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Around the State- Northwest- Jan. 2002
Fort Walton Beach -- Beginning this year, the Technology Coast Manufacturing & Engineering Network (TeCMEN) will hold meetings with the Gulf Coast Alliance for Technology Transfer (GCATT). TeCMEN consists of 40 to 50 technology-oriented companies based or represented in Okaloosa County. GCATT is a consortium of 15 federal laboratories in northwest Florida and Alabama that develop commercial uses for federally developed technology.
While some Air Force bases are getting smaller or being phased out, Hurlburt Field is expanding -- again. Since 1993, the base has grown 57%, adding aircraft parking, office buildings and dormitories for airmen.
Gulf Breeze -- Elysium Power Solutions recently made the Inc. 500 list of fastest-growing companies. Founded in 1993, Elysium is a major supplier and servicer of backup emergency power solutions in the Southeast. Its products are used by companies and government facilities that provide critical services during power outages.
Panhandle -- Delta Connection carrier SkyWest has started non-stop service from the Tallahassee and Pensacola regional airports to Dallas/Fort Worth. The carrier will fly 50-passenger Canadair Regional Jets.
Pensacola -- William Maloy, director of the University of West Florida Office of Community Learning, has been inducted into the Florida Educator Hall of Fame. The only inductee in 2001, Maloy's career spans more than 50 years. He started as a high school teacher and later was elected superintendent of Escambia County School District. He eventually served as education adviser to two governors.
The Port of Pensacola won a $1.2-million matching grant from the Florida Seaport Transportation and Economic Development Council to build a bulkhead at the Trillium development. The port is seeking to get Pensacola on cruise itineraries.
Restoration is under way for nearly eight acres of oyster reef in Pensacola Bay. Called Project Greenshores, the community-based habitat restoration project involves more than 30 local and national agencies and organizations, including the state Department of Environmental Protection, the federal Environmental Protection's Gulf of Mexico Program, and the city of Pensacola. The project received $1.3 million in donations and grants.
Santa Rosa Island -- The Escambia County Commission voted to recommend to the Florida Legislature that the Santa Rosa Island Authority be abolished. The authority was established in the 1950s to manage and develop the federally owned island. If the Legislature agrees, control of the island will revert to the county.
Tallahassee -- The Florida A&M University board of trustees named Henry Lewis III interim president. Lewis, dean of the pharmacy college, replaces Frederick Humphries, who resigned in December to lead the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education.
Big Plans
SANDESTIN -- Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort has started a $400-million redevelopment effort that will include the Village at Baytowne Wharf, a 28-acre pedestrian center with retail, entertainment and condominiums overlooking a two-acre lagoon. Vancouver, Canada-based Intrawest Corp., which owns the resort, sold $72 million worth of real estate in less than eight hours for the first phase and $52 million in 4-1/2 hours for the second phase. Intrawest owns and operates village-centered ski resorts across North America.
