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Archive for the ‘Larry B. Johnson’ Category

Council OKs new Port vision

Yesterday’s Council committee meetings featured an expansive presentation on a new vision for the Port of Pensacola, courtesy of CRA Director Thaddeus Cohen and Port staffers Clyde Mathis and Amy Miller.

The presentation painted the Port of Pensacola as a “boutique” or “specialty” port, which rather than being “all things to all people” intends to concentrate on serving niche markets like energy and offshore operations. The presentation also included concepts for converting…

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Johnson files for reelection

City Councilman Larry B. Johnson filed today to run for reelection. Councilman Johnson is serving his first term on Council, having ousted former Councilman Marty Donovan last November. His announcement today makes Councilman Johnson the first sitting Council member to file for reelection.

Councilman Johnson said he made his announcement today “to let the citizens of District 4 know that they can count on me to keep working for them.”

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On Council’s communications policy

Progressive Pensacola is pleased that the Pensacola City Council opted last week to not adopt a formal communications policy. Several Council members had suggested that the Council adopt a policy similar to the one recently adopted by the Escambia County Commission, which we feel is overly restrictive.

Instead, Council members agreed on an informal “gentleman’s agreement” to keep communications devices “out of sight” during meetings…

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Round-up, 08.30.09

A few items I wanted to highlight today:

Airport coverage. The Sunday News Journal has two stories concerning the City-owned Pensacola Gulf Coast Regional Airport. The first deals with the push to bring Southwest Airlines to Pensacola; the second is a profile of the airport and its expansion efforts under the leadership of interim director Melinda Crawford. Those who want to help out with the efforts to bring Southwest to Pensacola can check out the Chamber of Commerce’s web site or join the cause on Facebook…

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Happy birthday, Larry B. Johnson

Progressive Pensacola wishes Pensacola City Councilman Larry B. Johnson a happy birthday. Councilman Johnson, who was elected last November, has been a welcome addition to Council. He’s taken a proactive role, working to speed up road projects and putting forward new ideas like the green library. He’s also been a tireless advocate for trees, waterways, and other environmental issues.

If you aren’t already reading it, check out Councilman Johnson’s blog. He’s been using his blog to open discussions and keep citizens informed. Keep up the good work!

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Round-up, 07.02.09

A few things I wanted to highlight today:

The Buzz:
“Attorney General Holly Benson?”

The St. Petersburg Times political blog The Buzz reports that Republican strategist Sally Bradshaw is floating Pensacolian Holly Benson’s name as a possible Republican candidate for Attorney General in 2010. Ms. Benson presently serves as Secretary of Florida’s Agency for Health Care Administration, and is the sister of Pensacola City Councilwoman Megan Pratt…

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Round-up, 06.25.09

A few items I wanted to highlight today:

Rick’s Blog:
“IN celebrates 10th Anniversary”

Happy birthday, IN!

Pensapedia: “Henry C. Mustin”

Maren DeWeese: “Goals”

Independent News: “The Buzz”

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Johnson on Council compensation

Pensacola City Councilman Larry B. Johnson has two interesting posts up on his blog concerning Council member compensation.

In the first, he expressed his disappointment at comments critical of Council members’ compensation made at last Thursday’s City Council meeting, and countered the notion that City Council is a “part-time” job:

“Pensacola City Council members receive a salary of $13,998/year for what is for me a full-time job…”

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Round-up, 05.03.09

A few items I wanted to highlight today:

Pensacola News Journal:
“CMPA lawsuit was the result of years of frustration”

Megan Pratt:
“City pensions—a couple of quick fixes”

Larry B. Johnson:
“Pace Boulevard school site”

St. Petersburg Times:
“Little cheer for Florida legislators…”

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Closing Bayfront Parkway?

Pensacola City Councilwoman Megan Pratt has raised the idea of closing Bayfront Parkway on weekends to create a venue for public access to the waterfront. She cites the example of Memorial Drive in Boston, which is closed to vehicular traffic each Sunday from April to November and opened up to pedestrians and bicyclists.

Fellow Council member Sam Hall has chimed in with his support, posting a video of the Ciclovía in Bogota, Colombia, in which main streets are opened up to bicyclists, and events like free aerobics lessons are staged in the city’s parks. Both the Boston and Bogota events have been successful year after year…

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Round-up, 04.02.09

A few items I wanted to highlight today:

Rick’s Blog:
“Gaetz aims to stop double-dipping”
State Senators Mike Fasano (R-Port Richey) and Don Gaetz (R-Niceville) have introduced S 1182, which would close a loophole which allows state and municipal employees to retire, begin collecting their pension, and then be rehired and collect a salary and pension simultaneously…

Larry B. Johnson:
“City boards”

Larry B. Johnson:
“Art of Fashion 2009″

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Round-up, 03.27.09

A few items we wanted to highlight today:

Pensacola News Journal:
“City garage isn’t filled with ‘Cadillac’ pensions”

City employee Michael Faulkner offers a valiant, informed, fair-minded defense of City pensions…

Larry B. Johnson:
“Turtle-Friendly Lighting on Pensacola Beach”

Megan Pratt:
“Marketization: A new approach to government services”

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Round-up, 03.16.09

Mark O’Brien: “The judge is out of order on CMPA”
The News Journal columnist calls out CMPA chair Lacey Collier in a big way…

Larry B. Johnson:
“Bayou Boulevard resurfacing moved up”
Looks like freshman Councilman Larry B. Johnson is making things happen. Irritated about the condition of Bayou Boulevard from 12th Avenue to Firestone Boulevard, Councilman Johnson repeatedly pressed the issue…

Rick’s Blog: “We are a broken city”
Rick Outzen reprints a letter sent from Pensacola architect Brian Spencer…

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Councilman Johnson launches blog

Pensacola City Councilman Larry B. Johnson has joined the blogosphere, bringing the number of Councilmembers with an online presence to five — 50%.

Councilman Sam Hall became the first City Council member to establish a blog after his election to Council in 2006. Rookie Councilwomen Maren DeWeese and Megan Pratt followed after their elections last November, and Councilwoman Diane Mack launched a frequently-updated wider-focus site last week.

At a minimum, Councilmember-operated blogs help increase communication with their constituents…

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Jamie Page round-up, 02.05.09

The News Journal’s man on the government beat, Jamie Page, is on a prolific streak, with several readworthy posts today:

“Councilman wants big charter changes”
Mr. Page spoke with Councilman Larry B. Johnson about changes Councilman Johnson hopes the Charter Review Commission will implement. The Councilman’s hopes, along with a few thoughts…

“Outside firm investigating city land deal”

“City getting proposals for new library”

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A green library

Progressive Pensacola sat down with Pensacola City Councilman Larry B. Johnson this morning to get his thoughts on how to use the $6 million the City has budgeted for a new library.

The bottom line: Councilman Johnson wants to build a green, LEED-certified library that will serve as “another piece of the puzzle to creating a vibrant downtown Pensacola.”

Mr. Johnson proposes using land at Palafox and Gregory Streets, now occupied by an underutilised City-owned parking lot. The land is about two blocks from the current library site…

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Johnson crushes Donovan

Larry B. Johnson has handily defeated 7-year Councilman Marty Donovan to take the District 4 seat on the Pensacola City Council.
With all precincts reporting, Johnson holds 61% of the vote to Donovan’s 39%, a margin of more than 450 votes.
In the other race of the evening, three-term councilman Ronald Townsend prevailed over challenger Jacci Shumaker, [...]

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Endorsement: Larry B. Johnson

Progressive Pensacola would like to reiterate its prior endorsement of Larry B. Johnson for Pensacola City Council, District 4.
We do so with no ill will toward his opponent, incumbent Marty Donovan.  Regardless of any specific policy agreements we may have with Mr. Donovan, the fact of the matter is that he is simply too negative.  [...]

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The state of our City Council

Unfortunately, voters only retired one City Council incumbent on Tuesday — but it was a good one.
Congratulations to Maren DeWeese for ousting 20-year incumbent Mike DeSorbo. I can’t tell you how satisfied I am that our City government is rid of him.
Congratulations also to Megan Benson Pratt for her sound victory in the District [...]

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Endorsement: Larry B. Johnson

Progressive Pensacola endorses Larry B. Johnson for Pensacola City Council, District 4.
Mr. Johnson, 51, is an area businessman and community activist perhaps best known for his involvement with the environmental group Emerald Coastkeeper. He’s been a longtime advocate for environmental issues, and recognises that in order to attract and retain businesses and new residents, [...]

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Overview: Pensacola City Council, District 4

Heading up to the general election on November 4, we’ll be featuring a brief look at the various races. Some races we’ll cover more extensively than others, because some races are more important or more competitive than others. Today, we’ll look at the race for Pensacola City Council, District 4.
The Office
Races for seats [...]

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More of the same on City boards

Earlier this year, a citizen inquiry forced Larry B. Johnson and Rhette Anderson, candidates for City Council in District 4, to resign their seats on the City’s Zoning Board of Adjustment.  The city charter requires candidates for City offices to resign any other City offices or appointed positions, but apparently no one had noticed.
Council will [...]

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Larry B. Johnson jumps in

Larry B. Johnson has joined the District 4 race for Pensacola City Council.
This is only bad news for Marty Donovan, whom I think could have handled Rhette Anderson alone, but whom will has an uphill battle ahead of him with Johnson joining the race. Despite our differences, most clearly on the Community Maritime Park, [...]

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