I-75 that ribbon of concrete that runs from Canada to Miami right through the heart of north central Florida....
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About Me
- Ric
- Florida, United States
- Bred, raised, educated and life long Floridian, and proud of it. E-mail at one(dot)legged(dot)old(dot)fat(dot)man(at)gmail(dot)com
Showing posts with label FYI. Show all posts
Showing posts with label FYI. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 08, 2011
The Alachua County Sheriff’s Office has seen an increased number of reported incidents involving subjects going door-to-door in neighborhoods soliciting magazine sales. This is occurring countywide, but most reported incidents are occurring on the western half of the county. At this point in time we do not have any evidence that the groups are connected to any criminal activity.
We urge residents to be cautious and report any suspicious activity.
- Use a peephole to identify who is at your door.
- Be cautious of unknown people at your door soliciting for anything.
- Ask for identification from the individual as well as the company they represent.
- Never give out personal information without knowing who you are dealing with.
- Never allow a stranger into your home.
If you suspect these groups may be operating in your neighborhood, contact the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office at (352)-955-1818 or 911. Try to provide the operator with physical descriptions of the suspect, the direction of travel from your location and the mode of travel.
For information on the Neighborhood Watch program, please call the Crime Prevention line at (352)-374-1800. Together we can try to prevent crime from happening in your neighborhood.
Three Rivers Legal Services, a federally funded non-profit corporation (located in Gainesville, Lake City, and Jacksonville) offering free legal services to qualifying clients, has a Low Income Taxpayer Clinic (partially funded by the Internal Revenue Service) for the sole purpose of providing FREE tax-related legal services to low-income eligible clients in Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Clay, Duval, Nassau, and St. Johns counties.
They handle state and federal tax controversies involving the IRS, represent clients in audits and appeals, and provide representation before the US Tax Court. They also provide educational services to clients with an emphasis on communities and individuals that speak English as a second language.
To see if you qualify and/or to make an appointment, please call the Gainesville office at 352-372-0519 or the Jacksonville office at 904-394-7450.
Also, don't miss out on the tax services being provided throughout Alachua County by AARP & VITA. Find out if they will be at your library by visiting the Library District's events calendar, www.aclib.us/events
International travelers are advised to contact their medical providers and foreign travel clinics for information related to communicable disease threats in foreign countries.
“Increased travel during the upcoming spring break periods provides an opportunity to review immunization status and identify region specific health threats.” stated Paul Myers, Assistant Director of the Alachua County Health Department. “Minimizing adverse health impacts associated with international travel can be achieved through a medical consultation”.
Approximately 8-10% of travelers become sick enough to seek health care, either while overseas or after returning home. Within the last few months, outbreaks of measles have occurred in Canada, Spain, France, U.K., and areas of Africa and Asia.
Carrying documentation of vaccines can prevent students and others from receiving an unneeded vaccine in an unwanted situation, or having to pay for it there. Even for close popular student destinations, such as the Caribbean and Mexico, travelers should have timely education and information about preventing diseases and accidents and have their immunizations reviewed and up dated.
Travelers are encouraged to contact their medical provider or the Alachua County Health Department’s Foreign Travel Clinic 4 to 6 weeks in advance of their trip at 352-334-8849.
Staff writer Gainesville Sun
Looking to spur economic development and urban renewal almost eight years after the adoption of Plan East Gainesville, county officials are contemplating the establishment of a community redevelopment area for a swath of unincorporated land east of the city limits.
If eventually approved by county commissioners, it would be the first CRA in unincorporated Alachua County.
The current boundaries of the proposed CRA study area are directly east of Gainesville and the city's Eastside CRA. Generally, the area under consideration stretches from the city limits east to Southeast 51st Street. Its northern border is University Avenue, and the southern edge is Hawthorne Road.
State law allows a local government to establish a CRA for a geographic area that local officials determine to meet the state's definition of "blight." Some criteria include high poverty rates and low or stagnant property values. In a CRA, a local government invests money in infrastructure improvements, aesthetic upgrades and sometimes provides incentives to developers through a mechanism known as tax increment financing.
Under a TIF, property values within the CRA boundaries would be set at the year the district is established. After that, tax revenues from increases in property values would go back into the CRA boundaries to fund various projects instead of into the local government's general fund. A CRA typically has a lifetime of 20 to 30 years.
Ken Zeichner, principal planner with the Alachua County Growth Management, said the end goal is to "create a good climate to encourage private investment."
On Thursday, county staff held the first informational meeting on the proposed CRA. A small group of residents gathered at Eastside High School, which is within the study area's boundaries, and identified some upgrades they would like to see in the area. Those included central water and sewer, sidewalk and bike path construction and a farmers' market, said Michael Castine, the county planner overseeing the CRA process.
