Two of NFL’s best lock horns in prime time /B1 The new breed. 2013 AVALON TUESDAY TODAY CITRUS COUNTY & next morning HIGH 74 Mostly cloudy with a LOW chance of showers and at VILLAGE TOYOTA thunderstorms. 62 PAGE A4 SEE IT ON PG. C10 www.chronicleonline.com DECEMBER 11, 2012 Florida’s Best Community Newspaper Serving Florida’s Best Community 50¢ VOLUME 118 ISSUE 126 NEWS BRIEFS CR moves Boards unite to fight Riverwalk project along County commission, school board agree to fund lengthy battle against Duke The Riverwalk project along King’s Bay will re- ceive further study now that all five property own- ers affected by the board- walk support it. Members of the Crystal River City Council, sitting as the Community Rede- velopment Agency, ap- proved City Manager Andy Houston’s request Monday night to continue studying the project an- other 60 days. Riverwalk is a board- walk connecting Cracker’s restaurant with Charlie’s Fish House. City business leaders said Riverwalk would be a sig- nificant tourist attraction. Chronicle Publisher Gerry Mulligan, who heads the chamber of com- merce’s Crystal River area council, said Riverwalk would showcase the bay. “We have one of the most beautiful assets in the whole world,” Mulli- gan said. “We have kept that view from people for many, many years.” Houston said the esti- MATTHEW BECK/Chronicle County Commissioner Dennis Damato, left, sits quietly while listening to newly elected Commissioner Scott Adams on Monday morning as Adams mated cost is $1 million. voices his opinion that previous county commission administrations have been fiscally irresponsible. —From staff reports MIKE WRIGHT Staff writer INSIDE LECANTO — The business of ALL ABOARD: fighting back against Progress Energy Florida over its 2012 tax payment began Monday with the Citrus County Commission and school board agreeing to fund start-up costs for what could be a lengthy legal battle. Before a sparse crowd of fewer than 50 people at the College of Central Florida in Lecanto, both boards agreed to pay up to $175,000 each in the next six months to contest a lawsuit Arkitechture Progress has brought against A man from the Nether- Property Appraiser Geoff Greene lands completes a full- over the assessment of its energy The Citrus County Commission and the Citrus County School Board met jointly Monday at the College of size replica of Noah’s complex north of Crystal River. Central Florida. Ark./Page A12 The funds also will go toward Greene creating a “baseline” ap- give the county a true value of the the tax collector and Florida De- “We haven’t seen a challenge of ENDURANCE CHAMPS: praisal of real and tangible prop- company’s taxable assets. partment of Revenue. this magnitude — ever,” Cloud erty at the nuclear and coal Both boards also formally ap- Greene’s attorney in the Duke said. plants. Officials said the ap- proved adding the county com- case, Thomas Cloud of Orlando, Progress and its parent praisal, which could cost an ad- mission and school board as said it could be one of the largest ditional $320,000, is necessary to defendants, along with Greene, tax cases in the state’s history. See TAX/ Page A2 Standouts Truce called in firehouse war EDC Number of constestants The conflict began in April, when steadily dwindles in the civic club’s lease on the fire sta- Homosassa “ addressing “Last Man Standing” It’s going to be tion at 10950 W. Yulee Drive expired competition./Page A3 like one-stop and the county declared it surplus nonprofits near property that could be turned over ‘skills gap’ OUT OF THE BLUE: “shopping for all our to a nonprofit group to advance its agreement work in the community. The civic PAT FAHERTY needy clients. club had an arrangement with the CHRIS VAN ORMER Staff writer We Care Food Pantry to use the fire Staff writer Diane Toto station twice a month to distribute Having the right workers with We Care Food Pantry. food to the needy. Two charities that fought each available to meet the needs of The civic club applied to own the other to own the Old Homosassa fire Services, to give an update. existing and emerging employ- fire station at the same time that station are close to resolving their “This has been a project that ers has been an ongoing Toto, food pantry president, made a conflict in a way to benefit county Commissioner Kenney, Ken Frink concern of the Citrus claim to continue using the property residents on many levels. and myself have been working on County Economic Develop- for food distribution. Jim Bitter with The proposed agreement, which for months,” Pearson said. “Diane ment Council. the civic club said the club needed has yet to be finalized, was revealed Toto with We Care and the Ho- The issue of a “skills gap” in