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Columbia County News
Index of Stories
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Posted February 01, 2011 07:35 am | Part II
Every time a Columbia
County Sheriff's Deputy gets out of his car he may be
putting his life on the line. When a deputy responds to
an incident he depends on his judgment, experience,
common sense, maturity, human decency and training.
Training is the one item that a deputy's boss, Sheriff
Mark Hunter controls. The lack of training, the
inability of this Sheriff to be prepared to deal with
large animal incidents, and his cavalier attitude all
contributed to the purported death of Brandy Emery's pet
horse, Tahoe, on the night of September 5, 2011.
(3
comments)
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Posted
January 30, 2011 03:35 am | Part I
Wednesday
COLUMBIA COUNTY, FL – Columbia County's
track record regarding the inhumane
treatment of animals has reached another new
low. After what many consider the inept,
amateur and idiotic treatment of K-9
Officers by both the Lake City Police
Department and the Sheriff's Office in
Columbia County, the Observer is sorry to
report that the Columbia County Sheriff's
Office this past September, 2011, shot
Brandy Emery's 3 year old pet horse, Tahoe,
which she raised since it was a baby.
(Photo: Somewhere up on the rise on a dark
and rainy night, Brandy Emery's pet horse
was shot by the Sheriff's Office. For weeks,
Ms. Emery was stonewalled by Sheriff Mark
Hunter.)
(3
comments)
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Posted January 27, 2011 05:35 pm
Columbia
County's veteran IT Director, Todd Manning,
tendered his resignation this past Wednesday,
January 25, 2012. Mr. Manning was the man in
charge as the County upgraded its computer
network into the 21st century.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted
November 21, 2011 07:15 am)
It's called a Miracle Field. It is a baseball
field where children of all ages, regardless of
the challenges they face every day can play and
show how special they are. During last
Wednesday's Tourist Development Council meeting,
hotel owner Nick Patel brought to the TDC the
long dormant idea of an ADA baseball field. He
told the TDC, "There is one field that can be
ADA accessible for kids. There are several
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Columbia County, FL (Posted
November 18, 2011 07:45 am)
Allison Megrath, the Project Manager for Plumb
Creek, Florida's largest private land owner,
which owns about a tenth of Florida, explained
to the Columbia County Commission last night
that Plum Creek is on the move at the 550 acre
RACEC site in Columbia County. Ms. McGrath
explained that Plum Creek is presently working
on two projects which would bring almost $200
million dollars of capital investment to
Columbia County, create 350 construction
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Columbia County, FL (Posted October 1, 2011 08:30 am)
Thursday night,
September 29, 2011, Columbia County's handpicked
Charter Review Commission (CRC), met for its
third meeting. Invited to come before the CRC
were the five members of the County Commission.
County Manager Dale Williams added himself to
the agenda. The County Manager's urgent topic,
removing the charter provision, that gives the
public real time free and unfettered access to
the same supporting information used by the
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Columbia County, FL (Posted September 9, 2011 07:50 am)
Everyone visible in the photo works for the County
except for the man seated in the front row. As County
Manager Dale Williams, in dark jacket, presents the
budget, the Board Chairman is headed to the side door.
It is not clear if this was to answer his phone or to
spit.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted August 26, 2011 06:30 am)
The birds came home to roost, as the Charter
Review Commission played to a room devoid of any
members of the public, talked to itself, the
county staff and the media, fifteen minutes
before voting to remove the public's guaranteed
place on future Charter Review Commission
agendas.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted
August 22, 2011 11:45 pm)
Columbia County, after years of wrangling with
the high performing Region 7 Florida Crown
Workforce Board, appeared to have finally made
peace with the other three counties in the four
county Workforce Board region. That was until
the August 18th County Commission meeting, when
the interlocal agreement, which had been
approved weeks ago by the three other counties
in the region, made a sudden...
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 Columbia County, FL (Posted August 18, 2011 07:15 am)
Columbia County's Tourist Development Council is
moving ahead of the curve and has begun
developing a new web site to promote Columbia
County's expanding Southside Sports Complex.
Director Harvey Campbell's team of Paulette Lord
and Brenda Clemente at the TDC offices have
obtained a matching $2,500 advertising grant
from Visit Florida to develop the new sports
marketing website...
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Columbia County, FL (Posted August 4, 2011 08:10 am)
The Columbia
County Economic Development Committee/IDA
continues to muddle along, dragging its feet,
filling each meeting rehashing mostly old
subjects and accomplishing basically nothing.
