Rays: Yarbrough pulled after 8 2/3 innings in 1-0 win /B1 MONDAY TODAY & next morning HIGH 91 Scattered LOW showers and storms. 76 PAGE A4 www.chronicleonline.com AUGUST 12, 2019 Florida’s Best Community Newspaper Serving Florida’s Best Community 50¢ VOL. 124 ISSUE 308 NEWS Commissioner pushes for Baker Act facility BRIEFS Jeff Kinnard behavioral mental health care in Florida man Kinnard to request funding for facility The “purpose of our county.” this is to improve Earlier this year, the Florida trespassing at FRED HIERS Tuesday to consider funding a the behavioral Legislature awarded Citrus Staff writer Baker Act assessment facility. mental health care County $600,000 to provide Baker go-kart track Kinnard said he will ask the other in our county.” Act receiving services through crashes, dies Citrus County’s long struggle to commissioners to use tax reve- LifeStream Behavioral Services. PINELLAS PARK — A provide better mental health care nues from Duke Energy’s new LifeStream is a mental health to its residents could soon bear natural gas plants to fund the provider and has the state’s an- Florida man is dead after some fruit, as one county commis- project. Kinnard wants the building to be nual contract to provide an array crashing while racing his sioner looks to use new tax reve- Kinnard wants to use $300,000 converted to a standalone facility of mental health services in Cit- friend at a closed go-kart nues to buy a building that would this year and $700,000 next year to house a small number of resi- rus County. track. serve as a Baker Act assessment to buy the former Brannen Bank dential Baker Act clients during But that money was to evaluate Pinellas Park police facility. building in Hernando. their full three-day evaluations if Baker Act patients taken to Citrus say Jesse Outlaw was Commission Chairman Jeff The plan is to use the building that’s what they need. Memorial Hospital, and if neces- trespassing when he Kinnard told the Chronicle that to evaluate Baker Act patients and Describing the county’s need sary, transport them the crashed the gas-powered he will ask fellow commission decide there whether to transport for such services as “critically im- LifeStream’s residential Baker go-kart into a guard rail. members during the their regu- them to Leesburg for further eval- portant,” Kinnard said the “pur- Act facility in Leesburg. The Tampa Bay Times larly scheduled public meeting uation. Eventually, though, pose of this is to improve the See COUNTY/Page A5 reports Outlaw wasn’t wearing a helmet when he crashed late Thursday. The go-kart wasn’t equipped with a safety harness. Showtime Speedway Change comes to Cardinal owner Robert Yoho said Outlaw was caught on a security camera trespass- ing two weeks earlier. Florida fire crews rescue worker dangling from tower FORT MYERS — A utility worker is in a Flor- ida hospital after fainting 100 feet above the ground and dangling from a tower until firefighters could rescue him. The Fort Myers Fire Department said the man was installing cabling on a 200-foot communications tower when he reported becoming ill shortly before 9 a.m. Sunday. He fainted and injured his head as he tried to climb down the structure. Fort Myers Deputy Fire Chief Tracy McMillion said the man’s harness kept him from falling to the ground. The News- Press reported that the man suffered “significant head injury.” MATTHEW BECK/Chronicle Suncoast Parkway construction continues along West Cardinal Street in Homosassa. The construction will force a new traffic pattern — From wire reports along the roadway starting Aug. 19 between South Peach Point and South Sunnyview Point. POLL ONLINE POLL: Traffic to shift as pile driving begins along West Cardinal Street Your choice? MICHAEL D. BATES Florida’s Turnpike, said traffic on Cardi- The Suncoast Parkway is being ex- Florida transportation Staff writer nal will be switched to a temporary road tended northward for 13 miles from U.S. officials are considering on Aug. 19. 98 to State Road 44 in Lecanto. their best options to More change is coming to West Cardinal “Following this switch, construction There will be a full interchange at West connect the Street. will begin on the Cardinal Road bridge Cardinal Street and a trailhead so bicy- Withlacoochee Trail bike The Suncoast Parkway interchange that will go over the extension of the Sun- clists and walkers can have easy access to path at U.S. 41 to the halfway between County Road 491 and coast Parkway,” she said. “In order to the trail that will run parallel to the road. Dunnellon bike path. U.S. 19 has taken shape quickly, with huge build this bridge, pile driving will also Work on the $134 million parkway proj- They have even swaths of trees giving way to mounds of begin.” ect began in February 2018 and is ex- dirt and new road. Florida’s Turnpike expects the pile pected to be completed in 2022. considered a tunnel. Soon, traffic there will be diverted driving for the bridge to last into October Contact Chronicle reporter Michael D. What would you suggest again so work can proceed. 