Currently, there are four CRA districts in the city of Gainesville and one each in Hawthorne and High Springs. Gainesville's Eastside CRA, which is directly west of the area under consideration by the county, was established in 2001 and expanded in 2006. In recent years, projects there have included a $316,000 landscaping and streetscaping project in the triangular area bounded by East University Avenue, Southeast 15th Street and Southeast Hawthorne Road. A restaurant specializing in classic Southern dishes is expected to open along the 1700 block of Hawthorne Road in a building in which the CRA invested $330,734 to remodel. Area businesses are also eligible to receive grants for facade improvements.
With the budget crunch facing governments, there was some focus in budget deliberations on the effect the various community redevelopment areas have on the county's general fund. According to county numbers, more than $3.9 million in tax revenues that otherwise would go into the county's general fund went into Gainesville's four CRA areas. The counter-argument is that revenue would not be generated if not for the redevelopment efforts within the CRA.
Tax revenues for the school district, the water management district and the municipal services taxing units funding the Sheriff's Office, the fire department and general services in the unincorporated county would not be affected by tax increment financing should the county form a CRA, Castine said.
If you go
What: Community workshop on possible community redevelopment area in unincorporated east Gainesville
When: 5:30 pm February 17
Where: Compassionate Outreach Ministries, 320 S.E. 43rd St.
Staff writer Gainesville Sun
The county fairgrounds hummed with activity this weekend as knights jousted and crowds gathered during the annual Hoggetowne Medieval Faire.
Despite the activity outdoors, county officials say -- and have said since 2000 -- the site's buildings have long outlived their usefulness as venues for fairs and other events. Malfunctioning, antiquated lights and the lack of an air-conditioning system are two of the maladies at the exhibition hall. Over at the pole barn, the roof leaks "like a sieve," says Robert Avery, the county's superintendent for Recreation & Parks.
The county's proposed solution is ambitious and expensive -- development of a new fairgrounds and redevelopment of the current fairgrounds site adjacent to Gainesville Regional Airport into a business park.
That two-pronged approach has been in place since 2003, when Gainesville and county officials adopted the Plan East Gainesville vision for economic development. But planning it and paying for it are different matters. The projected cost for the first phase of the fairgrounds exceeds $22 million. With identified resources to meet approximately half that, county officials might gauge private interest in funding a portion of construction.
Tuesday, the County Commission is scheduled to vote on whether to seek letters of interest from firms that would forge a public-private partnership to develop the new fairgrounds and redevelop the current site.
Assistant County Manager Rick Drummond said one option to lure the private sector was the granting of rights to redevelop the current fairgrounds into a business park through a long-term, low-cost lease.
"We want private interests to develop that," Drummond said. "The county is not going to develop that into a commerce center."
The current fairgrounds property lies within the city of Gainesville's Eastside Community Redevelopment Area and a designated state Enterprise Zone, both of which offer a developer the possibility of tax incentives.
If commissioners move forward and the private sector responds, Drummond said the next step would be a more-detailed request for proposals.
To date, the county has invested at least $2.14 million in the new fairgrounds property, located off Waldo Road near the Leveda Brown Environmental Park & Transfer Station. The approximately 150-acre property was purchased for $2 million during the 2006-7 fiscal year. Another $89,000 was invested in a master plan for future facilities, and $49,500 has been spent on a business plan.
The first phase would include a 45,000-square- foot exhibition hall, a 50,000-square-foot livestock/equestrian arena, the road network, the midway, an events lawn, parking area and site work.
The new fairgrounds is one of the projects approved for funding through the 2-cent increase in the tourism development tax county commissioners passed last year. Its financing is expected to receive about $10 million from that tax, which is added to the bill for stays at hotels, motels and short-term rental properties. Drummond said approximately $1.4 million also has been set aside from the general fund.
The county's vision is a venue to host not only local fairs and livestock shows but equestrian events, concerts, trade shows and perhaps even the occasional monster truck show.
Alachua County Visitors and Convention Bureau Director Roland Loog said the venue could attract boat shows, R.V. shows and the like. He said currently organizers of such events have "stopped calling Gainesville because they knew we didn't have anything for them."
The rural and agricultural community expressed mixed feelings about the new fairgrounds plan.
"Our old fairgrounds definitely needs some revamping," said County Extension Director Cynthia Sanders, who has been involved in the youth livestock fair since about 1980. "You look around the state at some other county fairgrounds, and Alachua County's doesn't rank with them."
Still, Smith added that the reality is that the county does not have the funding to develop the new fairgrounds.
