Archive for the ‘Good News’ Category

Government House Museum Open for Art Walk

The City of St. Augustine’s Government House Museum of History and Archaeology, located at 48 King St. will be open at no charge for guests Friday, September 4 for the First Friday Art Walk. 

More than 20 art galleries are open during the popular downtown art walk.  The Government House Museum will be open to the public from 5:30 to 8 p.m.

For more information call the Department of Heritage Tourism at 825.5033.

Mayor Joe Boles will throw out the first ball Monday night, August 3, when the Jacksonville Suns battle the Huntsville Stars on St. Augustine Night presented by Mowrey, Shoemaker, & Beardsley, PL! Join residents
and dignitaries of St. John’s County for a night of family fun highlighting the St. Augustine community.
The festivities begin at 6PM with an exhibition softball game featuring Pedro and the Setting Suns against business and community leaders from the St. Augustine area. Following the softball game the Jacksonville
Suns will take on the Huntsville Stars in a Southern League matchup beginning at 7:05pm. St. Augustine Mayor Joseph Boles will be in attendance to throw the ceremonial first pitch.
Monday, August 3rd will also feature the Suns’ first Belly Buster Buffet! For just $20, get a Homeplate Box seat
plus all-you-can-eat hot dogs, hamburgers, popcorn, ice cream treats and soft drinks from 6-9PM! Pick up a $5 discount coupon at participating St. Augustine locations or upgrade to the Buffet for $10 with an  already purchased Homeplate Box ticket.
Don’t miss this one-of-a-kind baseball event as the Suns connect America’s Oldest City with America’s oldest pastime!
Sponsorship and ticket packages for St. Augustine Night are available for $100 - $1,500. Call the Suns Director of Sales and Promotions, Casey Nichols, at (904) 358-2846, or email caseyn@jaxsuns.com to find out how you can participate..

Dana Ste. Claire, who last April took over the planning of the city’s 450th Anniversary
Commemoration, will also head up the city’s Department of Heritage Tourism on an interim
basis following the retirement of Dr. Bill Adams at the end of this month. Dr. Adams has
headed the Heritage Tourism Department since September of 1999.
In making the announcement this morning, City Manager Bill Harriss stated that because of
current economic conditions and budgetary constraints and the need to reassess the Heritage
Tourism Department’s mission, an interim director will best serve the city’s needs while the
commission evaluates the future direction of the Department.
Harriss drew attention to Ste. Claire’s background and knowledge of the tourism industry as
an asset for the Heritage Tourism Department during this transition period. Prior to joining
city staff, Ste Claire was the National Director of Museums for Historic Tours of America.

Old City is excited to announce the addition of its newest family member—Auglink Communications, Inc. Just 24 hours after St. Augustine’s first privately owned dial-up Internet service provider informed its customers that it would be closing its doors, Auglink users were able to breathe a sigh of relief that their email and Internet connections would be spared thanks to a last-minute reprieve from Old City Web Services, Inc.

President of Auglink, Maurice Morissette, delivered the bad news to customers in an email late Tuesday afternoon, declaring that Auglink would be out of business on Friday, June 26, 2009. But in a second e-mail sent to company users on Wednesday evening, Old City Web Services, Inc. President Chuck Nusbaum announced, “Good news! Nothing is going to happen this Friday!�

Customers of Auglink will now be welcomed into the Old City family, which includes Old City Web Services, a full-service design studio (oldcitywebservices.com) and St. Augustine’s most popular web portal, Old City (oldcity.com).

Auglink was originally launched in 1994 and incorporated in 1995, during a time when the country’s leading Internet provider, America Online, did not offer a local, toll free number for St. Augustine web users. Elkus and partner Eric Hinson later expanded the company to provide e-mail services as well through “aug.com.â€�

Elkus also started Old City Web Services, which was acquired by Nusbaum in 2005.

Though much is still to be sorted out in the transition, Nusbaum wants Auglink customers to know that their e-mail accounts are still active and fully operational.

“For a while, you won’t notice any difference–except possibly a little better service,â€� Nusbaum said in his initial e-mail to Auglink customers. “We do have some short and long term plans in place to improve the quality of your service experience and possibly lower some prices.â€�

For more information, contact Old City Web Services at (904) 829-2772 .

