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Local News

  • Commission wants 7% off the top

    The chipping away at the Levy County general fund in the 2011-12 tentative budget continued Tuesday and some pointed remarks were directed at one constitutional officer who has refused to go along with the recommended cut of 7 percent.
    Sheila Rees presented the Board of County Commissioners with the tentative budget of $55,340,678 for the fiscal year that starts Oct. 1. Included is $22,242,263 in general revenue fund spending, which has property taxes as its largest source of funding.

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  • Judge denies Tarmac motion to dismiss petition

    The Town of Yankeetown's petition to overturn a conditional permit for a 2, 757 acre limerock mine on 4,750 acres near Inglis is alive after Tarmac's motion to dismiss was denied by Circuit Judge Robert E. Rountree Jr.
    In a short morning hearing the judge also granted a request to move a hearing on whether Yankeetown has standing to file the petition for certiorari from Wednesday until Aug. 8. While only an hour was requested for the second hearing, Rountree said, "Knowing how many lawyers we have here I'll set aside two hours."

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  • Garbage expense could offset sewer costs

    Bronson Town Council members voted unanimously Monday night to move forward with paperwork concerning a federal grant that would aid in the construction of the town's proposed sewer expansion project, though council members and staff expressed disappointment about the preliminary amounts being offered in the deal.
    "At the time we got this ..." Town Clerk Kelli Brettel started to say.
    "It looked bleek," Council Member Berlon Weeks said, finishing her statement.

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  • School Board wrestles with the budget

    Levy schools Finance Director Bob Clemmons says dealing with the 2011-12 budget is a bit “like standing on the edge of the Grand Canyon and looking down.”
    Clemmons, in a presentation on Tuesday to the Levy County School Board, outlined the factors that have made this year’s budget the most precarious one he has handled.
    • Declining property tax and state revenues combined with the unfunded mandate of the 2002 Class Size Reduction Amendment to the Florida Constitution is forcing the school board to make steep cuts.

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  • Negotiations open for public safety director

    A man who has lived among the Seminole tribe and said he liked the experience is the top candidate for the newly created Levy County public safety director position.
    David Knowles, a native of Hawthorne and a captain with the Citrus County Fire Rescue, is the No. 1 pick for the position after the Levy County Commission spent over three hours interviewing six finalists.
    As emergency services administrator for the Seminole Tribe of Florida from 2001-2003 Knowles and his family lived on the Big Cypress reservation.

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  • SRWMD approves tentative millage rate and budget

    The Suwannee River Water Management District Governing Board on July 12 approved a tentative fiscal year 2011-12 budget of $47,124,589 and proposed millage rate of 0.4250. The tentative budget represents a 17 percent reduction over last year’s budget and the tentative millage rate reflects a 3 percent reduction over last year’s millage rate.
    Under the proposed millage rate, those who own property with a taxable value of $100,000 will pay $42.50 in property taxes to the District. Owners of property with a taxable value of $150,000 will pay $63.75 to the District.

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  • FDOT Road and Lane Closures for July 16 – 22, 2011

    The following is a list of roadwork underway by the FDOT that may impact traffic.
     
    ALACHUA COUNTY:
     
    Interstate 75 Northbound traffic is shifted to the west just south of the interchange because of the addition of a barrier wall on the east side of the project. The speed limit is reduced to 60 mph around the clock and the truck restrictions are lifted from three miles south of the interchange to just north of SR 26 encouraging semi-trucks to use the far left lane as well as the center lane.

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  • Fanning dye trace in the works

    What do you get when you mix fertilizer and waste from both humans and farm animals in the Suwannee Basin?
    These ingredients are known to devastate water quality. Just ask anyone who’s ever had a fish tank but neglected to siphon out the waste or fix a broken filter. The fish don’t live long.
    The geology in the Suwannee Basin, known as karst topography, is kind of like a broken filter. It’s so full of holes the water makes its way from the surface to the aquifer in record time, carrying all sorts of nasty stuff with it.

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  • Free entry Sunday at State Parks

    Celebrate National Recreation and Parks Month with free day-use entry into all state parks on Sunday, July 17.

    The Chiefland area has two state parks: Manatee Springs State Park and Fanning Springs State Park.

    Bring your bathing suit and take a dip in the springs or walk the trails. Have a picnic.

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  • Balloting ends in Readers’ Choice Awards

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