Yesterday morning's meeting was mostly more of
the same. Months after discovering that it would
have to find an economic development director,
the County continues dragging its feet. The
County's critical partner, the City of Lake
City, is still being treated like a "red-headed
stepchild" and still does not have a seat on the
committee. (Photo: Part of the office door - see
Pos-It)
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 Columbia County, FL (Posted August 1, 2011 08:09 am)
Lake City owns 643 fire hydrants in Columbia
County and 635 hydrants in Lake City. In 2008
Lake City stopped inspecting its fire hydrants
in the County. They didn't tell anybody until
March of 2011. The fear among some professional
firefighters is that the fire department pulls
up to a house in the County, they go to turn on
the fire hydrant and the valve stem breaks loose
because it's rusted or something's ruptured or
broken. City Manager Johnson has not ordered or
begun any inspections or maintenance of its fire
hydrants in the County.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted July 26, 2011 06:05 pm)
| updated 07:55 pm
Major update July 27, 2011 12:16 pm - workers to
be rehired
September 18,
2011 is going to be a sad day in the lives of
the 140 people working at the Target
Distribution Center in Lake City, Florida. ¶ In
a certified letter dated July 12, 2011, Donna L. Nasca, SuperValue's Human Resource Manager notified
Tallahassee of its intention to "cease its
operations and implement a reduction-in-force at
the distribution facility located at 3049 N. US
441, Lake City, Florida..." (Click headlines
to go to articles)
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Columbia County, FL (Posted July 24, 2011 07:30 am)
The Lake City Sliders 16 and under all girl Babe
Ruth Softball Team left Richmond Saturday afternoon
and are headed home.
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Posted July 22,
2011 09:45 am)
After going 0-2
on the first day of competition, the Sliders
have a chance to even things up today. Last
night from Richmond, Wendy Dorhn told the
Observer that the girls had a tough day, getting
blown out in first game 10-0 and were one run
behind in the second game, until
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Tallahassee, FL (Posted July 22, 2011 07:45 pm)
The
Agency for Workforce Innovation’s Chief
Economist, Rebecca Rust, reported on Florida’s
unemployment/employment today. Unemployment in
June 2011 is holding steady at last month’s rate
of 10.6%. Florida now has a classification of
workers, which it calls -- discouraged workers... Ms. Rust said that rate is
8.1%... Applying the discouraged worker
rate to Columbia County’s 10.4% unemployment
makes Columbia County’s unemployment rate 18.5%.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted July 21, 2011
07:00 am)
The Lake City Sliders 16 and under all girl Babe
Ruth Softball Team arrived in Richmond yesterday
afternoon and are hitting the fields today. A
last day fund raising push had the girls meeting
their goal of raising $8000 dollars to pay for
their trip to the regionals in Richmond.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted
July 21, 2011 05:50 am)
Yesterday's unpublicized Columbia County Tourist
Development Council meeting played to a full
house, as County Manager Dale Williams presented
what the County called "Findings of Fact –
Assembly/Events Building. Other than positioning
the Assembly/Events Building along the
interstate, neither specific locations nor the
cost or financing of this project was discussed
with any sort of meaningful detail. (Photo: CM
Dale Williams)
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Columbia County, FL (Posted July 20, 2011 10:45 am)
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(Posted July 18, 2011 11:55 am)
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Columbia County, FL (Posted July 16, 2011 09:30 am)
The Lake City Sliders 16 and under Babe Ruth Girls
Softball Team have made it to the Regionals, an honor
the Sliders have never achieved before. The next
stop could be the World Series. First, they have
to get to Richmond.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted July 15, 2011 07:20
am)
Last night the organization meeting of the
Columbia County Charter Review Commission went
off without a hitch -- almost. Homeless after
all these years, Columbia County does not have a
meeting room to call its own. It wanders from
City Hall, to the School Board Administration
building, to the Lakeshore Hospital Authority,
to the Ag Extension Office or to the library --
sometimes not being able to find any meeting
place at all.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted July 05, 2011 07:05 am
|updated 08:30 am)
| Part I
Tonight, Lake
City’s City Manager, Wendell Johnson, presents
his 3% plan to the City Council. City Manager
Johnson is proposing that the City give only
those city workers in the Florida Retirement
System a 3% raise to make up for the state
imposed mandatory 3% employee contribution,
which went into effect July 1st. The City has
three other employee pension plans. The Observer
spoke with other county officials and
constitutional officers for their ideas on
making up the newly mandated 3% employee
contribution.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted June 23, 2011 01:10
pm)
The Florida Crown Workforce Board wears many
hats. It is the Columbia, Union, Dixie and
Gilchrist Counties unemployment and job training
and retraining center, veterans office, and
gives food stamp assistance and help to folks
that are transitioning out of welfare, teaches
folks how to use computers, has programs for at
risk children and many other things. All
Workforce Boards have one of the most
complicated funding streams of any agencies in
the state. Yesterday afternoon Florida Crown had
a Board/Consortium meeting to approve the FY
2011-12 budget and set policies for the coming
year.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted June 10, 2011 08:29 am)
The Columbia County Chapter of the Florida Farm
Bureau Federation, a federation of farmers, hit
a grand slam home run last night with its 6th
annual Elected Official Appreciation Night
Dinner. Almost every elected politician along
with a few high placed appointed officials from
Columbia County were there to bump shoulders
with their brethren.
