Local

NEWBERRY ‒ The Newberry City Commission gave final approval at their Nov. 28 meeting for 124 acres to be used as a limestone quarry.  The Commission approved a large-scale amendment changing the Future Land Use Map from (County) Rural/Agriculture to (City) Mining, amended the Official Zoning Atlas by changing the zoning from County Agriculture (Ag) to City Agricultural (A) on the same acreage, and approved a Special Use Permit for proposed mining activities.  

The property is an abandoned mining site, which was annexed into Newberry on June 8, 2020, and is located on the east side of Northwest County Road 235, between Northwest 22^nd Avenue and Northwest 46^th Avenue.  The site will be the future limestone quarry for Limestone Products, LLC once the southern site has been exhausted of resources.  

City of Newberry Principal Planner Jean-Paul Perez pointed out that there were several protected gopher tortoise sites on the property and included a stipulation in the ordinance that the developer would relocate the gopher tortoise nests to an appropriate location prior to conducting any work on the site.  If there are any noise and vibration complaints associated with the mining operation, those complaints should be directed to the City of Newberry.

Water Main Expansion

The Commission approved moving ahead with expansion of the water system in the southwest area of Newberry.  The water main expansion will increase the capacity of the system to serve new development and provide increased fire flow in that area.

Out of the six proposals received, the City selected Truist as the low-cost and lowest interest rate issuer.  The interest rate is at 4.23 percent for 10 years with no pre-payment penalty.  The City will issue $915,000 in debt, which includes approximately four percent in closing costs.  The total interest during the life of the loan is $219,697 with annual debt service payments in the amount of approximately $116,000.  The payments are expected to be funded using development fees collected from new connections to the water system.

City’s Comprehensive Plan

City staff provided an ordinance on second reading to identify Comprehensive Plan updates outlining significant changes to local conditions that have occurred since the last edition of Comprehensive Plan amendments, as well as to significantly update the functionality of the plan. 

Every seven years the City of Newberry is required to file an Evaluation and Appraisal Report (EAR) with the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity.  The EAR determines whether or not the City’s Comprehensive Plan needs to be amended in order to bring it up to date with recent changes to state land use law and/or changes to local conditions.

“This represents the first phase of several more amendments to the Comprehensive Plan that will be coming in future months,” said Newberry Planning and Economic Development Director Bryan Thomas.  

Road Improvement

During the last fiscal year, the City Commission identified the design and reconstruction of Southwest 15^th Avenue from State Road 45 west to Southwest 260^th Street as a priority.  The 0.63-mile-long segment of Southwest 15^th Avenue runs east and west between Newberry Elementary School and Newberry High School.  At that time, Commissioners listed several items on their wish list.  Those items included sidewalks on both sides of the roadway, wider lanes, pedestrian crosswalks, improved street lighting and turning lanes. 

Clay Sweger of eda consultants, inc. presented schematic design concepts for Southwest 15^th Avenue for Commission consideration.  Commissioners expressed concern that the trees may block line of sight for people pulling out of driveways into traffic. 

Although they liked the roundabout that had been designed by eda, they thought it might be best to supply the rendering to the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) for consideration the next time they make updates to the roadway.  An additional consideration was for a drainage area on a small part of the school board property. 

City Hall Project

City Hall project sponsor Travis Parker presented options for construction management of the City Hall project.  The Commission’s concerns about funding sources, the upcoming Impact Fee workshop and not knowing about other possible funding sources led Commissioners to hold off on making the decision as to how to proceed with the project. 

Following an extended discussion, the Commission directed staff to prepare documents, but to hold off on implementing until after the impact fee workshop.

Power Plant Roof

The Commission authorized the city manager to enter into a contract with Rogers Roofing Corp. dba Professional Roof Systems for roof removal and re-roofing of the deteriorating Newberry Historic Power Plant roof.  The cost is $34,000 and the Commission also authorized the city manager to approve change orders not to exceed 25 percent of the contract amount.  Funds are included in the City’s Capital Improvement budget for this project.

In other business, the Commission scheduled the Impact Fee Workshop for Dec. 7 and the last regular City Commission meeting of 2022 for Dec. 12.

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GAINESVILLE/HIGH SPRINGS ‒ Ricardo Lamar Neal, 31, of High Springs, was sentenced on Monday, Oct. 24, to 19.65 months in prison on a charge of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, with credit for 160 days served.

Neal was arrested on Feb. 21, after allegedly confronting a man in the 14300 block of Northwest 155^th Place in Alachua. Neal claimed that the man had followed him on the highway. Neal allegedly became upset, grabbed a pistol and fired one round into the air. A shell casing was later found at the location. Neal then allegedly pointed the pistol at a crowd of people at the location and told the man, “You don’t want this,” before leaving the area.

The victim told law enforcement that he did not want to press charges, so no aggravated assault charges were filed regarding the threat to shoot, but Alachua Police Department (APD) later filed charges of firing a weapon in public and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

Officers learned that Neal was a convicted felon who is not permitted to possess a firearm and that he had a warrant out of Alachua County for felony domestic battery, which was later dropped.

