Board Approves CARES Grant Plan Complete All Paperwork
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Project1:Layout 1 6/10/2014 1:13 PM Page 1 NFL: Bucs take on Giants in Monday Night Football /B1 TUESDAY TODAY CITRUSCOUNTY & next morning HIGH 75 Sunny, Nice. LOW PAGE A4 52 www.chronicleonline.com NOVEMBER 3, 2020 Florida’s Best Community Newspaper Serving Florida’s Best Community 50¢ VOL. 126 ISSUE 26 Election Board approves CARES grant plan complete all paperwork. opinion whether the season May use funds to pay employees Because of that, County county can do that — pay Administrator Randy Oli- deputies with CARES MIKE WRIGHT money into CARES Act grants, but ver suggested the county funds, and then use the Staff writer only to businesses that have al- use CARES funds to pay general fund money dedi- 2020 ready received funds. sheriff ’s deputies, freeing cated to salaries for an- Citrus County officials are fac- Others whose job categories up salary money from the other purpose. ing such a time crunch to disburse were left out of the mix, such as general fund that can be Former Commissioner draws to millions of dollars in CARES Act home-based businesses, were used for other purposes, Randy Josh Wooten, president grants that they may give a large turned aside by commissioners including business- Oliver and CEO of the Citrus chunk to government employees. who said they’d like to help but related grants. Citrus County County Chamber of Com- During a special meeting Mon- no longer have time to add The board directed administrator. merce, said he would pre- a close day, Nov. 2, commissioners ap- categories because of a state- County Attorney Denise fer nearly all the CARES proved a plan to pump more mandated Nov. 16 deadline to Dymond Lyn to seek a legal See CARES/Page A7 MIKE WRIGHT Staff writer Eight thousand votes. That’s the number of Ingram family home demolished ballots needed to be cast on Election Day in Citrus County to equal the entire 2016 turnout. With early voting and vote by mail accounting for more than 72,000 votes already cast, Cit- rus County is looking at a potential record turn- out in a presidential election year. Supervisor of Elec- tions Susan Gill, over- seeing her final election during 24 years in office, said she ex- pects a voter turnout of 82% to 85%. The turnout was al- ready close to 62% in early voting and vote by mail. “That tells me we have a lot of interest in Sandra Ingram looks to the sky this election,” she said. and speaks to her father Monday, Turnout in 2016 was Nov. 2, 2020, while watching an 76.6%, or 80,973 votes. excavator demolish her family’s Along with the presi- home. “Sorry Dad. They had to dent, voters will also take your room.” Ingram’s mother choose local races: and father, along with her brother sheriff, property ap- and sister all passed away inside praiser, school board, the home that she helped her mosquito control board; father build in 1971. “I have mixed plus, state House of emotions,” she said. “My dad’s Representatives and standing over there looking at me U.S. House. And Crystal smiling and my mom’s over there River voters will choose shaking her fist at me.” After living candidates for two in a camper for years with her two council seats. grandchildren, many community Unlike the first few members have come together to days of early voting, Gill help the Homosassa family secure said voters on Election a new home. “It was very Day shouldn’t expect emotional and bittersweet to see lines unless they show the house come down — my family up at 7 a.m. when polls lived there for 52 years. I was 18 first open. Polls close at when I helped my dad build the 7 p.m. four rooms around a 30-foot Arrow A few other election- travel trailer that became the related tidbits: house. My mom lived there for I Citrus County Tran- about 46 years after my dad died. I sit is offering voters a know my dad would be happy free ride to the polls and because I did it for the kids.” back home on Election Day. Call 352-527-7630. I Firearms are not Photos by allowed inside polling locations. Gill said poll Matthew Beck clerks are directed to call the sheriff ’s office if there are any prob- lems at polling sites. See ELECTION/Page A5 LAST CHANCE TO VOTE I Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. I If you’re not sure where to vote, go to Ingram is white-knuckled as she clinches her www.votecitrus. hands while watching her home being torn down. com, or call the RIGHT: Heavy equipment from Hensley Grading, Supervisor of Inc. is used to demolish this home in Homosassa Elections office at that has been in Sandra Ingram’s family since the 