County settles down runway uproar
The Apalachicola Times
It was about as close as you can get to a kumbaya moment when it comes to the Apalachicola Regional Airport.
At last week’s Jan. 5 meeting, county commissioners unanimously agreed to not abandon a third runway that the state is no longer interested in funding, and to reconstitute an airport advisory board.
Commissioner Smokey Parrish, in whose district the airport lies, did not comment on the push by Commissioner Bert Boldt to encourage the reviving of the citizen advisory board. In the past Parrish has pushed back on the board, or been noncommittal about having one at all, for what he sees as overreach by aviation enthusiasts without regard for concerns found in the neighborhood that abuts the airport.
Legislators face closing bay, opening up lands
The Apalachicola Times
If Franklin County is going to have its say in the Florida legislature this spring, the two people who led the delegation hearing Tuesday night are going to voice it.
State Rep. Jason Shoaf, his first time as senior member of the duo, sat in front of a small audience in the commission chambers, together with newly elected state senator, Loranne Ausley, who was appearing for the first time in her new role.
They listened a lot more than they spoke, in fact they didn’t make their views clear on any of the issues being presented to them.