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GAINESVILLE, Fla. (Dec. 14, 2023) – With the New Year come new changes to the City of Gainesville’s "open container" ordinances following measures finalized today by the Gainesville City Commission.

 Beginning Jan. 1, open container restrictions, which were in place before the pandemic, will return for most of Gainesville. The new rules will prohibit people from drinking or having open containers of alcohol on public property in most areas of the city. The only exceptions are two newly designated areas known as the Arts, Culture and Entertainment (ACE) Districts. The ACE Districts will permit open containers on sidewalks, in public parks or other public rights of way between the hours of 8 a.m. and midnight daily.

The ACE Districts are located where there are high concentration of bars, restaurants and entertainment venues. The Downtown ACE District encompasses a section roughly bordered by NE 2nd Avenue to the north, NE 3rd Street to the east, SW 6th Street to the west, and south to Depot Avenue. This area includes Bo Diddley Plaza and Depot Park. (Both municipal parks will continue to permit open containers daily from 8 a.m. to midnight.)

 The Grove Street ACE District is an area between NW 2nd Street and NW 4th Street, bordered to the north by NW 12th Avenue and to the south by NW 8th Avenue. This area excludes a mostly residential area north of the 6th Street Rail Trail.

 “These ACE Districts are areas of our town that showcase the incredible arts and culture that Gainesville is famous for,” said Gainesville City Commissioner Bryan Eastman. “Entertainment districts like these are common across Florida, from Mount Dora to West Palm Beach, and give more flexibility for small business owners and artists to use their outdoor areas to create lively, thriving events,” he said.

 In advance of the upcoming changes, City staff provided downtown business owners with a list of frequently asked questions and answers, and responded to queries at a group meeting earlier this month. Early next year, establishments inside the borders will receive district maps and window decals for display. To help make the boundaries clear for all, the City also plans to install signs on streets in the districts where open containers are permitted.

 Although the Downtown parking garage and some public parking lots are located within the districts, the new ordinances prohibit open containers of alcohol in those areas.

 The Gainesville City Commission approved these changes at meetings beginning in September and October 2023 in the interest of public safety. Gainesville Police Department officers can issue either civil citations or criminal infractions to those found in violation of the ordinances. If there is drunken, unsafe or disorderly behavior, police may impose stiffer criminal penalties.

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HIGH SPRINGS ‒ The High Springs City Commission on Nov. 28 approved rated hikes that have been a sore spot with many in the community. The Commission raised solid waste rates on residential 96-gallon cans by $4.62 to $27.75. Commercial Cans increased based on the number of pickups per week from $36.10 for one pickup, $72.20 for two pickups, $108.32 for three pickups, $144.43 for four pickups and $180.54 for five pickups per week. Dumpster rates for two-yard dumpsters will be $119.77 for one pickup per week, $199.37 for two pickups, $296.58 for three pickups, $380.35 for four pickups and $494.30 for five pickups per week.

If proposed negotiations with current waste hauler Waste Pro result in decreases, the Commission said they would reduce the waste prices. Rate increases will take place in January.

The Commission also approved water and sewer rate hikes based on the CPI rate of 5.7 percent. A previously approved resolution allows the City to make those rate hikes automatically each year without having to approve each item by ordinance. The rate increases will take effect as of the next meeting on Dec. 14 and will be included in the late December billing cycle.

The Commission remains concerned about rate increases proposed in the contract with Waste Pro, the City’s new waste hauling company. High Springs Finance Director Diane Wilson said there had been no complaints about Waste Pro’s service, although the former waste hauler amassed several citizen complaints daily.

During the meeting, some Commissioners initially said they thought Waste Pro said they would maintain the same costs as the former waste hauling company until October. Later in the meeting one person said they remember hearing that, but that it wasn’t Waste Pro’s representative who had said it. Commissioners seemed unsure who had said it, but all seemed to remember it being said.

Commissioners stressed that they had not seen the actual numbers of the new waste contract prior to voting on it, and believed information had been withheld by City staff.

City Clerk Angela Stone researched the issue during the meeting and found that Assistant City Manager Bruce Gillingham had sent a final draft of the contract, which included all the costs, in an email to Commissioners a day or two prior to the vote on the new contract. Further, she said Addendum A, the item detailing the contract costs, had actually been printed out and placed at each Commissioner’s seat prior to the April meeting, the date when the vote on the Waste Pro contract was taken.

Since the new contract with Waste Pro, the City has been billed at the new waste rates, but has not passed along those rate increases to the customers. Wilson said the City was in a deficit situation and needed to, at a minimum, increase the rates by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) amount of 5.7 percent. Wilson said that would not fix the issue, but it was better than nothing.

The Commission agreed to set up a workshop with Waste Pro to discuss the contract and determine if the company would consider reducing the rates from the contract signing date in April to October 1, an amount that could be as high as $350,000.

