So Far, Eight Have Qualified in Four City Races by John Peery Three City Commissioner Apopka Chief Staff Seats Are Open
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Lifestyle Sports Emily Goode is one of three An AHS graduate and for- AHS graduates in the Flori- mer football player coaches da State marching band. linebackers at Louisville. God Bless See page 1C. America See page 1B. The Apopka Chief Covering the community in the 21st century ©2014 The Apopka Chief Volume 92 Number 1 Friday, January 3, 2014 / 50 cents So far, eight have qualified in four city races By John Peery Three city commissioner Apopka Chief Staff seats are open. Two were up for re-election after a regular four- Eight people have qualified year term, but Kilsheimer’s seat to run for the four political offices is also up for election since he is open on the Apopka City Coun- running for mayor. cil as of Tuesday, December 31, Incumbent Commissioner at 11:30 a.m. Billie Dean has qualified for re- Qualifying for three city election to Seat 1, while Diane commissioner seats and the may- Velazquez had filed paperwork or’s office continues until noon to challenge Marilyn Ustler Mc- on Monday, January 6. The elec- Queen for Seat 2. McQueen has tion is scheduled for March 11. also filed her paperwork to run for Three of the five expected another term. mayoral candidates have filed Linda Laurendeau and Sam the paperwork to run for that of- Ruth have both filed for Seat City Council candidate Diane Velazquez (r) was the first to show up fice, including Mayor John H. 3, which is being given up by Linda Laurendeau and Mayor John Monday, December 30, at noon to file paperwork to run for city office. Land, City Commissioner Joe Kilsheimer. Both were in a four- H. Land wait their turn to file the Here, she signs a paper for city clerk Jan Goebel. Velazquez is running Kilsheimer, and first-time candi- paperwork to run for city politi- for Seat 2, currently held by Marilyn Ustler McQueen. date Glen Chancy. See RACES Page 3A cal offices. Charter Review Committee will AHS band plays at bowl game hold first meeting on January 7 By John Peery take as long as two years to complete be- Apopka Chief Staff cause of the complexity of the issues. Laurendeau is chairman of the com- An 11-member Charter Review Com- mittee. She is also a candidate for City mittee will hold its first meeting Tuesday, Council, as is committee member Diane January 7, at 6 p.m. at City Hall. Velazquez, although they are not running Members of the committee are: Diane for the same seat. Faircloth, Bill Spiegel, Alexander Smith, The committee was born out of a sev- Vince Gray, Linda Laurendeau, Doug eral-month process of Charter public meet- Bankson, Brian Furgala, Diane Velazquez, ings that started in October 2012 and culmi- Jim Green, Tommy Harrison, and Arlen E. nated in the December approval by Apopka Mizell. voters to require that the mayor appoint a Last October, each city commissioner city administrator. Currently, Richard An- appointed two members, while Mayor John derson serves in that position, but he has H. Land appointed three. done so at the pleasure of the mayor and The committee will study and seek approval was not required by the Charter as public input about term limits for city com- it is now following passage by city voters. About 30 members of the Apopka Blue Darters marching band played with the Univer- missioners and the mayor’s position, the The committee must set a meeting sity of Louisville Cardinals marching band Saturday, December 28, during the pregame number of city commissioners, and single- schedule and take care of other administra- festivities at the Russell Athletic Bowl held in Orlando’s Florida Citrus Bowl stadium. member districts. tive issues at its first meeting, which will be Apopka High band director Chris Cannon knows Dr. Amy Acklin, director of the Louisville Currently, there are no term limits for held in Council Chambers at City Hall. band, from his days as a student at Florida State University. The AHS students partici- Apopka elected officials, there are four Bill McLeod, a longtime Apopka at- pated in a clinic/rehearsal on Friday, December 27, with the Louisville band and sat with commissioners, and all officials are elected torney and son of former city attorney Joh- the Cardinals band throughout the game and played in the stands with the college band. citywide. nie McLeod, will serve as counsel to the Land said the committee’s work could Charter committee. Sam’s Club site approved by city in second quarter of 2013 Note: This is the second of warehouse, received the final an ROTC participant, assumed -The 60-plus-year-old Phyl- ball team, was presented the Phil a four-part series reviewing the unanimous approval for rezoning command of the Air Defense lis Wheatley Elementary School King Award at the team’s annual news