the property to convert the old fire- last week at the end of the Citrus mosassa Civic Club were both vying the local workforce mirrors the house into a learning center for chil- County Board of County Commis- for that building. After many months employment situation at the na- dren and adults. Mystery man sioners meeting, when Commis- of working it out, Diane has gra- tional, state and regional levels. The battle between the two non- Police in Great Britain sioner John “JJ” Kenney asked Cathy ciously come up with the idea to In 2013, the EDC will have a profits has been waged since April. are trying to identify a Pearson, assistant county adminis- move to the outreach center on Atlas subcommittee focusing on that man who apparently fell trator and director of Community Drive in Homosassa.” See BUILDING/ Page A5 issue, according to EDC Exec- out of a plane and into utive Director John Siefert. It a quiet London neigh- will consist of EDC board borhood./Page A12 members and include repre- sentatives from Withlacoochee INDEX Obama tax plan no small deal to small businesses Technical Institute, College of Central Florida, the Citrus Comics . .C6 Obama’s proposal would hit about an important engine for economic County School District and Cit- Community . .C4 Plan could affect 940,000 people who report business growth and job creation. rus Memorial hospital. Crossword . .C5 income on their individual or They recite it as gospel: Paying “We have a skills gap in Cit- Editorial . .A10 household returns, said the Joint higher taxes will reduce the amount rus County,” Seifert said. “It’s Entertainment . .B4 940,000 owners Committee on Taxation, the official of profits business owners would bigger than this region. Horoscope . .B4 scorekeeper for Congress. That’s otherwise re-invest in their compa- Florida and the U.S. suffer Lottery Numbers . .B3 Associated Press only 3.5 percent of the people who nies, making them less likely to ex- from having jobs available that Lottery Payouts . .B4 report business income, but those pand and hire more workers. Many they are unable to fill with WASHINGTON — President Movies . .C6 business owners are projected to economists agree tax increases in skilled workers.” Barack Obama’s plan to increase Obituaries . .A6 earn 53 percent of the $1.3 trillion in general limit economic growth. But Workforce Connection, taxes on top earners would have Classifieds . .C7 business income that will be re- there are big disagreements about which represents Citrus, Levy TV Listings . .C5 only a small impact on the nation’s ported on individual returns next magnitude — how much relatively and Marion counties, recently economy, according to congres- year. small changes in the top two income announced it will convene a sional budget experts. But don’t tell tax rates would affect the economy task force early in the year to that to small-business owners facing That, Republicans in Congress a tax hike. argue, makes those business owners See BUSINESS/ Page A5 See EDC/ Page A4 A2 TUESDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2012 LOCAL CITRUS COUNTY (FL) CHRONICLE said. “The reason you have reserves is for a rainy day like this. The rainy day came and guess what? We weren’t prepared.” Commission Chairman Joe Meek and Commis- sioner Rebecca Bays noted the county has one of the lowest tax rates and spending per person in the state. “Some of the comments here have been insulting to this board,” Meek said. He said the issue is the Progress tax situation, not the county’s budget process. MATTHEW BECK/Chronicle On the school board side, Property Appraiser Geoff Greene addresses county commis- board members agreed that sioners and school board members at Monday’s meeting. the Duke tax issue has placed them in a difficult Special to the Chronicle While each board’s vote situation. Members of the Citrus County Audubon Society will volunteer in the Audubon Christmas was unanimous to join the However, according to bird count on Jan. 4. TAX lawsuit and pay toward ex- Continued from Page A1 Superintendent of Schools penses, Commissioner Scott Sandra “Sam” Himmel, Adams suggested settling the circumstances are company, Duke Energy, paid with Progress to avoid costly different. Local volunteers to join $19.3 million for its 2012 litigation. District officials have ap- taxes. County officials say He said the company has pealed to the state for more the actual tax bill, based on uncertainty with its broken funding, and Himmel said Greene’s assessment of the Audubon bird count nuclear power plant, offline the state may supplement property, is about $36 mil- since 2009, and the future of all but $2.5 million of the Special to the Chronicle form decisions by the U.S.