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The contestants in this race consisted of bright yellow floating ducks making their way along Camp Kulaqua’s lazy river to the finish line at the 5th Annual High Springs Rotary Duck Race.

HIGH SPRINGS – The 5th Annual High Springs Rotary Duck Race held at Camp Kulaqua on Sunday, May 5, started off with a chilling splash. After a daring and mighty plunge down the slide of the Lazy River and just shy of two laps, the bobbing ducks rounded the final bend. The first three quackers plucked from the crystal clear water by Club President Valorie Cason, Past President Heather Clarich and new club member Laurie Roder were the winners.

The $300 first place prize went to Jerry Kiernan; the $100 second place prize went to Dave Moxley of Gainesville and the $50 third place prize went to George Rafferty, also of Gainesville.

The duck race was a community event, with area youngsters purchasing and decorating white ducks, club members helping conduct the race, the Santa Fe High School Interact Club participating, and Camp Kulaqua hosting the event.

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NEWBERRY – The Newberry City Commission will be discussing upcoming programming for the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center, which will be up and running in several weeks.

The city’s recreation department presented options to the commission to expand the scope of its involvement at the community center. And other organizations have been asked to submit proposals if they would like to be included in the center’s operation, said Commissioner Alena Lawson.

Pastor Lewis King, who brought youngsters to the commission meeting May 13 to give them a firsthand look at local government, said the building’s construction is not the community’s concern.

“We want to make sure the commission gives us clear directions on what’s going to be happening in the building so we as citizens would know who will be operating it,” King said.

One forthcoming decision will be whether volunteers or part-time employees run the center.

“In July the kids will be out of school, and we want programs going on to keep them entertained and keep them from being mischievous while also providing them an opportunity to learn,” King said.

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The highlight of the 68th Annual Newberry Watermelon Festival was crowning of Kyndal VanAernam, center, as the 2013 Newberry Watermelon Queen.

NEWBERRY – Free melon slices, food and craft vendors and bounce houses were all to be found at the 68^th Annual Newberry Watermelon Festival. The field at Destiny Church was full of cars and the people attending had plenty to keep them busy. The day began with a parade through downtown with pageant queens and contestants leading the way. Old tractors, trucks, floats and cars were all seen as the parade made its way down the street ending at Triangle Park.

K-Country’s Lewis Stokes and Mark Copeland entertained the crowd with music and their own brand of humor. Hog calling by Sierra Crosswhite and Jordan Marlowe started the entertainment and they ended up calling the Back Yard BBQ pig on the stage. From there it was seed spitting, melon rolling and music. The 68th Newberry Watermelon Queen, Kyndal VanAernam, was crowned, and for the third year Mayor Conrad led off the auction. Watermelon themed items sold quickly as the bidders tried to get their favorite items.

A quick ride around the field is all it took for an opportunity to taste candied jalapenos and a funnel cake, purchase a watermelon necklace and earrings and see youngsters bungee jumping high in the sky, sliding on the inflatables and having a great time.

A huge tent was set up with tables and chairs for a resting and eating area out of the heat of the sun, and one tent was in front of the entertainment and stage area. The festival committee was responsible for the layout, which was workable for everyone. Scott and Kateara Stoner and Paul Paisley and Tim Marden all worked to serve melon slices to everyone who wanted a taste of a genuine Florida melon. Local resident Kathi Thomas said there were so many people involved in helping that she would be afraid to start naming names, but the sponsors and the City were all a big help in coordinating the community event.

A comical moment happened during the seed spitting contest. It became evident fairly early that a seed spitting contest and seedless melons are not a winning combination. This was discovered as the contest began and seeded melons were located so the seed spitting did go on.

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HIGH SPRINGS – During the May 9, 2013 regular commission meeting, High Springs City Manager Ed Booth proposed adding nearly $200,000 to the current year’s budget.

Revenues and expenditures were originally set at $3,213,660 late last year as commissioners tried to eek out a balanced budget. Since that time, Booth has located untapped financial resources and hopes to change the original budgeted amount to $3,409,915, an increase of $196,255.

Booth said that additional revenues are being derived from the Clay Electric Cooperative Agreement and increased revenues in the Building Department along with increased revenue from taxes.

