Land deal delayed

PENSACOLA, Fla. – County leaders say a land swap involving Escambia County and the Navy will likely be delayed another two years because of issues with the grass on the land being prepared for the Navy. The Navy requires two years of ground covering growth before it can use it as an outlying field. The county bought the grass seed but the grading wasn’t ready in time, officials said. The county wants to use land in Beulah, the current site of the Navy’s Outlying Field 8, as a commercial park. The Navy agreed to swap the land for a 650-acre site, currently called Outlying Field X, in neighboring Santa Rosa County that is now owned by Escambia County. The county hopes to build on the success of Navy Federal’s large campus in Beulah. (Source: Pensacola News Journal, 09/13/17)