Within a few minutes, the car was located near Walmart off Northwest 23^rd Street in Gainesville. When a Gainesville Police Department (GPD) officer approached the car, Neal allegedly ran. When an Alachua County Sheriff’s Office (ASO) K-9 deputy told him to stop running, Neal reportedly jumped over a wall.

Citizens reported seeing Neal running into the Walmart store, where he was located wearing different clothes and a hat, all of which still had the tags attached. Neal was detained in the store but then began throwing up.

Neal was taken to the hospital, where an APD officer arrived with an arrest warrant. ASO deputies added a charge of resisting without violence and the felony warrant. GPD found a gun in the vehicle and charged Neal with three counts of possession of a weapon or ammunition by a convicted felon and one count of carrying a concealed weapon without a permit.

In May, Neal entered pleas of nolo contendere to the charge of resisting arrest from ASO and 15 counts of violating pre-trial release conditions in the domestic battery case by contacting the victim, all misdemeanors. He was sentenced to 180 days in the Alachua County Jail.

The APD charge of firing a weapon in public was dropped and the APD charge of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon was consolidated into the GPD case.

Neal entered a plea of nolo contendere to one charge of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Judge James Colaw sentenced him to 19.65 months in state prison. The other firearm charges from GPD were dropped as part of the plea deal.

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ALACHUA COUNTY ‒ Alachua County Environmental Protection Department’s (EPD) Water Resources Program received the Wes Skiles Water Stewardship Award from the Rotary of Downtown Gainesville. The award highlighted Program Manager Stacie Greco’s leadership in developing EPD’s water conservation program, which is a statewide leader for innovative water conservation. Skiles was a well-known cave diver, explorer, cinematographer and director, who died in 2010 while diving off Boynton Beach, Florida.

Chris Bird, former EPD Director, was also acknowledged for his accomplishments during his 27 years leading the Department. Under Chris’s leadership and guidance, Alachua County became recognized in the state and nationally for its strong wetland and natural resource protection standards and resource conservation accomplishments.

The award included a cash prize, which the Rotary Club used to purchase a display at the County Administration Building to continue communicating the importance of conserving water resources.

Regarding the award, Alachua County Environmental Protection Department Water Conservation Coordinator Stacie Greco said, “This award really belongs to the whole Water Resources Division because it takes an amazing team to protect our water.” She continued, “Chris Bird put EPD on the map and on a great trajectory with his incredible efforts and determination. We are lucky to have Stephen Hofstetter as our current director and our dedicated Commissioners as we take on new challenges like climate change.”

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ALACHUA ‒ A convicted felon is back in jail after attempted robbery. Austin Michael Croy, 32, was arrested on Monday, Nov. 14, and charged with armed robbery after allegedly trying to rob an Alachua phone store while displaying a gun.at

Croy allegedly took two Bluetooth speakers from Healthy Phone Tech located at 15202 N.W. 147^th Drive in Alachua and tried to walk out of the store without paying for them. When the clerk told him he had to pay for them, Croy allegedly put the items down. Croy then walked back toward the clerk and lifted his shirt, displaying a gun, which was later described the authorities as a “gun/stun gun,” on his hip.

Croy left the store and went to his vehicle, where he reportedly put on a hooded jacket and tied a bandanna on his face to hide his identity and tried to re-enter the store. However, while he was outside, the clerk and some customers had locked the front door and hidden at the back of the store.

Croy then allegedly started beating on the glass front door and was still pounding on the door when officers arrived and arrested him.

Croy has 11 felony convictions and has served one state prison sentence.

Judge Susan Miller-Jones set bail at $150,000 in this case.

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NEWBERRY ‒ Newberry resident Michael Wayne Bryant, 48, was arrested Monday, Nov. 28, and charged with lewd and lascivious battery on a 15-year-old girl.

On Nov. 26, Bryant allegedly became intoxicated and wanted to drive somewhere. The victim offered to drive him so he would not drive while intoxicated. At some point, the girl ended up in the passenger seat, with Bryant driving, and Bryant allegedly began trying to persuade the girl to run away with him to Dixie County, where he has a hunting lease. He then allegedly touched her inappropriately, but she pushed his hand away.

The victim reportedly convinced Bryant to switch seats so she could drive and she drove to Bryant’s parents’ residence, where she got out of the car and hid. She contacted another person, who came to get her.

Bryant reportedly said he was alone with the girl in the car but denied being intoxicated. He denied ever touching the girl.

Bryant has three misdemeanor convictions for theft, battery and driving without a valid license. According to a spokesman at the State Attorney’s Office, Judge Thomas Jaworski set bail at $10,000.

