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november 2010
Nov 8 City Commission Meeting / 6 pm
Nov 9 Code Enforcement Board / 6 pm
Nov 11 VEtEraNs Day – City OffiCEs ClOsED
Nov 16 Community Development Board / 6 pm
Nov 18 Pension Board of trustees / 7 pm
Nov 22 City Commission Meeting / 6 pm
Nov 23 *Cultural arts & recreation advisory Committee / 6 pm
Nov 25/26 thaNksgiViNg hOliDay – City OffiCEs ClOsED
deCember 2010
Dec 13 City Commission Meeting / 6 pm
Dec 21 Community Development Board / 6 pm
Dec 28 *Cultural arts & recreation advisory Committee / 6 pm
Dec 23/24 City OffiCEs ClOsED
City offiCiAls
Mike Borno, Mayor Carolyn Woods, Commissioner
John fletcher, Mayor Pro Tem Jim hanson, City Manager
Jonathan Daugherty, Commissioner alan Jensen, City Attorney
Paul Parsons, Commissioner Donna Bartle, City Clerk
www.coab.us • (904) 247-5800
Meetings are held in the Commission Chamber unless otherwise indicated.
* These events will be held at Adele Grage Cultural Center, 716 Ocean Blvd.
november 2010
Nov 3 lagniappe Night / adele grage / 7 pm
Nov 3 Mid-Week Market / Bull Park / 4 - 7 pm
Nov 7 songwriters Concert / adele grage / 6 - 8 pm
Nov 10 Mid-Week Market / Bull Park / 4 - 7 pm
Nov 17 Mid-Week Market / Bull Park / 4 - 7 pm
Nov 18 North Beaches art Walk / town Center / 5 - 9 pm
Nov 18 holiday artisans faire / adele grage / 5 - 9 pm
Nov 20 twilight Movie / “karate kid” / 298 aquatic Drive
Nov 24 Mid-Week Market / Bull Park / 4 - 7 pm
deCember 2010
Dec 1 lagniappe Night / adele grage / 7 pm
Dec 4 holiday Celebration & tree lighting / town Center
Dec 5 songwriters Concert / adele grage / 6 - 8 pm
Dec 11 holiday sing-along / Bull Park / 6 - 8 pm
Dec 16 North Beaches art Walk / town Center / 5 - 9 pm
Presents…
Sugar Bean Sisters
Comedy by nathan sanders
november 4 - 6
set in the fictional town of sugar Bean, florida, this southern gothic
folktale of romance, murder and alien abduction tells the story of the
Nettles sisters, who are visited one summer night by a mysterious
stranger. Events take a turn for the extraordinary with the addition of
a reptile Woman, an ethereal man in white and flying cats.
showtimes: thursday, friday & saturday 8 pm / sunday 2 pm
Admission: Adults – $15 / senior, student, military – $12
shop local, shop special
as the holiday shopping season quickly approaches, keep in mind that we have
wonderful local shopping opportunities if you are inclined to look for special
gifts in a pleasant and calmer environment rather than fight the traffic, crowds
and madness of the malls and big box stores. Our town Center has many
wonderful small shops and will once again be a colorful and festive holiday
scene unique to any other in the Jacksonville area. North Beaches art Walk on
thursday, November 18th, 5 - 9 pm will be the perfect opportunity to enjoy the
area and find special gift items at local shops and from art Walk participants.
Our retailers and restaurants need your support.
also, on November 18th, the adele grage Cultural Center will host an artisans’
holiday faire featuring 15 Northeast florida artists with unique and exceptional
gifts for the holiday season, music and refreshments. the limousine shuttle will
be available to go from town Center to adele grage from 6 - 9 pm and the
Beaches trolley, now providing year-round service, makes visiting town Center
a very hassle-free visit from almost anywhere at the Beaches. and be sure to
check the City’s web-site for lots of other holiday festivities and events.
City government at its best is boring. there has
been a lot of news coverage lately about city
budgets and tax rates in our area. however, there
has been very little coverage about atlantic Beach’s
budget or tax rate, probably because there was very little controversy.
Our tax rate for the coming year remains the same as will storm
water, sanitation, and water rates. the only thing you will pay more
for next year is sewer service which is related to the requirement to
clean up the st. Johns river by removing nitrogen.
