jump largely is because of the arrival of the Army’s 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne), said J.C. Connor, the chief information officer for the district. From what the district has gathered, the Special Forces brought about 1,000 students to the area. Most of them are enrolled in schools in the north end of the county. Three of the five elementary schools in Crestview have about 800 students. Bob Sikes Elementary, which had been declining, saw a jump of 94 students this year. Nearby Antioch Elementary, which recently lost about 150 students because of rezoning, is down only about 126 students compared to last year. School district officials are certain it will grow more. The School Board on Monday approved adding an assistant principal to Antioch to help deal with the large student population. Other elementary schools with 800 students or more also will get an assistant principal, Deputy Superintendent Rodney Nobles said. While much of the growth is in the north end, some of the schools in the south and central portions of the county also have grown. Choctawhatchee High School has 114 more students than last year. The school, which had been declining for several years, actually has a few more students this year than in 2009. However, the county’s three other large high schools have seen their enrollments drop. That has been the overall trend for several years, Connor said. One reason is that even though students start kindergarten in the county, they don’t necessarily finish high school because of military families’ moves. Several elementary schools in the central and southern portions of the county also saw growth, but district officials say that is because of new military missions at area bases. “There’s nothing dramatic going on (in the south and central portions of the district),” Connor said. “It remains to be seen if we’ve turned the corner or not.” The official enrollment count will be taken in October.

HOMES SALES UP ON EMERALD COAST IN AUGUST, AS WELL

As a note to the recent news of the Homes sales up on the Emerald Coast, I wanted to share some additional NEW home sales data for the Crestview Market only, as provided by the Emerald Coast Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service. In summary, since January 1, 2011, there has been 283 NEW homes sold and another 72 NEW HOMES pending sale today. Average price is about $212,500. The lessen some homebuilders have found when building for the military. Bigger is better. Also, we have a hundreds of military folks, which have not moved here, and now the F-35 Training Squadron is next to start coming in a big way. Call me for details. Ken Wright, A.K.A. President of NORTHWEST FLORIDA Military Officers Association, former Military Housing Director for Southeast United States, and native to this lovely area.

Home sales up along Emerald Coast
However, prices continue to fluctuate
By DUSTY RICKETTS
Northwest Florida Daily News 315-4448 dricketts@nwfdailynews.com  
The local housing market continued to show signs of stabilizing in August as sales increased, but prices remained volatile. Metro Market Trends recently released its August real estate sales reports for Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and Walton counties. The number of single-family homes and condominiums sold in all three counties increased compared to August 2010, but property values continued to fluctuate. “The market has done really well this summer,” said Jean Floyd, a local Realtor and president of the Emerald Coast Association of Realtors. “We had a great August. That’s good news for the real estate market and for the area. “I attribute the prices going down and being more affordable and interest rates being good,” she added. “People that have always dreamed of owning a condo down here now see the prices where they are and they’re buying.” In Okaloosa County, 339 single-family homes were sold in August, an increase of 37.8 percent from August 2010, when 246 homes were sold. Condominium and townhome sales were even hotter, increasing 91.53 percent with 113 units sold. Single-family home sales increased 37.96 percent in Walton County, from 108 last August to 149 this year. Single-family home sales also were up 10.09 percent in Santa Rosa County, with 240 homes sold last month compared to 218 a year ago. Condominium and townhome sales were up 42.86 percent in Walton County and 16.67 percent in Santa Rosa County. Real estate values did not see the same consistent increase across all categories. Average prices for single -family homes and condominium/ townhomes dropped slightly. The average price for all single family homes sold in Okaoosa County dropped 2.31 percent from $210,185 in August 2010 to $205,222 last month. The average condo price fell 3.67 percent, from $211,020 to $203,257. Walton County’s average single-family home price in August was $530,026, an increase of 34.19 percent from August 2010 when the average price was $394,981. However, the average condo/townhome price fell 20.25 percent, from $264,987 last August to $211,327 last month. The average sales price for both single-family homes and condominiums/townhomes increased in Santa Rosa County in August. The average price of a singlefamily home jumped from $166,775 in August 2010 to $193,862 last month. The price of a condo/ townhome increased from $240,500 to $275,600 during the same period. Despite the fluctuations, Floyd said the property values are getting better. “The values are starting to have a slight increase and stay more stable,” Floyd said. “That gives people the idea that prices are good; ‘interest rates are probably never going to be this good again, so if I’m going to buy this is the time to buy.’ It’s giving them a sense of urgency. We’re just not trying to sell you something. We’re trying to tell you that if you really want to buy, now is the time.”