When the Florida Farm Bureau Fed. Executive
Director, Kevin Morgan told the assemblage that
2% (the farmers) feed the other 98% of the
population, he very well could have been
speaking about the evening's turn out. (For more
photos and the rest of the story,
go here)
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Columbia
County, FL (Posted June 07, 2011 11:59 pm)
Monday night
June 6, 2011, the Columbia County Planning and
Zoning Board (P&Z) met as the Board of
Adjustment and the P&Z. On the evening's docket
were two issues: The first was to decide if a
landfill was the same thing as a recycling
facility; the second was to change the
designation of 300 acres of agricultural land to
a mixed use district (MUD), a two-year-old
designation that had not been added to the
County's land development regulations. (Photo:
P&Z member Ruffo)
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Columbia
County, FL (Posted May 31, 2011 11:55 pm)
Florida's Governor, Rick Scott, ran on a
platform of economic development. While Gov.
Scott was on the campaign trail he recognized
that Tallahassee was a big part of Florida's
problem. Scott rightly pointed out that in most
areas of the national economic decline Florida
led the way. Hungry for fresh economic
development blood, Gov. Scott went to
Mississippi, lassoed their Director of Economic
Development and brought him to Florida. Last
Monday, May 23, 2011, the president and CEO of
Enterprise Florida, Gray Swoope, appeared at
Enterprise Florida's the Rural Issues Working
Group meeting in Lake City - Really.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted April
28, 2011 02:50 pm)
For the first
time in six months, yesterday afternoon at 3 PM,
the County EMS paramedics, represented by Lance
Hill and the County, represented by outside
council, Mike Grogan, faced off at the
negotiating table. After a series of charges and
counter charges, the sides got down to brass
tacks.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted April 21, 2011 09:40 am)
For years, Columbia County's good ol' boys have
intentionally been running EMS at a deficit. The
County gave away the profitable side of the
ambulance business. They were not straight with
either Lake City or the County residents, never
telling them that EMS could have been run at no
cost to the County.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted April 6, 2011 07:33 am)
On Monday
night, April 4, 2011, the Lake City Council met
for their regularly scheduled City Council
meeting. As the meeting got underway, Mayor Witt
added a discussion item regarding the 911
Combined Communications Center. The County
Commission is scheduled to meet Thursday
evening. On the County's agenda is an item
called, "Combined Communication Center - City of
Lake City Participation." The City. a
partner in the center, had not received any
notice of this item of critical concern for all
the residents of the County.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted March 9, 2011 11:29
am)
Columbia County's recent decision to abolish the
IDA (Industrial Development Authority) and
combine it with a County Economic Development
Board, controlled by the County Commission, has
shown once again that when it comes to economic
development, Columbia County is 20 years too
late. Columbia County's Inland Port, proclaimed
by all community leaders to be the salvation of
the County, is a hoax and a joke. One look at
the signs, which announce to the world that the
port is coming, tells the true story - no one is
paying attention. For weeks, the world has seen
one sign dragging on the ground and the other
all twisted up and "blowin' in the wind" -- both
are unreadable. (Go
to article)
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Columbia County, FL (Posted March 7, 2011 06:20
am)
Time is running out for
Columbia County's Combined Dispatch Center.
After spending millions of dollars, having
multitudes of meetings, watching consultants,
police chiefs and city managers by the handful
come and go, former Sheriff Bill Gootee's dream
of having a fully combined first responders
Communications Dispatch Center in Columbia
County is both a heartbeat away from reality and
edging up to the point of no return.
(Go
to article) (1
comment)
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Columbia County, FL (Posted Feb 11, 2011 10:10 am)
Last
night, former Assistant State Attorney,
KrisAnne Hall, who has become a rock
star for the Constitution, played to a full
house at the
North Central Florida 9-12 Project. Her
topic, "Introduction to the Bill of Rights:
America's Heritage of Liberty." While it
appeared that many had heard Ms. Hall give
this talk before, it made no difference.
They sat hanging on her every word, some
folks with note pads in their laps. (Photo:
Columbia County Observer)
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Columbia County, FL (Posted Jan 26, 2011 08:28 am)
One of
the major lessons learned from the tragedy
on 9/11 was that in times of high emergency,
from the command center to the first
responders and everyone in between,
radio communications
are key. Because of
the recent turmoil caused by the County
Commission and its Chairman, Jody DuPree,
Doug Brown,
the one person in Columbia County, who has
the skill, training, and ability to keep all
communications equipment between the
Combined Communication Center, Lake City and
Columbia County Fire Departments and Police,
in sync and operational, is now unsure on
whose shoulders falls this indispensable
responsibility. (Photo - The User Group)
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Columbia
County, FL (Posted Jan 20, 2011 08:55 am / the
rest of the story at 02:55 pm)
 Commissioner DuPree: The purpose of this
meetin is not to discuss any issues that relate
to a combined dispatch. What it is for is to
set a meetin in the future. The county is going
to give a list of questions that we want to have
answered for the next meeting, so we don't waste
a lot of time. We get to where we need to be
at... our hope is the city in turn has put
together somethin to present to us, the County,
of questions that you all may have as it relates
to the combined dispatch center - so that we can
get answers to them. So that when we come to
the next meeting ... we can move forward.
