Local

The Meals on Wheels Program in Newberry delivers meals to the elderly four days a week except for holidays. At a recent commission meeting, Robert W. Wilford, the CEO of the agency, told the Newberry City Commission that $22,000 was needed to sustain the local Meals on Wheels Program.

The CFCAA provides services to citizens in Alachua, Levy and Marion counties. The other services the organization provides, such as the Emergency Assistance Program, Family Self-Sufficiency Program and the Low-Income Energy Assistance Program, would not be cut if the City of Newberry decided to pull funding for the Meals on Wheels Program.

On average, the Meals on Wheels Program delivers to about 15 to 18 people, Wilford said. Each meal costs $3.95, and the agency would bid out the price after it rose to $4.

“We’ve got to look after the senior citizens we’ve got,” Commissioner Lois Forte said at the meeting.

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alachuatoday.com

The 9^th Annual Celebration of Biotechnology at Alachua Progress Corporate Park hosted 70 vendors who cater to local biotech companies. The high growth industry has found a fertile niche in the park where 80 percent of the 1,100 workers are employed by University of Florida spinoff companies.

ALACHUA – Preparing the space shuttle for the gravity-defying trip from Earth into space, engineers carefully selected the glass for the windows. The engineers calculated the extreme measures the material would have to endure, such as high pressures, heat and extreme cold.

As the shuttle spirals through the last frontier, the glass protects the precious cargo inside – scientific research, data and, of course, the astronauts. So when the glass was selected, NASA and its engineers went to the same manufacturers who provided Thomas Edison an exterior for his light bulb – Corning Incorporated.

Corning was just one of 70 vendors on display at the 9^th Annual Celebration of Biotechnology at Alachua Progress Corporate Park on Thursday, May 10. The vendors presented their wares under tents set up on the lawn in front of RTI Biologics, the host of the annual celebration.  The event, sponsored by BioFlorida, draws approximately 400 visitors to the area.

“It all started because we wanted to highlight companies in Progress Corporate Park,” said Jenny Highlander, an RTI Biologics employee.

Visitors to the celebration could participate in a bus tour, which covered the businesses in the park not featured at the celebration. For the first time, the event also included an art gallery, which featured art inspired by science.

Vendors at the annual event welcome the chance to show their products to local biotech companies. “It’s good to get in on the ground level,” said Brigit Wilcox, a representative of Micronova Manufacturing, Inc. “As [the small biotech companies] grow, we grow with them.”

North Central Florida houses 33 of the 193 biotech companies in Florida. Progress Corporate Park sits at the epicenter of the Alachua County biotech industry as home to UF’s Sid Martin Biotechnology Incubator, which includes Pasteuria Science, AxoGen and Applied Food Technologys, among several others. The Incubator provides lab space, greenhouses and fermentation facilities.

Since 2008, the size of the biotech industry in Florida has grown by 42 percent, said Michael Schmitt, editor of Florida BioDatabase. Over the same period of time, the biotechnology has grown by only 5 percent nationwide.

It’s a sign that the incubators and large research universities are aiding the growth, Schmitt said. The Florida biotechnology industry has grown more since 2004 than all other years combined.

Stephanie Warrington, vice chair of BioFlorida, said she still believes biotechnology to be an emerging industry, despite its growth.

“There’s a lot of growth in the industry happening right here,” she said. The University of Florida is ranked number one for transferring ideas into commercial products, and currently 80 percent of the 1,100 workers at the Park are employed by University of Florida spinoff companies.

The incubator, said Warrington, provides a wonderful entrepreneurial ecosystem that helps biotechnology stay in the region and continue to grow.

This year, representatives and realtors from Infusion Technology Center at UF Innovation Square showcased the new building, which sits adjacent to the University of Florida. The new structure will provide unmatched access to research infrastructure and technology located at UF, as well as an open exchange of ideas. Infusion provides wet lab, dry lab, office, restaurant and retail space.

The North Florida area brings together the influential powerhouses spanning across industries, such as Progress Corporate Park, Innovation Square, University of Florida, Shands HealthCare and the City of Gainesville.

 “The state has changed the test and raised and lowered the bar so much that it’s hard for us to know what the results really mean,” said Superintendent Dan Boyd. “We’re certainly going to be cautious about how we use the scores, especially when it comes to individual students.”

 According to test results released today, 81% of local 4^th graders scored a 3 or above on the FCAT writing test, right at the state average. Seventy-nine percent of 8^th graders were at a 3 or above, slightly higher than the state average of 77%, while 84% of 10^th graders at both the state and local level scored a 3 or above.

 The Florida Department of Education also released the first set of scores for the new FCAT reading test. According to the state, 57% of Alachua County 9^th graders scored a 3 or above, compared to 52% statewide. At 10^th grade, 55% of local students scored a 3 or above, while the Florida average was 50%.