Commissioners approved Ordinance 2013-04 on first reading during the meeting. After reviewing the proposed changes, commissioners will address questions during a workshop at 6:30 p.m. on May 16, 2013.

Booth said he added a few items into the budget based on commissioners’ comments. He increased the amount set aside for attorney’s fees by $20,000 and also set aside $10,000 for playground repairs, add necessary cover to the ground and upgrade the facilities if there is money still unspent in that budget item. Booth added that he would budget $10,000 every year to maintain those facilities and upgrade where needed.

Another suggestion was to add in salary for a recreation director. Booth said he would include that in next year’s budget and possibly start out with a part-time recreation director at that time. The issue will be discussed further with the Recreation Board and reviewed as part of next year’s budget, he said.

The item will come before the full commission once again for a public hearing and consideration of final approval at the June 13 regular commission meeting.

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HIGH SPRINGS – High Springs is experiencing an upward trend in construction starts this year. One telling indication is the increase in residential home building permits, which have jumped to 21 permits issued in the first five months of the year, surpassing permits issued for all of 2012, which stood at 18.

Another indication is the increase in building permit fees collected for additions and remodeling, which have skyrocketed from the 2011/2012 budget year amount of $45,080 to the current year-to-date amount of $97,773.

Recent enforcement of occupational license fees for businesses based in the city have also increased revenues this calendar year by an additional $1,314.

“While business licensing was previously required, it had not been enforced for some time,” said High Springs City Manager Ed Booth. “These are companies that perform services in the city like lawn maintenance, but never obtained an occupational license to operate in our city.”

City Hall records show that approximately 80 new business licenses have been issued this year to companies working within the city limits of High Springs.

As all of these funds have increased, so have the possibilities for more building construction permits. Booth is optimistic about the future as he talks about a planned expansion of Plantation Oaks and the addition of 90 units in three new buildings at Camp Kulaqua.

In a recent interview Booth said, “I am in constant contact with the people at Plantation Oaks and Camp Kulaqua. I anticipate applications will be coming into our office soon. However, with the money that has already been brought in for permits to do smaller jobs, like remodeling or additions to existing structures, plus the addition of business license fees, we have already taken in more than the amount of money originally budgeted for the Building Department.”

While neither Plantation Oaks nor Camp Kulaqua has submitted their application, the City has told representatives at Plantation Oaks that they must apply for and receive a variance prior to submittal of a request for a building permit. Camp Kulaqua is currently in the process of land clearing for construction, which does not require a permit from the City.

The City of High Springs may be working its way out of the same financial difficulties that have impacted many municipalities over the past several years. “Increased housing starts and commercial improvements to existing large properties will certainly help along the way,” said Booth.

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The latest innovations in biotechnology were on display for the over 500 people, including this youngster, who joined in the annual celebration.

ALACHUA – Thursday marked the 10th Annual BioFlorida Celebration of Biotechnology. The high tech event took place May 9, at RTI Biologics in Alachua’s Progress Corporate Park on U.S. Highway 441.

Once visitors entered the huge tented area, they were face-to-face with the latest innovations in biotechnology. Over 500 people passed between the rows of over 70 scientific vendors displaying their products and services.

Visitors to the high-tech celebration could also hop aboard a bus for a tour of the research park, which houses biotechnology companies and UF’s Sid Martin Biotechnology Incubator and its resident companies, which include Pasteuria Science, AxoGen, Banyan Biomarkers and Applied Food Technologies, among others.

The Sid Martin Biotechnology Incubator was recently selected as the 2013 Incubator of the Year by the National Business Incubation Association, out of a field of 7,000 contenders worldwide. The Incubator provides lab space, greenhouses and fermentation facilities to its member companies.

Also this year, Jim Talton, CEO of Nanotherapeutics, which is located in the park, spoke about his company which recently was awarded a U.S. Department of Defense contract in an amount up to $360 million to develop medical countermeasures, including the development and manufacture of drugs and vaccines to combat bioterrorism.

Nearly 1,200 people now work in Progress Corporate Park, and of the more than 30 businesses located there, two-thirds are bioscience or technology companies.

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