[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6326676,"mediaKeyId","2323792-3a440bea6f998210875c7935403fcc07","parentId",2323792,"title","Residents press Live Oak council on trash, railroad crossings, lighting and water-pipe upgrades; volunteer cleanup planned","audioSeconds",632,"startMs",76000,"endMs",708000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2323792-3a440bea6f998210875c7935403fcc07&start=76&end=708","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2323792-3a440bea6f998210875c7935403fcc07/thumbnail_76000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6326676/Florida/Residents-press-Live-Oak-council-on-trash-railroad-crossings-lighting-and-water-pipe-upgrades-volunteer-cleanup-planned","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6326676-3c5513cf24f9c9a25e262176ff76694c/orig.mp4?Expires=1773657449&Signature=C-EUjSPCPavrh8JEoLv7xieFRebjOmFX1L23O2JPfwjPPo1QwFERHsnOqTTQ6U9CG0uQ8bIN-EALWEhDjq0nrGyVbW-6KBX5r8a-Gf61-KTSl1-olIYzchVsT8fk1hFaEKKiAbcWdfFJrsnPs69B8KAVbVj5BAPTIy3ed9TRpeGNiAbdFOBMWkJX4cAJ2nF3SEWVwy4VMqu0TqR2rVS~VgETf9duif9hFvdu9uSDI70c5IVmUJugyA-DLpUCdYFchEJqINAiwUYfs5Wr~kxYI8ZpdTHHlsPjd3bYaElqbG87lgsY5HQ4b4vFx8Q~BZs~B3G8KryKhxJfBg2~Au1B9Q__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Live Oak, FL","date","2025-02-17T18:18:05Z","article","Residents used the public-comment period at the City of Live Oak City Council meeting to raise a cluster of local quality-of-life concerns — trash collection and dumping, placement of large trash containers, dangerous railroad crossings, insufficient street lighting and potholes — and to push for volunteer and city action.

Linda Williams, who gave an address to the council, focused on trash and access for older or mobility-impaired residents. \"Where your trash cans need placed when you get these big garbage fields out there. Are you wanting the front of your place, or are you wanting the back? Older people, how are they gonna bring their trash cans to the front when it's time to pick...\" Williams said, urging the council to consider how bin placement would affect disabled or elderly residents.

Williams also told the council she has pushed for water-pipe replacements in District 2 and welcomed recent work there: \"I'm so pleased to see that they're doing this over District 2. They have started replacing the pipes...\" She urged the city to address poor conditions at railroad crossings, naming the Walker/Milwaukee Street area as especially problematic where vehicle queues and crossing hazards remain.

Other speakers cited trash dumping along Eighth Street and said recent community events drew more visitors than local supporters. A beautification group leader identified as Weaver was reported to be organizing volunteers and groups for cleanup activity. One speaker described a volunteer tool called \"Just Serve\" to recruit community volunteers.

A speaker announced plans to start a community trash pickup in March, describing the effort as a neighborhood-driven beautification push and asking for volunteers and mayoral support. \"This is my intention is to start a community trash pickup...I hope I'll be successful around March to have a community pick up,\" the speaker said.

City officials also provided updates during the public-comment block. Mr. Sessions, identified in the meeting as a city official, told the council that the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) probe into a recent officer-involved shooting is still ongoing and that names of the victim and officers should not be discussed while the investigation continues: \"Currently, the FDLE complete investigation is not complete at this point. So we're not really supposed to talk about any names of either the victim of the shooting or the officers that did it.\" The speaker asked for patience and said the council planned an acknowledgment of local officers at a future meeting when more information can be shared.

A veterans-park plaque delivery and an upcoming brief ceremony on March 5 were announced in the public-comment period; staff said the plaque will be installed at Veterans Park. Several speakers urged more streetlights downtown and in neighborhoods and asked how the city will manage monitoring of new security cameras that may be installed in housing areas.

