The Newscaster/Nature Coast News
PAGE 11 - August 25, 2010
Letter to the Editor:
Editorial - Opinion - Commentary
Re: WE NEED TO GIVE OUR ZONING OFFICER MORE POWER
Capitol City Bank has put up a sign on the Citgo Property without a permit. I
informed George Obeir (zoning officer) and Mayor Lake over a month ago about this and
From Yankeetown Town Hall
other signs that have been popping up in our town that are not in compliance with our zoning
code.
A Guest Commentary by Yankeetown Mayor Dawn Clary
At the last commission meeting Mayor Lake stated he would have the sign re-
Thanks to a scholarship, granted to Yankeetown by the Suwannee River League
moved the next day. Well it's been another 2 weeks and still the sign remains up. It seems,
of Cities, I was able to attend the Florida League of Cities 84th Annual conference in Hol-
that if you donate more to the city, the same rules do not apply.
lywood last week. The theme was “Creating Community in Tough Times”. Mayor’s and
To enforce code violation, Mr. Obier must give a written notice, then form a zoning
Council members from many of Florida’s more than 400 cities attended. For those of you
board, and they can levy a fine. All of this costs the city money, with having lawyers and
who are not familiar, the Florida League of Cities is an advocacy organization that repre-
such.
sents municipal interests to the legislation and also offers many support services to munici-
I propose we back our zoning official with stronger regulations so he can issue a
pal governments. Yankeetown is a member of the FLC and but only recently joined the Su-
ticket for non conformance, and in 30 days it goes before a Levy County judge. This is the
wannee River League, a regional sub group, at the urging of Councilman Doug Dame. Mr.
way it is done in the county. In 30 days the problem would be solved, not in months.
Dame attends the meetings which can be as far away as Lake City.
Another alternative would be that the Inglis police can issue a citation upon the
The conference’s focus was on learning, promoting networking and idea sharing.
zoning official's recommendation (they do have the authority according to Inglis regula-
They held numerous workshops, roundtable discussions and candidate forums. I attended
tions). If all this is not acceptable, Levy County should take over the duties of code enforce-
the group’s committee meetings on “Energy and Environment quality” which was an inter-
ment of the City of Inglis.
esting discussion of oil drilling in the gulf in light of the recent spill. The need to encourage
James Zaloga, Inglis
alternate energy such as solar was promoted. I went to their committee meeting on “Growth
Management and Transportation”. Although I am not a member of any of their committees,
Levy Sheriff Dept. Replaces Vehicles in Fleet
I enjoyed hearing the diverse and insightful comments. There was also a lot of information
on the up coming ballot questions.
There were a lot of uplifting speeches and workshops that encouraged us to be in-
From the Levy County Sheriff Dept.
novative in dealing with the tougher times and think outside the box to solve problems. The
Levy County Sheriff Johnny Smith announced the purchase of 6 vehicles as part
keynote speaker, John Avlon, Author and Senior political Columnist, for the Daily Beast,
of the Sheriff’s Office Fleet replacement plan. The vehicles being replaced range in mileage
spoke on the divisiveness, meanness and polarization of the current political climate and
from 100,000 to 150,000 miles. Sheriff Smith says, “The replacement of these vehicles is
called on everyone to promote civility, research and education.
vital for our deputies’ safety, which is paramount to me. One of these cars is down with a
One of the unexpected fun things was the vendor exhibits. If you were Christmas shopping
failed transmission.”
for a town, that was the place to be. Everything from street signs, Christmas decorations,
The K-9 replacements will be Chevrolet Tahoe’s that will be purchased through a
water consultants, environmental consultants and garbage disposal companies were offered.
State contract price. The K-9 vehicles are four- wheeled drive and they will be equipped
If I ever go again, I’m going to have T-shirts printed up that have a map of Florida
with an alarm system that will warn the deputy if the vehicle overheats, which could be fatal
with Yankeetown’s location on it. I got asked so many times “where is Yankeetown?” but
to the K-9 dogs. These vehicles will also have automatic door openers, which give the of-
then again, maybe not. We are definitely a well kept secret, maybe its best that way. Good
ficer the added safety ability to release the K-9 with a remote. The current K-9 vehicles do
Night and Good Luck, Dawn Marie Clary, Mayor of Yankeetown
not allow for the transport of prisoners. The new K-9 vehicles will have that ability. This
Volunteers needed At Community Center
will eliminate the need for another officer to respond and transport.
The other two vehicles being replaced will go to the Criminal Investigation Divi-
The Inglis community center is looking for individuals that would be willing to
sion. In April 2010 Investigator Tom Martin was responding to a burglary in progress in
donate two hours a week Monday through Friday from 3:00PM to 5:00PM to oversee the
Fanning Springs, when someone pulled out in front of him causing him to crash and totaled
children using the computers for schoolwork. No computer knowledge is requaired, we
his car that had only 29,000 miles. The driver of the other car was cited for the crash and
just need adult supervision. Please call Drinda Merritt at 447-3585
also found guilty in traffic court. The Sheriff’s Office has not received any money from the
Computer Class Beginning
driver’s insurance company, and is currently in arbitration. Martin’s replacement vehicle is
A new computer class will start at 6:00pm September 8, 2010 at the Inglis Com-
being purchased at a cost to the taxpayers of only $700. The majority of funding for this
munity Center. This class is for anyone wishing to learn how to use a computer from the
replacement is from seized and auction vehicles that were sold at a public auction.
ground up. If you have a laptop or net-book please bring it, if not we have twelve computers
The second replacement is in the Criminal Investigation Division. This vehicle
available for use in the class. For Information please call 447-3585
was a four wheel drive that had over 150,000 miles. It is being replaced with a four wheel
drive truck.
Listen to Inglis Town Commission Meetings
Sheriff Smith say’s “that in strategically planning for future needs of our fleet,
consideration was given to the geographical lay out of our county in addition to the threats
Now available on: http://thenewscaster.com
facing us as a coastal county and it only makes sense to move toward vehicle replacement
Go to the video page
with four wheel drive capabilities.
R&M
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Captains Cove Outfitters
Computers dot Com
Todd Sumlin
39 W. Highway 40 - Inglis, Florida
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(352) 447-5610, 283-0492 or 283-0493
www.CaptainsCoveOutfitters.com
Tim Wyland, Certified Professional Technician
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