Photos by BETSY THOMASON/special to Alachua County Today

The High Springs Historical Society participated in the rescheduled parade.

 HIGH SPRINGS – After the first attempt was met with unfavorable weather, High Springs residents were fortunate enough to have warmer temperatures and no rain for their second attempt to hold their High Springs Chamber of Commerce Annual Twilight Christmas Parade on Saturday, Dec. 21.

The parade began promptly at 6 p.m. with Police Chief Steve Holley taking the lead.

Because of the last minute date change due to inclement weather the previous week, some of the 42 original participants were unable to paricipate.

“With drop-outs and add-ins, the parade ended up with 34 participants this year,” said Betsy Thomason, chamber event coordinator. “We were just pleased it didn’t rain and we had so many people lining the streets to see the parade.”

Mayor Byran Williams and city commissioners all rode on golf carts provided by Camp Kulaqua. Additional participants included the North Florida Antique Tractor Club, the High Springs Bicycle Motocross Racing Group, the High Springs Historical Society, Cowboy Church and other clubs and civic organizations in the area.

The special guest of honor every year is Santa Claus, who was seen near the front of the parade this time in a Polaris, donated for the evening by TH Building Group. After the parade ended near Railroad Avenue, Santa visited with boys and girls to find out what they each wanted for Christmas this year.

Serving as the parade grand marshal was Gloria James, 2013 High Springs Citizen of the Year. The parade began at the corner of Northwest 2nd Avenue and U.S. Highway 441 and proceeded east to Main Street. The colorfully lit floats, cars, horses and bicycles traveled south along Main Street to Railroad Avenue. Former city attorney Tom DePeter acted as the master of ceremonies and announced each group as they approached the viewing stand. Eyvonne Andrews, the chamber’s economic development coordinator, assisted DePeter as the official spotter.

This year’s parade theme was “A Pioneer Christmas.” Gift certificates to the first, second and third place parade entries were provided by Estate Solutions’s owners Chris Mckee and Roy Hammond. First place went to the Alachua Hare Krishnas in the amount of a $100 gift certificate. Second place went to the High Springs Historical Society Museum in the amount of a $50 gift certificate and third place went to the High Springs BMX Club in the amount of a $25 gift certificate.

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CARL MCKINNEY/Alachua County Today

Santa waves to the crowd as his car moves down Main Street.  About 60 local businesses and organizations had a presence in the parade.

Residents of the Good Life Community gathered around Main Street to see the annual Christmas parade on Saturday, Dec. 14.

As the show started around 2 p.m., floats came rolling in representing this year's theme, “Christmas at the movies.”

City Commissioner Ben Boukari, Jr., Alachua recreation director Hal Brady and resident Gussie Lee announced each float as they drove by, offering commentary and chit-chat as the event went on.

Chamber of Commerce members Linda Chapman and Jim Brandenburg and Alachua Elementary principal Eva Copeland judged each participant who passed by.

“Most took great pains to express the theme of the parade,” Chapman said. “The attention to detail was impressive.”

The Alarion Bank float, featuring the Grinch and Dr. Suess-inspired scenery, won first place in the for-profit category of this year's event. The other winners were Matchmaker Reality and the Marlowe L. Smith Electric Company.

The three judges picked the City of Alachua, the High Springs Art Co-op and Lee's Preschool as the winners of the non-profit category.

“A lot of people put a lot of effort into all this,” said Mayor Gib Coerper. “Everybody is having a great time, and that's what this is all about.”

Mayor Coerper made an appearance near the beginning of the event, riding in a motorcycle side-car and donning a Santa hat, red clothes and sunglasses.      

Other local elected officials made an appearance, including County Commissioner Lee Pinkonson, who walked alongside a black car while waving at the crowd.

While many of the onlookers were current Alachua residents, there was at least one person from outside of town.

Pegg Dodson, from St. Augustine, moved out of the city of Alachua about 10 years ago. Whenever she goes to the annual parades in the spring and winter, she misses the small-town atmosphere, she said.

“It brings back Alachua memories,” she said.

Around 60 local restaurants, shops, non-profit organizations and other businesses participated, showing off colorful and detailed floats.

As the streets were flooded with candy thrown by costumed characters, eager children ran and dived to collect their prizes.

Sherrie Dyal, who lives near LaCrosse, was impressed by the variety of the parade.

“It's certainly colorful,” she said. “For the size of the city, it's a pretty good deal.”

For her, the Alarion float was the winner. Not only because of its recreation of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas,” but also at least partly because her daughter manages Alarion.

The parade ended around 3 p.m., just in time for it to finish before the rainfall to start. People packed up their chairs and said their goodbyes to friends as they got in their vehicles. The City of High Springs wasn't as lucky, its parade having been rescheduled to next Saturday due to the weather.

Sue Kreft, who lives near Jacksonville, saw the annual event as a good way for people to really learn what the city is about.

"We're getting to know Alachua in a neat way," she said.

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CARL MCKINNEY/Alachua County Today

Mayor Gib Coerper shows off the certificate of occupancy. He posed in the jail cell, a remnant of the building's history as a police station.

ALACHUA – Years in the making, the renovation for the Community Welcome Center in Alachua has finally hit a milestone.