The council did not take formal action during public comment, but staff and the mayor were asked to follow up on railroad crossings, lighting, potholes and trash enforcement; volunteers and community groups signaled plans to assist with neighborhood cleanups.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","02-11-2025 City of Live Oak, FL City Council Meeting Pt2","oneSentenceSummary","Residents used the public-comment period at the City of Live Oak City Council meeting to raise a cluster of local quality-of-life concerns — trash collection and dumping, placement of large trash containers, dangerous railroad crossings, insufficient street lighting and potholes — and to push for volunteer and city action.","taxTitle","City of Live Oak, Suwannee County, Florida","taxId",71823,"location","Florida","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6326681,"Consultants urge Live Oak to apply for CDBG housing-rehab funds; offer free application help",254,1090000,1344000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2323792-3a440bea6f998210875c7935403fcc07&start=1090&end=1344","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2323792-3a440bea6f998210875c7935403fcc07/thumbnail_1090000.jpg","/articles/6326681/Florida/Consultants-urge-Live-Oak-to-apply-for-CDBG-housing-rehab-funds-offer-free-application-help","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6326681-1e39dd9f1dc611f2ffd61cf567826c26/orig.mp4?Expires=1773657449&Signature=kkjS9uNshIt2mUE8XeSCh5UPN1b1uUzPkksHCPRUss4ov3QYQUc6WmPIRMkRpVxTk1pb83fC4Ql5Z--6nBsvAouByFPhomoz2hXoYf67-S9oJ-nlH2Q3srSCPzipH-iNxoL9VlzlMoQ~L6JAIyQMTQzHCLqxgMIplU91946aPzXlsQO7BMjJOfdri04kCLXLcWdSMdTHj9J1nCEo0CuDOq9BPYAeAdAtMSiAmGczYkHXBD3V8eU1NiExtmv1qKbsCc8mbK-0UcxVeishnFnLoYcZyjEYRewIjFeVnM3Ne6uLbnfWyhWfYTevLyesHBlYcfI~hvU6aONYbs9p5TQ0uw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Jeffrey Winter of Cornerstone Community Partners told the City of Live Oak City Council the city should apply for Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding for a housing rehabilitation program and that his firm would prepare and submit an application at no cost to the city.

\"We've been referred to the council specifically...to discuss prospective CDBG application,\" Winter said, asking the council to consider a motion authorizing Cornerstone to work with city staff on a submission. Winter said the upcoming CDBG funding cycle will open March 5 and close May 2 and that his team had prepared scoring projections for the city.

Winter presented a projected competitive score for the application and told the council the award would fund approximately $700,000 in housing rehabilitation activities for eligible residents. \"Effectively, every year the city chooses not to pursue the funding, you're passing up on the top $700,000 in funding that could be made available to the city residents,\" Winter said.

Winter said his firm charges no fee to help prepare the application. He asked only that if the city receives an award, Cornerstone be allowed to participate in the later request-for-proposals process to provide program administration services. He noted that administrative funds to pay consultants are included within the grant program: \"So, effectively, we're talking about no out of pocket expense to the city,\" Winter said.

Council members asked clarifying questions about what the housing rehabilitation program would deliver and how applications would be handled. Winter said the scope would include an open application intake and that a consultant would typically manage intake and present a list of qualified residents to the council for approval. \"We would present to the council a list of qualified residents, for approval,\" he said.

