The Shields Painting Difference: Perfection with Every Brush Stroke
Many painting companies in Florida rely on flashy marketing and big promises to try and attract new clients. But when it comes time to work, they fall short of their promises. This is often due to a lack of experience, qualified painters, and a drive to overachieve. At Shields Painting, we do things a little differently than other painting companies in Citrus County. We believe that a professional paint job should be as close to perfect as possible. Our goal is to leave you 100% satisfied, whether we're touching up an old residential paint job or performing a complex commercial project. It might sound simple, but we achieve that goal through honesty, hard work, beautiful results, and reasonable pricing.
As a family-owned and operated painting company in Orange Springs, FL, we strive to provide personalized, professional, and friendly service. Shields Painting has been in business since 1968 for a good reason. Whenever possible, we go the extra mile to make sure our customers are happy. Unlike some of our competition, we want to know all about your house or business painting project: your vision, your preferences, your challenges, and your goals. When we understand your needs, we can present you with a fantastic final product - one that you're proud to show off to friends and neighbors.
At Shields Painting, we combine our extensive experience with time-tested, meticulous painting processes, resulting in the highest quality painting results around. As a painting contractor in Citrus County, we can take on a variety of residential, commercial, and industrial projects in Florida.
A few of our most popular painting services include:
- Interior Painting
- Exterior Painting
- Residential Painting
- Commercial Painting
- Cabinet Painting
- Ceiling Painting
- Fence Painting
- Sign Painting
- MUCH More!
Our commercial, industrial, and residential painting contractors take the proper steps to protect your property and belongings while we work. Our team will clean up after ourselves, so your property is left clean and free of debris when we're done. After all, we think there's only one way to do a job, and that's the right way.
Painting Services
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Eco-friendly & clean work area.
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PDCA Certified Member.
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Your Go-To House Painting Company in Orange Springs, FL
Your home is a haven of relaxation and solitude. It is uniquely you - a place where you can express who you are through style and design. Whether you need interior touch-ups for your crown molding or a new exterior coat of paint, hiring a reliable painting contractor is the best way to get quality results.
At Shields Painting, we know how important it is to have a home that highlights your tastes and personality. That's why we offer an extensive array of residential painting services in Citrus County. As tempting as it might be to try a DIY paint job, without the proper skills and experience, there is a good chance that the results will turn out less than satisfactory.
High-quality painting requires skill, experience, and patience. If you're a homeowner who needs residential painting services but doesn't have the time, patience, or skills to handle the job, look no further than Shields Painting. We offer accuracy, precision, and longevity with each paint job we perform. Our customers choose Shields Painting for their home because they receive:
- Free Quotes with Detailed Project Breakdowns
- Affordable Pricing
- Expert Painting Contractors
- High-Quality Paint Products
- Combo of Traditional and Modern Techniques
- Well-Maintained Tools
- Unmatched Craftsmanship
- Friendly, Personalized Service
- Good Old-Fashioned Hard Work!
The majority of our house painting services come in two forms: interior and exterior.
Interior Residential Painting
As an interior painting contractor with decades of experience, our expert technicians have developed an interior painting process that maximizes quality and emphasizes customer satisfaction. We understand that interior painting goes beyond aesthetics. It protects your ceilings and walls and helps you sustain a healthier place to live for your family. When only the finest craftsmanship will do inside your home, Shields Painting is here for you.
Our seasoned team of painting experts and craftsmen is dedicated to respecting your space and providing you with the look and feel you're craving inside your home. Whether you bought a new house and want to make it your own or need minor touch-ups but have no time, Shields Painting is ready to tackle the job, no matter how small or large.
Unlike some painting companies, our interior house painters take the time to get the details right, every time. For instance, color is only one aspect of your interior paint job. The paint sheen or finish is just as important. Certain finishes are better for living rooms and bedrooms than in kitchens and bathrooms. We'll help you find the right finish and paint colors for your home, so you don't have to worry about touch-ups or repainting.