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HIGH SPRINGS ‒ It has been a long journey—one that Clarence Hope Sr. had never imagined. A truck driver by trade, a husband, and a father to three young children, Hope had no inkling of what was to come and how it would change his life. But in January 2010 he began having health problems including trouble breathing and extreme fatigue causing multiple trips to the Emergency Room (ER).

Over the next 12 years Hope would go through a series of tests, misdiagnosis, and multiple hospital stays. At one point he was told by hospital doctors that he had only days to live. But thanks to the UF Health Heart and Vascular Care unit, High Springs resident Hope has a new lease on life after receiving a heart transplant in October 2022.

When his health problems first appeared in 2010, Hope was initially diagnosed as having pneumonia, but the problems persisted and the symptoms worsened including swelling of the legs, dizziness, rapid heartbeats, chest discomfort and issues with internal organs.

Continued tests and hospital stays were inconclusive and he was diagnosed with a variety of ailments with no conclusive proof and no relief. At one point they claimed it was caused by STD's or AIDS, which Hope knew was wrong.

Finally, after a year of tests and frustrations, another doctor said the hospital had been reading the signs wrong and that the issue was his heart, a condition termed cardiomyopathy, which is a disease of the heart muscle that makes it harder for the heart to pump blood to the rest of the body.

Ultimately, cardiomyopathy can lead to heart failure and death. At first Hope was being treated with medications. Later, his medical team put in a pacemaker, a small device that's surgically implanted in the chest to help control the heartbeat and to prevent the heart from beating too slowly.

For a while, things seem to improve. Hope’s primary care physician, Doctor Nasir Ahmed of High Springs Pediatric and Primary Care, monitored his condition in between hospital stays and tests. Hope was able to return to work part time and do activities with his family, watching the kids while his wife Marion worked.

But this came to an end one day when Hope was talking to friends while sitting on his riding lawnmower. Suddenly, the pacemaker seized up, sending a shock through his body and knocking him unconscious onto the ground.

After another extended hospital stay and repairs to the pacemaker, Hope developed gout, which was treated with steroids, but other issues complicated the problem. During another trip to the ER, his blood sugar registered high at 138 although Hope had no history of diabetes. He developed gall bladder problems due to his enlarged heart, which was pressing against the gallbladder. Also, his other organs were being affected and beginning to fail.

In 2017, due to gall bladder issues, doctors installed a biliary drain. Also called a biliary stint, it is a thin, hollow, flexible tube with several small holes along the sides that is used when too much bile collects in the bile ducts. If something is blocking the bile duct, bile can back up into the liver and start causing multiple organ failures.

As time passed, his condition did not improve and actually worsened. As 2018 began, Hope received devastating news. Doctors at the hospital said he was septic and nothing could be done. They suggested he gather his family and friends to say goodbye and he would probably not last the weekend.

“That news was gut wrenching,” Hope said. “I was suddenly facing my own mortality and would never have a chance to see my children grow.” Not wanting to die in the hospital, Hope’s wife took him home to be with family.

One of his first stops to say goodbye was to his physician, Nasir Ahmed, who had monitored Hope’s health for eight years. Ahmed refused to accept the hospital’s diagnosis and was dismayed that they couldn’t diagnose the problem. Ahmed reached out to a friend, Mustafa Ahmed, a leading cardiology surgeon at Shands.

The following day, Hope received a call from the surgeon stating that if he could go to Shands ER the following day, his team would reevaluate his situation and admit him to Shands’ cardiology unit. The next day after that, Hope awoke in the hospital to find himself in a room full of doctors. The lead doctor asked Hope if he wanted to live. When Hope replied, “of course,” the doctor fist bumped Hope and told his team, “Let’s go guys, we got work to do.”

With Hope's heart only working at two percent, doctors installed an intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP), which is a therapeutic device that helps the heart pump more blood as a temporary fix. Their realization was that Hope’s heart had to be replaced, but unfortunately there were no donor hearts available.

To keep Hope alive, a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) was surgically installed until a heart could become available. A LAVD is a pump that for patients who have reached end-stage heart failure. The battery-operated mechanical pump helps the left ventricle pump blood to the rest of the body to keep the patient alive. During this time in 2018, Hope spent almost five months in the hospital.

It would be almost four years of being on the wait list for a heart transplant, when on Oct. 2, 2022, Hope received a call that a transplant was available. Within an hour he was at Shands with the operating room ready.

Within three weeks from the surgery, Hope is up with no problems and no signs of rejection of the new heart. Marion Hope expressed their gratitude to all the medical staff at Shands and their primary care physician who refused to give up on him.

“We are also eternally grateful to the family that provided the donor heart,” said Marion Hope. “We know it was a great loss to their family, but they provided life to another family.”

Marion Hope said that the rules of donorship prevent both the donor and the recipient from knowing each other’s identity for a year. “We can correspond with letters and they can decide after the year whether to establish contact with us,” said Marion Hope. “We hope they will so we can tell them how much this meant to our family”.

Now, Clarence Hope, Sr., has a new lease on life and the future with his wife and children that he dreamed of.

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