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ALACHUA ‒ In a press release, the City of Newberry has announced its intentions to file a lawsuit challenging Alachua County’s proposed Charter Amendment, which states that it would establish a County Growth Management Area.

Newberry officials say that the amendment, if implemented, eliminates the ability of municipalities to determine land uses that allow them to chart their unique course of development and differentiate themselves from other communities. The amendment adversely affects the ability of the City to determine the appropriate land use within its jurisdiction and is adverse to the fundamentals of home rule. The City believes that locally elected officials make the best decisions about their own community.

The City contends that the ballot title and the ballot summary for the proposed Charter Amendment are misleading, contain improper political rhetoric, and fail to adequately inform the voters of the chief purposes and material components of the proposed Charter Amendment.  As a result, voters will not be able to make an informed decision in casting their vote on this Charter Amendment.

The City is requesting the Court to declare that the ballot title and the ballot summary for the proposed Charter Amendment violate State Law, and grant injunctive relief striking the ballot title and the ballot summary from the 2020 General Election ballot, enjoin the Supervisor of Elections from counting the votes for the referendum relating to the proposed Charter Amendment, enjoin the Supervisor of Elections from certifying the results of the referendum relating to the proposed Charter Amendment, and enjoin the County from enforcing the proposed Charter Amendment, in the event that the measure is approved by the voters.

Due to the fact that this matter is currently before the Court, the City asserts it will not be making further statements regarding this case

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ALACHUA COUNTY ‒ This Order was released to clarify what is currently in place in the County's Emergency Order in light of recent actions by the Governor. Businesses are still required to post "masks required" signs and require their employees to be masked; masking is required for residents; groups over 50 must be socially distanced or all must be masked; and law enforcement may disperse crowds of any size that are not following safety requirements.

Read the full Order.

See below for the most pertinent paragraphs within the Order.

1. Alachua County shall be governed as set forth below.
2. Operations of services and activities.
3. All services and activities permitted to be operated by Governor DeSantis' Executive Orders (in existence as of this Emergency Order and executed subsequent to this Emergency Order) may operate in Alachua County pursuant to the standards contained herein and referenced by this Emergency Order. All services and activities shall operate in accordance with OSHA and CDC guidelines applicable to their business.
4. All services and activities, in which persons are required to wear facial covering, shall post the appropriate signage in color in both English and Spanish, available here. http://alachuacounty.us/covid-19/ or by calling 311 (for preprinted sign). Signs shall be at least 11in x 17in. Signage shall be posted in conspicuous locations, which are clearly visible to the patrons and employees throughout each physical location reminding patrons and employees to observe social distancing requirements and to use facial coverings, as required by this Emergency Order. Signage shall be posted, at a minimum, at all points of access (including employee points of access) and throughout the service and activity. Whenever possible, signage shall be posted between 4ft and 5ft as measured from the floor to the bottom of the sign.
5. Use of facial coverings.
6. Persons working in or visiting grocery stores, restaurants, bars, dance halls, nightclubs, in-store retail establishments, pharmacies, public transit vehicles, vehicles for hire, along with locations inside or outside, where social distancing measures are not possible shall appropriately wear facial coverings as defined by the CDC, in a manner which covers the mouth and orifices of the nose.
7. Facial covering includes any covering, which snugly covers the nose and mouth, whether store bought or homemade, and which is secured with ties or ear loops. The Centers for Disease Control provide examples of homemade facial coverings.[1]Persons who wear facial coverings should review the CDC and Florida Department of Health guidelines regarding safely applying, removing, and cleaning face coverings.
8. A facial covering shall not be required for children under six, persons who have trouble breathing due to a chronic pre-existing condition or individuals with a documented or demonstrable medical problem. It is the intent of this provision that those individuals who cannot tolerate a facial covering for a medical, sensory or any other condition, which makes it difficult for them to utilize a facial covering and function in public, are not required to wear one. It is recognized that this requirement is broader than what might be considered a covered condition under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
9. This Emergency Order does not change or alter any social distancing requirements imposed by this or any other emergency order.
10. This Emergency Order does not change any requirements for wearing facial coverings imposed by regulatory bodies or orders from the Governor.
11. Facial coverings do not have to be worn while actively eating or drinking.
12. Businesses and employers are required to ensure that their employees are using appropriate facial coverings and other methods to protect the employees and public, unless the employee meets an exception in Sec. 3(c) of this Emergency Order. The business or employer may be cited, along with the employee, for an employee's violation of this Section, if the employee is actually engaged in employment-related activities at the time of the violation.
13. Groups with more than 50 people are not permitted to congregate in a space that does not readily allow for appropriate social distancing unless individuals are wearing facial coverings and may be ordered to disperse by law enforcement or other governmental employees authorized by the County Manager or in the case of a municipality the City Manager or other administrative head of the municipality. Groups of any number who are not socially distancing and not wearing facial coverings will be required to socially distance and may be ordered to disperse by law enforcement or other governmental employees authorized by the County Manager or in the case of a municipality the City Manager or other administrative head of the municipality if they do not comply. Social distancing, for the purpose of this provision, requires adherence to the social distancing recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control and the Surgeon General of Florida, and requires 6 foot spacing between persons of different households.