REMAX SOUTHERN REALTY CLIENTS EARN VACATION REWARDS FROM SOUTHERN RESORTS

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RENTAL MARKET HAS BECOME A SWEET SPOT IN REAL ESTATE

This observation of the national rental market holds very true for our local market. With the local military housing units being reduced drastically, the influx of new military personnel being moved here because of BRAC 2005, the shortage of available/suitable housing, and many other factors, has put our rental market out of this world.

Rental market: Sweet spot in real estate WASHINGTON – Sept. 8, 2011 – The rental market is continuing to heat up and can offer potentially big returns for buyers willing to jump into the landlord role. For investors looking to take advantage of low record-reaching mortgage rates and big discounts on home prices, the opportunities are plenty. Rents are rising and demand is up too, partially due to the 4 million former homeowners who’ve faced a foreclosure and are now renters. In response, more homes are turning into rentals: Nearly 35 percent of occupied homes were rented in 2010, which is a 33.8 percent increase from 2000, according to a recent study. In more than 500 cities, demand for rentals has increased, with vacancies for rental housing reaching its lowest level since 2003, according to U.S. Census data. Plus, rents are on the rise too: Nationwide, rents increased 11.6 percent in 2010 to $1,320 a month, on average, according to Hotpads.com, a real estate research firm. Investors are buying rental properties with the intention to hold onto it for a longer time too: On average, investors say they plan to hold onto the property for 10 years before selling, according to a survey by the National Association of Realtors®. “Whereas leverage is dangerous when buying stocks, [buying a rental] can be a good long-term strategy with real estate,” real estate investor Marshall Sonenshine told Money Magazine. Experts suggest the wisest move for investors is buying a property near their permanent residence and sticking to buildings with four units or fewer to avoid stricter financing requirements, such as larger downpayments and higher mortgage rates. Also, experts say rental income should cover at least the mortgage payments on the property as well as an extra 20 percent cushion to pay for any repairs, property management or get you through any vacancies.Source: “Cashing in on Rental Property,” Money Magazine (Sept. 2, 2011)

$22M INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT BEING MADE AT CRESTVIEW AIRPORT

22 MILLION DOLLARS, THAT’S RIGHT. 22 MILLION DOLLARS OF IMPROVEMENTS TO ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT AIRPORTS TO SUPPORT OUR MILITARY DEFENSE, THE CRESTVIEW INDUSTRIAL AIRPARK IN NORTH CRESTVIEW. JUST A SHORT 5 MINUTE TRIP BY AIR FROM EGLIN AFB, HURLBURT AFB, DUKE AFB, AND OF COURSE, THE NEW 7TH SPECIAL FORCES CANTONMENT CENTER, YOU CAN HOPEFULLY SEE THE WRITING ON THE WALL HERE. THESE IMPROVEMENTS AND A NUMBER OF MILITARY MISSIONS TO OUR AREA WERE BECAUSE OF MILITARY STREAMLING PROCESS TO SAVE MONEY. FROM THE STANDPOINT OF FUTURE STREAMLINING AND FROM WHAT I HERE, MILITARY DOWNSIZING IS NOT A BAD THING FOR US, IF YOU UNDERSTAND THE WHOLE PICTURE. STAY TUNED.

September 07, 2011 6:36 PM
Brian Hughes, Crestview News Bulletin
Members of the Crestview Area Chamber of Commerce PILOT young professionals committee learned about the importance of both Crestview’s airport and the county’s commercial airport in the region’s economic future. And, they learned, our regional airports are integral to their own professional growth as well. Okaloosa County Airports Director Greg Donovan spoke to the group at its August meeting, sharing updates on airports infrastructure projects and offering a business profile of Vision Airlines, the newest tenant at Northwest Florida Regional Airport, which made VPS its hub. “From a career standpoint, you are the future of our community,” Donovan told the group. “What we are building at our airport system is something you’ll inherit.” The ongoing $22 million in infrastructure improvements that began several years ago at Bob Sikes Airport is preparing the airport, which boasts the region’s longest runway, for future growth. Current projects include a new, enhanced storm water drainage system, a tenant hangar, and wider taxiways and turns to handle the world’s largest aircraft. A recently announced project to acquire land for a U.S. Highway 90 front entrance for the airport is also picking up momentum, Donovan said. It will facilitate getting large trucks to and from airport tenants, and eliminate airport traffic having to go through residential neighborhoods. “It was kind of a speed-bump to our development,” Donovan said of the current access, adding that an $11 million access road project “opens all kinds of doors.” “We’re putting in the infrastructure to accommodate massive companies to come here,” Donovan said. Some PILOT members were surprised to learn that their taxes don’t fund the airport improvements he described. “All of it is money that is generated in the airport system,” Donovan explained. “If you’ve not been to the airport, you’re not paying one dime toward what’s happening at the airport. Improvements at the county’s commercial airport include four new terminal gates due to open in October, Donovan said. The University of West Florida Haas Center for Business Research and Economic Development recently reported the airport has a half-billion-dollar impact on the region, he added.