Some of our most popular interior house painting services include:
- Ceiling Painting
- Popcorn Ceiling Removal
- Living Room Painting
- Bathroom Painting
- Basement Painting
- Color Consultations
- More
![House Painters Orange Springs, FL House Painters Orange Springs, FL](/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/painting-company-orange-springs-fl-2.jpg)
Cabinet Painting
Citrus County cabinet painting deserves its own section on this page because it requires more time, skill, and quality paint than most sections of your home. If your home's cabinets are built into its woodwork, replacing them can be obnoxiously expensive. Compared to the cost of installing new cabinets, painting your kitchen cabinets is much more affordable.
At Shields Painting, we specialize in transforming old cabinets into new, gorgeous features that are just as usable as they are beautiful. Each step of our cabinet painting process is meticulous and thorough. And we'll take care of the entire job, from cleaning, prep, and sanding to priming, painting, and reassembly. This unique service lets you enjoy a brand-new look in your kitchen without having to go into debt by replacing your cabinets.
Whether your cabinets are new, but you want to change their color or you'd like to transition wood cabinets to a painted finish, Shields Painting has the expertise and experience to give you a new look you'll love.
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Exterior Residential Painting
Your home - it's a place that not only keeps your belongings safe. It protects your family and loved ones, too. It's one of your largest investments, and like anything else of value, it should be protected. However, Florida weather can take a toll on your home's structure and paint, lowering your home's value and even putting your family at risk.
While it's true that a beautiful exterior affects your house's value, it shouldn't take thousands of remodeling dollars to make a positive change to your home. There's a fine line between reasonable pricing and top-quality painting, and that sweet spot is what Shields Painting aims for. If you want to transform how your friends and neighbors see your home, never underestimate the power of a professional paint job.
Our exterior residential painting services are designed to boost curb appeal, give your home a fresh look, and help it stand up to Florida's unique weather. But we provide more than that. When you hire Shields Painting for your outdoor painting project, you will enjoy peace of mind in knowing that your home is in truly capable hands. Our goal is to exceed your expectations and help bring out the best in your property, whether you need to re-stain your deck or remove old, peeling paint from your siding.
If you're on the hunt for the very best exterior painting contractor in Orange Springs, FL, look no further than Shields Painting.
Some of our most popular exterior house painting services include:
- Vinyl Siding Painting
- Deck Painting and Staining
- Stucco Exterior Painting
- Wood Exterior Painting
- Porch Painting and Staining
- Soffit Painting
- Fascia Painting
- Window Painting
- Front Door Painting
- Thorough Painting Prep
- More
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The Premier Commercial Painting Company in Orange Springs, FL
When it comes to first impressions, your businesses' appearance plays an important role. Your commercial property's paint job factors into its overall aesthetics. A great-looking, well-maintained paint job can mean the difference between a customer walking in your storefront and passing by. Conversely, an old, worn-out commercial paint job can send the wrong message to prospective customers. If you can't take the time to keep up your property's appearance, why would a customer spend their hard-earned money on your products?
The same goes for your businesses' interior paint. Would you want to do business with a company that has peeling paint or unsightly crown molding? At Shield's Painting, our goal is to create a beautiful environment that your customers and employees will love inside and out. When you work with our business painters, you can rest easy knowing we treat your business like it were our own. We always clean up after ourselves and know that operations cannot come to a halt just because we're painting. As such, we'll work with your busy schedule to ensure the job gets done right the first time without disrupting your day-to-day commitments.
With decades of commercial painting experience, we know the demands of a commercial painting project necessitate a disciplined and focused approach from the start. Our team of business painters is committed to delivering quality, on-time results on every project, every time - no excuses
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We offer professional business painting services to a variety of building types, including:
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Industrial Painting
A high level of care and finesse are required to effectively paint an industrial property. At Shields Painting, we know that industrial paint jobs involve much more than aesthetics. That's why our industrial services are customized to your specifications, using industrial-grade materials that stand up to heavy-duty operations.
02
Retail Store Painting
Our commercial painters apply effective, yet appealing interior and exterior paint that stand up to the daily rigors of busy retail environments.
