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HIGH SPRINGS – The City of High Springs is ratcheting up the future of its parks and recreation program. On Aug. 25 the High Springs Commission approved a is $141,605 proposal for a Parks, Trails and Recreation Master Plan from GAI Consultants Inc.'s Community Solutions Group (CSG).

High Springs currently does not have a master plan for future parks and recreation needs as the city grows. The plan is designed to ensure the city has adequate capacity in the parks system to provide a high level of service to residents.

Commissioner Ross Ambrose supported the proposal saying that the City has expended funds in the past without the help of a clear plan. He also said he wanted the Parks and Recreation Board to be included in the process, which he was told would be the case.

According to the proposal, the plan will help High Springs establish a long-range vision, assess current and future recreation needs, provide strategies to fill gaps and reduce redundancies within the park system, promote new ideas, while also building and deepening existing partnerships and alliances.

The plan proposes a number of benefits including improved transparency and community support for Parks Department projects, programming and offerings. Also, GAI will identify new opportunities for future development and help to align and prioritize capital improvement projects.

Payments will be due to GAI in four lump sum installments based on project phase. Project initiation is $10,339, existing conditions analysis is $62,347, master plan development is $29,368 and a strategy and recommendations report is $37,551. The time-frame to complete the project is estimated to be 12 months. City Manager Ashley Stathatos said that funds to pay for the plan development have already been included in the FY 2022-23 budget.

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NEWBERRY ‒ The newest Episcopal Children’s Services (ECS) Head Start Child Care Partner (CCP) center opened its doors on Aug. 29 to Newberry residents.  I Rise Performing Kids Academy is currently enrolling for Head Start services for children and families in southwest Alachua County.

I Rise Performing Kids Academy held an open house on Friday, Aug. 26, to allow families to tour the center, learn about the program and enroll their children.  A parent attending the open house was eager to get her son enrolled at the center as the location of I Rise Performing Kids Academy is closer to home and better for her daily activities:

“Every child deserves a strong start in life.  Expanding our services throughout Alachua County allows us to continue serving the children and families who are most vulnerable and in need of our programs,” said Chief Executive Officer Connie Stophel.  “The ongoing expansion of our services is a result of our ability to continually meet and exceed the rigorous Head Start Performance Standards for program design, development and delivery.”

For the past 25 years, ECS has comprehensive Head Start and Early Head Start services to children, birth to five, pregnant women and their families.  The Head Start program is designed to meet the needs of three- and four-year-olds in a classroom setting through the whole child approach, helping children grow intellectually, emotionally and socially.

I Rise Performing Kids Academy, located at 24621 Doc Karelas Drive, Newberry, is open weekdays from 8 a.m. - 3 p.m. and is led by center manager, Jasmine Moore.  Call 352-660-2013 for more information or log on to www.ecs4kids.org to learn more.

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LEVY COUNTY ‒ A 61-year-old High Springs resident is in serious condition following a crash at U.S. 27 Alt. at County Road 345. The incident occurred on Tuesday, Sept. 6, at 11:30 a.m.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol, a freightliner box truck driven by the High Springs man was traveling northbound on County Road 345, approaching the intersection of U.S. 27 Alt. The freightliner traveled into the intersection on U.S. 27 Alt. in front of a Buick Sport Utility Vehicle, which was driven by a 71-year-old Bronson man who was traveling northbound on U.S. 27 Alt. The Buick SUV collided with the Freightliner at the intersection.

The driver of the SUV succumbed to his fatal injuries on the scene. It is unknown whether either driver was wearing their seatbelt at the time of the crash.

Another Levy County crash occurred on Saturday, Sept. 3, at 4:40 a.m. At that time a 31-year-old High Springs man was involved in a crash on State Road 24 and Southwest 3^rd Street. He was traveling east on State Road 24 when the front of his 2013 BMW collided with the rear of a bicycle.

The bicyclist was traveling east on State Road 24 on a black bicycle. When the BMW collided with the bicycle, the rider, a 63-year-old Gainesville woman, was ejected and came to a final rest on the south shoulder of State Road 24 where she was pronounced deceased on the scene.