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Cont.:     City seeks to recover $350,000 in waste hauling charges

GAINEESVILLE, FL – Snta Fe College has received $3 million dollars from FloridaCommerce’s Florida Job Growth Grant Fund to develop an associate degree track in Engineering Technology with a specialization in Advanced Manufacturing that addresses the needs of business and industry throughout the region. 

The new Engineering Technology degree will be among the programs featured in the college’s new Ralph W. Cellon Jr Institute for Skilled Trades and Advanced Manufacturing, which is scheduled to open in the fall of 2025. This grant will enable SF to implement aspects of the program, in advance of constructing the new facility, with a particular focus on semiconductor training, as early as the spring of 2024. Grant funding will also accelerate the full development of the Engineering Technology program. 

“Santa Fe College is committed to both addressing the needs of the business community, while providing training and educational programs that will lead to excellent career opportunities throughout our service district,” SF President Paul Broadie II said. “This grant bolsters our effort to support students interested in entering careers in the emerging semiconductor industry, and we greatly appreciate the state’s continued support of our institution and the work we do transforming lives of our students.”  

President Broadie has repeatedly voiced support for implementing innovation and new technology into the curriculum to better prepare students for the more interconnected global economy they will see upon entering the workforce.  

The college anticipates the Cellon Institute will be able to serve approximately 1,300 additional students over the next decade by more than doubling the capacity of its existing Welding and HVAC programs, in addition to the new Engineering Technology degree. The $3 million is in addition to $1.8 million the college received in the last legislative session to help the college acquire the equipment needed in the new facility. 

The $3 million Santa Fe College is receiving is part of a larger $28 million Florida Job Growth Grant announced by Governor DeSantis.  

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NEWBERRY ‒ The Newberry City Commission on Nov. 27 approved preliminary plats for two residential neighborhoods and a replat of a third.

The Commission approved a preliminary plat of Phase 1 of the Tanglewood Planned Development located on the south side of State Road 26/West Newberry Road, between Southwest 218^th Street and Southwest 202^nd Street. Tanglewood was approved for a maximum of 140,000 square feet of residential and 636 dwelling units. The plat includes preliminary siting of roads and 106 residential lots, stormwater management facilities, future commercial and approximately 1.5 acres for an amenity center.

Newberry Principal Planner Jean-Paul Perez said this is a four-phase project. Development of 150,000 square feet of commercial property must begin prior to approval of Phase 4.

The Final Development Plan, including additional details on neighborhood aesthetics, will accompany submittal of the construction plans and final plat but were not required for preliminary plat approval of Phase 1.

The initial phase of Tanglewood includes a portion of the potable water main line that will connect to the water tower site, which is located within Phase 2 of Tanglewood. City staff recommended the property owner work with the city manager to mutually agree upon the best route and timing of connection of the 12-inch potable water main line to the water tower site.

Magnolia Acres

Magnolia Acres Subdivision was granted Preliminary Plat approval by unanimous City Commission vote. The property, located south of southwest 15^th Avenue and east of Southwest 226^th Street, proposes a gated subdivision of 15 lots with a five-acre minimum property size on approximately 80 acres. Access is provided along the internal roads in the subdivision, which will be privately owned and maintained by the Homeowners Association.

Commissioner Mark Clark expressed concerns about conditions of the Southwest 15^th Avenue roadway, outside of the subdivision, which he said are “terrible.” Due to the low traffic count expected for that size subdivision, Perez said that the roadway would not be negatively impacted. Mayor Jordan Marlowe said that the City will be collecting transportation impact fees from the development, which could be eventually used to improve the roadway if the Commission decides to do so.

Barrington Replat

The Commission also unanimously approved a replat of Lots 8 - 11 and 23 of the Barrington plat entitled Barrington Replat. The property, located at the northwest corner of Southwest 15^th Avenue and Southwest 170^th Street, has a future land use designation of Agriculture and is located within the Agricultural (A) zoning district.

The replat of Lots 8 - 11 addresses changes in the interior access road. The lots remain relatively in the same area. Lot 11 is reduced to 1.995 acres, which is below the minimum required lot area of two acres, but there are not presumptive negative impacts to other property and persons in the immediate area.

Lot 23, approximately 29 acres, is being subdivided to create two new lots for a total of 25 lots in the subdivision. Resolution 2022-35 permits the division of Lot 23 up to two times.

Annexations

The City Commissioners approved on first reading two ordinances for voluntary annexation requests totaling 190 +/- acres. Ordinance 2023-34 was an annexation request for Whitehurst Cattle Co., owner, of 161 +/- acres of property located southwest of the intersection of Southwest 67^th Avenue and Southwest 205^th Street. Ordinance 2023-35 was an annexation request by Herbert A. Marlowe, Jr., owner, of 29 +/- acres located southeast of the intersection of Southwest 30^th Avenue and County Road 337/Southwest 282^nd Street.