352-564-7120. early 1970s. A new mobile home will soon take I See the Chronicle’s the place of the structure that had Facebook page for become unsafe to occupy. updated results, or www.chronicle online.com; or the supervisor of elections website, www.votecitrus.com. Local jail sees COVID-19 cases past week INDEX jail were placed on quarantine, Citrus COVID-19 update Classifieds . .B5 Two jail housing pods in quarantine and visitations were suspended for 14 days. Comics . .B4 Twenty new positive cases were BUSTER THOMPSON Of those cases, one is an inmate For security reasons, CoreCivic reported in Citrus County since the Crossword . .B8 from the U.S. Virgin Islands, Oli- Staff writer won’t disclose the number of cur- latest FDOH update. Two new hos- Editorial. A9 ver said. rent inmates, Gustin said, adding pitalizations were reported; no new Entertainment . A4 COVID-19 broke out inside the Oliver said the Florida Depart- jail pods can house roughly 60 peo- Horoscope . A4 local jail this past week as Citrus ment of Health Department ple each; however, fewer inmates deaths were reported. Lottery Numbers . .B2 County’s 7-day average of infec- (FDOH) in Citrus County is ad- are placed there on purpose if To date in the county, 3,328 peo- Lottery Payouts . .B2 tions continues to rise. dressing the issue. there ever needs to be an isolation. ple have tested positive (including Obituaries . None County Administrator Randy “CoreCivic has implemented From when the pandemic began 14 non-residents), 336 have been hospitalized and 135 have died. TV Listings. .B3 Oliver said Monday, Nov. 2, 2020, the appropriate protocols,” he impacting the county to this latest the Citrus County Detention Fa- said in an email. report from the Lecanto jail, there cility, run by CoreCivic, reported Due to lessen the spread of re- had been one non-county inmate the number of coronavirus cases eight inmates testing positive for cent inmate cases, CoreCivic who tested positive for the disease within CoreCivic staff at the jail, the novel coronavirus since Mon- spokesman Ryan Gustin said after getting outside treatment. according to Gustin on Monday. day, Oct. 26. Monday, two housing pods of the There has been no change in See VIRUS/Page A6 A2 TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2020 CITRUS COUNTY (FL) CHRONICLE MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2nd thru WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4th • 10am-5pm TUSCANY ON THE MEADOWS at the Quality Inn Conference Center at Citrus Hills 350 E. Norvell Bryant Hwy. • Hernando, FL 34442 FREE $15 Publix Gift Card 000YWML Page A3 - TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2020 STATE &CITRUS L COUNTYOCAL CHRONICLE Around the COUNTY TDC to discuss Riverwalk funding MICHAEL D. BATES tourism. looking at many funding County Transit Staff writer Citrus County Visitors options, including the offers free ride Bureau Director John county, other organiza- The city of Crystal River Pricher said there is not tions and bonds. to the polls will ask the Citrus County $1 million in the coffers Also at Wednesday’s Citrus County Transit is Tourist Development right now so the board meeting: offering a free ride to vote Council (TDC) on Wednes- may have to discuss other I The Friends of Crystal today. Home pickup and re- day, Nov. 4, 2020, to commit options, such as a contract River National Wildlife turn to home from poll loca- $1 million in tourist devel- between the county and Refuge will update the opment funds over the city committing a certain board on its expansion tions. Advanced reservation next 10 years to help pay amount given annually program and ask for an- is the best way to secure a for the second phase of the until it’s paid off. other $100,000. time. Transit staff will be Kings Bay Riverwalk “There are mechanisms The TDC in March taking same day requests project. that could do it if (the unanimously approved Nov. 3 on a first come, first Due to COVID-19 budget board members) move for- committing $100,000 from served basis. For reserva- shortfalls and increased ward,” Pricher said. its bed tax-generated capi- Special to the Chronicle tions, call 352-527-7630. construction costs, there is But the board has not tal improvement projects Due to increased construction costs and a lack of state a $2 million funding gap been comfortable in com- fund to help defray costs funding, Crystal River modified its Riverwalk route to a No-cost COVID-19 the city needs to fill before mitting money it doesn’t for installing interactive more feasible one. In its updated design, the city removed testing coming it starts breaking ground have.