of Apopka in 2013 as writ- from the Apopka City Council … Squadron stationed in Okinawa, will be torn down and replaced banquet. ten in the pages of The Apopka Wolfgang Engelmann, 55, owner Japan … Honored by the Rock for students by the 2014-2015 -After 35 years of coach- Chief. This week covers April, and CEO of Engelmann’s Green- Springs Homeowners Associa- school year with a new cam- ing, AHS wrestling coach John May, and June. houses, died on March 30 after tion were Apopka Firefighter pus for 500 students ... The city Hauser will be inducted into the a battle with cancer … Rachel of the Year Lt. John Howe and of Apopka began work on a National Wrestling Hall of Fame By Richard Corbeil Armstrong, 18, a senior at Apop- Apopka Police Department Of- streetscape project, adding 69 this summer, with one more year Apopka Chief Staff ka High, won a national $1,500 ficer of the Year Edward Gil- Medjool palms, 18 crepe myr- before he retires … Rony Veus, journalism award for a 760-word lian … Craig Duncan of Apopka tles and ground cover plants to 20, of Apopka was confined in APRIL 2013 - The 30-acre article on Healthy and Sustain- won his first professional boxing the medians near U.S. 441 and the Orange County Jail, charged parcel in the area near Wal-Mart, able School Food. bout held at the Kissimmee Civ- SR 436 … Jervis Blocker, Apop- by the APD with the abuse death that is expected to eventually -Lt. Col. Steven Barrin- ic Center, with a knockout of his ka High senior and running back be the location of a Sam’s Club ger, USMC, AHS 1990, and opponent John Cochcroft. for the AHS state champion foot- See REVIEW Page 2A Hundreds descend on Apopka This week Happy New Year! Section A for New Year’s football camps Opinion .............4A-5A By Roger Ballas Section B Apopka Chief Staff Sports .............. 1B,1D Section C The parking lot at the Northwest Rec- Lifestyle ................. 1C reation Complex on Jason Dwelley Park- Worship ................. 2C way in Apopka was full Tuesday, Decem- Kapers ................... 4C ber 31. Cars with tags from California to Dining & Ent .......... 5C New Hampshire to Minnesota filled the Bus. Rev ...........6C,7C parking spaces all day. It was the begin- ning of practice for the Offense-Defense Football League (ODFL) Youth National Section D Legal ads ........2D-11D Football Tournament and the champion- Classified..... 12D-14D ship game at the Citrus Bowl stadium in Service Dir. .. 13D,14D Orlando. “Bowl Week” for the Offense-Defense organization, which began Thursday, Jan- The George family, from South Chester- uary 2, brings together top youth football field, Va., enjoys lunch at the Northwest Fireworks could be heard around Apopka well before players drawn from 40 football camps and Recreation Complex. In back is Christo- and after midnight Tuesday, December 31, as Apopkans 108 youth teams from around the coun- pher Jr., 11, who participated in the football joined in celebrating the New Year. Here, fireworks are camp. With him are his dad, Christopher Sr., lighting the sky in Rock Springs Ridge. See YOUTH Page 3A sister Lauryn, 9, and mother, Regina. The Apopka Chief, January 3, 2014, Page 2A Review: Apopka Relay for Life raised $72,000 for cancer research Continued from page 1A two steer pens at Wekiva for 19 years, published a player, Eric Lassiter, land- district title to the Dart- of the Apopkans from the High as his Eagle project … book My Country, Right ed its first regional playoff ers boys water polo team, Florida Federation of Gar- of his one-year-old daugh- Apopka High boys lacrosse or Wrong, which shows spot since 2008. which crushed the War- den Clubs. ter … Jeanette Ann Lutz team beat Wekiva High, 11- America must always pre- -Wekiva High’s girls riors, 11-3. -The Apopka Histori- of Apopka was nominated 6, to win the district semi- vail in conflicts … Ga- water polo team won its cal Society celebrated the to receive the Outstanding final spot … Nick DiRoc- briel Messenger Films first district championship May 2013 – Hote- 92nd birthday of the Soci- Senior Volunteer Award for co, a Wekiva High senior, “The Investigator,” star- with a 7-4 victory over lier John Labruzz spoke ety’s curator Belle Gilliam mentoring students at Rock was awarded a $10,000 en- ring Apopka’s Wade Wil- West Orange … AHS flag to about 300 at the May- … Zellwood Elementary Springs Elementary. gineering scholarship by liams, won the special jury football team, coached by or’s Prayer Breakfast. He School held a renovation -The Court of Honor Northrup Grumman, which prize for “Best Theatrical Matt Houvras, overcame a opened nine major hotels, dedication and reception on (where one becomes an Ea- works with Wekiva in its Feature Production” at the 13-12 fourth quarter defi- including the Peabody Or- May 21, with a ribbon cut- gle Scout) was held for Jus- laser photonics academy.