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Columbia County, Fl (Posted Jan 19, 2011 11:50 am)
In another sorry Columbia County turn of
events, Jack Berry protégé, Commissioner
Jody DuPree, is working hard to keep the
public in the dark, inconvenienced, and out
of step with the official actions of the
Board of County Commissioners. ¶ Columbia
County Sheriff, Mark Hunter, is the third
member of the Executive Committee.
Because it takes two members of the
committee to make a quorum, the meeting
could go on without the Lake City Mayor
present, should Sheriff Hunter support the
County's actions.
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Lake City, Fl
(Posted Jan 17, 2011 12:05 pm and updated
Jan 17 08:35 pm)
At the beginning of the Dr. King Observance, The
Rev Joy L. Gallmon, Pastor of the New Mt. Pisgah
A.M.E. Church, charged the Executive Board
of the N.A.A.C.P. "And all that gathered, on
behalf of the least, the lost and the left
out, not to forget the past... We charge you
to see that Justice will roll down like a
mighty river," she said.
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(Posted
Jan 11, 2011 04:03 pm)
Sgt. Ed
Seifert told the Observer that the Sheriff's
Office is asking the public to be on the
lookout for this man... The incident
occurred on January 2nd between 1:30am and
2:40am and the Sherriff is looking for more
leads...
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Lake City, Fl (Posted Jan 11, 2011 05:30 am)
The Columbia County branch of the NAACP is
gearing up for its annual Martin Luther King,
Jr. observance program scheduled for Sunday,
January 16, 2011. In its 26th year, the
program is scheduled for 4 pm at Mount Pisgah
A.M.E. Church, 924 N.E. Washington Street.
Everyone is invited... (go
to article for more information)
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Columbia
County, FL (Posted Jan 03, 2011 05:05 am)
Like giant praying mantises, the 9 cranes in the
Port of Miami greet the rising sun as South
Florida looks forward to the completion of the
widening of the Panama Canal and its continued
role as the "Cargo Gateway of the Americas."
Columbia County's Inland Port and the hype
surrounding it is at least 15 years too late. (Go
to story)
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 Columbia County, FL (Posted Dec 13, 2010 07:40
am)
State Senator Steve Oelrich (R-Cross Creek) announced
today [Nov. 30] that the annual legislative delegation
hearing for Columbia County has been scheduled for
Thursday, December 16th from 9:00 am until Noon.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted Dec 09, 2010 09:10 am)
With the future of Florida soon to be resting on
his shoulders, the enormity of the Gov Elect's
task ahead seems to have hit home in a moment
between the banter in Ward's Jewelry Store, as
the Gov Elect faces the challenge of a lifetime.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted Nov 29, 2010 07:05 am)
According to Tourist
Development Council Director, Harvey Campbell, trains
will be arriving soon at the Fort White Train Depot.
Three trains are expected, a steam locomotive, a box car
and a caboose.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted Nov 13, 2010 10:49 am)
Commissioner Weaver
thanked the County Commission for their support of the
library. Com Weaver explained that he came from a very
poor family and that his first Library was the magazines
his father borrowed from the barber shop. He explained
his father was a reader.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted Nov 012, 2010 06:55 am)
While the new Columbia County, Fort White Public
Library is not quite ready for prime time, the
Observer has learned that today - Friday,
November 12, 2010, at 10am, there will be a
private dedication ceremony in advance of the
public dedication and grand opening... The Fort
White Public Library is another County building
designed for public assembly without an
automatic fire suppression system.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted Nov 01, 2010 06:00 am)
This past Thursday evening, October 28th, Representative
Debbie Boyd, candidate for State Representative,
District 11, appeared for the last time before the public
in Columbia County to make
her presentation and answer questions. ¶Defending her
seat in the Florida State House, Newberry's "down home
girl" showed the polish of two terms of experience.
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 Columbia County, FL (Posted Oct
31, 2010 06:55 am)
This past Thursday evening, October 28th, Rusty
DePratter, candidate for County Commission Dist. II and
Debbie Boyd, candidate for State Representative District
11 appeared for the last time before the public to make
their presentations and answer questions. ¶Mr. DePratter
shared this thought: "County commissioners work for all
the people, not just the people in their district. I
have friends in all the districts - my goal is to not
let anybody down."
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Columbia County, FL (Posted Oct 28, 2010 010:15 am)
The North Central
Florida 9/12 Project is meeting tonight at 7:00 p.m.
Debbie Boyd, the incumbent, for the District 11 State
Representative and Marc Kazmierski and Rusty DePratter,
candidates for Columbia County Commission, District 2,
will be available to answer your questions.
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 Columbia County, FL (Posted Oct 25, 2010 07:55 am)
Principal Deborah Hill told the Observer, "I saw
that she [the parent] was out of control... I told her
she needed to defuse... She went out to her car. I'm
assuming she called her lawyer..." About ten minutes
passed. A student said, "Here she comes again – round
two." The parent had left her car and was heading toward
Principal Hill's office. A heated conversation ensues.
