Regional

Courts seek $16M to dig out of hole from pandemic

NEWS STAFF
Tuesday, October 20, 2020
TALLAHASSEE — Florida’s state court system needs more than $16 million to address increased workloads caused by the coronavirus pandemic, according to a budget request submitted last week to the Legislature. The major portion of the request — more than $12.
Trick-or-treaters receive candy from the Live Oak Fire Department’s booth at the Candy Carnival in downtown Live Oak last year. This year the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency is helping to sponsor a drive-in event at Heritage Park and Gardens. (SUWANNEE DEMOCRAT)

Trick-or-treaters receive candy from the Live Oak Fire Department’s booth at the Candy Carnival in downtown Live Oak last year. This year the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency is helping to sponsor a drive-in event at Heritage Park and Gardens. (SUWANNEE DEMOCRAT)

Drive-in Halloween planned for Live Oak

NEWS STAFF
Monday, October 19, 2020
LIVE OAK — Trick-or-treating and other Halloween fun is still a go for Live Oak, just with a different look. The downtown Candy Carnival is off, as is the Suwannee High School Key Club’s haunted house at the Suwannee County Coliseum.

LCMC hosts opioid take back event

NEWS STAFF
Monday, October 19, 2020
Trying to help “Crush the Crisis,” the Lake City Medical Center will be helping people dispose of their unused and unwanted opioids. As part of the National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, LCMC is hosting its “Crush the Crisis” event Saturday from 9-11 a.m.

Columbia up to 71 deaths linked to covid-19

NEWS STAFF
Monday, October 19, 2020
A 71st Columbia County resident’s death has been linked to covid-19, according to the Columbia County Health Department. The health department received confirmation Saturday of the death of a 77-year-old woman that had previously tested positive for the virus.

Local jobless rate continues to drop

NEWS STAFF
Saturday, October 17, 2020
While Florida’s unemployment rate rose slightly last month, locally the number of workers without jobs continued to fall. According to data released Friday by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, the state’s unemployment rate was 7.6% in September, an increase of 0.
President Donald Trump and moderator Savannah Guthrie are seen after an NBC News town hall event at the Perez Art Museum in Miami on Thursday. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images/TNS)

President Donald Trump and moderator Savannah Guthrie are seen after an NBC News town hall event at the Perez Art Museum in Miami on Thursday. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images/TNS)

Trump, Biden square off, sort of, in separate town halls

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Thursday, October 15, 2020
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump was evasive Thursday night when pressed if he took a covid-19 test before his first debate with Democrat Joe Biden as the two men squared off again, in a way, after their scuttled second showdown was replaced by dueling televised town halls several channels apart.

Columbia County up to 70 covid-19 deaths

NEWS STAFF
Thursday, October 15, 2020
Two more deaths connected to covid-19 were confirmed in Columbia County on Thursday, raising the county’s death toll from the pandemic to 70. The latest deaths were a 78-year-old man and an 82-year-old man.

Critics question info on toll roads

NEWS STAFF
Wednesday, October 14, 2020
TALLAHASSEE — Critics of three controversial toll-road projects planned to run through rural areas of Florida contend transportation officials aren’t providing a full picture of the opposition.