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Columbia
County, FL (Posted March 10, 2010 at 09:25 am)
 OJ
Lake and Victoria Ellis share a light moment
when the legendary Herbert Darby explained that
there are still parts of the charter that he is
trying to understand... Chairperson Ann Skinner,
like Mayor Witt who appointed her, will be
representing Lake City's open style of
government well.
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Columbia
County, FL (Posted March 9, 2010 at 09:55 am)
No one was surprised
last night when the former Columbia County
Republican Chief and Hospital Authority
Chairman, Jack Berry, was hired by his old board
to be the Authority's first paid manager, just
months after resigning from the Lake Shore
Hospital Authority. The Authority has two
employees.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted March 6,
2010 • at 05:00 am)
Although the State Revolving
Fund (SRF) was previously viewed as the most viable
financing option, we will evaluate the potential for use
of a new form of bonds known as Build America Bonds
(BABs)... An owner representative of the Blanche
contacted me late this week and delivered the “as built”
construction plans... The IBI Group of Sarasota, Florida
was selected by the CRA...
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Columbia County, FL (Posted
March 3,
2010 • at 08:55 am)
City Manager
Johnson told the Observer, "I have a vision
for downtown Lake City. It is a dream... It has
to be researched... Step one has been
determined... The most important thing right now
is the safety of the people that are using and
visiting the building. That is the
main reason that I did this. The structural
analysis is a small price to pay to assure that
they are safe.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted
March 1,
2010 • at 09:30 am)
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Columbia County, FL (Posted
Feb 27,
2010 • at 11:15 am)
This Monday night, the City Council will
weigh in with its thoughts and its vote on
whether to accept the responsibility of the
engineering study.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted
Feb 26,
2010 • at 10:57 am)
By Stew Lilker
 Late
Thursday afternoon, Lake City again showed that
it is leading the way into the 21st century in
Columbia County, when the three finalists came
before the City Council to present themselves
and their ideas on why they should be chosen to
develop Lake City's CRA Master Plan. All were at
the top of their game and the cream of the urban
planning and design crop.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted
Feb 20,
2010 • at 7:30 am)
The City staff and
local community volunteers are planning the 2nd
annual “Take Pride in Your Community” Cleanup
Campaign. This “Green Team” event will take
place from 8:00 a.m. until 12:00 noon on April
24, 2010 staging at the Richardson Community
Center.
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Columbia County, FL (posted
February 20, 2010 • 8:00am)
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Columbia County, FL (posted Feb
19, 2010 • 08:10am)
By Jim Ash -
Florida Capital Bureau Chief
A Tallahassee
appellate court will soon weigh in on whether
Florida's Sunshine Law gives citizens the right
to be participants, not merely spectators, in
government meetings.
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Columbia County, FL (posted Feb
19, 2010 • 07:10am)
 Thanks
to the dedicated commitment of the local
governments who comprise the
North Florida Broadband Authority, the
initiative and leadership of the North Florida
Economic Development Partnership and its Board
of Directors, and the financial support of
Enterprise Florida...
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Columbia
County, FL (Posted Feb 16, 2010 • 01:00pm)
In August of 2009, Lake Shore Hospital
Authority Chairman, Jack Berry, began laying the
groundwork to establish the position of a part
time Hospital Authority executive director. He
told the Authority Board, at least the two who
showed up at the budget work shop, "You would
probably want whoever does that position to...
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Columbia County, FL
(Posted Feb 13, 2010 • 8:00 am)
The planning
draft of the new City Personnel Manual has
been on-going for several months and is
approximately 40% complete. The new policy
will provide information ...
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Columbia County, FL (posted
February 11, 2010 • 10:00pm)
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Columbia County, FL (posted
February 11, 2010 • 03:30am)
 The Board's only
African American member, Ronald
Williams,
a man who has for years watched rampant drug
dealing in the hood and a declining school
system, told the Board, "The Chair also agree
with staff recommendation... Unless somebody got
a golden goose to lay a golden egg and give that
gold to the County, I don’t see any silver
lining in the clouds so far, so we have to do
what we got to do. The library is the least
thing that we have to worry about right now."
