Santa Rosa County will host a drop-in open house from 5:30-7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 10, at the Santa Rosa County Extension Office, 6263 Dogwood Drive in Milton, to discuss broadband.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has rolled out a new national broadband map and Santa Rosa County residents are urged to validate the accuracy of the information on the map. Challenges to the FCC broadband map are due by Friday, Jan. 13. View the map at broadbandmap.fcc.gov/home.

Representatives from the Tobacco Free Santa Rosa Coalition, including members of Students Working Against Tobacco (SWAT) clubs from several county schools, pose with Milton City Council members Tuesday, Jan. 3, after presenting the case for banning tobacco products from city parks.

Want to pursue a career in agriculture? There may be a scholarship opportunity for you.

Farm Credit of Northwest Florida is offering one scholarship up to $24,000 to a high school senior, college freshman or sophomore with plans to go into the field of agriculture.

The scholarship will cover $3,000 for eight semesters totaling $24,000 for a student’s tuition throughout their four year undergraduate degree. Additionally, Farm Credit will provide a paid internship during their junior or senior year of college.

At its first meeting of 2023, the Milton City Council will consider a New Year’s resolution confirming its commitment to existing plans for a new wastewater treatment plant and asking Santa Rosa County to continue its support.

New Year’s Day turned tragic as one person is dead and another has been arrested for a fatal shooting that took place during what is believed to be a domestic disturbance.

At about 1:40 a.m. Jan. 1, Santa Rosa County sheriff’s deputies responded to a reported shooting at the 3900 block of Deerwood Circle in Pace. Upon arrival, deputies located a male victim and performed medical aid until EMS arrived on scene.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Dec. 15 signed Senate Bill 6A, establishing the Toll Relief Program through the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), which will provide account credits to frequent commuters using toll roads across the state. The program will give Floridians with 35 or more toll transactions per month a 50% credit to their account.
The legislation, originally proposed by DeSantis in September of this year, was successfully passed during the recent Legislative Special Session. The Toll Relief Program begins on Jan. 1, 2023, and runs through Dec. 31, 2023.

Beginning Monday, Jan. 9, the Santa Rosa County Commission will limit public forum to an hour before each meeting.
“We felt like this was a reasonable compromise,” Chairman Colten Wright said at the commission’s regular meeting Dec. 8. “Once again, there was never any effort to squash anyone’s First Amendment rights or anything like that.”

The Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office recently received recognition as one of Florida’s best law enforcement agencies.
The Sheriff’s Office received the Excelsior Award from the Commission for Florida Law Enforcement Accreditation and the Florida Corrections Accreditation Commission.

With legislators already beginning to plan the 2023 legislative session, county and regional boards are looking to get cohesive plans together to ask for appropriations.

The District One Medical Examiner’s Services (DOMES) is one of those boards.

With the Christmas season behind us, Santa Rosa County Public Works is offering an environmentally friendly way to put those live trees behind us as well as. According to Santa Rosa County Public Works, residents who would like to “treecycle” their tree for mulch may drop off their clean Christmas trees to one of five designated areas in the county by Jan. 15.

These areas are Jay Transfer Station on Transfer Station Road in Jay, Central Landfill at the Household Hazardous Waste facility at 6337 Da Lisa Road in Milton, Pace Fire Rescue District at 4773 Pace Patriot Blvd. in Pace, Navarre Beach Boat Ramp Parking Lot Recycle Area on Gulf Blvd. on Navarre Beach, and Tiger Point Recreation Area in Gulf Breeze.