As a lifetime conservative, Vicki understands the need for fiscal responsibility and accountability within the ECUA Board. The current ECUA Board has taken tremendous steps towards the efficiency of services in Escambia County during Vicki’s first six years on the board. Upon re-election, as your ECUA District 1 Board member, Vicki plans to serve as your advocate and work to ensure continued transparency within the Board, fair and consistent pricing structures, and quality of services to the people of Escambia County, Florida. Let’s keep this forward progress and make Escambia County a GREAT place to live, work, and raise a family.
Live Green
Another priority is educating ECUA customers. Vicki is a strong advocate for ECUA’s “Live Green” website, where constituents learn why they should never pour milk down their drains; why there is no such thing as a flushable wipe; and where to take their used cooking oil after all those summer fish fries or fall and winter deep-fried turkeys. Vicki has pushed for ECUA staff to work more closely with the Northwest Florida Homebuilders Association and the Pensacola Association of Realtors, in order to get ECUA new-home packages to all homebuyers.
Rate Hikes
In the four years preceding Vicki’s election the water rate hikes were 4.00, 5.95, 8.00 and 7.00 respectively but since Vicki’s election to the board the water rate increases have remained close to or below CPI. Vicki believes that no rate hike should be implemented without proper transparency to the people of Escambia County explaining the necessity and value of the increase. Vicki believes it is important to provide excellent services at a cost our citizens can afford. Once re-elected as your ECUA Board member, Vicki will continue to fight to keep the quality of services high and against unnecessary rate hikes.
Compost
Vicki and fellow board members approved this environmental program in December 2014. The composting process combines ground yard waste (leaves, grass, pine straw, etc.) collected throughout the community, including the City of Pensacola, with biosolids to create an optimal blend of materials that generate a nutrient-rich final product, bloom – the most in bio-compost. We literally sell it as fast as we can make it. Both Composting and Recycle were added for cost avoidance to the rate payers. Everything we don’t have to bury in a landfill saves $45 per ton in tipping fees to the rate payers.
Transfer Station
Vicki is working with fellow board members and the Board of County Commissioners now on this solution to alleviate traffic on major highways and add additional sanitation routes in Beulah one of the fastest growing communities in the County.
Recycling
The most important thing Vicki has done in her first three years is push for a Material Recycle & Waste to Energy Facility. To Vicki, recycling is a no brainer. Others—including some of Escambia County’s Leaders, had less enlightened views.
But she pushed—and pushed hard. And we are proud to say that the ECUA, with support of the Board of County Commissioners, opened a Regional Material Recycle Facility in 2016. Not only is Escambia County now a leader in the region, but we should meet the State of Florida’s 75% recycling goal ahead of schedule. The Recycle Center may end up becoming a source of revenue for Escambia County.
Water Quality
Recent studies have shown that the water quality in Escambia County is at safe levels. It is of dire importance that the ECUA work to promote the water quality within Escambia County. Families, businesses and current residents alike need to feel safe and secure in the water they are consuming. Water quality is an important business tool in attracting young families and potential new business to Escambia County. Vicki will fight to maintain our water quality at the highest level and fight to keep upgrading PR strategies and work to share with Escambia County citizens and the state of Florida that our water is of the highest quality.
Policies and Security
Indeed, as a life-long proponent of “easy to understand government” Vicki will fight for sensible, easy to understand standards for those entrepreneurs developing new communities, as well as easy to manage technology so that ECUA customers can maintain their systems and pay their bills on line. And in these sometimes dangerous days of violent extremism, she will push for better cyber and plant security to keep our most precious natural resource—Clean Water—Safe.