Since Monday, May 11, the City of St. Augustine has adjusted the chlorine and ammonia levels in the citys water system, which may have slightly changed the taste of city water. Some noticed it, most didn’t

On this coming Thursday, June 11 the City Water Treatment Plant will resume it’s normal feeding of ammonia into the system and revert back to a chloramine disinfection. Bet you won’t be able to tell the difference.

Chlorine and ammonia are both used in St. Augustine’s water treatment process to maintain disinfection of the water.  Adjustment of the chlorine and ammonia levels for pipeline maintenance purposes is a standard operating practice, and is recommended by the American Water Works Association.

For additional information, please contact the City of St. Augustine Water Treatment Plant at (904) 825-1044.

Restrictions Lifted on San Sebastian River

It only took 6 days to correct a major problem.

Thanks to the quick work of the city, all restrictions imposed recently due to a sewage main break located south of King St. in the San Sebastian River at Oyster Creek Marina, have been lifted as of today, Friday, June 5 at 4 p.m.  

 These restrictions covered the San Sebastian River from State Road 16 to the Intracoastal Waterway including Oyster Creek.  Go out and have some fun there this weekend.

For further information please call the Department of Public Works at 825-1040.

Press release courtesy Tommy Bledsoe.

Winners of the St. Johns All-County High School Art Show are as follows:

Best in Show Hugh Holborn III, Pedro Menendez (pictured)

Drawing- Color
1. Sophia Clingan-Darack , SAHS
2. Catie Kurzanski, Ponte Vedra
3. Robin Young, Bartram Trail

Drawing- Black and White
1. Shiloh Ranck, SAHS
2. Annamarie Harvey, Creekside
3. Michelle McCollum, SAHS
Honorable Mention: Lindsey Montiero, Ponte Vedra

Painting
1. Annamarie Harvey, Creekside HS (pictured below)
2. Rosemary Jensen, SAHS
3. Amanda Santillo, Ponte Vedra

Sculpture
1. Alex Argueta, Nease HS
2. Sophia Amberkar, Bartram Trail
3. Madi Cobb, Nease

Pottery /Ceramics
1. Jonathon Blanchard, Pedro Menendez
2. Rebecca Grasley, Nease HS
3. Vanessa Robinson, Menendez HS
Honorable Mention: Kathryn Marguy, Bartram Trail

Mixed Media
1. Veronika Sudnik, Nease HS
2. Matthew Kaszanits, Creekside
3. Katie Evans, Ponte Vedra
Honorable Mention: Brooke Lockerman, Nease

Photography- Single
1. Tessla Stogner, SAHS
2. Taylor McNees, Bartram Trails
3. Hanah White, S AHS
Honorable Mention: George Awwad, Creekside

Photography- Collage
1. Jesse Hammer, Ponte Vedra
2. Isaiah Simmons, SAHS
3. Joel Esposito, Bartram Trails
Honorable Mention: Phoebe Fleming, SAHS

The show features over one-hundred pieces and will be on display at the St. Augustine Art Association, 22 Marine St., St. Augustine until March 29. Winners were selected by local artists, Rachel Thompson and Enzo Torcoletti. Categories of art work include drawing, painting, digital art, photography, ceramics/pottery, jewelry, sculpture and mixed media. Rebecca Williams, who teaches at Landrum Middle School, is exhibit director.

For gallery information, call the Art Association at 824-2310 or visit their website, www.staaa.org. Admission is free.

Press release courtesy Tommy Bledsoe:

St. Augustine High School freshman, Andrew Li, and R. J. Murray Middle School 8th grader, Marley Borema, have been selected as finalists in the Olympus Photographers of Tomorrow Student Photo contest. The contest, which is in its second year, draws entries from students throughout the U. S. and Canada.

Andrew’s photograph, entitled “Make Love, Not War,â€� is a whimsical contrast that makes the viewer smile while pondering the accompanying quotations, by Bertram Russell, “War does not determine who is right - only who is left.” Andrew Li studies with SAHS teacher, Melanie Forsythe. His entry won Honorable Mention in January.

Marley Borema’s photo, “Either Way,� is a nature scene featuring an intricate interplay of light and shadow accented by bright splashes of color. Her graphic arts teacher at Murray Middle School, Christopher Paone, also had students who placed in last year’s contest.

