3 VOL. 82, NO. 51 INSIDE So long, George Page 3 OBITUARIES George Armstrong Manuel Arnao II Robert Bowen Karin Cawthon Rosa Cobble ‘Helen Fife» Iris Folsom Ruby Groce John Hart Sr. Mary Hudson Ridgely Johnson William Kohl Darlene Lamb Shirley Lemmermen Reaver Melton . Thomas Miller _ Aleen Williams ~ HOME OF... Jamie Beauchamp of Chiefland CONTENTS... Around Levy. __2-3,6, 8-10 Opinion 4 Law & Courts 5 Tides 6 Obituaries vs ve Levy History Z Marketplace 11: Classified 12 Legals 13-16 Land Transactions 17-18 LLOZE Ia SATUASSANIYS AMOLSIH VGIHO 1s 30 Advan OTE LIDIGDE HOS sesrsseesseseesssssee eee THE COUNTY PAPER < THURSDAY, JUNE 29, 2006 1 SECTION: 20 PAGES PLUS SUPPLEMENTS 50 cents per copy Yankeetown government shuts down BY JEFF M. HARDISON STAFF WRITER Standing within the five- mile circle of the nuclear power plant at.Crystal River, a political chain-reaction at Yankeetown led to a shut- down of Town Hall and a request for the office of Florida Gov. Jeb Bush to step in. The June 23 resignation © of | Yankeetown © Town Councilman Dan Bowman came: during a_ free-for-all after a workshop meeting that was unlike one held at any other municipal government in the state. ' During the Friday evening workshop, Town Councilman — Roger Myric took back his resignation from office -- again. Myric’s on-again, _ off. again status as a member of the council results. because Councilwoman Mary Pate, who has not resigned, has been absent. With only Bowman, Pate and Glen Stetz remaining as council members, one _ person’s absence makes it so there is Clam it up in Cedar Key Cedar Key will explode next Tuesday, July 4" when the 3rd annual CLAMERICA Celebration brings thousands of clam lovers to the island to enjoy their sweet and savory farm- raised clams. Sponsored by the Cedar Key Aquaculture Association, the day will be filled with fun, food and events for the entire family from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Cedar Key, located on Florida’s west coast, is a leading producer of farm-raised clams in the United States with over 100 million clams harvested annvally from the inshore waters) s surrounding the keys. This festival is an opportunity to celebrate the new industry, _as. well as the country’s birthday. Cedar Key farm-raised ‘clams are featured on the menu and will be served in a variety of ways by community organizations. There will be steamed clams, clams-on-the-half-shell, clam chowder, clam fritters and fried clam strips for all of you clam lovers. Other local seafood served will include grouper sandwiches and fried shrimp. For the landlubbers, there will be hamburgers, hot , ay dogs, corn-on-the-cob, watermelon, root beer floats, icecream — -and more. ' The festival will open with a children’s bicycl and flag raising ceremony by the Tri-County Marir League. CLAMANIA events will be held throughou —all of which are free. Prizes abound for clam bag races, a clam harvest h raceways, guess the clam count, clam lease (greased) a host of other children’s activities. The 3°¢ annual Cultured Clam Cook-off, w showcase a variety of clam recipes including local - will begin at 12:30 p.m. along with clam cooking anc demonstrations. _ New events this year are kayak races, , starting a the beach, a Sand & Shell Sculpturing contest anc a-Mullet throw. Continuous live music in the park will be provi Philman Family, Used Blues, Cajun Dave, Neil L; Anna White and the Clam Jamm Band. ‘For. more information contact Leslie Sturmer IFAS Shellfish Aquaculture Extension Program a’ 5057. At dusk, the city of Cedar Key will host tl display. no. quorum. Gouncilwemen Diane Blomgren resigned i in May. Without a quorum, town business cannot be done. Myric’s coming out of his resignation status again was questioned by attorney Tim Haines during the workshop. Haines said decisions made with Myric sitting, when he had already resigned, may cause problems. This set the stage for shouting from the audience, especially because _ the public address system at the Yankeetown Woman’s Club did not function. Attorney Kenneth L. Warnstadt of Brooksville was absent from the workshop. Warnstadt arrived for the regular meeting and Haines cornered him before that meeting was called to order. Within 15 minutes after that, Mayor Joanne Johannesson announced there would be no meeting because the council lacked a quorum. She announced that Myric did not feel comfortable Pescinding his resignation. The mayor announced she would close Town Hall because there is no town clerk or deputy clerk. ~Town Clerk Debra Stines and Deputy Clerk Laura Coyle had resigned earlier. Other resignations included the zoning official and some members of the planning and zoning board. Warnstadt announced that he would contact the governor’s office because the town can’t conduct business. See Closed Page 10 Photo courtesy of Leslie Sturmer/Clamerica 2005: LAST YEAR’S GOLF cart parade brought out everyone who wanted to show their patriotic spirit. Planning finds headed to DCA BY CAROLYN RISNER ~ Manaaine Epitor ° The future of Levy County depends on the planning of today. Last week, the Levy County Board of County Commissioners heard — the results of the Comprehensive Plan Evaluation and Appraisal Report (EAR) and learned the needs discovered during a nearly year-long process. | County Planner Kathy Winburn spent the first 30 minutes of the hearing explaining EAR and then: outlining the findings that counties must address some issues, others are at. the discretion of the county and its citizens. From. . workshops meetings held last year, nine areas of . concern were identified and will be submitted to DCA before July 1. The list was narrowed from a broader field, Winburn said Monday. EAR ‘reviews — current conditions and trends of the county’s comprehensive plan and proposes changes based on future projections and over age group is the fastest growing segment of the population. All Florida counties must evaluate vacant land for future development and coordination of future land uses, Winburn said. In addition to the two required issues, Levy County has also addressed the following in its EAR ° Transportation ° Protection of water quality and quantity e Improve interagency coordination : will be submitted to the including population. ° Municipal Service Journal photo by Carolyn Risner Department of Community The projected population Districts CITIZENS INTERESTED in the future land use for Affairs (DCA). The process for 2015 is, 46,300 to 53,700 Levy County may view the most current map in the is done every seven years, with the current estimate’ at planning office. Red areas are commercial nodes. | Winburn said and while 37,486 people. The 75 and See FAR Page 20 REACH US Fax _ SUBSCRIBE The Levy County Journal Fi AEG tone iret, Levy, Dixie and eet counties RECYCL =) helievesin good stewardship of Rina eee oe the land. That's wity we print Soe PO. Box 159 een 1132621-0189 = a recycled newsprint. (352) 490-4462 PO. Box 2990 Chiefland, FL 32644-2990 Locally owned and operated! Protecting our future TODAY! 4 , i 7 i