The building, situated in downtown Alachua, is now up to code, complete with a certificate of occupancy from the city’s building inspector.

The welcome center, which was formerly a post office and then a police station, has been in the works since around 2006 or 2007, when the Chamber of Commerce began the project.

“We envision it as a place where people who are visiting can stop in and learn about the local community,” said David Flinchum, chamber president, in an earlier interview.

It will serve as a tourist information center and as the main office for the chamber. It will provide information on local businesses, and will also feature displays and exhibits from the Alachua Historical Society.

With help from the community, the chamber expects the welcome center to formally open in mid-January, said Linda Rice Chapman, chamber member.

Sandy Burgess of Precision Metals donated the railing system, Hugh Cain of Allstate will supply some office furniture and Lowe’s of Alachua supplied all the exterior paint.

The building was essentially gutted, Chapman said, as it needed a complete renovation.

Until the welcome center is complete, the Chamber of Commerce will continue to be based out of a small office at Alachua Elementary School.

With a new headquarters on Main Street, the chamber can operate more visibly, said previous chamber president David Pope.

“It gets the chamber out front where it can be seen,” he said.

The biggest issue so far has been funding, current president Flinchum said in a May interview.

The chamber received a grant in 2011 from the county’s Tourist Development Council for $25,000. It got another $25,000 from the Alachua Downtown Redevelopment Trust Board.

When the chamber applied for the next phase of the grant this year for another $25,000 from the council, it lost out to the City of Alachua.

“Right now, we’re broke,” Chapman said.

To raise the money to finish the project, the chamber has two fundraisers on the immediate horizon.

The first is a patronage program. Donators can sign up to be a patron of the museum that will be inside the welcome center. Patrons will be honored with a permanent plaque with their names prominently displayed on the museum walls.

The second fundraiser allows people to purchase spots on the chamber’s calendar, effectively letting them “buy the day,” Chapman said. It would come with a signed proclamation from Mayor Gib Coerper declaring the day in honor of whoever bought the spot. For smaller amounts of money, the plan is to allow citizens to memorialize birthdays, anniversaries and other special personal events.

There’s still a long way to go for the project, said former president Pope, even though the building is finally up to code.

Chapman walked through the building, explaining what kinds of renovations are still in store.

The bathroom tiling still needs to be finished, there are no furnishings or display cases yet and the exterior needs to be painted and landscaped. Security lighting and signage are also part of the plan, if and when the funding allows it, Chapman said.

“The outside is virtually untouched,” she said.

Local architect Paul Stresing donated his time to help, drawing up big plans for the center.

The building is a concentrated effort from the Alachua economic community to move the city forward by bridging tourism, history and business, Chapman said.

“This building is going to have the power to transform Main Street,” she said. “That can only have the effect of making Alachua more prosperous.”

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CARL MCKINNEY/Alachua County Today

A child sits on Santa's lap as the Grinch closes in. The line to get into Theatre Park and see Santa spilled into the streets of downtown Alachua filled with parents and eager children.

ALACHUA – Moonlight glowed over the Christmas tree as the crowd gathered for the celebration.

For over a decade, the City of Alachua has marked the start of the season with their Christmas tree-lighting ceremony. This year, the festivities were held on Friday, Dec. 6 in the lot next to Bev's Burgers in downtown Alachua.

For many of the residents, it is a tradition that brings everyone together.

“I’m so proud to be able to work and live in a city that honors such a tradition,” said City Manager Traci Cain.

Cain and other members of the community gathered around the tree in the hour before the ceremony started at 6 p.m. Children played football in the lot, while residents and city officials gathered and talked with traditional Christmas songs playing in the background courtesy of a local music teacher.

Dustin Adams, music teacher at Alachua Elementary, volunteered to sing and play songs on his keyboard after the last three musical acts had to cancel, said Diana Felver, event planner for the city.

When Felver first moved to Alachua, every business and organization did their own Christmas celebration. The city’s event gives them a chance to all take part in the same ceremony, she said.

“It brings the community together,” she said.

Carolers from the United Methodist Church also lent their talents to the celebration, while costumed characters such as the Grinch made appearances to entertain the children.

“I just like seeing the joy on their faces,” Felver said as she talked about how she likes watching the youths enjoy the evening.

Around 6:15 p.m., City Manager Cain began her speech welcoming the community and introducing the city commissioners and Mayor Gib Coerper to the crowd.

As she spoke, police sirens could be heard in the distance.

Recreation director Hal Brady led the crowd to the tree to begin the countdown. The police sirens grew closer.

When the countdown hit zero, the Christmas tree came to life with lights, as the sirens nearly arrived at the lot.

Police pulled up after clearing the way for a horse-drawn carriage carrying a special guest.

Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus arrived to greet the children.

“It was very cold coming through Canada,” Santa said.

The carriage went on its way to Theatre Park where the young event-goers could sit on his lap.

Youngsters waited in line to spend a moment with Santa and tell him what they want for the holiday. As they left, they were awarded a box with a toy in it.

They took their prize with smiles on their faces as they walked, skipped and ran out of the theatre with their parents, talking about what's coming for Christmas this year.

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