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Small Business Painting
Do you own a restaurant franchise? Have a small "mom and pop" location that needs a fresh coat of paint? Shields Painting has the resources and reliability to efficiently get the job done the first time. That way, you can focus on serving your customers, not having your business repainted.
04
Healthcare Location Painting
From walk-in clinics to long-term care facilities, Shields Painting is sensitive to your patients' needs. We know you must protect your patient's privacy while maintaining productivity. Our approach to healthcare location painting centers around your schedule to avoid disruptions in care.
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Apartment Complex Painting
Erase signs of wear and make your apartment complex or multi-family building a more desirable place to live with a stunning, professional paint job.
Florida's Most Trusted Painting Contractor
Shields Painting has been in the business since 1968. In a world where so much has changed, we are proud to uphold the ideals that make us successful: hard, honest work, getting the job done right, and excellent customer service. Providing you with trustworthy, quality work will always take priority over rushing through a project to serve the next customer. That is just not the way we choose to do business.
As professionals dedicated to perfection, we strive to provide a unique painting experience for every customer - one that focuses on their needs and desires instead of our own. Whether you need residential painting for your home or commercial painting for your business, we encourage you to reach out today to speak with our customer service team. Whether you have big ideas about a new paint project or need our expertise and guidance, we look forward to hearing from you soon.
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Latest News in Orange Springs, FL
Date set for Orange & Blue Game, Florida Gators spring practices
Zach Abolverdihttps://www.on3.com/teams/florida-gators/news/date-set-for-orange-blue-game-florida-gators-spring-practices/
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Dates for the Florida football team’s spring practice schedule, including the 2024 Orange & Blue Game, have been set, Gators Online has learned.After holding the spring game on Thursday night in 2022 and 2023, it will take place on Saturday this year. The 2024 Orange & Blue Game is scheduled for April 13 at 1 p.m.That will be the third of three scrimmages for the Gators. They will hold their first scrimmage March 30 and the second scrimmage April 6, both on Saturdays.The U...
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Dates for the Florida football team’s spring practice schedule, including the 2024 Orange & Blue Game, have been set, Gators Online has learned.
After holding the spring game on Thursday night in 2022 and 2023, it will take place on Saturday this year. The 2024 Orange & Blue Game is scheduled for April 13 at 1 p.m.
That will be the third of three scrimmages for the Gators. They will hold their first scrimmage March 30 and the second scrimmage April 6, both on Saturdays.
The UF players report for spring ball during the first week of March and the first practice will be held on Thursday, March 7.
Florida will practice on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays during spring camp, except for a Friday session on April 5. The team will be off for spring break, March 10-16.
New faces for Gators in 2024
Florida’s spring roster will feature a total of 29 new scholarship players, including 19 high school recruits and a total of 10 transfers.
The Gators’ 2024 class ranks No. 14 in the On3 Industry Team Rankings, but they rank No. 8 nationally in average player rating (90.94).
After National Signing Day in December, Gators Online sat down for an exclusive interview with UF director of player personnel Jacob LaFrance, who evaluated the 2024 class, the biggest position of need, Florida’s roster and more.
“The kids that did sign, they believe in the direction we’re going to take this place, and that’s what we feel good about,” LaFrance said. “You have the faith that they are about the right things, and they truly believe in what we’re about. Not only are they good players and we got a bunch of good players signed, but they’re the right type of people. And that’s what — when we first got here — was such a struggle. And we feel like the last couple classes, we’ve really started to add those kinds of players.
“You even saw it this year. It didn’t necessarily equate to wins, but what it did equate to was you saw the competitiveness in every game and them not quit. They competed and showed up every week after week after week and lost some close games down the stretch. But, the character makeup of the team was what you wanted. The togetherness. And so, I think that’s where that will eventually pay off into wins.”
Breaching Rodman dam will reveal 20 lost springs
Robert Knighthttps://www.jacksonville.com/story/opinion/2019/11/17/guest-column-breaching-rodman-dam-will-reveal-20-lost-springs-of-ocklawaha-river/2274166007/
During the past 50 years, a long list of former Florida governors and senior agency staff have called for the restoration of the Ocklawaha River and springs.But, in an unfathomable twist of modern society, the will of these powerful leaders has been stymied by a small but vocal group of bass fisherman who oppose restoration.Breaching the antiquated barge canal dam and returning the river to its natural channel is not only the most cost-effective future for the river, but is most beneficial with regards to downstream water quali...
