Locals tour area cities with CRA

The local Extension Office and the Live Oak Community Redevelopment Agency teamed up with dozens of locals for a bus tour to three different regional cities to learn about a range of projects completed through their CRAs and how the community at large has benefitted from them.

The first bus stop was in Gainesville at the Technology Enterprise Center. Senior Analyst Sarah Vidal-Finn gave the audience an overview of what the CRA has done in Gainesville and provided some insight to their future developments.

Since Tropical Storm Debby, the city of Live Oak has been working to develop a storm water drainage system that would prevent future flooding. Engineer Diane Gilreath with the CRA in Gainesville spoke to the crowd about storm water issues and showed examples of different projects the CRA has done to avoid excessive water in downtown streets. Business Development Coordinator Shaad Rehman explained how the CRA has used facade programs and other economic development incentives to grow their community.

The bus then rolled to High Springs for lunch at the historic Great Outdoors Restaurant. At the restaurant, the group was joined by GOR General Manager Carol Doherty who shared the history of the restaurant. High Springs Mayor Sue Weller provided a walking tour of the town.

Following the tour in High Springs, participants then loaded the bus and departed for the Alachua City Hall. Assistant City Manager Adam Boukari gave an orientation of Alachua’s CRA before he loaded up on the bus and gave a tour of Alachua.

“The city of Alachua hired a firm to conduct a parking study, implemented the plan and now has an effective parking system downtown,” stated Live Oak councilman and Live Oak CRA chairman Jacob Grantham. “This would be a huge benefit to our downtown businesses.”

Executive Director of the Live Oak CRA Shannon Ventry said that tour participants, “saw firsthand the benefits of CRA improvements and how they resonate through the district, city and county.”

“There were many similar situations we face where the applications we saw may be used and the same type of results may be expected,” she said. “We learned the importance of providing the infrastructure needed, such as storm water management, then capping the project off with a beautiful, more useable space in which to live, work and play.”

“Julie Evans of the Department of Economic Opportunity shared an example from High Springs where their downtown sinkhole issue was converted into an attractive park feature that draws folks to the area and functions as an open air market/event center for the community.”

Grantham said, “The tour was very informative. I look forward to meeting with our CRA and council to discuss projects that were successful in other similar areas.”

 A man accused of fatally stabbing a 15-year-old boy at a bus stop on June 3, 2010, told police he thought the boy was part of a gang that was going to kill or kidnap him, B.C. Supreme Court heard Monday.

That information was recounted by Crown prosecutor Scott Van Alstine in his opening statement at Cory Daniel Barry’s trial for the second-degree murder of Justin Wendland, a student at Victoria High School.

Barry, 41, a short, heavy-set man with brown hair and glasses, sat in the prisoner’s box and dabbed his eyes with tissue as Van Alstine outlined the case against him. Justin’s mother Raj Wendland sat behind him in the front row of the public gallery, surrounded by friends.

Van Alstine outlined the Crown’s case, telling Justice Brian MacKenzie he will see a videotaped interview of Barry by Victoria police Sgt. Mark Catto. In the interview, conducted just hours after Wendland died, Barry agrees he has mistaken the boy for someone else, said Van Alstine.

“Catto says, ‘;I believe he was at the wrong place at the wrong time … An innocent boy lost his life because of mistaken identity.’ Barry, crying, says, ‘;Yes,’ ” said Val Alstine, quoting from the interview.

MacKenzie will hear that Barry spoke quickly and in a broken fashion to police, telling officers he thought people with guns and bats were trying to kill him. Barry thought he was being stalked so he went to the Times Colonist building at 2621 Douglas St. because he knew there were security cameras and they would be recording if he was beaten, said Van Alstine.

MacKenzie will also hear Barry tell the officer he didn’t mean to kill the boy and came straight to the police station because he was so scared and he feels safe at the police station.

The Crown’s theory is that Barry stabbed Wendland at the bus stop outside the Times Colonist building, then ran with his dog to the police station, discarding a Bible, a lanyard, a butter knife and a black-handled knife in a compound on Westbourne Place.

Police officers, paramedics, firefighters and civilians are expected to testify during the first week of what is scheduled to be a three-week trial. Const. Ian Hynes, who was first on the scene, is expected to testify that he found 15 to 20 people gathered at the bus stop on Douglas Street and saw two people assisting someone on the ground, Van Alstine said.

Hynes is expected to testify that he rolled the young man onto his left side and felt dampness in the young man’s T-shirt. He is expected to say the boy was conscious, his eyes darting back and forth, but he was having trouble breathing.