The staff calls 911... (1
comment)
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Columbia County, FL (Posted Oct 12, 2010 07:15 am)
After 12 years of attending the Town of Fort White
Council meetings, last night Commissioner Dewey Weaver
attended his last one as a County Commissioner.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted Oct 11, 2010 05:55 am)
Thursday evening, October 7, 2010, the Columbia
County Commission officially gave up its three
year battle to destroy or take over one of
Florida's premier workforce boards, Region 7's
award winning Florida Crown Workforce Board. The
takeover battle, begun by Commissioner Stephen
Bailey and ramped into high gear by Commissioner
Jody DuPree, was characterized by Columbia
County's mindless attacks, which demonstrated a
complete misunderstanding of almost all the
issues that related to Florida Crown and
Workforce.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted Sept 02, 2010
10:45 am)
One can only wonder if the same "Court House
Royalty" would have been offended, if they had
come to work and found the word "Nigger" or
"Jew", a Swastika or a burning cross or five
feet of dog crap spread in the same spot as the
five feet of cow dung and paraphernalia, which
included the tomb stone of a former director of
Habitat for Humanity, a mother and daughter of
Columbia
(5 comments)
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Columbia County, FL (Posted
August 30,
2010 09:59 am)
A new
telephone scam is making the rounds in Columbia
County. Several area residents have reported
bogus solicitation calls to the Columbia County
Sheriff’s Office.
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Columbia County, FL (Posted
August 27,
2010 10:49 am)
By Craig
Womer
There is no
one who loves a practical joke more than I do!
There is a time and place for everything and
such a Post Political prank on public property
in front of the Columbia County Court House is
most definitely not the proper place for such a
political display. Whoever approved such a
display... should be fired immediately, or if an
elected official is involved, they should be
removed by the Governor.
|
The candidates and
the numbers in chart/graph format. Sorted alphabetically
by race.¶
The primaries are over and it is now time to get back to
reporting the important news of Columbia County. News
that is generally not available in the "Good Old Boy"
press...
Columbia County, FL (Posted August 25, 2010 11:05
am; updated 03:25 pm)
|
Columbia County, FL (Posted
July 27,
2010 03:30 pm)
On Thursday
evening, July 29th, Neighbors Equine Assistance
Team, "NEAT", is sponsoring a Candidate Forum
for County Commission Candidates from Districts
2 and 4 at the Fort White Community Center...
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Columbia County, FL
(Posted July 18, 2010 02:10 pm)
The Library
developed a Florida Author Series during our
year-long 50th Anniversary Celebration in
2008-2009. The series became very popular and we
have continued it with usually one program per
month... It was fun to see her four year old
daughter respond with expertise when asked,
"Which fork do you use for salads?" (Click the
title to read the story.)
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Columbia County, FL (posted July 15, 2010 09:25 am)
It is unknown if the latest initiative in the
Lake City Hood is going to continue to gain
traction even though funding at any level is
uncertain. For months, a group of local
government officials from various local
governmental agencies, collectively calling
itself Weed and Seed, after the terminated
federal program of the same name, has been
meeting monthly to develop a strategy to clean
up the Lake City Hood. (click title to go to
story)
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Columbia County, FL (posted July 13, 2010 10:30 am)
The Columbia County Federated Republican Women
held a candidate forum last night for the
candidates of House District 11, a seat now held
by Debbie Boyd. Moderator Sherryl Huseonica
asked the candidates a handful of questions,
which unsurprisingly had mainly to do with the
dire economic conditions in which the state now
finds itself...
|
Columbia County, FL
(posted July 06, 2010 07:30 am)
The North Central Florida 9-12 Project
invites you to join them at 7:00
p.m. on July 8, 2010 to hear and ask questions of local
and state candidates. Columbia County Commission
candidates Toby Witt, Mark Kazmierski and Stew Lilker
are scheduled to attend. Also on the 9-12 docket are
Alex Snitker, Libertarian Candidate for the U.S. Senate
and Steve Nelson, candidate for Columbia County School
Board.
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Columbia County, FL
(posted July 5, 2010)
Columbia County's Chamber of Commerce, the Lake
City Reporter and the TDC's Harvey Campbell
worked hard ensuring a memorable Independence
Day celebration for the families and residents
of Columbia County and the surrounding counties
of north central Florida.
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Columbia County, FL
(posted June 28, 2010 11:30 am)
The State operated Driver License office located in
the Florida Highway Patrol building at 1350 W. US Hwy 90
in Lake City is now the West Branch office of the Tax
Collector’s office. All duties relating to the issuance of a Florida
Driver's License or Florida ID card will fall under the
direction of my office at our new West Branch office.
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Columbia County, FL
(posted June 02, 2010 06:35 am)
On Thursday
morning May 27th, at 8:30 am, the biggest dog
and pony show in the history of Florida's
Columbia County took place at the Richardson
Community Center in Lake City. Every past and
present local politician and wannabe showed up
to see, be seen and rub flesh with their
brethren, bringing to mind Rodney King's famous
refrain, "Why can't we all just get along."
|
Columbia County, FL (Posted April 24, 2010 12:35 pm)
Walking in
the footsteps of giants in the history of the
NAACP and America, the 28th annual Columbia
County Branch NAACP Freedom Fund Luncheon went
off without a hitch this past Saturday.
