SCHOOL

‘You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown’ musical

Choctawhatchee High School’s Theatre students have been hard at work as they prepare to perform their upcoming musical, You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown, this week. 

• The musical is running from April 14-16 at the Choctaw High auditorium.  
• Show starts at 7pm and tickets are $10 general admission.  
• Tickets are on sale now through gofan.co

Choctaw Theatre Director, Karen Monroe, has been the head of the program for the past 6 years.

“We offer classes that range from technical theater to improvisational theater,” said Monroe. “We go to competitions throughout the year and we also have 4 productions that we are putting on this year.”

For Monroe, the theatre program means the world to her, not only because of how far it has come in the last 6 years, but because of the valuable life skills that her students learn.

“They can learn communications, collaboration, empathy, listening skills and presentation skills,” she said. “These are very helpful things that will help them not only in their other classes in high school or college, but in their career and beyond. I am very blessed to have this opportunity to direct this program and help these students reach their full potential.”

You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown is a 1967 musical comedy that is based on the characters created by cartoonist Charles M. Schulz in his comic strip Peanuts.

THE INTERNET

Cox Cable could move into the City of Valparaiso

During Monday night’s city commission meeting, Valparaiso Commissioner Kay Hamilton announced that Cox Cable is expected to move into the area and offer their services.

Hamilton says that representatives from Cox met with her in a purely “informational” meeting only. She says the courtesy meeting was to inform the city that Cox Cable was interested in expanding their territory in an effort to increase efficiency and reliability. 

Mayor Brent Smith stated that, in the past, Cox was not interested in moving into Valparaiso. Commissioner Hamilton implied that the renewed interest could be because the city is “doing so well.”

• Hamilton stated that one difference between Cox would be their requirement of an annual contract for the citizens who decide to choose them over other providers. 

As for when Cox services could be available in Valparaiso, it is estimated to be “sometime next year.”

Why does this matter? Valparaiso Broadband Communication Systems is an Internet Service Provider, owned by the City of Val-p. They have been providing cable TV and alarms systems since 1978, and high-speed internet since 2000.

• Basic – 10Mbs / 1.5 Mbs – $35.25 
• Plus – 15 Mbs / 2 Mbs – $39.25 
• Premier – 20 Mbs / 2.5 Mbs – $49.25 
• Premier Plus – 30 Mbs / 3 Mbs – $54.25
• Premier Max – 50 Mbs / 5 Mb – $64.25
• Premier Ultimate – 100 Mbs / 10 Mbs – $84.25

BACK TO CHOCTAW

Choctaw announces Tony Denaro as new Band Director for the Style Marchers

On Tuesday morning, Choctawhatchee High School announced that Tony Denaro will be the new Director of Bands for Style Marchers.

• In January, Brad Parks announced that this would be his final school year as the band director.

Denaro hails from Ohio and is currently at Pace High School, where he has been the Director of Bands for the past 10 years.

“I’ve always respected the band program at Choctaw,” said Denaro. “When I first started at Pace, Choctaw was the school that everyone wanted to be like. It’s always been on my radar as a model example of a really solid music program.”

Denaro says that even today there are a lot of parallels between his program at Pace and what Brad Parks has accomplished at Choctaw.

“Some of the things that were really appealing to me in Okaloosa County was just the whole support system that they have established over there,” he said. “The support of some amazing colleagues, some of which are the best in the State of Florida, and the support of an outstanding Administration and Principal at Choctaw. And then a community that really gets behind the programs and supports performing arts in general.”

And while Denaro won’t immediately take over the position, he is eager to get started both in terms of his new program, as well as with the feeder programs at the middle schools. 

“When you have solid middle school programs, that’s the lifeblood of the high school programs,” he said. “That’s exactly what we need. I’m excited to get over there and just get my hands dirty and do everything we can to make the band be as good as it can be.”