 Students this year took what is now called the FCAT 2.0, a new version of the FCAT given in writing, reading, math and science. The state also significantly raised passing scores on the tests, warning that the changes would lower student scores and school grades dramatically.

 But when statewide writing results showed that about three-quarters of students would have failed, Florida education officials decided to lower the proficiency rate back to a score of 3. During an emergency conference call with the state Board of Education and later with the media, Commissioner Gerard Robinson acknowledged that districts and teachers may not have had enough time or information to prepare for all the changes.

 “Overnight students didn’t become bad writers,” he said.

 Individual student scores are not expected to be available until next week. Local educators are encouraging to parents not to jump to any conclusions based on this year’s test.

 “They should not assume that their children are bad writers based on this one essay,” said Sandy Hollinger, deputy superintendent for instruction and student services. “There are too many unanswered questions about the FCAT testing this year. Their child’s teacher is a much better source of information.”

 School grades based on the FCAT scores won’t be released until this summer, but the state says to expect much lower grades this year as a result of the many changes to the tests, the scoring system, the passing rates and the grading formula.

 “We know we’re going to see significant drops across the board,” said Robinson during a conference call earlier today.

Sergeant Antoine Sheppard and Officer Dustyn Shenk both said that after working under both the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office (ASO) Combined Communications Center (CCC) and the previous High Springs’ dispatch service, the city should remain with the CCC.

Sheppard said unless adequate funding is provided, he feels the city-operated dispatch would put the lives of the officers and High Springs residents in jeopardy. If the city funds the project properly, he would welcome a local dispatch.

Currently, when a call is received by the CCC, the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office will dispatch its own deputies to help High Springs’ smaller police department. However, with a local dispatch, ASO would not be called in unless one of the 12 High Springs’ officers requests backup. In a life-or-death situation, the time required to call for help and for it to arrive could determine whether the officer walks away unharmed.

Prior to the city switching to the CCC, High Springs relied on the caller to give his or her address. If the call was disconnected or the location unknown to the caller, the police department would have to track down the location before it could dispatch police officers. In the past, this has taken up to 45 minutes, Sheppard said. With the CCC, the address is sent automatically with the call.

If bringing back the dispatch means losing this technology and the ASO backup, Sheppard said he was not in favor of the move.

“I believe that we’re safer when we have more resources,” Shenk said.

High Springs Police Chief Steve Holley said High Springs’ residents and officers would remain safe if the dispatch was brought back into the city. The City of Alachua operates its own dispatch, outside of the CCC, and it’s a much bigger city, he said. Officer Ryan Scott said each service, whether a local dispatch or one conducted through the county, offers its own advantages and disadvantages.

The commission seemed in favor of bringing back the dispatch, although the matter hasn’t come to a vote yet. Having a local dispatch would allow the city to remain autonomous, said Commissioner Linda Gestrin.

High Springs does not have a representative on the executive board of the CCC, which consists of the Alachua County Sheriff, the Mayor of the City of Gainesville and a member of the board of County Commissioners. Gestrin feels that keeping the dispatch with the CCC is the first step toward losing the police department all together.

As it is now, the city pays 60 percent of the cost of a 911 call. But when the population increases to over 6,000, it will be responsible for the full cost. In addition, Gestrin warned the residents during Thursday’s meeting about a “perfect storm” of events colliding in 2015, which includes upgrades to the ASO new-generation radio. Proponents of returning the dispatch services to High Springs say the Next Generation Public Safety Radio Communications system will cost a substantial amount of money.

Gestrin called the cost of the large-scale ASO project predicted for 2015 and the cost associated with remaining with the CCC “nebulous” during the town hall meeting, but said the city can closely estimate the charges it would incur by bringing back dispatch.

The city estimates the city-run dispatch would cost $246,100 a year, which is $145,486 above the annual cost of remaining with the CCC. However, High Springs City Manager Jeri Langman said the police department reduced its operating expenditures from $1,044,788 to $937,318, and the reduction should be able to cover part of the required amount to bring the dispatch back.

If High Springs chooses to stay with the county and the CCC, it will be forced to rename its streets and change street signs.  The rest of Alachua County operates on a grid system, which is centered on University Avenue and Main Street in Gainesville.  With the deadline regarding the CCC approaching, the city commission intends to vote on the High Springs dispatch at the May, 22 city commission meeting.

Since 1946, Newberry has been the host of watermelon-centered games, contests and beauty pageants. The celebration of the fruit will continue on Saturday at Oak View Middle School.

Festival-goers can watch a parade ride through downtown Newberry at 9 a.m., grab some sliced watermelon, visit business and craft vendors and then enter a number of contests or games throughout the day. An auction for watermelon-themed items will happen at 4:30 p.m. According to publicity coordinator for the festival Kathi Thomas, 600 watermelons were donated for Saturday’s event.