During the past 50 years, a long list of former Florida governors and senior agency staff have called for the restoration of the Ocklawaha River and springs.
But, in an unfathomable twist of modern society, the will of these powerful leaders has been stymied by a small but vocal group of bass fisherman who oppose restoration.
Breaching the antiquated barge canal dam and returning the river to its natural channel is not only the most cost-effective future for the river, but is most beneficial with regards to downstream water quality and water quantity, regional economic benefits, public use of the river for recreational boating and fishing, and the ecological health of the St. Johns, Ocklawaha, and Silver Rivers.
One or more Florida legislators, yet unnamed, have the enviable opportunity to undo the tragic mistake of a previous generation and be lauded as Florida Springs Champions.
With bipartisan support in the House and Senate appropriations committees, these champions are uniquely positioned to convince the 2020 legislature and Gov. Ron DeSantis to do what no other Legislature or governor in the past 50 years has been willing or able to do — restore the 20 Lost Springs of the Ocklawaha River.
In 1971, a geology doctoral student at the University of Florida, Elizabeth Abbott, published a white paper titled “Twenty Springs of the Ocklawaha.”
Described as “crystal pools,” these limestone, artesian groundwater springs, in combination with Orange Springs, were estimated to add about one-third of the flow of the Ocklawaha River before it enters the St. Johns below the Rodman Pool.
The largest of these Lost Springs in terms of flow and surface area was Marion Blue Spring, privately owned but open to all for recreational pursuits, including fishing and swimming.
Historically, Blue Spring emptied to the Ocklawaha River via Indian Creek, a five-mile clear spring run, just upstream of the current location of the Rodman Dam.
Based on old timer interviews, Abbott claimed that “the most discriminating of seasoned fisherman marveled at the ‘quality’ of fish at Blue Spring not to mention the ‘quantity’”; and that “freshwater mullet and catfish swam like giant denizens convoyed by nervous bream, but the large bass was the most sought-after catch.”
She finished her description of Blue Spring with these words, “gone is the blue crystal pool and the jet-mirror stream, replaced by dead vegetation and murky water.”
Flooded by the artificial impoundment called the Rodman Pool, Blue and the other springs with names like Bright Angel, Catfish and Cedar Landing have been lost for 50 years since the 1968 closing of the Rodman Dam as part of the ill-advised Cross-Florida Barge Canal.
Only visible intermittently when the state of Florida draws down the level of water held in the Rodman Pool to flush massive rafts of rotting vegetation downstream to the St. Johns River, the uncovered springs of the Ocklawaha were compared to “blue eyes” peering skyward from the Floridan Aquifer by noted river guide and Florida author Lars Anderson.
The historical and environmental significance of the Ocklawaha cannot be esteemed too highly.
Site of numerous prehistoric mounds and archaeological sites; popular 19th century inland steamboat route to the heart of Florida’s wilderness; and recipient of clear groundwater inflows from the world’s historically largest, and best-known Silver Springs; the Ocklawaha is the largest tributary to Florida’s longest and most commercially important river — the St. Johns.
Through an inexplicable series of historical missteps and bad decisions, the living Ocklawaha and its precious springs have suffered some of the worst environmental depredations wrought by human civilization in North Florida.
The only thing that is good about today’s dammed Ocklawaha is that it can still be released from the “foot across her throat” as eloquently stated by another river guide and child of the river, Erica Ritter.
Ocklawaha restoration is clearly in the public’s interest and inevitably will be part of Florida’s future. The only question that remains is who in Florida’s government will open those “blue eyes” and be the river’s champion?
Robert Knight is director of the Howard T. Odum Florida Springs Institute. He first studied Silver Springs in the late 1970s and hypothesized that the damming of the Ocklawaha River was the principal factor responsible for the measured 60 percent decline in Silver Springs fish populations.
