“Sweeney Todd” starts this week
VOLUME 4 ISSUE 36
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Pg B1 SEPTEMBER 8 - SEPTEMBER 14, 2023
Bomb testing in Ocala National Forest
The history of the Pinecastle Impact Range dates to the 1940s.
Who is in charge in Ocala during an emergency? The county’s response plan says it’s the mayor. Reality says otherwise. By Caroline Brauchler caroline@ocalagazette.com
R “The Pinecastle Impact Range spans 5,698 acres of the Ocala National Forest and is the only location on the East Coast where the Navy trains with live bombs [Michael Warren].”
By Caroline Brauchler caroline@ocalagazette.com
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esidents may have heard a little extra noise coming from the Ocala National Forest this week as the U.S. Navy conducted bomb testing at the Pinecastle Impact Range. But other than the noise, the only thing those near the range should be cautious about is
wildlife that officials say may move around more frequently because of the disturbance. “During bombing periods, wildlife may be temporarily displaced. Use extra caution when driving through the Ocala National Forest and surrounding areas. Secure any items around your residence that could attract wildlife. Always be mindful of larger animals including black bears,” noted a news release from Naval Air Station (NAS)
Jacksonville. Testing of live and inert, or inactive, bombs occurred Sept. 5-7, from 9:30 to 10:45 a.m. and 2:30 to 4 p.m. each day, according to the news release. Bomb testing happens relatively frequently at this site, which is the only place on the East Coast of the United States where the Navy trains with live bombs. See Bomb, page A2
Redistricting appeal could go on fast track By Jim Saunders Florida News Service
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state appeal has put on hold a circuit judge’s ruling that a congressional redistricting plan violated the Florida Constitution, as the case could be on a fast track to the state Supreme Court. Secretary of State Cord Byrd and the Florida House and Senate filed a notice Monday that is a first step in appealing the decision issued Saturday by Leon County Circuit Judge J. Lee Marsh. Under a procedural rule, the notice triggered an automatic stay of Marsh’s decision while the case continues to play out. The notice was filed to appeal the decision to the 1st District Court of Appeal, but attorneys for the state and voting-rights groups that challenged the redistricting plan agreed last month to seek what is known as “pass-through jurisdiction” to the Florida Supreme Court. If granted, that would effectively mean skipping the usual process of litigating at the 1st District Court of Appeal before going to the Supreme Court. The
agreement last month said the parties would seek a Supreme Court ruling by Dec. 31. State lawmakers are scheduled to start the 2024 legislative session in January. A Supreme Court ruling by Dec. 31 would allow them to redraw congressional lines, if necessary, during the session. The qualifying period for 2024 congressional candidates will be April 22 to April 26, according to the state Division of Elections website. Marsh issued a 55-page decision that sided with a coalition of voting-rights groups that challenged the redistricting plan, which Gov. Ron DeSantis pushed through the Legislature in 2022. The lawsuit focuses on North Florida’s Congressional District 5, which in the past elected Black Democrat Al Lawson but was overhauled in the redistricting process. White Republicans won all North Florida congressional districts in the November elections after the map was redrawn. Florida voters in 2010 approved a constitutional amendment, known as the Fair Districts amendment, that set standards for redistricting. Part of that
barred drawing districts that would “diminish” the ability of minorities to “elect representatives of their choice.” The voting-rights groups argued that the 2022 redistricting plan violated the socalled “non-diminishment” standard. “Under the stipulated facts (in the lawsuit), plaintiffs have shown that the enacted plan results in the diminishment of Black voters’ ability to elect their candidate of choice in violation of the Florida Constitution,” Marsh wrote. The notice of appeal, as is common, does not detail arguments that lawyers for Byrd and the Legislature will make as they challenge Marsh’s ruling. But DeSantis and the state’s attorneys have argued that the U.S. Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause prevented using a district similar to the previous shape of Congressional District 5 because it would involve racial gerrymandering. The district in the past stretched from Jacksonville to Gadsden County, west of Tallahassee, incorporating areas that had large Black populations. The 2022 plan put the district in the Jacksonville area.
ight up until the hours before making landfall in the Big Bend area of Florida last week, Hurricane Idalia was projected to pass over Marion County. That sobering possibility had many here wondering what would happen if a hurricane or other natural disaster struck the county. Specifically, who would be in charge of the emergency response? As part of an interlocal agreement established in 1988, the Marion County Sheriff ’s Office (MCSO) heads emergency response. The agency’s Division of Emergency Management coordinates not only the response to an emergency such as a hurricane, but the preparation, recovery, education and awareness surrounding one. As for the city of Ocala, the chain of command is less clear. While the city follows the county’s lead in case of an emergency, according to city spokesperson Ashley Dobbs, the county’s response plan lists the mayor as being in charge of Ocala. In reality, City Manager Pete Lee takes command during an emergency, according to city officials. After the “Gazette” brought this discrepancy to the attention of city officials, the city attorney recommended an update to the city code to reflect that the city manager should take point in an emergency. “I would like to develop a draft ordinance that amends our code to provide specific delegation of emergency declaration and management authority to the city manager so that there is no question of that in the future,” said City Attorney William Sexton during his report at Tuesday’s city council meeting. The discussion of a change in the city’s code regarding the chain of command during an emergency was not on the agenda or made known to the public before the meeting. Ocala does not have an emergency management plan of its own, nor does it intend to create one, said City Council President Jim Hilty. “I don’t know of any intention of creating a separate plan right now,” he said. “The system’s working well, in all the times that I’ve been involved with it.” See Emergency, page A3
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