Photos can be viewed at www.toolfactory.com/olympus_contest/olympus_student.htm

On Twitter earlier today, @jonathanrhunt asked if I knew of a good resource of discounts on attractions for St Johns County residents. After a little research, I saw that there wasn’t one. So I’m going to try and make one. There were a few I could remember from gallivanting around St. Augustine when I started at Flagler in 2004, and a lot that I couldn’t get with just a Flagler ID: it had to be true resident status (driver’s license or utility bill). So, be sure to bring your proof, but so far here are the discounts I’ve uncovered. Posting them here for now but soon we might add this as a page to the site.

St Augustine Alligator Farm is half off ticket price. Hailing from Central Florida and being very familiar with Gatorland, I was a little disappointed that a place called an Alligator FARM didn’t serve gator to eat there, but other than that, this place is great, especially for half off.

The Scenic Cruise is half off, bringing it to about 7 bucks for an hour and fifteen minute cruise around the bay and around near the lighthouse. Beer, wine, and sodas available for sale on the boat. It is a great time. I love doing this when people come to visit and once in a while on a gorgeous day. Bring your camera. The last cruise of the day is usually right around sunset, which is perfect. Definitely need proof of residence to get this.

Old Town Trolley Tours offers a hometown pass to ride free with any other paying guest (ie, when people come to visit and just HAVE to get on one of those trains, even though you can recite their narration from your time spent walking downtown). Also, you can get the hometown pass to ride free in November all month! So, if you haven’t had relatives bug you to ride and you kind of just want to play around and be a tourist for a day, it won’t cost you anything, and the weather is bound to be gorgeous in November!

St Augustine Lighthouse is half off. If you haven’t climbed to the top of the lighthouse, you should do it. Do it this weekend. Saturday’s going to be gorgeous. And it’s half off, so you have no excuse. The museum is fascinating and the grounds are spectacular, giant oak trees everywhere.

The Oldest House is free for St Johns County residents. It’s probably one of those places you’ve given directions to for tourists a million times but never actually been inside. I know that’s certainly the case for me. Now that I know it’s free, I think I’ll check it out. Feel free to comment here if you’ve been and let us know what it’s like.

The Lightner Museum is free with proof of residence! It’s free for all Flagler students as well with your Flagler ID. I’ve been there many times and it seems you always run into something you hadn’t seen before. It’s a lot more interesting than you might think and it seems to me like a tamer (but more historically interesting) Ripley’s. This dude, O.C. Lightner, was a wealthy Chicago publisher and personally collected Victoriana. The website highlights the stained glass and art pieces, which are gorgeous, but evidently Lightner’s interests also expanded to include a mummy, a shrunken head, a stuffed lion that had once belonged to Winston Churchill, dolls, toys, and various historic music machines (which the museum demonstrates every day). History buffs will enjoy exploring the once hotel, where you can still see the Turkish baths in the old spa and cool pictures of the giant indoor pool that once filled the bottom of the hotel (which now contains fascinating antique shops and, of course, the Café Alcazar in the deep end).

Fort Matanzas: Ok, this one’s kind of a cop out because it’s free for everyone, and not just St Johns County residents, but if you haven’t made your way south on A1A to check out Fort Matanzas, I know you’ll enjoy it. There’s a free ferry that takes you across the inlet every hour on the half hour, and you’re led by a costumed guide who gives you a tour of the Fort, telling you all about the history and answering all of your questions. I saw a manatee in the water right next to the Fort the last time I went. Dolphins are frequently spotted during the ferry ride as well.

UPDATE: Ripley’s Believe it or Not: Local price $5 for St John’s Co. Regular price is 14.99 Adult 7.99 child. Trains are ½ price - $8.50 Adults and $4 for children. This is an excellent discount and I thank my twitter friend @RipleyWorld for this info!

There’s no reason not to ask for a local’s discount everywhere you go around here, even the shops on St. George Street. During tough economic times, locals are golden, the bread and butter and all that, and you should take advantage of that! Leave any other tips or recommendations in the comments! With a gorgeous weekend coming up everyone get out there and make good use of these!

Connor Thompson, senior at Pedro Menendez High School, had his design selected for the program cover for the 12th Annual Professional Development Conference held in Jacksonville this past November 8-10. The theme of the conference was “Passport to Career Academies”.

The national Career Academy Coalition, sponsor of the conference, held a nationwide design contest for the theme of the conference. From the over 150 designs submitted, the design by third year Digital Design student Connor Thompson was selected.

“His creative designs continue to appeal to all types of audiences.� says his teacher, Christine Danner. After graduation, Connor plans to attend Florida State University or the University of South Florida to pursue a career in business.