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HIGH SPRINGS ‒ City of High Springs residents received good news on Oct. 8 as the High Springs City Commission approved reducing property owners’ fees for water and wastewater and not to increase solid waste removal service fees for this fiscal year.

Resolution 2020-K and Resolution 2020-L are changing the way in which fees are determined. Both resolutions will determine adjusted yearly fees based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which is maintained by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Each year adjustments will be based on a comparison of the CPI for the July immediately preceding the effective date of the adjustment (this year July 2020) to the CPI for the July of the preceding year, which is initially, July 2019.

Last year the City raised the fees for water and wastewater by one dollar each. This fiscal year, the City is dropping both one-dollar fees effective Oct. 8. In an effort to keep up with the cost of living, the City will adjust fees using the CPI rate instead.

The base rate for water will be increased $0.09 instead,” said Finance Director Jennifer Stull. “People’s wastewater bills will increase by $0.07/1,000 gallons,” she said. “That means that the fees are actually going to be lower this year than last because we are dropping the $1 fees.”

The same procedure will take place for solid waste removal services. However, the City’s solid waste haulers have not increased their rate for this fiscal year, but will increase their fees effective October 2021. Therefore, fees for solid waste will not increase this fiscal year.

Following a brief discussion, Commissioner Jamison made a motion to approve Resolution 2020-L, which was seconded by Commissioner Gloria James. The motion was approved unanimously in roll call vote.

In other business, a zoning change request approved by the High Springs Planning and Zoning Board on Sept. 22, was denied by City Commissioners on first reading of Ordinance. 2020-11. During the Oct. 8 Quasi-Judicial Public Hearing, Commissioners and several citizens expressed concern about allowing the 89.69+/- acres of land adjacent to Bailey Estates to be rezoned from R-1A Residential to R-3 Residential.

R-1A Single-family Residential is intended to accommodate low- and medium-density single-family residences. R3 Residential is intended primarily to accommodate medium-density single-family detached residential uses. R3 zoning allows many more uses within that district than R-1A. Mobile homes are allowed in R-1A zoned districts, but they are listed as “provisional,” while mobile homes are a “permitted” use in a R3-zoned district.

The change to the City’s Land Use Map was requested on behalf of J.H. Londono, agent for SAFECA Ltd. Ryan Thompson of CHW Professional Consultants made the presentation and answered most of the questions. Craig Brashier of CHW was on hand as well.

Thompson said that the lot sizes would be similar to those in Bailey Estates.

Commissioners were hesitant to approve the application. However, comments from several citizens seemed to solidify their resolve to deny the request at this time.

An email was received by the City prior to the meeting from Chris Greene, who said he opposed the zoning change. A voice mail message was received from Brad Little, also expressing opposition to the change. Others against the zoning change included Pamela Landis, Mike Gentry, Nicholas Thomas and Audrey Copenhagen.

Their concerns ranged from existing volume of traffic in that area, to the already overcrowded Community School facility, to the degradation of small-town culture, to an inadequate traffic study that only looked at U.S. Highway 441 and also to the number of homes on the lot sizes.

Following the lengthy discussion, Commissioner Nancy Lavin moved to deny the application and Commissioner Linda Jones seconded. Lavin said she didn’t think the City has the infrastructure to approve the application. Further discussion centered on whether the Commission should table the item to a time certain or table indefinitely.

The motion to table until CHW has addressed the Commissioners’ and the public’s concerns and brings it back to the City received a 4 -1 vote with Lavin casting the dissenting vote.

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HIGH SPRINGS ‒ On Sept. 26 a new art gallery opened complete with a COVID-19 aware reception for its first exhibit. The art gallery world has been hit hard by the pandemic, where social distancing and indoor spaces limit how many people can attend. Many art galleries no longer hold receptions for the exhibits, and a number of the smaller galleries have been forced to close altogether.

The new art gallery is located at 23352 West Highway 27, Suite 80 in a small strip mall in High Springs. Jessica Caldas, owner of Good News Arts, is taking a different approach to the traditional reception, and staged the event in the parking lot in front of the store. Inside viewing of the exhibits was limited to only six people at a time. All guests were required to wear a mask and practice social distancing. This outdoor/indoor event featured three outside tents with live music, live art making for the children, and refreshments for people to enjoy while waiting to see the inaugural exhibition.

