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Meat sits on the smoker at Jack’s Old South, the competitive cooking team led by Myron Mixon, the winningest man in barbecue. Mixon and Jack’s Old South are among the 32 teams competing at this weekend’s Downtown Showdown BBQ Cook-off in downtown Lake City. (COURTESY)

Meat sits on the smoker at Jack’s Old South, the competitive cooking team led by Myron Mixon, the winningest man in barbecue. Mixon and Jack’s Old South are among the 32 teams competing at this weekend’s Downtown Showdown BBQ Cook-off in downtown Lake City. (COURTESY)

Downtown BBQ Fest off to smokin’ start

MORGAN MCMULLEN
Thursday, April 13, 2023
Whether they’re world-famous or locally renowned, pit masters from across the nation are set to descend on downtown Lake City this weekend. Lake City will host its first Downtown Showdown BBQ Cook-off on Friday and Saturday downtown at Wilson Park and Darby Pavilion.
Clint Pittman, the interim Tourist Development Council executive director, said he is excited to get started on the 500-acre flatfield facility on the north side of Lake City. (JAMIE WACHTER/Lake City Reporter)

Clint Pittman, the interim Tourist Development Council executive director, said he is excited to get started on the 500-acre flatfield facility on the north side of Lake City. (JAMIE WACHTER/Lake City Reporter)

TDC eyes progress on flat fields

JAMIE WACHTER
Wednesday, April 12, 2023
Paula Vann almost made it. As her final Tourist Development Council meeting as the agency’s executive director wound to a close, the emotions finally hit Vann.
Florida Gateway College’s Esports team concluded the regular season undefeated and will compete at the national tournament this weekend. Front row: Hunter ‘Flash’ Neeley (from left), Colby Thompson and Dallas Hurst. Back row: Andrew Harper (from left), Jesse Campbell and Jared Campbell. Not pictured: James Hickmon. (COURTESY FGC)

Florida Gateway College’s Esports team concluded the regular season undefeated and will compete at the national tournament this weekend. Front row: Hunter ‘Flash’ Neeley (from left), Colby Thompson and Dallas Hurst. Back row: Andrew Harper (from left), Jesse Campbell and Jared Campbell. Not pictured: James Hickmon. (COURTESY FGC)

FGC Esports headed to national tournament

NEWS STAFF
Wednesday, April 12, 2023
The Florida Gateway College Esports team will take an undefeated record into this weekend’s national tournament. The Wolves, playing their fourth season, finished the regular season undefeated in Overwatch 2 and are headed to the national tournament ranked No.
Nicole Bailey (from left), a Fort White High School assistant principal, presents Justin Jenkins, an eighth-grade science teacher, with the school’s inaugural Golden Arrow Award. The award is designed to recognize and honor any staff member that goes above and beyond their traditional job duties. (COURTESY)

Nicole Bailey (from left), a Fort White High School assistant principal, presents Justin Jenkins, an eighth-grade science teacher, with the school’s inaugural Golden Arrow Award. The award is designed to recognize and honor any staff member that goes above and beyond their traditional job duties. (COURTESY)

Jenkins wins inaugural Golden Arrow

TONY BRITT
Wednesday, April 12, 2023
FORT WHITE — Administrators at Fort White High School have developed a new way to recognize teachers and staff who work and contribute beyond their scope of their job duties. On Tuesday afternoon, school officials presented the inaugural Fort White Golden Arrow Award to Justin Jenkins. “Mr.
The Columbia County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a suspicious death after a body was found Tuesday on a road in the Osceola National Forest. (COURTESY)

The Columbia County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a suspicious death after a body was found Tuesday on a road in the Osceola National Forest. (COURTESY)

CCSO: Body found in forest believed to be male

TONY BRITT
Wednesday, April 12, 2023
Detectives with the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office believe the human remains found in the Osceola National Forest on Tuesday afternoon are the remains of a ‘possibly light-skinned male,’ authorities announced Wednesday.
The Columbia County School District’s plan for two new elementary schools with the half-cent sales tax approved by voters last fall is now being delayed. (JAMIE WACHTER/Lake City Reporter)

The Columbia County School District’s plan for two new elementary schools with the half-cent sales tax approved by voters last fall is now being delayed. (JAMIE WACHTER/Lake City Reporter)

Two new elementary schools delayed by a year

JAMIE WACHTER
Tuesday, April 11, 2023
The Columbia County School District is in no rush to spend the voter-approved sales tax funds on new campus construction, regardless of how it was framed for voters during election season.
Lake City Assistant Police Chief Andy Miles (left) looks over the proposed redistricting maps with Joshua Garner after the Lake City Council’s workshop Tuesday. (MORGAN MCMULLEN/Lake City Reporter)

Lake City Assistant Police Chief Andy Miles (left) looks over the proposed redistricting maps with Joshua Garner after the Lake City Council’s workshop Tuesday. (MORGAN MCMULLEN/Lake City Reporter)

City takes in redistricting proposals

MORGAN MCMULLEN
Tuesday, April 11, 2023
Lake City is taking on a new shape. Literally. The Lake City Council listened to a redistricting proposal from Kurt Spitzer of KS&A Governmental Consultants during a workshop Tuesday evening at Lake City Hall. Spitzer’s presentation was the only item on Tuesday’s agenda.
Grace Duncan’s parents, Burt and Cissy (center) help lead the start of last year’s Grace’s Race 5K. The third annual race is scheduled for Saturday at the Heritage Oaks Circle Shopping Center. (FILE)

Grace Duncan’s parents, Burt and Cissy (center) help lead the start of last year’s Grace’s Race 5K. The third annual race is scheduled for Saturday at the Heritage Oaks Circle Shopping Center. (FILE)

Duncan’s memory honored with race

JAMIE WACHTER
Tuesday, April 11, 2023
Looking to keep her memory alive, the Grace’s Race 5K run/walk has also started to embody who Lora Grace Duncan was. The third annual race is Saturday at Grace’s Garden in the Heritage Oaks Circle Shopping Center, which includes HiTone Fitness, 4556 SW Heritage Oaks Circle. The race begins at 9 a.
A crew with Anderson Columbia sets up barricades along the side of State Road 47 on Monday as work began on a widening and resurfacing project. (TONY BRITT/Lake City Reporter)

A crew with Anderson Columbia sets up barricades along the side of State Road 47 on Monday as work began on a widening and resurfacing project. (TONY BRITT/Lake City Reporter)

State Road 47 widening underway

NEWS STAFF
Tuesday, April 11, 2023
Work to widen State Road 47 began Monday in southern Columbia County. The work is part of a $12.5 million, 14.3-mile resurfacing project that stretches from just south of the Interstate 75 interchange to U.S. Highway 27 in Fort White. The project is expected to last into early next year.