No vote authorizing Cornerstone to prepare the CDBG application was recorded in the meeting. Winter left the council with submitted scoring pages and an offer to help if the council chooses to proceed with an application.","Jeffrey Winter of Cornerstone Community Partners told the council the city has a competitive chance in the upcoming CDBG cycle and offered to prepare an application at no charge; if awarded, consultants asked for an opportunity to bid on program administration through a normal RFP process.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6326686,"Live Oak weighs replacing John Hill Park building after $800,000 broadband grant",358,612000,970000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2323792-3a440bea6f998210875c7935403fcc07&start=612&end=970","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2323792-3a440bea6f998210875c7935403fcc07/thumbnail_612000.jpg","/articles/6326686/Florida/Live-Oak-weighs-replacing-John-Hill-Park-building-after-800000-broadband-grant","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6326686-1e37d781cc05d5ddad8a9e4141fe05a1/orig.mp4?Expires=1773657449&Signature=JBqnQ3qB3GMlXURQ7vdMeBaA9v~AITBEwhNyiAZH1WQjY1WLi7eeXCKPG9nt2skV8E3dAXM-sz7Qt2oD6GR8dLrsmzao6I4unYVxzDc0QWYMLnSYQk3fNajUGMHQ56Cae2PzaQeXvB-YXj8fjwbPkLttTSwgOMB1Y~J7LLVO0rXypqzNLExILIyKYPYqVkwaotlCUuLYFwQB62pYcYGAO48cgQYOXLJ45xu~7~kKoi0ec-W6qwXELL9KkUXzIR~-3Erl3EBx4Fupqxz5v-phxsBuzo-Mr18uBpawckmowyhC~av9WnMB2w2iKTQqiQ69FDCRVKkOfTtjVz3wnHwwlQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Parks Department staff told the City of Live Oak City Council that a Department of Commerce broadband grant of $800,000 will fund technology and program space for telehealth, workforce and education at the John Hill Park community building, and council members discussed whether to renovate the existing 75-year-old structure or replace it with a new building.

The park project drew attention because the grant requires program delivery tied to broadband access. \"The three main elements of the scope of work were workforce, telehealth and education,\" Parks Department staff said during the presentation. Staff said the grant includes funding for technology but does not require a local match: \"In this particular grant, there is no match required at all.\" The speaker added the grant carries program expectations for roughly the next five years.

Parks Department staff told the council the grant award is $800,000 and that other contributions already identified — including money from \"Pilgrims\" and a city set-aside — bring the total funds available for the project to roughly $1 million. \"So roughly a million dollars we have to put into that project,\" the staff member said, and asked the council whether to invest in renovating the existing structure or to remove it and construct a larger, modern facility.

Staff described possible building features including meeting rooms, improved kitchen and restrooms, some Internet infrastructure and space configured to support career services and telehealth visits. The presenter said the building would not be a gymnasium but would be sized to support multipurpose uses and partnerships with outside providers: \"CareerSource or some other, you know, career groups might go in there and have volunteers or have staff in there one or two days a week,\" Parks Department staff said.

Officials noted the park is maintained under an interlocal agreement with the county. \"The Shawnee County Recreation Board is an interlocal agreement between the city and the county,\" Parks Department staff said, explaining that the county had applied for and accepted the grant and that the parks board would coordinate with the city on expenditures.

Council members asked about the building footprint, parking and how previously planned restroom work would fit into the larger project. Parks Department staff said the restroom work would be incorporated into the reconstruction plan and that the team would coordinate funding through the grant and existing local contributions. The staff member described likely construction materials for a new building as a metal building with a front brick or stucco facade to improve appearances.

Council discussion did not produce a formal motion. One council member said, \"I don't think we need action,\" and the council did not take a vote; staff said they would continue to run numbers and report back. Parks Department staff told the council they would work with finance staff and local partners to finalize how the various funding sources would be used.

The city faces a decision about investing locally on a building that dates to the 1940s: renovate the existing structure or use roughly $1 million in combined funding to build a new facility designed specifically for broadband-enabled telehealth, workforce and education services. Staff will return with more detailed cost estimates and plans for council consideration.","Parks staff told the City of Live Oak council that a Department of Commerce broadband grant of $800,000 would fund telehealth, workforce and education programming at John Hill Park; council members discussed whether to renovate the 75-year-old building or demolish and rebuild but took no formal vote.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Residents press Live Oak council on trash, railroad crossings, lighting and water-pipe upgrades; volunteer cleanup planned

Consultants urge Live Oak to apply for CDBG housing-rehab funds; offer free application help

Live Oak weighs replacing John Hill Park building after $800,000 broadband grant