What were Pensacola’s top stories this week? Take a look

Here's a roundup of our top stories from the past week that are available only to our subscribers.

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Pace, Milton sewer agreement could pave way for 320 new Milton homes

An agreement could soon be in place that would allow the city of Milton to divert 80,000 gallons of sewage away from its overburdened wastewater treatment plant to be processed by the Pace Water System.

City Council members voted at their Executive Committee Meeting earlier this week to discuss signing an interlocal agreement that City Manager Randy Jorgenson told them could prove both beneficial and lucrative.

At present the city of Milton's aging wastewater treatment plant is treating 1.93 million gallons of sewage per day and plant operators have made commitments to developers and Santa Rosa County to take on another 530,875 gallons, Council Member Casey Powell, chairman of the city's Public Works Committee, told fellow board members. When the projects come on line the city plant will be left with just 38,685 gallons per day away from capacity.

Ongoing plant capacity problems forced the city more than a year ago to stop taking any more customers from outside the city, and in just the last two months it has missed out on over $1 million in system expansion dollars and fees by having to turn away both developers and a commercial entity, Powell reported.

Full story: Pace, Milton sewer agreement could pave way for 320 new homes, $1.4M in impact fees

New Greek bakery opens in the heart of downtown Milton

Downtown Milton is getting a taste of Greek life through a dazzling new blue-toned café, The Sweet Greek, now open at 5237 Willing St.

The Sweet Greek will offer coffee and espresso beverages, traditional Greek desserts like the Koulourakia, a butter twist cookie, and other favorites. Nearly everything in the shop is made in-house. However, the shop does bring in Southern Craft Creamery ice cream for fresh farm-to-table flavors like raspberry basil and satsuma jam.

Days and hours of availability will change with time, but the eatery is currently open weekends from 3-8 p.m. on Friday, and noon to 8 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

For now, Sweet Greek owner Melissa Glyptis Simpson is keeping her menu short and sweet with just desserts but could potentially add savory items later on. One thing she is not short of is family recipes; many of which she has preserved in her grandmother’s handwriting. Even if someone were to obtain the secret recipes she treasures, Glyptis Simpson is convinced the finished product still wouldn't taste the same. The passed down details are what make her recipes shine.

Full story: Baklava is just the beginning for Milton's newest, and only, Greek bakery

Problems with parking downtown? You're not alone. Pensacola looking to make improvements.

Last month, Pensacola senior city officials gathered at Cokesbury United Methodist Church for a town hall on the north side of the city, and one of the top complaints raised by northside residents was parking downtown.

"I've probably called every one of you about parking, complaining because it's not easy to park downtown," city resident Vivian Krummel said at the March 7 town hall hosted by Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves and Councilman Charles Bare.

Full story: Problems with parking downtown? You're not alone. Pensacola looking to make improvements.

Reeves told the News Journal that since he's become mayor, there hasn't been a week when he hasn't received at least a few emails from someone upset over the parking situation downtown.

Reeves said those complaints aren't about the price of parking, even in the higher-priced private lots, but about the experience of parking downtown.

Winter All-Area players and teams

The Pensacola News Journal released its 2023 PNJ Winter All-Area players and teams this week. Here are the awardees:

Boys Basketball: Which Boys Basketball players and coaches were honored?

Girls Basketball: Which Girls Basketball players and coaches were honored?

Boys Soccer: Which Boys Soccer players and coaches were honored?

Girls Soccer Who were the best in Girls Soccer?

Wrestling and Girls Weightlifting Who were the best in Wrestling and Girls Weightlifting?

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Pensacola news this week: Here's a recap of the top stories