(Photo: These two
youngsters, are looking at a different future, thanks to
those who came before them. Observer Photo)
|
Columbia County, FL
(posted April 21, 2010 09:03 am)
Over a year
after Columbia County Commissioner Jody DuPree
tried to wreck the Florida Crown Work Force
Board, the Florida Crown Affair dragged on
yesterday afternoon, this time in the lap of
outgoing Columbia County Commissioner, Dewey
Weaver, who came to yesterday's meeting
unprepared to divulge Columbia County's issues,
SOP in almost everything in which the good
old boys of Columbia County get involved.
|
Columbia County, FL
(posted April 16, 2010 11:45 am)
The unemployment rate in the
Florida Crown Workforce region (Columbia, Dixie,
Gilchrist, and Union Counties) was 11.2 percent
in March 2010. This was an increase of 3.1
percentage points from the region’s year ago...
(1 comment)
|
Columbia County, FL
(posted April 14, 2010 08:30 am)
Florida
Crown, one of the highest performing
workforce boards in Florida, has been chosen as
one of the two organizations in Florida to
assist youth with disabilities in preparing for
their future and assisting them in securing
meaningful employment... (1
comment)
|
Columbia County, FL
(posted April 8, 2010 04:20 am) (From the
Lake City
Reporter)
Almost two dozen Lake City
residents, living both inside and outside the
Ellisville Utility service area, met Tuesday
night at the Mason City Community Center. Their
stated intention was to form a political action
committee against the county's mandatory
connection ordinance for the Ellisville Utility.
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Columbia County, FL
(posted March 30, 2010 09:45 am)
Late yesterday afternoon the City/County EMS RFP
Review Committee met to approve an RFP (request for
proposal) which would have gone a long way in providing
answers to the long simmering questions between Columbia
County and Lake City regarding the outstanding $750,000
bill and $250,000 yearly payment that the County claims the City owes for EMS
services. The County torpedoed the plan.
|
Columbia County, FL
(posted March 19, 2010 11:50 pm)
At last night's Columbia County Commission meeting it
was apparent once again that Columbia County is being
left behind in the dust trails of yesteryear, as even
the most simple forms of governance leave long time
county commissioner and current Board Chairman, Ronald
Williams, confused and unable to effectively govern,
demonstrating once again that good government has no
place in...
|
Columbia County, FL (posted
March 15, 2010, at 07:55am)
Ms. Langford told the
Observer, "It is my hope and I believe that I
can speak for the rest of the consortium
members, that Columbia County will return to
become a member of the consortium -- I just hope
that they will." ... This Thursday evening, the
Columbia County Commission is scheduled to meet
...
|
Columbia County, FL (posted
February 10, 2010, at 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
|
Columbia
County, FL (Posted Feb 6, 2010 at 02:30pm)
|
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)
|
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
Dec 18, 2009)
For
the past 18 months the Columbia County Commission has
had the opportunity to hold public hearings for fact
finding into the proposed Federal Prison for Columbia
County. Once again, the "good ole boys" have fallen down
on the job, this time leaving it up to the Chamber of
Commerce to get answers to questions that concern the
public. Stew Lilker - Pub/ed
(Go to the
LCR article)
|
Columbia County, FL (posted
Dec 15,
2009)
State
Assemblywoman Debbie Boyd, in a hastily called meeting
at Columbia County IDA headquarters, went on a prison
fact finding mission yesterday morning. In an effort to
get everyone at all levels of government on the same
page regarding the proposed federal prison, Ms. Boyd
invited representatives from the Federal level to the
local level to attend this fact
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Columbia County, FL (posted
Dec 2, 2009)
Now that the truth be
known, the county may wish to change its logo to
read, "Providing Advanced Life Support to
Columbia County for all
residents
and visitors."
For years Columbia County has threatened the City of
Lake City with the elimination of EMS service within the
city limits. Columbia County has bullied and cajoled
both the city and county residents with the threat of
the elimination of these emergency services. Many people
have believed that Columbia County will or has withdrawn
the requirement that the county EMS respond inside the
city limits.
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Columbia County, FL (posted
Dec 1,
2009)
Because good government is everybody's business,
the Columbia County Observer is pleased to announce
its new agenda service... Now, always to be found on
the home page on the top right, in boxes with a
green outline will be meeting dates and links to the
agendas of the meetings that will be of interest to
you.
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The executive director's presentation laid it all out.
Columbia County, FL (posted
November 26,
2009)
The November 17, 2009
Florida Crown Workforce Board meeting looked back at
the previous year's facts and figures; looked forward
into the year ahead; appointed new board members from
the four counties it serves and saw the Consortium
approve the revised budget without the distraction of
Columbia County, who, after months of distraction,
voluntarily withdrew its membership earlier this year.
Part of the mission of Florida Crown is to act as the
state unemployment office for the four county region.