Cold Storage Rezoning

The Commission also approved an application by I S Property Holdings, LLC for a small-scale amendment to the Future Land Use Plan Map of the Comprehensive Plan by changing the future land use classification from Residential Low Density to Commercial on a site consisting of approximately 0.28 +/- acres. The site is located at 98 Northwest 254^th Street and is the former location of the historic Cold Storage facility. The Commission also approved rezoning the City Hall and Cold Storage site from Residential, Single-Family (RSF-2) and Commercial, Central Business District (C-CBD) on City Hall property to Public Facilities (PF) and from Residential, Single-Family (RSF-2) to Commercial, Central Business District on the Cold Storage site located at 25440 West Newberry Road and 98 Northwest 254 Street, respectively. The site consists of 1.93 +/- acres. This request aligns the current use of the property with the appropriate and applicable zoning districts.

Public School Rezoning Initiative

In a move related to school rezoning by Alachua County Public Schools (ACPS), City Manager Mike New will be penning a letter to the school system encouraging them to set boundaries that reflect City boundaries as well as encouraging Alachua County to institute impact fees for additional schools while they are involved in redrawing school attendance zones.

Information related to the process is available at https://www.sbac.edu/rezoning. The site includes an overview of the rezoning process, maps of existing school zones and proposed school zones, demographic data and maps showing active developments in Alachua County.

“The three public schools in Newberry are overcrowded,” said City Manager Mike New. “Oak View Middle School completed a construction project in 2022 that provided additional capacity. Newberry High School is slated for new capacity in 2028. There are no current plans to increase capacity at Newberry Elementary School. Rezoning is the most effective way to address overcrowding in Newberry’s schools.”

ACPS plans for new school zones to be finalized in December of this year, which will take effect for the 2024-25 school year.

Legal Services

After weighing in on a discussion about legal service providers, the Commission opted to continue with current representation from Folds & Walker, Inc., a firm that has served as the City Attorney for more than 50 years. The FY 2023 – 24 contract amount is $95,930 with provision of separate fees for special projects that arise from time to time. The contract renews automatically each year unless either party provides notice of intent to terminate the contract, and annual fee increases are set at three percent unless otherwise negotiated.

Mayor Comments

Mayor Marlowe said that the City of High Springs earlier declined to be part of a three-city agreement for Newberry to provide regional waste water treatment services. Marlow said that in the wake of the High Springs city manager’s resignation, he said he would like to reach out to the High Springs mayor to see if there is a change in their position.

In a related matter, Marlow took exception to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently published results of a July water sampling. He said that residents do not need to be concerned and the City is following up with more testing. “The EPA has done a poor job communicating with Newberry about contaminants, leaving us to find out about the test results from the website publication, instead of notifying the City directly,” said Marlowe.

The next Regular City Commission meeting is Dec. 11.

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Alachua County Today Staff Reporter / This youngster was getting into the holiday spirit at Friday night’s Christmas on Main Street as a Santa Fe High School cheerleader paints a colorful snowman on her face. Dozens of kid’s activity stations offered a variety of holiday themed arts and crafts, treats and refreshments.

ALACHUA ‒ Downtown Alachua was host to throngs of merrymaking crowds who showed up for the annual Christmas tree lighting event Friday, Dec. 2. New this year was the addition of Christmas on Main Street, a collaborative effort between the Alachua Chamber of Commerce, City of Alachua, and local businesses that sponsored all manner of festivities, music, activities, and Christmas trees lining Main Street.

The holiday season in Alachua officially kicked off at 6 p.m. with the annual lighting of the Christmas tree next to Skinner Park on Main Street. City Manager Mike DaRoza and Mayor Gib Coerper welcomed families to downtown Alachua.

But no Christmas tree lighting would be complete without an appearance from the one, the only, Santa Claus. And to the delight of youngsters, Jolly Old Saint Nicholas and Mrs. Claus did roll in on a shiny sleigh led by reindeer that slightly resembled miniature horses. All this with an escort from Alachua’s finest, the Alachua Police Department.

After leading the countdown to the tree lighting and saying a few jovial words to the youngsters gathered to catch a glimpse of that magical man in red, Santa and Mrs. Claus hopped back on their sleigh for a short ride down Main Street to his workshop. Children, and some adults as well, had the opportunity to sit with Santa, have their photographs taken, and share their Christmas wishes.

But the magic continued as all of Main Street was decked out with boughs of holly, garland and sparkling Christmas trees and festive light displays. Shops stayed open with lights ablaze welcoming the merrymakers as they made their way up and down the street.