Beyond the money issue, Ward Scott, chairman of the county's Rural Concerns Advisory Committee, was worried agricultural-based local traditions such as the county fair and the youth livestock fair would get lost in the mix as the county looks for a facility that draws larger events.
"From our point-of-view we want to make sure it maintains its rural identity," Scott said.
Right now, the future of the county fair is unknown. After a 40-year run, it was canceled last year because the nonprofit fair association had not paid some vendors and exhibitors from the prior year.
Drummond said the county's plans will accommodate the long-running local fairs. The old fairgrounds cannot be closed down until the new fairgrounds is up and running.
The county's full vision for the new fairgrounds is a three-phase development that could exceed $50 million and eventually include an arena.
Contact Christopher Curry at 374-5088 or chris.curry@gvillesun.com.
Friday, February 04, 2011
Drivers in Gainesville apparently won't be able to get away with running red lights for much longer, but being caught walking the street with an open beer might soon become a little less burdensome.
The City Commission on Thursday voted to install cameras at intersections that will photograph motorists running red lights. Commissioners also voted to give police the option of issuing a civil citation for an open container instead of making an arrest.
A second and final vote on both issues will be held at the commission's meeting on Feb. 17, but if Thursday's votes were any indication, they should pass easily.
The commission voted 6-0 to implement red-light cameras.
It wasn't the body's first vote on the matter.
In 2009, the commission passed an ordinance allowing the use of the cameras but, on the advice of the city attorney, waited until a state law was signed before moving forward.
Then-Gov. Charlie Crist signed such a law last year, paving the way for the city to take up the matter again.
Assistant City Attorney Thomas Arden said Thursday the fine for running a red light will be $158, with $75 going back to the city.
Arden pointed to a study released this week by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety that determined red-light cameras in 14 cities have reduced traffic fatalities by 14 percent.
While the city has already started taking bids from contractors, Commissioner Thomas Hawkins said he does not want a vendor that would benefit from issuing as many tickets as possible.
"I want that decision to always be made based on public safety," Hawkins said.
The commission voted 5-1 to create a $200 civil citation option for police when they catch someone with an open container. Arden said police could still make an arrest, depending on the circumstances. That's why Scherwin Henry voted against it.
"I just don't see where an open container is worth ruining a person's life," said Henry, pushing for a full transition to civil citations for the offense.
Monday, January 31, 2011
By Andrew Pantazi North Florida Herald
NEWBERRY -- Want to shoot airsoft guns, BB guns or even real guns in the city limits of Newberry?
You can't. Not legally, at least.
Recent agricultural annexations in the city of Newberry revealed that under current law, the city bans all gun use in the city, except when used for defense.
So the city is now working on amending the city laws regarding weapons. The first attempted amendment was shown Monday night by city attorney Scott Walker.
No vote was taken on the amendment. Commissioners offered advice at the meeting on how Walker could reword the amendment.
The amendment states that as long as someone is a half-mile away from residential, commercial or industrial property, then he or she can shoot a gun.
Some of the problems with that were identified by gun-owning Commissioners Bill Conrad and Joe Hoffman.
A half-mile, Conrad said, is excessive. It should be reduced to an eighth of a mile or no distance at all, as long as the shooter is on agricultural property.
Hoffman countered that there might need to be some distance or some exception made, since a rifle can shoot an eighth of a mile. But, he didn't want to eliminate recreational shooting.
"Any man with a rifle, I would hope, is governed by his common sense," he said.
Maybe, Conrad also added, exceptions for hunting clubs can be added to clarify the law.
Commissioner Alena Lawson added her own recommendation that the City Commission should be more willing to err on the side of caution.
After Walker makes the proposed changes to the amendment, it will brought back before the elected officials.
It's a simple question: What is the best park in Alachua County? Getting one answer, however, is anything but easy.
Alachua County has dozens of spots set aside for recreation and conservation, but each has something that makes it unique in the minds and hearts of area residents.
Whether playground or pool, skate park or sinkhole, this area's parks and preserves offer something for everyone just about year-round
The Sun asked its readers what parks in Alachua County stand out to them and why, and below is a round-up of what they had to say. Use this guide — as well as a new map and searchable database of all city, county and state-owned parks on Gainesville.com — to plan your next family outing.
Best playground: Northeast Park
Off Northeast 16th Avenue, tucked behind the baseball fields and tennis courts, past the fenced-in dog park and open walking trails is a huge playground just waiting for kids of all ages to climb and jump and swing.
Northeast Park is a quiet place to play. It's tucked back from a main road and shaded by tall trees that offer a reprieve from Gainesville's hot summers.