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Columbia County, FL (posted
November 20,
2009)
By
the conclusion of the November 18th city/county
sit-down, it was clear that after four months on the
job, Lake City's new straight talking City Manager,
Wendell Johnson has found his sea legs, proven that he
is a quick study and shown that he is a manager who can
and will take advantage of the talents of his staff. At
Wednesday night's city/county sit down, it was the City
Manager who took center stage.
|
Columbia County, FL (posted
November 17,
2009)
Florida
Crown Workforce Board, Inc is sponsoring a Stand Down
for Homeless Veterans on Friday 11/20/09 from 9:00 am to
3:00pm at the Lake City National Guard Armory located at
490 NW Lake Jeffery Rd, Lake City, Florida.
|
Columbia County, FL (posted
November 02,
2009)
It was obvious that County
Manager Williams was looking to score Mr. Manning
some cash.
Columbia County's County Manager, Dale Williams, is
flying by the seat of his pants, once again. In another
ploy to part the working families of Columbia County of
their hard earned tax dollars, the County has violated
plain common sense by scheming to pay a county employee
$75.00 an hour as an outside contractor to do the job he
has always done as a regular county employee.
|
The Old Tobacco Barn welcomes one into the hood in
Commissioner Ronald Williams' District I. The graffiti
has been on this building for years -- tolerated in the
hood and announcing to all "need drugs -- welcome." A
car from the understaffed Sheriff's patrol division
rolls by the welcome sign.
Columbia County, FL (posted
October 29,
2009)
By Stew Lilker
The Observer spoke with many folks who lived in hood
and some that have moved out.
Escapee: It
is a problem that nothing can be done about. When you
arrest the ones that are out there, it seems there are
more to take their place. The thing is they don't ever
arrest the people that supply it. They get the people
that are out on the street, but that's not where it is
coming from. They are not the source.
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Columbia County, FL (posted
October 28, 2009)
Florida Crown Workforce Board (FCWB), one of
the top performing workforce boards in Florida,
has been awarded a $402,000 Wings Grant. This
grant, funded through
ARRA will help move the rural North
Florida counties of region seven into the 21st
century.
|
Columbia County, FL (posted
October 27,
2009)
On Monday morning, October 26th, Columbia County
district III Commissioner, Jody DuPree, convened a
hastily called summit to discuss the ever-present
and continuing drug and related problems in the Lake
City area...
Com DuPree said, "I've been gettin a lot of calls
and complaints about drug activity, prostitution and
all kinds of stuff over here. It's gettin to where
it's gettin to be a pretty serious thing...
The State Attorney was not invited.
|
Columbia County, FL (posted
August 20,
2009)
By Stew Lilker
 It appeared that no one from the
County had ever seen a city budget. If they had -- they
weren't talking.
|
Columbia County, FL (posted
August 17,
2009)
Columbia County’s Tax Collector, Ronnie Brannon has
been working in the tax collector’s office since 1986.
Before that he had twenty three years experience in
retail, which explains his and his staff’s concentration
on service.
Mr. Brannon explained his success in the Tax
Collector’s Office this way. “You have to have a staff
dedicated to serving the public and I have a good one.”
|
Columbia County, FL (posted July 29,
2009)
The
July 23, 2009
North Central Florida 9-12 meeting began
with another packed house as President Tawnya
Means spoke about Thomas Jefferson and the
Founding Fathers. Ms. Means told the group,
“It’s up to us to become an educated
electorate.”
|
Columbia County, FL (posted July 2,
2009) Part II
By Stew Lilker
The Bureau's Issac Gaston address the small crowd as the hearing
began. Columbia County's Good Old Boy effort to keep the meeting
under wraps paid off as only a few of the over 70,000 residents
showed up for the meeting. Those that did attend stated that
next time they would be there with their friends.
The June 30, 2009, public meeting sponsored by the US
Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons
(“Bureau”) ran without a hitch. Mr. Issac Gaston from
Bureau’s Site Selection and Environmental Review Branch
welcomed everyone to the meeting and explained the site
review process. Mr. Gaston said that the Bureau welcomed
everyone’s comments and encouraged folks to participate
in the Environmental Impact Statement (“EIS”) process.
|
Columbia County, FL (posted
June 30, 2009 at 2:31 p.m.) Part I
Part II
By Stew Lilker
Florida’s most secretive County
Government remained true to form in doing what it does
best -- keeping the public in the dark. For a year,
County Manager Dale Williams and the County Commission
have been involved in discussions with a specialty
investment-banking firm that specializes in providing
long-term financing to its clients through the issuance
of municipal bonds.
Columbia County wants to
house 2500 illegal aliens in the County. It is
impossible to know when they were going to tell you.
|
Columbia County, FL (posted
June 18, 2009)
The legendary Dixie County
Commissioner and FCWB member, Ralph Tyre, attempts to
get
some answers from Columbia County's Consortium delegate,
Commissioner Stephen Bailey.
Columbia County was still playing it close to the
vest as Mr. Tyre continued to search for answers from
Columbia County.
|
Columbia County, FL (posted June 17,
2009)
The June 15th FCWB meeting
played to a packed house. In the right
foreground is vice chair, Alonzo Philmore.
The June 15, 2009 Florida Crown Workforce Board
“FCWB” meeting played to a full house, but the real
action occurred during the Consortium meeting which
followed.
|
Chairman Bailey reads from a
prepared script.