TOURIST FLOCK TO OKALOOSA, WALTON AND SANTA ROSA COUNTIES IN RECORD NUMBERS

TOURIST FLOCK TO OKALOOSA, WALTON, AND SANTA ROSA COUNTIES IN RECORD NUMBERS

Okay folks, I don’t know what to say, but “I told you so”. Just kidding. I have been told, I am a extreme optimist, I am bullish on the Emerald Coast. Well what I am is, a realist, someone who does my homework, observe and participant in a wide array of business related functions, which cross many lines. I also listen attentively to customers on their motivations and seek out data in order to understand their actions. With this said, I believe the information, which I have passed along from the movement of new military units, new businesses, our great education system, new interest in our tourism, are just a reflection that we are in one of the bright spots in this country and we are lucky to be here. Now, just on the horizon, we have the annual “Snow Bird” migration coming and they have also been coming in record numbers to run from the cold of the winter. Put that together with some great pricing, some record low interest rates, combined with our great atmosphere and surrounding beauty of the country side to the emerald green waters of the Gulf of Mexico, you will be seeing a large number of “Baby Boomers” coming here to call our area home. So read on to some more great news on our area, it is some interesting stuff.

Emerald Coast sets bed tax record
July revenues were the most ever for Okaloosa, Walton and Santa Rosa counties
By DUSTY RICKETTS, Northwest Florida Daily News 315-4448 dricketts@nwfdailynews.com  
July was another record-breaking month for the tourism industry in Northwest Florida. Tourist development agencies in Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and Walton counties all recorded their highest bed tax collections ever in a single month in July, officials said. “It was unbelievable . I think it far exceeded many of our expectations,” said Mark Bellinger, executive director of the Okaloosa County Tourist Development Council. “It was the best month since we’ve been keeping statistics in the past 20 years. It far exceeded all the numbers.” Bed tax collections were up 85 percent in Okaloosa compared to July 2010. Collections were up 53 percent in Walton County and 67 percent in Santa Rosa County compared to July a year ago. Okaloosa collected $1.1 million in taxes on short-term rentals in July. Santa Rosa collected $185,168. Figures for Walton were not available. Bellinger said the region’s tourism agencies worked together following last year’s oil spill to bring visitors back, and the efforts have paid off. Dawn Moliterno, executive director of the Walton County TDC, agreed. “We knew we were going to have a good July based on the feedback we were getting,” Moliterno said. “We had no idea we would fare as incredibly well as we did. “Overall, we’re excited, we want to keep the momentum going,” she added. “We’re seeing good signs through the shoulder season, and we just want that to continue to carry us into a solid spring next year.” The TDCs are now focused on drawing tourists for the fall months. The Okaloosa TDC is promoting the Destin Seafood Festival and Destin Fishing Rodeo. The Santa Rosa TDC has its sand-sculpting contest later this month and the annual Beaches to Woodlands event in October. “You know how pretty September and October are around here, and I think people are beginning to realize that,” said Kate Wilkes, executive director of the Santa Rosa TDC. Moliterno said a strong shoulder season now is the best way to promote the area for next summer. “Fall is a great time for weddings. Fall is a great time for a romantic getaway or a girls’ trip or a guys’ golf trip. By bringing them back and reminding them how beautiful this place is, that keeps in the forefront when they’re building their family vacations for that following year. It’s really important to keep them coming back time and time again, and not just a once a year vacation.”

TWO MORE F-35 JOINT STRIKE FIGHTERS ARRIVE AT EGLIN ON AUGUST 31, 2011

They keep coming as promised, with more on the way. As you know, I was given a briefing on the F-35 Training Program a couple of weeks ago and after leaving, this program is alive and well, with efforts are being made to expedite the training program for a variety of reasons. One being, it is the right thing to do for the national security of our country, period. So stay tune, as you will see some great news coming from Eglin and the training program and the impact it will have on our community.

FORT WORTH, Texas --- Two Lockheed Martin F-35As, AF-10 and AF-11, along with two F-16 chase aircraft, landed at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., Wednesday afternoon at 1:19 p.m. CDT today. On Friday, the F-35 Joint Program Office has authorized the return to flight operations for F-35 production aircraft. AF-10 and AF-11 completed the 90-minute flight marking the ninth and tenth F-35 contractual deliveries of 2011. The pair of conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) jets will be used for training pilots and maintainers at the new F-35 Integrated Training Center there.