Gary R. Mormino: The enduring but endangered symbol of Florida
Gary R. Mormino Special to The Sunhttps://www.gainesville.com/story/opinion/columns/guest/2016/04/03/gary-r-mormino-the-enduring-but-endangered-symbol-of-florida/31893109007/
The orange has stirred the imagination of Franciscan friars, country fiddlers and multinational conglomerates. More than anything else, Florida's signature fruit has defined the Sunshine State as the New Mediterranean.Alas, the orange is in peril. A new culprit has arrived. In 2005, scientists discovered a single orange tree infected with citrus greening, a deadly and incurable disease.The orange is so iconic and entwined in the Florida dream that this agricultural product is considered part of the “natural” landsca...
The orange has stirred the imagination of Franciscan friars, country fiddlers and multinational conglomerates. More than anything else, Florida's signature fruit has defined the Sunshine State as the New Mediterranean.
Alas, the orange is in peril. A new culprit has arrived. In 2005, scientists discovered a single orange tree infected with citrus greening, a deadly and incurable disease.
The orange is so iconic and entwined in the Florida dream that this agricultural product is considered part of the “natural” landscape. After all, Florida boasts places named Orange City, Orange Lake and Orange Springs. The orange blossom is Florida's official state flower, the orange the official state fruit and, since 1998, an orange has served as the emblem on state license plates.
In the decades that followed the Civil War, an orange rush occurred as groves sprang up along the Indian River, the St. Johns River and the Golden Triangle (Mount Dora, Eustis and Tavares).
Florida's most celebrated grove owner was Harriet Beecher Stowe, who resided at Mandarin on the banks of the St. Johns River. “The orange-tree is, in our view,” she wrote in 1872, “the best worthy to represent the tree of life of any that grows on earth.”
Capitalizing on the nation's changing diet and tastes, Florida helped create and popularize new markets. Generations of Americans first encountered Florida by peeling an orange under a Christmas tree.
If cotton was king of the Old South, the orange became the enduring and endearing symbol of Florida. The orange grove evoked images of the gardens of Cordoba, Nice and Palermo.
Alachua County figured prominently in the orange fever. So many groves were planted in Melrose, Gainesville and Hawthorne that Alachua County became a citrus powerhouse, producing a state-leading 817,767 boxes of oranges during the 1889-90 season.
In 1895, Alachua County grove owners produced no oranges. The Great Freeze of '95 wiped away fortunes and dreams. Once a prosperous community on the shores of Newnans Lake, Windsor had become a ghost town by 1896.
Florida was touted as a poor man's paradise. A 10-acre orange grove in Island Grove or Temple Terrace imagined Jeffersonian republicanism and democratic romanticism.
A dazzling variety of oranges took root in Florida, their names suggesting their romantic lineage: Hamlin, Temple, Murcott, Lue Gim Gong, Parson Brown, Sanford Bloods and Maltese Oval.
To sell the fruit, roadside fruit stands and packing houses proliferated along the orange belt, offering motorists sweet bliss and a free glass of orange juice.
Ben Hill Griffin Jr. embodied the homespun citrus baron. Raised in Frostproof, Griffin received a 10-acre orange grove as a wedding present in 1933. Taking a job in a fresh fruit packinghouse paying 15 cents an hour, Griffin resolved to make his fortune in citrus, learning every task of the business. He came to own the packing house where he once pushed a cart. At his death in 1990, he was one of the richest men in Florida, controlling a fortune worth $300 million, owning or controlling 200,000 acres of groves and ranch land.
In a story all-too-familiar, corporations have swallowed family groves and baronial estates. Beginning in the 1940s, corporations bet wildly and successfully on Florida grove land. Just as “Doc” Phillips and Ben Hill Griffin personified the gritty individualism of the men who built dynasties one grove at a time, Consolidated Citrus LP, Coca-Cola and Cutrale Juices U.S.A. came to signify a new corporate presence.
Historic freezes and the relentless development of grove land have pushed Florida's orange belt southward. In 1950, the orange belt buckled together the state's leading citrus counties: Orange, Polk, and Lake. Today, the belt droops southward.