Dozens of children’s activity stations and giveaways lined Main Street as children hurried to sample hot cocoa, pizza, popcorn, pastries, and cider and to pick up gift boxes and more. Youngsters had the opportunity to play in a bounce house, make ornaments, take a miniature train ride or a sleigh ride, try their hand at holiday crafts or have their faces painted. All activities and refreshments were free for children to enjoy.

At the south end of Main Street, Music Junction provided live music, while midway along Main Street, Randy and Antoinette Hunt also provided live seasonal music courtesy of Boukari Law. Theatre Park was the site of plays performed by the Children’s Theater as gaily costumed children entertained crowds gathered in the historic park that once served the community as a theatre.

Event sponsors included the City of Alachua, Visit Gainesville, Alachua County, Boukari Law, Alachua County Today, Dollar General Distribution, Walmart Distribution and the Alachua Chamber of Commerce.

Activity sponsors included the City of Alachua, Alachua Sports Pub & Grill, Good Life Station, Kelly’s Kreations, Pink Threads, Tony and Al’s, Alachua Flowers, Valerie's Loft, Mother Lode, City of Alachua and Youth Council, Cardinal's Nest, Alachua Police Department and Explorers, Boukari Realty with Santa Fe High School Cheerleaders, Boy Scout Troop 88, Mi Apa, Alachua Business League, Okito America, Capital City Bank, Polaris, Santa Fe Ford, Alachua Women's Club, Alachua Flowers & Tuxedo Rentals, Florida Phone Systems, Ryan Larmann State Farm, Music Junction, Alachua County Today and Boukari Law.

Sharing his excitement, one young child exclaimed, “Everything is free? What kind of town is this?” The efforts and generosity of many made the evening possible as the City’s official tree lighting and the Chamber of Commerce’s Christmas on Main Street proved to be a winning combination this holiday season as hundreds of people undoubtedly made magical memories to remember for years to come.

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HIGH SPRINGS ‒When we hear “Summer Camp” we often think of a season when kids are out of school, cabins lined with bunk beds, and cooling off in the water. Swimming, games, horses, archery, campfires, are often synonyms of our summer camp ideas.

This year marks 70 years of Camp Kulaqua, a summer camp and retreat center located in High Springs, Florida. A celebration of these past 70 years was held over a weekend in October and 450 people were in attendance, with staff and campers from the decades of the 1950s to present. Camp Kulaqua is owned and operated by the Seventh-Day Adventist Church and is a Christian camp and retreat facility that serves over 50,000 people each year.

The history of Camp Kulaqua starts in 1953 with a few men sitting on the banks of Hornsby Springs, prayerfully considering if they should purchase the 250 acres for $18,000. Prayers were answered and the land was purchased.

“The land was a jungle from the road of 441 to the spring,” recalled one of the early staff members of the camp, John Ryals. At the celebration, 96-year-old Mr. Ryals recalled the men clearing the land in the hopes of having a summer camp there soon. “It was a boys only camp that first week. In the nights we slept in tents. During the days we went swimming. Built a barn for some horses. And during downtime we caught lizards on a pole and released them later.”

As time passed the camp continued to develop. Land was cleared. Activities were added. Staff from the 1980s recall mini-dirt bikes, a treehouse at the end of the spring run, and off-site boating trips to Lake Butler’s lake.

Nature became one of the highlights of camp. One day, two orphaned racoons found their way to Kulaqua needing a home, and the Wildlife Sanctuary & Zoo was created. Today it still serves as a needed home to exotic animals and a sanctuary for the injured. Many from the neighboring community can recall the lion’s roar from the early days as the sound traveled for miles around.

Camp Kulaqua has now expanded to more than 800 acres with hundreds of buildings. In the growing town of High Springs, Camp Kulaqua hires over 80 employees from the community. Camp is a place that loves to serve and be available to the community. Families from the surrounding area often frequent the waterpark in the summer season and church families use the facility for retreats and meetings. Camp is also a resource to the children and local schools, providing education tours of the Wildlife Sanctuary to classrooms, a place for Extended Day Enrichment Program (EDEP) children to attend day activities, and is used by FFA Chapters for their yearly meetings.

Phil Younts, Executive Director of Camp Kulaqua for over 40 years, offers his appreciation for where camp is today. “Camp Kulaqua originally started as a summer camp and today we strive to serve the whole family. Family Camps, Outdoor Education, Summer Camps for children, just to name a few, are offered today. We are glad to be a part of the City of High Springs — a great place to live and a great place to serve God.”

“It’s the friendships we come back for. The once in a lifetime, never forget memories that are built at camp,” Julie Minnick recalls. As a camper and previous staff, Julie traveled from Virginia to be at the celebration. “This is always home for me,” is her response when asked the value of traveling the 300 miles for the 70^th year celebration.

Seventy years in operation is no small feat. Camp Kulaqua wants to thank God for the many blessings that He has given the millions of people who have entered its gates.

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