Caldas is a Puerto Rican American, Florida and Georgia based artist, advocate, and activist. Her work deals with connecting personal and community narratives to larger themes and social issues. Originally based in Atlanta where her artistic work is well known, she says she has always wanted to open a gallery that would offer not only art and a place for artists to sell their work, but also offer a community arts center, a place for artists to work and a place for community groups to meet. Caldas moved to High Springs with her husband, Brian Bates, who is from the area and owns Head Waters restaurant in the same plaza.

While Caldas had not planned on opening a gallery in the midst of a pandemic, when the space became available, the couple realized it was too good an opportunity to miss.

Good News Arts will provide space for local, regional, and national artists to show challenging and engaging work tied to relevant contemporary issues.

“Artists will be chosen by the power of their practice and message, rather than the commercial viability of their work,” said Caldas.

Outside of curated exhibitions, Good News Arts will also be an open space for community members to present work via additional exhibitions, musical performances, spoken word, events, and whatever else serves the community’s needs. Caldas also wants to partner with local schools, libraries, nonprofits, and other community organizations to broaden their impact and serve the community better. She also is planning classes and workshops taught by local artists for anyone that would like to learn a particular art form

“Good News Arts is meant to be both a gallery and education space for the arts with justice at its heart,” said Caldas. “We will collaborate with artists to provide community space for creative and cultural output while working towards a more just and equitable society.”

In her advocacy work, Caldas has spent time lobbying for policy at the local level in Georgia and spent time with the YWCA Georgia Women's Policy Institute at the 2016 general assembly to assure the passage of the Rape Kit Bill and in 2016 to stop HB 51 in 2017, a bill that would have harmed the safety of sexual assault survivors on college campuses.

Caldas received her Masters of Fine Arts degree at Georgia State University in 2019 and received her BFA in printmaking from the University of Georgia in 2012. She taught at Georgia State University as an adjunct professor and Chastain Arts Center as a drawing instructor.

“In the first show I wanted to show off the incredible talent and work of the many artists I hope to collaborate with during the initial programming for the space,” said Cadas. “Many of the artists I'll be choosing to work with at Good News Arts imagine a world that is different from our own, a future that is better, or they challenge our present.”

Caldas says that many of the artists she admires draw heavily from past lives, experiences, and histories to inform their work and the creative spaces they imagine. While the first show was large with multiple artists represented, Cadas plans that future shows will focus on either a single artist with a large body of work or a small group on a similar theme.

Due to COVID-19 she also set up a virtual gallery on her website www.goodnewsarts.com where visitors can tour the gallery and view all the art, along with bios for each artist and prices for the purchase of the art. The gallery will not receive profits from the artists by taking a commission, but instead will enable artists to keep all of their sales, while providing information for donations to nonprofits and charitable organizations if the artist chooses to do so.

The first show will run until Nov. 14 and the gallery is open Wednesday through Saturday from 12 to 6 p.m. or by appointment. Future shows, classes and workshops will be posted on the goodnewsarts.com website.

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 ALACHUA ‒ Santa Fe High School has had to cancel its upcoming homecoming football game as a member of the team has been diagnosed with COVID-19. On Tuesday Santa Fe High School Principal Dr. Timothy Wright announced that varsity football team members have been quarantined at their homes due to a positive case on the team. The infected student was discovered after last week’s game, and due to the physical contact with the sport and as a precautionary measure he said the school has sent the whole team home for quarantine. If after nine days they still test negative they can return to school. Due to the quarantine, next week's homecoming game against Palatka has been canceled.

As soon as the positive case among the players was discovered, the school used seating charts to identify possible contacts and notified students and their parents.

“We have regulations that all students have to wear masks on campus. That was part of the requirements to attend in person. We also have six-foot social distancing seating in classes and temperature checks, so we are not too concerned about a general spread,” Wright said. “But, we can only account for a student's time on campus, so if any student was hanging out with the team off campus, especially without a mask, they should be monitored for any symptoms. It's up to the parents to ask the student if they have any reason for concern and act appropriately.”

Wright also said that the school has only had four cases among students this school year. “The safety of our students is our foremost concern so we acted in an abundance of caution by quarantining the team.” Wright added that the school follows all School Board of Alachua County system (SBAC) guidelines and that parents should not be worried as a whole. “However, they should be informed and vigilant in participating in our efforts to maintain their safety,” Wright said.