Columbia County, FL (posted
May 26, 2009)
The Florida Crown Affair took another twist in
Columbia County at the May 21, 2009 County Commission
meeting. Operating on the fringes or outside the law is
nothing new for Columbia County and they did not
disappoint at the May 21st commission meeting, proving
once again that operating in the shadows and surprising
the public is what they do best.
|
Columbia County, FL (posted May 20,
2009)
By Kari Doro ((Special to the Observer)
A highlight of the recent 25th Annual Florida
Literacy Conference was the presentation of the Florida
Literacy Awards given annually to outstanding
individuals, businesses and organizations making
significant contributions to adult and family literacy.
Kaye Johnson accepted the award for Florida Crown
Workforce Board.
The Conference was sponsored by the
Florida Literacy
Coalition, Florida’s Adult and Family Literacy Resource
Center. The May 7th Awards Banquet was held at the Belleview
Biltmore Hotel in Clearwater.
The Florida Literacy Coalition recognized Lake City based
Florida Crown Workforce Board
as the recipient of the Outstanding Business Partner
Award. This award honors a company or business partner
for leadership or significant contributions in support
of literacy at the local, regional or state level.
|
Columbia County, FL (posted
May 4, 2009)
The Friday night, May 1st
9-12 Project monthly meeting played to a full house
at the Vineyard Church in Lake City. Over a hundred
people attended the meeting with folks coming from
Alachua, Suwannee and Gilchrest counties, as well as
Columbia County. Those in attendance came from all walks
of life and varying educational backgrounds: air
conditioning mechanics, school teachers, salesman,
professionals, retired folks and even a former Wisconsin
Magistrate.
|
Columbia County, FL (posted
April 16, 2009)
County Manager (“CM”) Dale Williams explained some of
the Columbia
 County
Commission issues with the FCWB:
Does my board have some issues?
Absolutely. Are they adamant in their issues?
Absolutely. They’ve got some things that even I don’t
know. We are not so bad that we will not take your
money. When you talk about the money that you do have
some latitude in distribution, they believe they have a
legal right to help determine how that money is
distributed. They believe that the budgets are supposed
to be approved in a certain legal fashion and currently
they are not.
Someone asked the County Manager, “In what way are
they not being legally approved?”
|
Columbia County, FL (posted
April 15, 2009)
The Columbia County Commission, long known for among
other things, rudeness and flying by the seat of its
pants was dealt a blow by long time constitutional
officer, Clerk of the Courts, the Honorable P. DeWitt
Cason, when he refused to sign two ordinances which were
not available for public inspection for the time
required by the Florida Statutes.
|
Columbia County, FL (posted
April 15, 2009)
Part II • The Columbia County Position • (coming tomorrow -
April 16th)
By Stew Lilker
The Florida Crown Workforce Board
packed their board room in preparation of a joint
meeting with the County Commission, which was once again
cancelled at the 12th hour.
On Thursday, April 9th, Florida Crown Workforce Board
(“FCWB”) Chairman, Larry Thompson, opened what was
scheduled to be the planning session for the 6 p.m.
joint Columbia County -- FCWB meeting.
|
Columbia County, FL (posted
March 23, 2009)
By Stew Lilker
Photo: Florida Crown meets
for its quarterly meeting. At the end of the table are
Executive Director,
John Chastain (left) and Larry Thompson (right) Chairman
of the Board.
This past Thursday, March 19th at 4:00pm,
Florida Crown
Workforce Board met for their quarterly meeting at
their headquarters in Lake City. The presentation of the
annual independent audit report gave the Workforce Board
a clean bill of health and the Executive Director’s
report was packed with information. At the end of the
meeting, Board Chairman Larry Thompson went over the
issue that is on everybody’s mind, the Columbia County
Board of Commissioners.
|
|
|
Columbia County – Will it build a Miracle Field where
all the children can play?
Plum Creek on the move in Columbia County
County
Charter Under Attack - County Manager looks to
strip internet access of meeting material
Columbia County's 1st Budget
Hearing
Columbia County Charter Review Commission meets: 70,000
residents - Not one shows up
Columbia County vs. Florida Crown Workforce Board: Here
we go again?
Columbia County Economic Development: Will Lake City
continue as the "red-headed step child?"
AWI weighs in with Florida's Unemployment figures
$10 – $20 – $30 Million? Financing Unclear
Florida
Crown Workforce Board approves $2,443,281 baseline
budget
Columbia County:
Florida's Economic Development Czar Came to Columbia
County - Really
Columbia County - EMS Union Face Off
Columbia County
Economic Development Blowin' in the wind - 20 years too
late
"We charge you to see that
Justice will roll down like a mighty river."
Sexual Battery Suspect Wanted in Columbia
County
NAACP Observance Program -
Sunday
Columbia
County's invitation only library dedication a success
Part
II – Rep Debbie Boyd
Boyd challengers quizzed by
opens new office
today
Florida
Crown on top again
Soon everybody will be a winner
(from the Lake City Reporter)
Observer
begins new agenda service
City Manager
Wendell Johnson takes
Florida Crown
sponsors 
Com DuPree steps up to plate
Ronnie Brannon County Tax Collector says