Kathy Stewart, founder of the free website Fun4GatorKids.com, usually takes her kids to parks in the southwest part of town where the family lives, but when she's looking for an adventure for Becca, 8, and Ryan, 5, she takes them to the playground at Northeast.
"We love that one," Stewart said. "There are features for little, little kids, but the big kids like all the monkey bars and merry-go-round."
Location: 400 NE 16th Ave., Gainesville
Hours: Seven days a week, sunrise to sunset
Walking/jogging trails: Yes
Playground: Yes
Picnic tables: Yes
Dogs allowed: Yes
Restrooms: Yes
Cost: Free
Honorable mentions: Green Tree and the nearby Kiwanis Challenge Playground in Gainesville; Hampstead Park in Haile Plantation; Carl's Corner Spin Playground in Brytan
Best dog park: Squirrell Ridge
Squirrel Ridge Park has one thing that most dogs crave: lots and lots of room to run.
The two fenced-in, off-leash dog parks — one for big dogs, one for small dogs — nestled behind a large open field and small playground is a favorite of man's four-legged friends.
“I like how they can socialize,” said Santa Fe College student Lauren Montgomery of her two dogs, Rosie, a border collie mix, and Ruby, a bassett hound. “Everyone's dogs really play together and are so good together.”
Montgomery brings her dogs to the park, which is free, a couple times a week to get exercise and play with other pooches.
“I can let them off the leash, and they just run around,” she said. “They love it.”
Location: 1603 SW Williston Road, Gainesville
Hours: Seven days a week, sunrise to sunset
Walking/jogging trails: No
Playground: Yes
Picnic tables: Yes
Dogs allowed: Yes
Restrooms: No
Cost: Free
Honorable mentions: Forest Ridge in Gainesville
Most unique to Gainesville: Devil's Millhopper
When visiting Devil's Millhopper, the geological wonder in northwest Gainesville, there's one number to know: 232.
That's how many steps one must climb down — and then back up — to view this one-of-a-kind state park hidden amidst the sandy terrain and pine forest of North Central Florida.
The limestone sinkhole measures 120-feet deep and leads down into a lush, shaded landscape that has a soundtrack of singing birds and trickling water. A half-mile nature trail surrounds the top of the sinkhole.
Park rangers lead guided walks through the park at 10 am each Saturday.
Location: 4732 Millhopper Road, Gainesville
Hours: 9 am-5 pm Wednesday through Sunday; closed Monday and Tuesday
Walking/jogging trails: Yes
Playground: No
Picnic tables: Yes
Dogs allowed: Yes, on a leash
Restrooms: Yes
Cost: $4 per vehicle; $2 for pedestrians and bicyclists
Honorable mentions: Kanapaha Botanical Gardens in Gainesville; Dudley Farm Historic State Park in Newberry
Best place to see real Florida: Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park
Naturalist and artist William Bartram first described the natural wonders of what he called the “great Alachua Savannah” in 1774, and much of what he saw then is still there today.
The 21,000-acre park is home to alligators, bison, wild horses and hundreds of species of birds. Visitors have the chance to see the wildlife in its natural habitat along hiking and equestrian trails, bike paths, picnic areas and on the water by canoe or kayak.
If you've never been, start your day at the air-conditioned Visitor Center, which is open from 9 am to 4 pm daily. If you've got a weekend, spend the night under the stars at one of the park's campsites, and don't miss the 50-foot-high observation tower.
Location: 100 Savannah Blvd., Micanopy
Hours: 8 am-sundown, seven days a week
Walking/jogging trails: Yes
Playground: No
Picnic tables: Yes
Dogs allowed: Yes, with the exception of some of the trails
Restrooms: Yes
Cost: $4-$6 per vehicle; $2 for pedestrians and bicyclists; camping starts at $18.
Honorable mentions: Morningside Nature Center
Best place to bike: San Felasco Hammock Preserve State Park
With more than 30 miles of cross-country trails, San Felasco Hammock State Park is a mountain-biker's dream. More than 15 trails of varying distances are interconnected and take riders of all levels up steep climbs, over hills and open fields and across wooded hammocks.
Randy Brown, park manager at San Felasco, said the park is different from the county's rail-trails in that its biking trails don't go through any towns. Instead, outdoor adventurers travel through 18 natural communities found within the state preserve.
“You're seeing the real Florida,” he said. “You won't see Mickey Mouse anywhere on our trails.”
The almost 20 miles of trails range from the 1-mile Cotton Tail Trail for beginners to the more challenging Conquistador Trail, which has steep up and down turns.
“It's not for the faint of heart, for sure,” Brown said.