In January 1981, Florida shivered as the first of the decade's Alberta Clippers plunged statewide temperatures well below freezing. By the end of the decade, three more disastrous freezes had ravaged Florida's groves, killing 90 percent of Lake County's orange trees.
The real beneficiaries of the 1980s climatic woes were Brazil and real estate developers. The early 1980s marked a milestone in citrus history, a moment in time when Brazil replaced Florida as the world's leading orange producer. Astonishingly, 100,000 acres of Lake County citrus was transformed into housing tracts, shopping centers and nurseries.
In song and jingle, on the crate and out of the can, the orange captivated Americans: “Breakfast without orange juice is like a day without sunshine!” “Come to the Florida Sunshine Tree!” and “Orange juice — It's not just for breakfast anymore.” But in reality, more and more Americans are beginning their days without a glass of orange juice. OJ's greatest threat may not even be citrus greening, but rather changing tastes.
Amidst tumult and change, one thing remains certain: a glass of freshly squeezed Florida orange juice is pure elixir, the proper drink for a dream state.
— Gary R. Mormino is professor emeritus of history at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg. In 2015 he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award in writing by the Florida Humanities Council. He will speak about Florida's citrus heritage and Alachua County's role at the Matheson History Museum on Thursday at 6 p.m. The talk is free and open to the public and is presented in connection with the Matheson's new exhibition, "Liquid Gold: The Rise and Fall of Florida Citrus."
County Commission unanimously rejects permit for NE Marion sand mine
Austin L. Millerhttps://www.ocala.com/story/news/local/2022/12/21/commission-denies-sand-mine-permit-for-ne-marion-county-site/69746028007/
Close to 200 Orange Springs residents, most of whom wore orange shirts, left the McPherson Governmental Complex smiling, laughing, high-fiving and hugging each other on Tuesday after the five county commissioners unanimously denied a special use permit that would have allowed mining on a piece of property close to their homes....
Close to 200 Orange Springs residents, most of whom wore orange shirts, left the McPherson Governmental Complex smiling, laughing, high-fiving and hugging each other on Tuesday after the five county commissioners unanimously denied a special use permit that would have allowed mining on a piece of property close to their homes.
County records show the 196.73-acre property is on the north side of County Road 318, approximately two miles west of County Road 315.
The men, women and children who packed the auditorium carried signs opposing the special use permit. They applauded when the vote was tallied and Chairman Craig Curry, along with County Commissioners Michelle Stone, Kathy Bryant, Carl Zalak and Jeff Gold each voted no.
Growth management:County approves 1,081-unit residential development off SW 60th Avenue
Fighting back:Opponents of newly approved development sue Marion County
Development roundup:Sand mine denied; lakeside lots approved; Countryside Farms gets buffer
A need for dirt
More than 65 men and women spoke emotionally and passionately about the bad things that would happen if commissioners approved the permit.
According to David Tillman, an engineer and who spoke on behalf of the applicant, MG Cattle Company, LLC, 1.12 million cubic yards of dirt would be hauled from the area and transported to job sites.
Tillman said the area would be mined five acres at a time and the property would be protected, with minimal dust rising up.
He said there would only be a shallow dig, and the operation would be scrutinized by local and state officials. He added if there's a spill, it would be cleaned, and if artifacts were found, they would be turned over to the state.
Tillman said there's a need for dirt for building and construction.
Reasons why the permit should be denied
Tillman said that at the conclusion of the five years, the land would be developed into homes on 10-acre lots.
County government staff and the volunteer Planning & Zoning Commission both recommended approval of the permit. The commission was told that concerns raised had been addressed, with the applicant agreeing to more than 25 provisions if the permit was approved.
When it was their turn, residents made their feelings known.
They gave multiple examples of why the land shouldn't be mined. Among them: decreased property values; noise; negative effects on water quality and natural resources; threats to wildlife; and community safety.
One woman told commissioners she has two special-needs children who are homeschooled. She said the noise would be a huge distraction for them.
Another resident appealed to Zalak, whom she called a neighbor, to put a stop to the proposal.