Why are we different? the answers are simple and non-controversial.
they relate to conservative financial planning with a long-term
perspective. We have invested in our infrastructure when money was
available. atlantic Beach has long-term plans for the maintenance
and upgrades to our water, sewer and storm water systems. When
taxes and other money were available, particularly during years when
property values were going up, the City invested in capital projects for
water, sewer, storm water and parks. the ongoing reconstruction of
the storm water system in the royal Palms neighborhood and the
construction of the hopkins Creek retention Pond to relieve drainage
problems are two examples. saving money to pay for the big projects
rather than borrowing has been one way of keeping costs down in
the long run.
as property taxes and other revenues have fallen over the last couple
of years, there has been less money to put into new capital projects.
it is much easier to limit funding for new projects than to raise taxes
and cut services.
atlantic Beach will issue bonds to upgrade the wastewater treatment
facilities to meet the new nitrogen standards in coming months. this
project is one that even atlantic Beach cannot pay for out-of -pocket.
however, rates have already been raised anticipating the future debt
payments. fortunately, consultants working for the City have done
a great job in finding cost effective solutions to meet the standards.
your tax rate in atlantic Beach is remaining level, the streets don’t
flood except in extreme situations and the police are there when you
need them. City government at its best is boring.
— Mayor Borno
America Recycles Day
america recycles Day is a national campaign held every year
on November 15 to help raise awareness about the benefits
of recycling and buying products made with recycled materials.
10 Great ways to Celebrate America recycles day:
1 Commit to recycle and buy recycled products for home, work and school.
2 learn what materials you can recycle in your community and do your best
to recycle all you can. (for details on what items can be recycled in atlantic
Beach visit our website at www.coab.us – Public Works Department).
3 When shopping, purchase products that are packaged in materials you can
recycle locally.
4 Visit a recycling center in your area. see how your recycled paper and
containers are sorted and prepared for manufacturing into new products.
5 read product labels. at your local grocery, department store or home
improvement center, look for products with recycled content, and buy some.
look for “safe bets” that always have recycled content: steel, aluminum,
glass or molded paper pulp containers (like egg cartons).
6 ask your local retailer to stock more products with recycled content or write the
manufacturer of your favorite products asking them to use recycled materials.
7 Organize an event such as a display of recycled content products at your
school, office, store or church, or a tour of a facility that manufactures
recycled-content products.
8 learn more about how recycling helps preserve resources, protects the
environment and benefits the economy, and teach kids about the importance
of recycling and buying recycled.
9 Don’t forget waste reduction is important too. look for ways to avoid making
garbage – try composting.
10 Visit the great outdoors and enjoy the clear air, clean water and litter-free
landscapes that recycling helps make possible.
buying recycled is the step that closes the recycling loop.
reminder:
irrigation schedules Change on November 7, 2010
When the time changes from Daylight savings time to Eastern standard time on
November 7th, remember to change the settings on your irrigation system.
During the fall and winter months, you are only allowed to irrigate one day per
week, before 10:00 a.m. and after 4:00 p.m. know your days:
saturday – homes with odd numbered addresses
sunday – homes with even numbered addresses
tuesday – Non-residential properties
Note that golf courses, cemeteries and recreational facilities such as ballfields are
not restricted to the one-day per week schedule as long as they irrigate before
10 am and after 4 pm. for more information on irrigation restrictions and water
conservation, go to www.floridasWater.com.
Crime Prevention tips
did you know that over 90% of car burglaries in Atlantic beach are crimes
of opportunity, meaning that the victim’s car doors are left unlocked for
the suspect to enter. locking your car doors and removing valuable items
(GPs units, iPods, purses, etc) will greatly reduce the odds of becoming a
victim of a car burglary!
with the holiday season just around the corner, the Atlantic beach Police
department would like to take this opportunity to remind citizens to
always have a designated driver if consuming alcoholic beverages, or call
for a ride home. each year people are seriously hurt by drunk drivers. be
safe! don’t become a statistic!
Holiday Celebration
& Tree Lighting
the Beaches town Center, along with the Cities of atlantic Beach and Neptune
Beach, are sponsoring a holiday kick-off celebration on saturday, December 4th. the
festivities will begin at 3 pm with a bike parade through town Center and everyone is
invited to decorate their bikes and join in the fun. there will be many activities to keep
the little ones busy including music, dance performances, face painting, arts and crafts
for all ages and carriage rides. the Mayors of both cities will light the community tree
and santa and Mrs. Claus will arrive by sleigh at 6 pm for the tree lighting and visit
with the kids. for more information, go to www.beachestowncenter.com.
DON’t fOrgEt tO turN yOur ClOCks
BaCk ON NOVEMBEr 7th!
are you interested in receiving Crime alerts
for atlantic Beach?
the citizens of Atlantic beach can search for specific types of crimes by
geographic area and time frame by accessing local crime data at www.
Crimereports.com. the site may also be accessed through the City
of Atlantic beach website at www.coab.us. the Atlantic beach Police
department electronically transmits data to the website vendor every 24
hours, which is then uploaded to the crime map. interested parties may
register and receive crime alerts based upon criteria they select; such as
location, distance and crime type. these alerts can be received on a daily,
weekly or monthly basis.