Participants can also express their love for the summertime treat by dressing up their dogs in the Wags on Watermelon pageant. Judging begins promptly at 8:30 a.m. at the Newberry Fire Station.

While the vendors for the festival will open at 9 a.m., the games and contests will begin at 12:30 p.m. The revelry for the vined fruit will feature favorites like watermelon eating, seed spitting and hog calling contests as well as some new features.

Sure to be a favorite this year will be the largest watermelon contest. The contest between local school groups will take place at 3 p.m. The winning group will receive a prize of $500.

The money raised from the festival will go back to local schools. Last year, the festival raised at least $5,000 for local schools, Thomas said.

Festivities are already underway, with beauty pageants for the younger contestants taking place last week.  Friday night at Oak View Middle School at 7 p.m., 33 girls from ages 5 to 17 took to the stage at Oak View Middle School. Each girl donned a watermelon-themed costume.

Newberry resident Morgan Silcox, 14, took home the teen queen title after she performed a watermelon-themed rendition of a popular rap song. “I like big melons and I can not lie,” she rapped in her ode to tasty fruit.

Some of the contestants were nervous before taking to the stage. Newberry 10-year-old Devinn Jolene Martin wore a jean vest with pink and green trim. Even though she has been entering the contest for three years, her nerves still got to her. She sat with her mother before the contest started. “I’m kind of nervous because this room is going to be filled with people,” she said as she looked around as the audience was trickling in.

A final beauty contest for the Newberry Watermelon Festival Queen will take place at Oak View Middle School this Friday at 7:30 p.m. The queen will be crowned Saturday evening at 6 p.m.

Admission for Saturday’s event is $3, and free parking is available across the street from the middle school.

It was a full house when the commission meeting started at 7 p.m. The mood was set before the discussion began.

The typed letter described a city with a plainly audible noise ordinance and several entertainment venues. It ends with a call for a quiet city.

Red and green highlight portions of the typed letter. The last paragraph reads:

“Newberry does not have all of this but what we can offer is a nice quiet town for the people to visit and if that is not enough then go to G-ville”

Discussions about the city’s noise ordinance began earlier this year. The current ordinance in Chapter 34 of Newberry’s Code of Ordinances contains a “plainly audible” definition in some applications that is difficult to uphold when it comes to prosecution. Currently, there is only one person on city staff who is trained to officially measure noise levels.

In previous commission meetings, some residents have likened the noise in their area to gunshots or a war zone. Others said the music from local restaurants disrupted their day.

Commissioners, city staff and residents discussed three aspects of the noise ordinance Monday night. A contract with Power Acoustics, Inc., a contract with the Alachua County Sheriff’s Department and a rough draft of the noise ordinance were topics of conversation at the meeting.

The city commission deliberated entering into a contract with Power Acoustics, Inc., an Orlando based noise control consulting company. The commission ultimately passed a motion with a vote of 4-1 to spend $1,560 for review and advise from Power Acoustics, Inc.

Residents John Whitman and Gary Palmer advocated a closer examination of county ordinances before spending money on entering into the proposed contract.

City Attorney Scott Walker said that they were aware of the county ordinance, as well as Gainesville’s noise ordinance.

Several residents proposed that the city wait to spend the money until a pending Florida Supreme Court Case was decided. The case is expected to determine whether the language of “plainly audible” would be upheld in a court.

Commissioner Jordan Marlowe responded by saying that court cases seem to be leaning toward a more objective definition of noise. He noted that the City of Minneapolis, which has a “plainly audible” noise ordinance, has not won any cases in court.

The commission decided to postpone voting on whether or not to train additional city staff.

The second aspect of the noise ordinance involved entering into a contract with the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office. The contract requires paying a compensation rate to the sheriff’s office to continue seeing through the enforcement of the ordinance.

Commissioner Alena Lawson recommended enforcing those who were repeat offenders with at least three violations of the ordinance.

The motion to enter the contract with Alachua County Sheriff’s Office passed unanimously.

Finally, a draft of the noise ordinance was presented to the city commission, though the ordinance could change after the city receives expert opinion from Power Acoustics, Inc.

Tosha Fernandez presented the draft and highlighted the key changes to the ordinance. “By all analysis, plainly audible raises some problems,” she said.

A sheriff can still issue a cease and desist under the plainly audible standard, but the standard cannot be implemented for prosecution purposes.

Resident comments continued as the noise ordinance discussion spilled over the 90-minute mark. While discussion continued, eventually the discussion itself became the subject of complaint.

“I hear what you’re saying, I’m not saying you don’t have some legitimate complaints, but let’s be reasonable about our complaints,” resident Sue Andes said toward the end of the discussion.

The first reading of the noise ordinance is expected to take place on June 11, with the second reading of the noise ordinance expected to take place on June 25.