The driver and sole occupant of the SUV was not injured in the collision.

The names of the individuals involved in both accidents were not released by the Florida Highway Patrol.

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Alachua County ‒ With schools now open in Alachua County, school bus safety is vitally important to motorists and students. Motorists should also be aware that as of Jan. 1, 2021, the penalties for failure to stop for a school bus double. The penalty for failure to stop for a school bus goes from a minimum $100 to $200, and if a second offense is committed within five years, the person’s license will be suspended for up to one year.

The penalty for passing a school bus on the side where children enter and exit when the school bus displays a stop signal goes from a minimum of $200 to $400, and if a second offense is committed in five years, the person’s license can be suspended up to two years.

School bus safety tips for motorists:

• Motorists are required to stop when approaching a school bus that is stopped with its red lights flashing and stop arms extended. (See the different situations in the diagram)
• All drivers moving in either direction on a two-way street must stop for a school bus displaying a stop signal and must remain stopped until the road is clear of children and the school bus stop arm is withdrawn. (see diagram, two-lane)
• On a highway divided by a paved median, all drivers moving in either direction must stop for a school bus displaying a stop signal and must remain stopped until the road is clear of children and the school bus stop arm is withdrawn. (see diagram, multi-lane)
• The only time traffic approaching an oncoming school bus does not need to stop is if there is a raised barrier such as a concrete divider or at least five feet of unpaved space separating the lanes of traffic. (see diagram, divided highway)
• On a highway divided by a raised barrier or an unpaved median at least five feet wide, drivers moving in the opposite direction do not have to stop for the bus (painted lines or pavement markings are not considered barriers). However, these motorists should slow down and watch for students loading or unloading from the bus. (see diagram, divided highway)

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ALACHUA ‒ Quintin Xavier Cote, 22, of High Springs, was arrested and charged with petit theft and felony fraud after allegedly entering inflated values for coupons and pocketing the cash while working as a cashier.

Cote has worked at the Circle K near Interstate75 in Alachua since April and is accused of taking cash from the register using inflated values for coupons 22 times in August.

Cote allegedly stole $2,225 using this scheme. He is also accused of taking $201 from the register. The store’s surveillance video reportedly captured all of the transactions.

Cote has no criminal history and was released on his own recognizance.

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ALACHUA COUNTY ‒ An historical marker will soon be installed in the city of Alachua. The Alachua/Newnansville Subcommittee of the Alachua County Community Remembrance Project, chaired by City of Alachua Commissioner Shirley Green Brown, requested to install a marker within the County right-of-way on County Road Northwest 121^st Terrace, at the intersection of State Road 235. The marker will memorialize the lives of lynching victims who lived around the former town of Newnansville and the present-day city of Alachua. The Alachua County Public Works Department recently approved the location to install the new historical marker.

The marker for the Alachua/Newnansville site is currently being created by EJI in Montgomery, Alabama, and will be installed with a ceremony once the County receives the marker.

During the site selection process by the Alachua/Newnansville Subcommittee, the committee noticed that the proposed marker would be located near the hard-to-find historic Newnansville African American Cemetery. During the meetings with Public Works staff, Commissioner Brown and Reverend Debra Sermons asked if the County could help by installing wayfinding signs to the cemetery.

Wayfinding signs help the public find their way to important community features. Supervisor of the Traffic Maintenance Division in the Public Works Department John Nazal and his team designed, manufactured, and installed the signs in accordance with Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Device standards. On July 12, members of the Alachua/Newnansville Subcommittee and the Newnansville African American Cemetery Association held a small ceremony to unveil the new wayfinding signs installed by the County.

Similar historical markers have been placed throughout the County as part of the Truth and Reconciliation process started by the Alachua County Commission in June 2018. The process was prompted by research completed by the Alachua County Historical Commission (ACHC) in response to the national Equal Justice Initiative’s (EJI) lynching research in Alachua County.

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