(1
comment)
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Columbia County, FL (posted
February 10, 2010 • 04:30am)
 On
Monday morning, February 8, 2010, at 10:00am,
County Manager Dale Williams and City Manager
Wendell Johnson met in the Courthouse Annex
conference room to work out a plan to resolve
the longstanding City-County EMS debate. After
some small talk about the weekend's Super Bowl,
they got right (1 comment)
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Columbia
County, FL (Posted Feb 8, 2010 • 08:20am)
During the Lake Shore Hospital Authority
December 14, 2009, regular meeting, newly
installed Hospital Authority Chairman, Marc
Vann, decided that it would be a good idea for
the Hospital Authority to have a self
appreciation dinner on the taxpayers' tab. This
dinner was to include the Board members, the
LSHA staff and everybody's spouses.
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Columbia
County, FL (Posted Feb 6, 2010 • 02:30pm)
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Columbia County, FL (Posted
Feb 5,
2010 • 9:00 am)
by City Manager Wendell Johnson and
staff
On the City Manager's docket this week
are the February Projects and Activities
Report, a few more words on the awards
banquet and all the department reports.
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Mr. Manning spends much of his time at meetings playing
solitaire and ...
Columbia County, FL (posted
February 04, 2010, at 02:30pm)
I cannot think of a reason to justify this
expenditure. At a time when the county has rolled-back
the wages on their employees like Walmart having a sale,
cut funding to publicly sponsored youth sports programs,
cut back on library programs and moaned about
budgetary woes, I find this
request utterly distasteful
and a potential complete waste of taxpayer money.
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Columbia County, FL (posted
February 3, 2010, at 01:45pm)
 Tuesday
morning, February 2, 2010, may mark the end game
in a city – county controversy that has been
stretched out for years. At 10 am in the county
annex, County Manager Dale Williams, City
Manager Wendell Johnson and their respective
attorneys met for a preliminary sit down in what
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Columbia County, FL (posted
February 2, 2010, at 04:30pm)
For years, Columbia County's Industrial
Development Authority (IDA), an arm of the "good
ole boys" of Columbia County, operated in
complete contravention of Florida's Sunshine
Laws. The IDA met in people's homes and did the
bidding of the wheeling and dealing of "Mr.
Columbia County,"
(photo - IDA Vice Chair - Suzanne Norris)
(1
comment)
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Lake City, FL (posted
January 30, 2010, at 07:am)
Lake City's employees and
guests packed the Country Club for Awards
Night.
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Lake City, FL (posted
January 29, 2010, at 07:am)
 The
2010 Lake City awards banquet is
more than just another Lake City
annual awards dinner. 2010 marks the
beginning of a new era and a major
changing of the guard for Lake City.
This year's awards committee
chairperson was one of Lake City's
own
Sunshine Girls, City Clerk,
Audrey Sikes (photo), the nonvoting
member.
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Columbia County, FL (posted
January 26, 2010)
by Stew
Lilker
 Like
a bull in a china shop, Jack Berry protégé,
County Utility Sub Committee Chairman, Jody
DuPree is following in the footsteps of his
mentor, former LSHA boss Berry. Instead of
spending millions without a plan in order to
take care of the "good ole boys" in the land
scams around the Hospital Authority, the
Columbia County Utility boondoggle is going
to cost the working families of Columbia
County tens of millions in one of
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Lake City Airport Terminal moving ahead
Blanche Hotel and Bond Debt remain on
City Manager's docket
Columbia County, FL (Posted Jan.
23,
2010, at 8:45 am)
by City Manager Wendell Johnson and
staff
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Lake
City, FL (posted Jan. 21, 2010, at 11:15am)
Capt. Rudolph Davis
In the United States, employees without a
written employment contract generally can be
fired for good cause, bad case, or no cause
at all. Florida is an "employment at will"
state. This means an employee in Florida can
be fired -- "because." In Florida it is
established law that no reason has to be
given. An employee can be fired because his
employer just "feels like it."