When Parks and the hiring committee were thinking of who would be the right (and best) person to move into the role at Choctaw, Denaro’s name immediately came up.

“He’s a very well-rounded and complete music educator and band director,” said Parks. “He fit the job description perfectly and I think has a great opportunity to continue to build upon what’s going on at Choctaw, as well as enhance it.” 

Parks says that from the day he announced he was leaving, he was on a mission to make good on a promise he made to the band families.

“I promised our band families, and our community, that we would find the best person for this job because there’s such a legacy at Choctaw that is so near and dear to every student that’s in the band program,” said Parks. “Not to mention every parent, family, alumni and the community at large. We feel very confident that Mr. Denaro is that exact person.”

Principal Michelle Heck feels the same way.

“As any high school principal in our area knows, hiring a band Director to lead, support and even grow a program is paramount,” said Heck. “After putting together a committee comprised of the most important stakeholders like our feeder middle school band directors, band booster parent members, alumni, and music colleagues from our school and district, we reviewed and sifted through applications and worked to find the best and right person for this great opportunity. 

• “I have confidence that Mr. Denaro will continue to lead our Style Marchers with a standard of excellence and success that our school and community has come to appreciate and respect. I will be here to support Mr. Denaro through this transition as we welcome him to the Choctaw Family.”

“Change is hard on so many levels,” said Denaro. “I have a high expectation for the kids but I think it’s important for people to know that they should have a high expectation for me. I fully understand that trust needs to be earned and I need to earn that from parents and students. I need to show them that I’m willing to come in and give my best every single day, and that’s exactly what I’m planning on doing.”

Stephen Mayo will continue to be the Associate Band Director and Brad Parks will remain on to help with this transition through the end of June.

ECONOMY

The state of employment and wages in Okaloosa County

During last night’s Fort Walton Beach City Council meeting, Nathan Sparks, Director of One Okaloosa EDC, gave an update on the state of employment and wages as it pertains to Okaloosa County.

Let’s start with employment:

There are 96,674 people currently employed in Okaloosa County as of today. That is 4,023 people more than were employed at this very point in time a year ago. Sparks says that there are more people working in Okaloosa County today than there were in February 2020.

“We all remember what happened in March of 2020,” he said. “Just prior to the pandemic, there were 93,429 people employed in Okaloosa county.

Okaloosa’s unemployment rate is 2.5%, which is tied for the second lowest in the state of Florida among the 67 counties.

• Okaloosa is just behind St. John’s county, which is at 2.3% unemployment.

In terms of wage information, Sparks shared some good trends there too. The average private sector wage, not including the military or other government jobs, is now at $49,622 per year or $23.86/hour.

“That is up 11% year-over-year, which is significant,” said Sparks. “Usually if we see increases, they’re more in the 2-4% range. That is now the highest average private sector wage among all Northwest Florida counties.

• Bay – $44,209
• Escambia – $48,207
• Santa Rosa – $40,481
• Walton – $44,709

COMING SOON

New 83-unit Home2 Suites by Hilton hotel coming to Niceville

The corner of Highway 85 N. (Government Ave.) and John Sims Parkway in Niceville will soon be home to a brand new Home2 Suites by Hilton hotel.

During Monday night’s Valparaiso commission meeting, Niceville’s Building Official, Carl Scott, told the commission that a new 83-unit Hilton Hotel is coming to the parcel located at 792 John Parkway.

• Scott says that he should have the site plan review complete in the coming weeks with permitting to happen shortly after. 

According to the Okaloosa Property Appraiser’s website, the parcel on the corner (along with the parcel next to it) were purchased by PCS Hotels LLC on February 26, 2021.

• The parcels combined are 2.21 acres. 

A recent Franchise Disclosure Document from Hilton outlines that the total investment necessary to begin operation of a newly constructed Home2 Suites by Hilton hotel, excluding real property, is between $13,773,621 to $20,553,246.

Per the document, the new Niceville location is listed as “signed but not yet open.”