Overall, the SBAC has done fairly well on setting safety guidelines to contain the virus. While schools in Florida have reported over 4,700 positive cases, there have only been 113 in the Alachua County school district’s 39 schools since the beginning of the school year. Six schools have had no cases and the majority of others have had between one and five cases among either staff or students. Only two schools have had more than 10 cases, with Gainesville’s Bishop Middle School reporting 11 cases and Newberry High School reporting 25 cases.

While Santa Fe High School has been forced to cancel their Homecoming game on Oct.16, the next game scheduled for Oct. 23 is tentatively scheduled to proceed. The final decision will be made after the Santa Fe team's quarantine period is over and taking into consideration the situation at Newberry High School.

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HIGH SPRINGS ‒ The High Springs Farmers’ Market Pavilion is finally becoming reality. Maria Antela, the Farmers Market Manager at the time the grant was written, applied for a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Business Enterprise Grant for $199,441, to construct a pavilion to house the city’s farmers’ market.

The purpose of the grant was to provide a location for small businesses to have a place to grow locally. USDA offers the grant to provide technical assistance and training for small rural businesses. “Small” in USDA terms means that the business has fewer than 50 new workers and less than $1 million in gross revenue. The funds must be used for projects that benefit rural areas or towns and grant money typically assists with economic development planning and/or the financing or expansion of rural businesses.

At the time Antela wrote the grant, Carol Rowan, the current Farmers’ Market Manager, was a volunteer coordinator. One of the grant stipulations was that the vendors had to provide their tax information showing that they were a legitimate business owner, which they were easily able to do.

“There were 17 of us vendors that provided the required tax information, but we had approximately 35 vendors at that time. Over the years, with delays and changes, the 16 other vendors dwindled away and I am the only one of those 17 that still remains at the market,” said Rowan.

“There have been approximately eight vendors that have stuck by me throughout all the delays and extensions from 2013 to the present time in order to keep it a market,” she said.

Rowan and Basti Gonzalez co-managed the market for part of 2013 and Rowan took over management and became a City of High Springs employee in 2014. For a while CRA Director Kristina Wright and Finance Director Jennifer Stull filed extensions every two years in order to keep the grant active. When Wright left the City, Stull took over all of the aspects of the project and acted as liaison for the Farmers Market with USDA.

According to CRA Director David Sutton, “Stull is the one who took the project from inception, met with the architect and got the bids for the pavilion. She was on top of this project all the way,” he said.

USDA provided funding to the project on Sept. 25, 2014. “They give out those big checks, but they don’t really give you the money until you begin digging dirt. That’s when you get your money,” said Rowan.

Once work began on the project, the market had to vacate their space and they moved over to the parking lot at City Hall on Fridays since City Hall was closed. “At that point,” said Rowan, “the market changed from Thursdays to Fridays, but we kept the same 12 – 4 p.m. hours as always.”

Construction started, but slowed down when COVID-19 hit. “We were supposed to be in by the end of August, which didn’t happen. Then we were supposed to move in last week, but that didn’t happen either,” she said. Apparently, a punch list of items still needed to be addressed, which has now been taken care of.

Last week the Farmers’ Market had 19 vendors show up. All together approximately 30 vendors take advantage of the Farmers Market in High Springs according to Rowan’s records. “Everyone doesn’t show up every week,” Rowan said, “but right now I have the entire pavilion booked for the ribbon cutting and grand opening at 2:15 p.m. on Oct. 27.” She said it is possible that more may show up, and tents will be set up to accommodate them.

The City plans to have light refreshments and beverages to keep everyone hydrated said Sutton. High Springs Public Information Officer Kevin Mangan will act as master of ceremonies for the event.

Once the pavilion formally opens, the Farmers Market will be open on Fridays from 3 – 7 p.m. Rowan did a survey on the Farmers Market social media page and asked the citizens which day and at what times they wanted to visit the Farmers Market. “We had an overwhelming number of views and this is the day and time they chose,” she said. “We’re here to serve our citizens. If that’s what they want, that’s what we’ll do.”

Previously, the market couldn’t stay open after dark. “It just wasn’t safe. We didn’t have lights and it was just too dangerous for vendors to be out here that late,” Rowan said. “Now, we’re in a safe and protected environment so we can more safely accommodate the later shoppers.”

In addition to High Springs’ dignitaries, staff and citizens, invitations have gone out to Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, Congressman Ted Yoho, State Representative Chuck Clemons, Senator Keith Perry, State Representative Clovis Watson, Jr., Miss Florida Gator 2020, Ashtyn Brown, the 2020 State of Florida Watermelon Queen, who is also the Newberry Watermelon Festival Queen, Bethany Barfield, County Commissioners and dignitaries from area cities.

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