Cities, counties and state governments turn to drones to help fight crime, combat fires and assist in rescue efforts. By 2018, at least 910 U.S. sheriff’s offices, police and fire departments, and emergency services agencies had purchased drones, an 82 percent increase from the previous year, according to a study by the Center for the Study of the Drone at Bard…
DetailsFormer longtime Gulf Breeze City Manager Edwin “Buz” Eddy has taken on yet another responsibility following his retirement two years ago. He was recently hired as a part-time administrative consultant by the City of Century, which has been going through some challenging times. The city of about 1,500 has a mayor and five city council…
DetailsTwo years ago, Tacoma, Washington, declared a state of emergency over homelessness. With 1,300 people experiencing homelessness in the surrounding Pierce County, and hundreds of them living on Tacoma’s streets, officials kicked off a three-phase plan to address the issue. They deployed rapid resource pop-ups, such as hand-washing stations and portables, and worked to expand…
DetailsSeveral cities are experimenting with applying fees to parked e-scooters as means of managing the devices and helping to prevent an over-distribution of them on streets. Omaha, Neb.; Charlotte, N.C.; and Detroit are part of a three-month pilot organized by the parking technology platform Passport to assess parking fees when scooters are not being ridden.…
DetailsThe FloridaMakes Board of Directors announced today that Florida manufacturers who received services through the state-wide FloridaMakes network have reported a combined total of over one billion dollars in measurable economic impacts and created or retained 6,953 manufacturing jobs since the program started delivering services in 2016. The FloridaMakes network is an industry-led initiative operated…
DetailsCityGrader, the social platform that encourages constituents to become civically engaged with their local government, expands to all Florida cities. Just one year ago, you’d have to be in South Florida to benefit from the network, but now it is “available in all Florida cities and counties including the Tampa Bay, Orlando, Jacksonville, and Tallahassee…
DetailsST. PETERSBURG — The risk of flood damage is on the rise in the city. So is the number of new construction projects, including in flood zones. Soon, the city will be forced to decide how to balance the two. In the coming months, the City Council will grapple with an existential question facing the…
DetailsLAKELAND — The city is paving a path through Lakeland’s history as depicted through the eyes of student artists. Lakeland Community Redevelopment Agency is working in partnership with the Polk County School Board to construct a multi-use path for bicyclists and pedestrians along West Lake Parker Drive that will provide a visual history lesson to the…
DetailsIt’s been almost three years since Hurricane Matthew brought the city of St. Augustine’s storm resiliency to the forefront of discussion. Hurricane Irma in 2017 didn’t help. But out of both disasters came a much-needed federal boost to the city’s budget to fix flooding problems, repair storm damage and give the Ancient City a fighting…
DetailsJUPITER — Ask Noah Narut if there’s an appetite in Jupiter for a memorial to honor U.S. military veterans and you’ll get a matter-of-fact answer: “Absolutely.” The 45-year-old Marine Corps veteran said he sees proof each Memorial Day he spends at the South Florida National Cemetery in suburban Lake Worth Beach. Narut suspects many visitors honoring…
DetailsLEESBURG — The Leesburg Partnership won a state award this week. The Main Street program on Thursday won a fundraising development effort honor award for its annual Mardi Gras fundraiser. The partnership won one of 26 state awards at the Florida Main Street Annual Conference. Read the full story
DetailsSecretary of State Laurel M. Lee announced today the winners of the 2019 Florida Main Street Awards. The annual awards program showcases the innovative practices and projects that contribute to the success of local Main Street programs. Two award categories were presented including the Honor Awards, which highlight the very ‘best of the best’ Main…
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