Soft drink. Pop. Coke. Soda. No matter what you call it, these drinks are insanely popular. Coca-Cola, for example, rakes in revenues north of $37 billion a year.

Despite some neighbors’ concerns, vacant land south of the new Publix on Dogwood Drive is a step closer to becoming a commercial complex.

Beginning this Mon., Mar. 14 the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office K-9 Unit will be hosting the USPCA Region 1 Field Trials here in Santa Rosa County. The Trials are a week-long event which is a certification and a competition. Activities start Monday, 8:00 am at Gulf Breeze High School. Monday will consist of obedience and agility. Tues., 8:00 am at Gulf Breeze High School, there will be suspect area searches. Wednesday will be apprehension work. On Thursday morning, the apprehension work will continue until completed. All events are open to the public.

The cold weather shelter for the homeless and/or heatless will open nights Fri., Mar. 11 through Sun., Mar. 13 at Ferris Hill Baptist Church, 6848 Chaffin St. in Milton. Those who would like to stay at the shelter must arrive between 6:30 and 8:30 p.m. Only service animals (with verification of rabies vaccination) are permitted to stay with guests. No one will be admitted after 8:30 p.m. unless brought in by law enforcement. The shelter closes at 7 a.m. each morning.

The Florida Supervisors of Elections (FSE) will offer four $1,200 scholarships for 2022 to college students, according to Santa Rosa County Supervisor of Elections Tappie A. Villane.

Milton officials speak out on new facility

After hearing too many statements they say are inaccurate about the location of Milton’s new water reclamation facility, Milton city officials are speaking up.

BISSELL Pet Foundation is hosting a statewide emergency relief “Empty the Shelters” adoption event from Feb. 24-28, 2022. This event is a collaborative effort to support Florida shelters by finding loving homes for pets and providing relief to shelters assisting Santa Rosa County Animal Services after an intake of more than 70 dogs from a large-scale neglect case.

BISSELL Pet Foundation will sponsor reduced adoption fees for $25 or less for cats and dogs. This emergency event will be hosted in more than 12 shelters throughout Florida. The Panhandle Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) Shelter is also participating.

Santa Rosa County Animal Services (SRCAS) continues to have an urgent need for the community to adopt or foster dogs as the shelter remains at critical capacity. The shelter is in the process of performing intake on more than 70 additional dogs from a special case involving a community member in Santa Rosa County who became overwhelmed.

This was part of Governor Ron DeSantis’ announcement of grants totaling over $404 million for 113 environmental resilience projects across the state of Florida.

The goal of the TDO’s local event marketing grant program and sponsorships is to increase out-of-market awareness of the county’s tourism brand “Navarre Beach, Florida’s Most Relaxing Place” as a tourist destination and to drive lodging room occupancy by funding the marketing and promotional efforts of the county’s tourism events.