ALACHUA – Alachua’s City Commission ratified the Alachua Police Department’s bargaining agreement during Monday’s commission meeting.

The 2012-2013 agreement states that Gator Lodge 67 will represent the police department as the unit’s bargaining representative.

The Alachua Police Department Bargaining Unit ratified the contract on Dec. 3 in a unanimous vote. The contract will last until September 2013.

The 2012-2013 contract is similar to last year’s contract with only a few changes. In the previous contract, police officers with take-home vehicles were only allowed to take their vehicles home if they lived within 20 miles of the police station.

The new contract states that officers will be allowed to drive their assigned vehicles to and from their residence as long as they live within Alachua County.

The new contract also provides for a one-time additional wage payment before Dec 31. The payment will be equal to 2 percent of the officer’s existing base pay.

Commissioner Ben Boukari said he was grateful for both the City and the police department.

“I know this process can be lengthy,” he said. “I want to thank the folks on both sides.”

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HIGH SPRINGS – The High Springs City Commission dispatched a 23-item agenda in under four hours on Thursday, Dec. 13, 2012. As the only commission meeting during the month of December, the agenda was packed with a variety of issues that normally might have been dispersed between two or more meetings.

Both outgoing Interim City Manager Lee Vincent and newly-appointed City Manager Edwin Booth were on hand for the meeting, with Booth receiving more than his fair share of items on which to research, address and report back to the commission.

Possible uses of the city’s old school building, which related to at least three agenda items, was tabled to allow Booth and City Attorney Scott Walker time to research how the initial grant funds were intended to be used as part of the restoration of the old school building. Following the research, Booth is to provide a master use plan to the commission for consideration. An item on the agenda for the past few meetings, which is a request to allow Zumba classes to be held at the old school building, will be delayed until the commission approves a master use plan for the building.

Another item referred to the new city manager is notifying USDA Rural Development that the City does not intend to continue with Phases 4 and 5 of the wastewater system. Booth is to discuss the issue with USDA to see what is required from the City. If, at that time, it is determined that a letter is required, Booth will contact Walker to prepare the appropriate notification.

Following discussion of pollution control measures for stormwater runoff for James Paul Park, Booth is to contact the Florida Department of Transportation to determine if they have any intention of addressing the issue. Booth will also obtain costs for soil testing in the park and report back to the commission with his findings and associated costs.

Booth also was tasked with addressing the needs of the City Clerk’s department. Commission minutes were delayed earlier in the year due to the City Clerk taking on interim city manager duties. In an attempt to catch up on minutes, a former City employee has been hired on a temporary full-time basis to help the department catch up on past minutes.

The city manager was also tasked with setting up another meeting with the Police Benevolence Association (PBA) attorney as their attorney was unable to make the scheduled meeting. PBA negotiations are stalled until such time as the PBA attorney can attend a meeting with the City.

The City’s management of Poe Springs is on hold pending City Manager Booth meeting with the county manager to determine the status of Poe Springs’ construction projects. The City has been slated to take over Poe Springs, but the issue has been on hold due to completion of construction at the springs.

Booth is to act as executive director for the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) until such time as the CRA plan is revised, something that should be done every five years, and it is determined whether the CRA needs to hire an executive director. Commissioner and CRA Board Member Byran William is chairman of the CRA at this time.

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FORT WHITE – A Fort White man was seriously injured while he was hunting Tuesday evening in Fort White.

Sixty-one-year-old Norberto Mondilio Quinones-Caseres was climbing over a fence when his gun discharged and a bullet hit him in the abdomen, according to Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) investigators. The incident occurred at Bethany Farms on State Road 47.

The man was airlifted to Shands Hospital in Gainesville. He was alert at the time, according to Columbia County Sheriff’s Office deputies, who initially responded to the scene.

The victim told officials he was hunting coyotes.

FWC continues to investigate the incident.

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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.