Location: Bike and equestrian trailhead is at 13201 Progress Blvd., Alachua; hiking trailhead is at 11101 Millhopper Road, Gainesville.
Hours: 8 am-sundown, seven days a week
Walking/jogging trails: Yes
Playground: No
Picnic tables: Yes
Dogs allowed: Yes, on a hand-held leash on the hiking trails only
Restrooms: Yes
Cost: $4 per vehicle; $2 for pedestrians and bicyclists
Honorable mentions: Gainesville-Hawthorne Trail
Best place for kids to splash: Hal Brady Recreation Complex
For families looking for a cheap way to beat the heat each summer, it doesn't get much better than the free splash pad at the Hal Brady Recreation Complex near downtown Alachua.
Water shoots from the ground, falls from buckets and sprays out of brightly colored fountains, making for hours of wet fun in the sun for young children.
And parents concerned about safety need not worry: The play area — and nearby shaded picnic tables — are surrounded by a high chain-link fence with a childproof gate.
Location: 14300 NW 146th Terrace, Alachua
Hours: Splash pad opens around the first of March, depending on weather; 9 am-6 pm daily
Walking/jogging trails: No
Playground: Yes
Picnic tables: Yes
Dogs allowed: No
Restrooms: Yes
Cost: Free
Honorable mentions: H. Spurgeon Cherry Pool and splash pad at Westside Park in Gainesville; Poe Springs in High Springs
Best park to skateboard: Possum Creek
The concrete ramps, pipes and rails at the skate park at Possum Creek Park are a stark contrast to the open fields and tree-lined nature walks that surround the 18,000-square-foot haven for skateboarders and bikers.
The popular park reopened last year — it first opened in the 1990s — with a large playground, two dog parks, a boardwalk and jogging trail, but the skate park is its biggest draw. Skateboarders of all ages ride across the banks and around curves, while people who have come to enjoy the parks many other activities look on.
Location: 4009 NW 53rd Ave., Gainesville
Hours: Seven days a week, sunrise to sunset
Walking/jogging trails: Yes
Playground: Yes
Picnic tables: Yes
Dogs allowed: Yes
Restrooms: Yes
Cost: Free
Best park for a birthday party: Westside Park
Visit Westside Park on any given Saturday, and you'll most likely find the covered picnic areas decorated with balloons and streamers. Children will be running back and forth from the playground to the tables, where they'll sing “Happy Birthday” to a good friend.
A popular birthday destination, the park also features a running trail, baseball fields, basketball and tennis courts and a skate park, not to mention a community center and pool.
Karen Pruss, an executive assistant at the Gainesville Chamber of Commerce, and her husband Bill got married at the park 27 years ago.
“We went over on our lunch hour and got married — we eloped at the park,” she said.
A year later, the family celebrated their son Taylor's first birthday at Westside. The family has had endless picnics and barbecues at the park throughout the last two decades.
“It's a wonderful park for small kids, or adults who want to exercise or walk their dog,” Pruss said.
Location: 1001 NW 34th St., Gainesville
Hours: Seven days a week, sunrise to sunset
Walking/jogging trails: Yes
Playground: Yes
Picnic tables: Yes
Dogs allowed: Yes, on a leash
Restrooms: Yes
Cost: Free; call for admission prices and hours for the pool and tennis courts.
Honorable mentions: Kanapaha Veterans Park, Green Tree and Northside parks in Gainesville
Best kept secret: Mill Creek Preserve
The county's oldest Alachua County Forever conservation area, Mill Creek Preserve opened to the public on Earth Day 2008.
Since that time, the park has added marked trails, including the recent 0.6-mile Hammock Trail in November, which includes two foot bridges made from recycled and reused materials.
Gainesville freelance writer Mike Walker said Mill Creek's remote location makes it an ideal place to spot wildlife.
“With some of the bigger parks, the crowd, it's a blessing and a curse,” he said. “And for anyone's who's serious about photographing wildlife, I've never run into another person when I've been at Mill Creek.”
Location: Corner of County Road 241 and 236, north of Alachua
Hours: Seven days a week, sunrise to sunset
Walking/jogging trails: Yes
Playground: No
Picnic tables: No
Dogs allowed: Yes, on a leash
Restrooms: No
Cost: Free
Honorable mentions: Cellon Live Oak in LaCrosse
More Information:
Parks database
Search a database for parks in Alachua County. Check by zip code, park name or activities and features offered at each location. Detailed information about each park also is available.
http://www.gainesville.com/article/20110130/ARTICLES/110129497?p=all&tc=pgall
Search a database for parks in Alachua County. Check by zip code, park name or activities and features offered at each location. Detailed information about each park also is available.
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