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Chiefland volunteers helped each child pick out special gifts for their family members.

GAINESVILLE – The fifth annual Kids’ Holiday Shopping Night, hosted by Haven Hospice, brought smiles to more than 200 children at the organization’s Attic resale stores in Gainesville on Dec. 6, in Lake City on Dec. 11 and Chiefland on Dec. 13. Participating children enjoyed the opportunity to purchase presents for parents, grandparents and siblings, using “Santa Bucks” provided by the Attic.

Children were treated to a free photo with Santa, gift wrapping and refreshments, which helped many families who are financially struggling during the holiday season. Area businesses such as Toys for Tots, Dollar General, Family Dollar and Wal-Mart supported the effort.

“We are thankful to all the Haven staff, donors and volunteers who participated,” said Michael Morse, vice president of organizational advancement for Haven Hospice, “as well as the countless individuals in the community who generously support the Attic stores with their donations and purchases. Their support goes a long way toward helping the families and communities we serve.

All sales at the Haven Hospice Attic Resale Stores directly benefit Haven Hospice patients and their families, as well as those served by community programs such as Camp Safe Haven for children who have experienced a loss.

In 2011, the Attic stores provided $559,000 to directly support Haven’s unfunded programs and services.

For more information about the Haven Hospice Attic Resale Stores, call 352-378-7484. Haven Hospice is a not-for-profit community hospice organization providing services since 1979 and licensed in Florida since 1980. For more than 30 years Haven has served more than 60,000 patients and families in North Florida. For more information, visit www.havenhospice.org or call 800-727-1889.

Over 50 groups participated in the 35^th annual Alachua Christmas Parade this past Saturday. The parade’s theme of “Alachua’s Legacy: Our Children” was in evidence as a variety of youth organizations, including Alachua Girl Scout Troop 282, marched down Main Street, waving to the crowds and tossing candy to youngsters.

ALACHUA – Saturday afternoon’s overcast skies and threatening rain were no match for the excitement and buzz of activity in downtown Alachua. With the city’s annual Christmas parade slated to begin at 2 p.m., crowds began gathering early along Main Street in spite of the gloomy forecast.

This year’s parade theme of “Alachua’s Legacy: Our Children” offered participants a seemingly infinite range of ideas to use in decorating the colorful floats that lined up at the top of Main Street. The parade is a partnership between the Alachua Chamber of Commerce and the City of Alachua, and this marked the parade’s 35^th year.

Starting at 2 p.m. the series of floats, people, cars and an assortment of animals, including horses, dogs, donkeys and llamas, headed down Main Street as hundreds of excited spectators perched on street curbs and folding chairs waited for the show.

Former Alachua commissioner Orien Hills, who served as the parade’s Grand Marshal, headed up the procession of 50-plus registered parade entries.

This year’s parade featured a float design contest with prizes for not-for-profit and for-profit entries. As each participant reached the intersection of Main Street and NW 148^th Place at the flashing yellow light, they paused under the watchful eyes of parade judges who jotted down scores.

Announcing each parade entry as they passed by, City of Alachua Commissioner Ben Boukari, Jr. served as the Master of Ceremonies. Along with Boukari was Alachua recreation director Hal Brady and chamber of commerce member Gussie Lee, who joined in engaging participants in good natured banter as they passed through the intersection.

Waiting in anxious anticipation for the candy that is traditionally tossed from parade participants, excited children lined the street. Red and white striped candy canes, green and red peppermints and a variety of other colorful candy were soon in the hands of youngsters who dashed from their perches to retrieve the sweets.

This year’s parade saw its share of elected officials participate. Alachua County Sheriff Sadie Darnell took her usual spot near the front of the parade walking alongside Alachua Chief of Police Joel DeCoursey. Alachua County Commissioner Lee Pinkoson made the trek on foot, handing out candy along the parade route. And a familiar face in the parade was Clovis Watson, Jr., who has appeared in a number of his hometown parades. This difference this time is his new role as State Representative for Florida House District 20. Also walking along the parade route was Florida’s District 3 Congressman-elect Ted Yoho.

To the delight of spectators, the parade lasted nearly an hour. And unquestionably, the crowd’s favorite appeared at the end of the parade. Perched high atop a fire truck and dressed in his trademark red suit, a jolly Santa delivered a hearty “ho-ho-ho” and a “Merry Christmas” before dashing off.

While the parade may have been over, float judges David Pope, Linda Chapman and Eva Copeland still had a tough task at hand as they continued deliberating their decision for the float decorating contest. In the for-profit category, first place went to Matchmaker Realty, second place to Alarion Bank and third place to Lee’s Preschool. In the non-profit category, first place went to the Santa Fe Raider Marching Band, second place to River of Life Church and third place to the Hare Krishna Temple.

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GAINESVILLE – After a vote by the Alachua County Commission, the controversial Archer Braid Trail project will run through Haile Plantation. The board ultimately approved the construction of the Haile Plantation portion of the trail and a quarter-mile portion of an existing trail.

The Archer Braid Trail is proposed to run from the City of Archer through University of Florida campus and will connect with existing trails. Construction for the Haile Plantation phase of the trail will begin in fall 2013.

The Haile Plantation portion has caused controversy among some subdivisions residents. A poll was held for those residents to decide whether or not they favored the trail portion in their neighborhood. However, when deciding on the county’s plans for infrastructure, the public’s vote is not binding.

In order to meet the Florida Department of Transportation deadline set for March and keep funding, county commissioners had to reach a decision on plans for the trail.

The county, through a local agency partnership agreement with the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) will manage the Haile Plantation phase of the project. This phase does not contain bicycle or pedestrian pathways.

The first phase of the Archer Braid Trail project that runs along SR 24 from Archer to SW 91^st street will be completed by the FDOT, said county transportation planning manager Jeff Hays.

