County to fund lights until 2008
BY PAM BRANNON Gulf Breeze News news@gulfbreezenews.com

Franklin Hayes/Gulf Breeze News Field lighting at Tiger Point Park, pictured above, may be funded by the county until 2008.

The county's youth sports associations will not have to start paying their own light bills at their recreation parks until Jan. 1, 2008. The Santa Rosa County Commission amended their budget last week to continue paying for the utilities at all the recreation parks through the end of the year.

County Commissioner John Broxson of Gulf Breeze raised the issue first at the commissions' committee meeting, then again at the county's final public budget hearing.

"I checked with the staff and with our administrator Mr. Walker and this can be done. We have enough money. We can amend the budget through the end of this year and pay these bills for the parks until January. That will give these sports associations enough time to regroup," Broxson said.

The county commissioners made a cutback in the budget which turns the payment of utilities for the sports parks over to the youth sports associations starting with the new fiscal year beginning this week. Broxson said he thought that was too quick for the groups to have to suddenly pick up all those costs, and they should have more notice.

Broxson had two other requests. First, he wanted to make sure the sports associations were not getting billed for lighting that did not concern the recreation parks, like jogging trails that bordered some parks.

"We just want them to take care of the lighting of their own facilities, and not get stuck paying for peripheral lights and additional costs that have nothing to do with their activities," he said.

He also wanted to ask that Gulf Power make a visit to each of the parks and do an audit to make sure the parks are making the most efficient use of their lighting.

"Gulf Power has ways to help those associations do that and save money," Broxson said.