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Columbia County, FL (posted
January 19, 2010)
by Al
Cimaglia
 I
have been bound to a wheel chair my whole
life and I can assure you that to me and my
wife, who can now only get around in a wheel
chair that ten feet can be like a mile.
Unfortunately, it appears that the local
agency that is responsible for seeing that
the requirements of the ADA are followed,
the city of Lake City, has dropped the ball
and has for years been turning a blind eye
on this whole situation.
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Columbia County, FL (posted
January 19,
2010)
 Anyone
could walk into the new Fort White library
with a gun, a fight could break out, a car
could careen through the front door, a child
could be abducted and no one would be able
to see it. Columbia County's "good ole boys"
approved this plan digging in, never
admitting a mistake. (2
comments)
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Bond Debt and the Blanche
Hotel
take center stage this week
Columbia County, FL
(Posted January 16, 2010)
by City Manager Wendell Johnson and
staff
The bond review continues ... At this
time I am pleased to report the City has a
very favorable position ...
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 Commentary
Posted
January 16, 2010
by Craig Womer
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Former LSHA Chairman, Jack Berry, had no problem
showing his distain for ADA requirements or the
Observer.
Columbia County, FL (posted
January 11, 2010)
Former LSHA Chairman, Jack Berry, along with
his protégé, Columbia County Commissioner,
contractor and LSHA construction manager, Jody
DuPree, didn't much care about the American's
With Disabilities Act during the
renovation of the old county jail, which
became the new and unnecessary headquarters of
the LSHA. The new regime under the leadership of
Chairman Marc Vann is doing a little better, but
not much. (2 comments)
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Columbia County, FL (Posted January 9,
2010)
by City Manager Wendell Johnson and
staff
At the year's first City Council meeting the
Council approved the “Water, Wastewater and
Reclaimed Water Rate Study.” The City Attorney
and Staff are proceeding with the legislative
and public notice activity. The
implementation process should take 90-120 days.
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Columbia County, FL (posted
January 8, 2010)
Columbia County Florida's local
newspaper, the Lake City Reporter, has
violated basic journalistic ethical
standards by accepting a free trip to North
Carolina, paid for by the taxes of the
working families of Columbia County,
sacrificing his
independence and questioning his
integrity. (Photo -
Todd Wilson, LC Reporter publisher)
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Columbia County, FL (posted
January 5,
2010)
 A
Columbia County Commissioner, with benefits,
makes about a thousand dollars a week. Some
folks think that they have a right to know why
their commissioners cannot attend a Board
meeting. If three out of five weren't showing
up, one would think the public has a right to
know where their Commissioners are. Not in
Columbia County.
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Lake City Charter Review Commission
March 9, 2010 06:00 pm City Hall
• Go to
agenda and
legal notice |
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The Columbia County Gov't phone book
•
Get it here - Save it to your desk top and
have all official county phone numbers and
emails at your finger tips
• Use an electron and save a tree
here |
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LSHA - Special Meeting - Feb 17 - 5pm
Interviews for newly created position
•
Go to résumés - new position - Authority
Manager - Article and job description
available now |
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Available for
download or viewing
•
First draft 2009-10
County budget. There are no yearly
comparisons looking backward or forward and this
is not an accident.
This file has been reduced in size
to 121kb for readability, to save space
and for for
dialup download as a service to Observer dial up
readers. While Columbia County is in the stone age of internet
access, the Observer thanks County WebMaster Patrick
Weaver for providing the raw file.
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(posted
July 24, 2009)
It is business as usual in Columbia County as
once again the County web site was behind the
times in getting information on line. Posting
information in timely fashion has been an issue
that the County Manager, Dale Williams, is not a
stranger to and an issue that he has continually
ignored.
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