The Haile Plantation trail segment will run for 2.2 miles. While a typical sidewalk is around 6-feet wide; the new sidewalk will be 8-to 10-feet wide said Hays. The trail will run along the portion of Haile Plantation from SW 91st Street and SW 46th Boulevard, and will cost $750,000.

The rationale behind building the Haile Plantation segment is due to its status as a large population center, and “People will have access to local attractions without having to get in their cars,” he said.

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Police say one man held High Springs woman at gunpoint

 ALACHUA – Two Georgia men on the run from federal law enforcement officials were arrested in Alachua Sunday, Dec. 9.

One of the men was arrested following an alleged attempted kidnapping in which he held a woman at gunpoint outside of the Alachua Branch Library.

Shortly after noon on Sunday, police say 36-year-old Donald Mac Brown of Conyers, Georgia got out of his white Ford F-150 truck at the Alachua library and jumped into an open window of a parked Dodge Durango. In the driver’s seat of that SUV was a 44-year-old High Springs woman who began screaming after Brown brandished a .38-caliber handgun, which he held to her head.

While still partially hanging out of the vehicle, Brown reportedly ordered the woman to begin driving. He also tried to cover her mouth in an attempt to silence her, but the woman continued screaming and drawing attention to herself according to police records. After Brown continued demanding that the woman drive, she put the Dodge into gear and ultimately ran over a parking space curb. Police believe that spooked Brown who then fled the scene on foot into a nearby wooded area.

Upon hearing of the incident moments later, Alachua Police Department (APD) officers, along with the assistance of the Florida Highway Patrol and the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office, set up a perimeter around the area in search of Brown.

A short time later, Brown entered the Chevron gas station on U.S. 441 across from Alachua Elementary School and police say they saw him as he exited the convenience store and attempted once again to flee into the nearby wooded area. As a foot chase ensued, APD Sergeant Carl Newsome saw Brown pull out a handgun and drop it. Police were able to catch Brown.

Earlier that day, Alachua Police received a telephone call from 57-year-old David Crawford, also of Conyers, Georgia. Crawford told police that there was a warrant out for his arrest and he wanted to turn himself in to authorities. He asked police to meet him at a local restaurant and upon arriving, they verified his identity and that Crawford was indeed a wanted man. After placing him under arrest, they found a .357-caliber revolver concealed under his jacket.

Crawford and Brown are related by marriage according to police. The two men had been on the run since at least Dec. 5 when bulletins seeking them were issued in the Conyers, Georgia area.

Both men were wanted on pending child molestation charges.

Alachua Police Chief Joel DeCoursey said the men headed south on Interstate 75 and exited in Alachua to get fuel. They ultimately stayed in the area for three days. Crawford and Brown were camping out of their truck in a field along County Road 241 and believed to be less than a mile south of Irby Elementary School.

DeCoursey said that when police contacted the U.S. Marshalls Office to inform them of the arrests, officials there were surprised the men were taken alive. DeCoursey said at least one of the men apparently said he would not be taken alive and would not go back to jail.

APD Spokesman Jesse Sandusky said after impounding the Ford truck being driven by the men, police found multiple guns and knives inside.

They arrested Crawford on the outstanding warrant, but also charged him with carrying a concealed weapon. He’s being held in the Alachua County jail on a $35,000 bond.

Brown was charged with attempted kidnapping, armed burglary, resisting arrest without violence and tampering with evidence. He’s currently being held in Alachua County Jail on a $50,000 bond.

Upon extradition, both men are expected to face the pending molestation charges in Georgia.

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GAINESVILLE – In a move that’s sure to disappoint some locals, the opening of the temporary Plaza Ice Palace, in Gainesville’s Bo Diddley Community Plaza, has been cancelled.

The Gainesville rink was previously scheduled to open around Thanksgiving. However, due to technical difficulties, the opening of the rink was postponed and then cancelled.

The company ran into a number of technical difficulties with cutting down the pipes and the tubing necessary to chill the ice, said Russell Etling, Cultural Affairs program coordinator for the city's Department of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs.

“Both sides were very disappointed that it did not work out because we wanted to provide something for the holiday season,” he said.

Midwest Display, Inc. was in charge of running the ice rink. The City of Gainesville had previously managed its own ice rink in 2007 and earlier, but was unable to continue managing a rink due to financial considerations, Etling said.

The company had approached the city to install the rink, and the city would have received 10 percent of the revenue from ticket sales. The fee to enter the ice rink would have been $10 per hour with a skate rental, Etling said.

The delays after Thanksgiving had caused the company to miss a key time of attendance, especially for students attending college. For next year Etling said the vendor expressed an interest in trying again.

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NEWBERRY – Frozen Berry Self-Serve Frozen Yogurt was awarded an economic development sponsorship to become a new addition to Newberry’s commercial district.

“It’s not a lot of money I’m saving, but when you are starting your own business every little bit helps,” said Jason McGehee, store owner.

McGehee’s business on the corner of US 27/41 and SW 4^th Avenue is the same concept as Mochi, but with a twist. It’s local, not franchised.

“I don’t want to be told what I can and can’t do,” he said. “I would rather start my own brand.”

The sponsorship waives the application fees for new businesses that meet the city’s vision for small firms that will maintain a clean environment, suitable infrastructure and compatible land use. McGehee will use the funds he was able to save to update the building and landscaping.

This economic development sponsorship is an experiment to see whether or not it is actually a suitable tool to develop the economy, said Lowell Garrett, the City of Newberry’s planning director.

About 50 businesses have applied for the sponsorship, and 11 of them have been approved. With the exception of one or two, these businesses will be located in the commercial sector, bolstering the downtown area and keeping it vibrant.

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