2019 and the bridge to be completed in Bates at 352-563-5660 or mbates@ FDOT do? Katie Mitzner, spokeswoman for the fall of 2020. chronicleonline.com. A. Build a bike overpass across U.S. 41. B. Build a tunnel under U.S. 41 for cyclists. C. Install a light at U.S. 41 and County Road 39 with Crystal River city State law removes local a designated bike crossing path. D. Do nothing. Cyclists are getting across OK council sets agenda oversight on tree work now without anything. E. Don’t like these choices? Add your Council to vote on legislative priorities, Tallahassee locals seek to preserve forest comment. To vote, visit www. Kings Bay Drive safety measures JAMES CALL chronicleonline.com. Tallahassee Democrat Scroll down the home page and look for the BUSTER THOMPSON IF YOU GO TALLAHASSEE — A new Staff writer state tree law is provoking anger, poll box in the right- n WHAT: Crystal River city confusion and ridicule among hand column. Crystal River plans to get its government meetings. local officials who must enforce Results will appear talking points lined up for Flor- n WHEN: City council meets at it and tree advocates who will next Monday. Find last ida lawmakers. 7 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 12; wrestle with it in their efforts to week’s online poll City Council members at their CRA meets at 6 p.m. preserve Tallahassee’s urban results./Page A3 Monday evening meeting will forest and network of canopy n WHERE: Crystal River City vote on whether to approve a set roads. INDEX of priorities they want the legis- Hall, 123 N.W. U.S. 19, But the lawmaker who wrote Classifieds ............... B6 lative body to work on in the up- Crystal River. the measure that enables home- coming session for the city’s n CONTACT: 352-795-4216. owners to bypass local govern- Comics .................... B5 benefit. ments when they want to trim Crossword ................ B8 Officials drafted a list of pro- Bay Restoration Project; back or remove a tree said the Editorial ....................A6 posals in June with their lobby- n A $2 million funding request new law is a celebration of pri- Entertainment ...........A4 ist, which includes: to pay the remaining balance to vate property rights. In fact, Rep. Horoscope ................A4 n Modifying state permitting build the $6.2 million Mike LaRosa, R-St. Cloud, Lottery Numbers ...... B3 conditions to bottle water from Riverwalk; branded his proposal the Pri- Lottery Payouts ........ B3 springsheds; n $2.5 million to relocate the vate Property Rights Protection Movies ..................... B5 n Providing areas in King’s city boat ramp in the Dockside Act when he introduced it to leg- Associated Press TV Listings ............... B4 Bay that would limit anchoring Shoppes plaza; islative committees. Trees at least a century old have in environmentally sensitive n $650,000 to cover costs for “Owning property is like one signs posted on them as a form of areas; second-phase construction of of the American dreams,” protest from concerned citizens n Continued funding support the city’s Town Square; LaRosa told the Tallahassee against the trees being cut down for Save Crystal River’s King’s See CITY/Page A5 See TREES/Page A2 for development in Tallahassee. A2 Monday, august 12, 2019 State & LocaL Citrus County (FL) ChroniCLe Food PROGRAMS FOOD PANTRIES n St. Anne’s Episcopal Church — n St. Margaret’s Episcopal Calvary Church is an equal opportu- n Inverness First United Method- 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, Church — 9:30 to 11:45 a.m. Tues- nity provider. ist Church – Provides a free hot n Daystar Life Center — 9 a.m. to Wednesday and Thursday in the ad- days and Wednesdays. Call n Floral City First Baptist Church meal to everyone from 11:30 a.m. on 1:30 p.m. Monday through Friday ministration building, 9870 W. Fort 352-726-3153. — 1 to 3 p.m. the third Thursday Mondays at 1140 Turner Camp (excluding holidays), 6751 W. Gulf- Island Trail, Crystal River. Call n First Presbyterian Church of monthly. Proof of residency required. Road, Inverness. Call to-Lake Highway, Crystal River. 352- 352-795-2176. Crystal River — 9:30 a.m. to noon 352-726-2522. 795-8668. Food for dogs and cats n Citrus United Basket (CUB) — the second and fourth Tuesdays FREE MEALS n Floral City United Methodist may also be available.