Plant City Times &
Observer YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
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Elvis festival Chevelle Hallback, shakes, rattles, a Plant City native, rolls into P.C. returns to the ring.
Plant City grads embark on ‘Trip of Destiny.’ PAGES 7-8
OUR TOWN
FREE • FRIDAY, JULY 25, 2014
PAGE 6 PAGE 11
update by Michael Eng | Editor
FDLE clears Singletary, Keel State investigators found no evidence that former Police Chief Steven Singletary and current City Commissioner Billy Keel committed any criminal activities.
+ Dance studio to host registration Plant City’s Dance Connection will host an open house for its upcoming classes this weekend. Registration will take place from 2 to 7 p.m. Friday, July 25, and Saturday, July 26, at the studio, 507 N. Wheeler St. Registration costs $25. Classes begin Aug. 4, and are open to children ages 2 and up. The studio teaches a variety of styles, including ballet, tap, musical theater, jazz, lyrical, hip-hop and more.
Former Plant City Police Chief Steven Singletary and current City Commissioner Billy Keel will face no criminal charges regarding their actions that led ultimately to
Singletary’s firing. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement found no evidence of criminal actions by Singletary or Keel, FDLE Special Agent Rick Ramirez wrote
in his report, which Plant City officials received July 22. The FDLE launched its investigation at the request of former Mayor Mary Thomas Mathis — as well as Keel.
TRIAL BY FIRE by Amber Jurgensen | Associate Editor
Superintendent to host Florida Standards meeting in Plant City Hillsborough County Public Schools will host one of its informational meetings regarding the new Florida Standards curriculum next week, in Plant City. The curriculum will be fully implemented when school starts in August. The Plant City meeting will take place at 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 30, at St. Luke Missionary Baptist Church, 108 S. Warnell St. In 2010, Florida adopted Common Core State Standards, on which the Florida Standards are based, and the district phased in more rigorous standards over the past few years. But the new standards have generated controversy with critics charging that
The Plant City Lions Club and several local businesses will host a car wash benefit for Taylor Goethals from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, July 27, at Walden Lake Car Wash, 1414 S. Alexander St., Plant City. The car wash will benefit 15-year-old Goethals, a Plant City teen who is battling cancer for the second time. All washes will be done by donation only. For more information or to volunteer, call Frank Cummings, (813) 7527226.
This week’s winner is
Eddie Lancaster See his photo on PAGE 15.
IF YOU GO FLORIDA STANDARDS INFORMATIONAL MEETING WHEN: 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 30 WHERE: St. Luke Missionary Baptist Church, 108 S. Warnell St., Plant City standardized testing simply serves to enrich the companies behind the tests. Common Core also has drawn fire for ceding control of education to the federal government, which is why the state opted for the modified Florida Standards.
SEE SCHOOLS / PAGE 4
opening soon by Amber Jurgensen | Associate Editor
Glover School reno nears completion
+ Police Department needs new recruits
, 3&
SEE CLEARED / PAGE 4
EDUCATION by Monica Bennett | Tampa Bay Times
+ Lions, businesses partner for fundraiser
The Plant City Police Department is accepting applications for new police officers. Applicants must have a high school diploma, GED or higher and Floridacertified. Starting pay is $42,915, and officers receive health benefits, a take-home vehicle after training, tuition reimbursement and other perks. For more information or to apply, call officer Mark Dunnam at (813) 7579200.
“I asked for an outside and unbiased investigation into some allegations that were made against me,” Keel said. “I did so to clear my name and to give the citizens of this com-
munity confidence in me as their elected official. “That investigation concluded yesterday, with the results that I have known all along,” he said. “The FDLE, after a very thorough investigation, found no evidence of wrongdoing
Built in 1933 Glover School is on the National Register of Historic Places. Renovations began more than a decade ago. Amber Jurgensen
Robert Woods creates his metal sculptures in a studio at Mozart’s Artistic Designs near County Line Road and U.S. 92.
HEAVYMETAL Robert Woods has created metal sculptures for private clients, schools and even the City of Plant City.
E
very time Plant City resident Robert Woods creates a new sculpture, sparks fly. The artist morphs together abstract forms with the hot, blue light of a fiery blowtorch. Some are mammoths that, at 18 feet tall, tower over humans. Others are functional, such as his latest masterpiece: a fabricated 1930s era vintage fire truck. The truck was commissioned by Darren Impson, owner of Paul Davis Restoration and Remodeling of Tampa. Impson had a 150-cc motorcycle scooter stored in
Glover School sits nestled deep within the rural confines of the Bealsville community, shaded by grand oaks and brightened by a smiling community. And, it sure has something to smile about. After more than a decade, the 81-year-old campus is finally seeing the end of its renovations. Hillsborough County Commissioner Al Higginbotham and members of the county staff enjoyed a walkthrough
SEE GLOVER / PAGE 5
the company’s warehouse. Woods discovered it when he attended a holiday event with his wife, Zuesette, who serves as Davis’ director of marketing. From there, an idea caught fire. Davis is a provider of water-damage cleanup and fire-damage restoration in the bay area. So, Woods thought a working fire truck would be a perfect conversion and could be used in the company’s marketing events and parades.
SEE METAL / PAGE 4
Amber Jurgensen
The Bealsville community is proud to reopen Glover School.
INDEX Calendar.......................2
July 21, with Bealsville Inc. Executive Director Gwendolyn Thomas. “It went just fine,” Thomas said. “In any renovation, you need touch-ups. When you start using the building, you see touch-ups.” Glover School had fallen into disrepair in the 1970s, after it was no longer used as a school. Paint peeled from its exterior, its plumbing and electrical
Vol. 1, No. 51 | One section Crossword...................15
Obituaries...................10
Sports.........................11
Weather ......................15
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