Alachua’s Heritage Oaks Phase II Infrastructure Completed

ALACHUA ‒ At the April 11 Alachua City Commission meeting, the Commission approved return of a $4,104 surety to Duration Builders, Inc. for the construction of sidewalks at Heritage Oaks Phase II. On May 17, 2018 the City Commission accepted the Heritage Oaks Phase II water system, wastewater system, electric system, roadways, and stormwater conveyance system. The City did not accept the sidewalks, which were to be completed during the construction of homes and proposed for acceptance at a later date, which triggered the surety requirement. As the sidewalks have been completed, these funds are being returned to Duration Builders, Inc.

It’s cleanup time in Alachua as the City Commission has proclaimed Saturday, May 14 as the Great American Cleanup Day. The Great American Cleanup is the country’s largest community improvement program in more than 20,000 communities each spring. The program is designed to end littering, improve recycling and beautify the community. This year, volunteers will gather at 8:30 a.m. at City Hall to kick off the project. Each volunteer will be provided with trash bags, safety vests, gloves, maps and instructions for the cleanup. This Saturday’s beautification activities include cleaning up Main Street, planting trees on Peggy Road to strengthen the community's green infrastructure, cleaning up Criswell Park and Hipp Way and the Swick House.

Alachua’s Legacy Park Summer Program, which runs from June 21 to July 30, is actively enrolling youth from ages 5 to 15. To fund the program, the Commission approved amending the Fiscal Year 2021-22 budget for acceptance of unanticipated revenue from the Children's Trust Grant Special Revenue Fund for children’s programs. The Children’s Trust of Alachua County (CTAC) will provide $66,665 for summer programs at Legacy Park. Additional funding of $20,000 is projected to be received from non-CTAC funded enrollment fees for a total of $86,665 to be added to the budget

In other business, students from the Bhaktivedanta Academy have their artwork featured on display in City Hall as part of the Art in City Hall program. Mayor Gib Coerper and the school’s Leela Sikdar presented certificates to the 20 students participating in the art display. After the certificates were presented, the entire City Commission gathered with the students for a group photograph.

The Florida League of Cities recently recognized Coerper with a 2022 Home Rule Hero Award. Home Rule is the ability for a city to address local problems with local solutions with minimal state interference. The Home Rule Hero Award recognizes the efforts of individuals, both elected and non-elected who reach out to members of the legislature to give a local perspective on issues.

“I am greatly humbled to be selected for this honor,” Coerper said. “I’ve always felt the government closest to its community should be the one making decisions based on the best interests of that community.”

The Commission has proclaimed the week of April 10 - 16 as “National Public Safety Telecommunications Week” in Alachua. Each year, the second week in the month of April is dedicated to the men and women who serve as public safety telecommunicators. The City of Alachua Police Department telecommunications section is staffed by seven full-time employees, including a communications supervisor and six communications operators. As the public's first line of contact with the department, they are responsible for handling all incoming emergency calls for service to the department, including 911 transfers from the Alachua County Sheriff's Office; dispatching and monitoring of radio traffic for all officers responding to calls for service, as well as walk-ins at the station.

In other police related news, the Alachua Police Department is partnering with the Alachua County Child Abuse Prevention Taskforce to bring child abuse awareness to Alachua. The National Child Abuse Prevention month campaign, which occurs in April, is an initiative to protect Florida's children from physical and mental abuse.

#     #    #

email rcarson@

alachuatoday.com