Local
A2 | Washington County News
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
vernon from page A1 to change all the locks at the Sportsplex, which took the council members by surprise. Bullard and Scotty Corbin, both youth football coaches, were on hand Monday to further discuss the situation. Corbin also serves on the city recreation board. Mayor Cook provided the city with an inventory of equipment the city owns and a list of equipment purchased in the past year. Changing the Sportsplex keys was an action that was not approved by the council, said Council Chairwoman Tina Sloan. “That should have been voted on by the council,” she said. The council did vote to not allow practice for the Snapper Bowl at the fields because the city did not know what liability it could face. Bullard was not in attendance at that meeting to explain the situation, Councilman Tray Hawkins said.
class from page A1
“If you could have been here to explain, we could have worked it out,” Hawkins said. “Any time you have something like this, come to the council with it.” The formation of the recreation board was also a topic of discussion. “Last year we decided as a council we would all work together to keep the recreation department going without hiring a rec director,” Cook said. She volunteered to head the effort and the city advertised for volunteers to form a recreation board. Eventually the five-member board was formed. However, the board never adopted any bylaws and there is no ordinance for how the board is to operate or how members will be appointed. City Attorney Michelle Tagert said the city needs to have an ordinance setting the recreation board, along with bylaws that set the goals and
tasks of the board. Washington County Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Ted Everett was also on hand to present the council with maps showing the current Enterprise Zone and discussed his plans to expand the zone. An Enterprise Zone is a state-created area for industrial or commercial development that offers incentives to businesses in order to create jobs. Those incentives include jobs creation tax credits, electrical energy tax credits, sales tax refunds for jobs creation and building materials, property tax credits for jobs creation and sales tax refunds for business equipment and machinery. Last year the state Legislature passed a new law allowing counties to expand their Enterprise Zones, and Washington County will be allowed to expand its areas by three miles, which Everett plans to divide evenly between Ebro
and Vernon. The Vernon City Council approved changing the Enterprise Zone during their Sept. 23 meeting, and Everett is working with engineer Garrett Martin of Atkins, an engineering firm located in Chipley, to create maps of the two Enterprise Zones. “I think we should expand the Enterprise Zone north of the new bridge, and take the new mile and three-quarters of zone down Moss Hill Road toward the high school as far as it will go,” Everett said. Everett said the Enterprise Zone legislation is set to expire in 2015, but the Legislature has extended the law setting the zones twice in the past. Everett said he expects the zones to be renewed in 2015. “If that happens, then we will be set until 2025,” Everett said. The council will meet in workshop again on Nov. 12 and further discuss the Enterprise Zone.
Saturday’s Wall Basket was woven from several shades of green and featured a carved Tennessee Oak handle. “It’s a great basket to catch keys, sunglasses, gloves and your daily mail. We prepare the kits, however, we always bring extra reed in a variety of colors and sizes and lots of decorative accents — we don’t want to squelch creativity,” Hynes said. “This is a wonderful way to spend a beautiful fall morning, and museum visitors were amazed to actually find ‘crafters’ on-site today,” Museum Director Dorothy Odom said. “Not only is this an opportunity to learn or improve a heritage handicraft skill but you get to take your own handmade basket home! We’ve had a great response and plan to offer more classes of this type in the future.” Be sure to check the museum’s website regularly at www.washingtoncountyhistoricalsociety.org for information on all activities.
ethics from page A1 tion to notarize a Department of Health complaint against a physician for the benefit of his friend who also is a physician. The commission found no probable cause to believe that Manatee County School Board member Robert C. Gause filed an incomplete Form 6 disclosure for the years 2009, 2010, and 2011. No probable cause was found to believe that Florida Notary Eveling Pineda misused her position to notarize a document for her mother. The commission found no probable cause to believe that Bill Hoskovec, Town Manager of Melbourne Beach, misused his position to obtain a free home inspection from a subordinate. No probable cause also was found to believe that he failed to report the inspection as a gift.
The commission considered a complaint filed against Kelly Young, former Principal of NorthStar High School and board member of the NorthStar High School. Probable cause was found regarding business arrangements with her agency and that she had a conflicting contractual relationship because of her service on the board and her contract with the board to act as Principal of the high school. However, the commission will take no further action on the two allegations unless Young requests a hearing. No probable cause was found to believe that she violated the voting conflict law by voting on matters that inured to the special private gain or loss of herself or her husband; that she misused her position for the benefit of herself or her husband; and that she
violated the nepotism law because of the contract between the Board and her husband’s company. No probable cause was found to believe that Reggie Lewis, President of the Board of Directors of Success Leadership, Vice President of the Board of Directors of Stellar Leadership Academy, and former President of the Board of Directors of Life Skills Center Opa-Locka, misused her position by failing to return funds to the MiamiDade School District after relinquishing a school charter. No probable cause also was found to believe that Lewis misused her position to interfere with a partnership dispute. Allegations that she voted on a matter which inured to the special private benefit of herself, an employer, or a business associate were dismissed with a finding of no prob-
able cause. In a related complaint filed against Dannie McMillon, President of the Board of Directors of Stellar Leadership Academy and former Vice President of the Board of Directors of Life Skills Center, the commission found no probable cause to believe that McMillon misused her position by failing to return funds to the Miami-Dade School District upon relinquishing the school charter. No probable cause was found to believe that Florida Notary Public Deborah A. Burton misused her position to improperly notarize a signature. The commission found probable cause to believe that Lori Gulden, Florida Notary Public, misused her position to notarize a forged signature for the benefit of a coworker. Susan Dieterle, Mel-
bourne Beach Planning and Zoning Board Member, was cleared of allegations that she participated in a matter that inured to her special private gain or loss and that she failed to follow the law when she abstained from a January 2013 vote. The commission dismissed the allegations with a finding of no probable cause. No probable cause was found to believe that Hillary Anderson, Destin Fire Control District Board Member, had a voting conflict when she voted on a measure that affected her husband. The commission voted to dismiss a complaint filed against former Candidate for House of Representatives Jeremy Lau because the public interest would not be served by further proceedings. The allegations were that Mr. Lau filed an inaccurate 2012 Form 6 disclosure form when he
qualified for office. The commission granted the withdrawal request of complainant Troy Bennett in a complaint that he filed against Joseph Wynkoop, Montverde Council President. The Florida Commission on Ethics is an independent nine-member commission formed in 1974 to review complaints filed under the statutory Code of Ethics and to answer questions from public officials about potential conflicts of interest through its issuance of advisory opinions. If the ethics commission believes a violation of the law may have occurred, it may decide to hold a public hearing. If it concludes a violation has been committed, it may recommend civil penalties that include removal from office or employment and fines up to $10,000 per violation.
“Clean your fridge coils for all-star savings.” – Gulf Power Energy Coach
Rest
Vacuuming the dust from the coils of your refrigerator will keep it running as efficiently as possible. Which means you save energy and money.
assured
with a flu shot, publix.com/flu Your friendly Publix pharmacist is here to help you get through this flu season. He or she is specially trained to give you a flu shot. If you’re 65 or over, be sure to ask about a high-dose vaccine designed especially for you.
For more energy saving tips from the Gulf Power Energy Coach, visit gulfpower.com/coach
1112541
Medicare Part B and many insurance plans accepted. Age restrictions apply.
1115543
Rest assured with your