A third resident said he has difficulty walking and uses a scooter to cross the busy roadway to deliver his garbage. He said with additional trucks traveling up and down the road, he probably would not be able to drop off his garbage.
Residents told commissioners that the permit was the biggest threat to the community.
Also opposing the permit was the president of Orange Springs Specialty Water. He told a Star-Banner reporter that he found out about the agenda item a week ago. He said the mining operation would damage the springs and cause significant change.
Rory Diamond, a lawyer representing the bottling company, wanted commissioners to postpone a decision until next year. Commissioners disagree and instead wanted to hear from those who had signed up to voice their opinions.
County commissioners give their opinions
Commissioners weighed in with their thoughts about the subject after listening to everyone.
"This is going to change their lives," Bryant said, making reference to the mine. "I can't support it."
Curry said "there's too much unknown," and Bryant said she wasn't willing "to take the risk." Curry also told the audience: "I can't disrupt people's lives."
When the vote was taken, it was 5-0.
Contact Austin L. Miller at 867-4118, austin.miller@starbanner.com or @almillerosb
Listen Now! The 2024 Florida Gators spring football game has arrived. Here's what to know
Tim Waltershttps://www.gainesville.com/story/sports/college/2024/04/08/florida-gators-2024-orange-and-blue-spring-game-discussed-on-podcast/73004605007/
If Florida Gators fans think the 2020s have been rough for the football team, then they didn’t see what happened with the team in the 1940s.The Gators didn’t have a winning season. They had two 5-5 seasons, and the rest were sub.-500 efforts. Heck, they didn’t even field a team in 1943.I imagine the War had something to do with that.So far this decade, the Gators only have one winning season, and that was in 2020 when they were 8-4. They’ve had three losing seasons si...
If Florida Gators fans think the 2020s have been rough for the football team, then they didn’t see what happened with the team in the 1940s.
The Gators didn’t have a winning season. They had two 5-5 seasons, and the rest were sub.-500 efforts. Heck, they didn’t even field a team in 1943.
I imagine the War had something to do with that.
So far this decade, the Gators only have one winning season, and that was in 2020 when they were 8-4. They’ve had three losing seasons since (6-7, 6-7, 5-7).
They didn’t make a bowl game in 2023.
Yet, when it comes to the Gators, hope springs eternal.
And it all start with the Orange and Blue Spring Game on Saturday, April 13, in The Swamp.
After much anticipation, Gators fans will get a glimpse of what they hope will be another quarterback savior – DJ Lagway.
The five-star prospect is still raw and isn’t expected to start right away — the job still remains with sixth-year player Graham Mertz — but you can be sure if the Gators struggle early in 2024, the calls will get louder for Lagway to get in the game.
The calls also could get louder against head coach Billy Napier if the Gators struggle.
The third-year coach has been trying to rebuild the struggling program, but the challenges of the transfer portal and NIL have made things tricky.
On this week’s “The *State* of Florida Sports Podcast,” Gainesville Sun columnist David Whitley is the guest, and he has plenty to say about this year’s squad.
He’ll tell us what we should be watching for during this weekend’s Orange and Blue game.
“It's hard to draw firm conclusions from a spring game. Last year the defense looked really good, they were blitzing all over the place and got a lot of sacks and the offensive line looked terrible," David says during the podcast. "And so, that sort of turned to being half prophetic, is that the offensive line was pretty much, well, let's just put it nice and say not up to par last year, that had its issues, but the defense turned into just a tire-slash-dumpster fire train derailment of historic proportions."
He’ll give you his thoughts on the decision to start the experienced Graham Mertz over the hot prospect Lagway.
“The fact is that (Lagway) is one of these kids that should be getting measured for his tuxedo to go to the prom this year," David said. "And you know, you just can't expect somebody like that to come in and grasp a college passing system and make that jump right away and be able to run the offense as it has to be.
"So it's as one person put it, in their quarterback room, he said Mertz is taking Calculus and Lagway is taking Pre-algebra."
He’ll talk about other prospects to watch in the spring game, inclduing son of former Gatros star Earnest Graham, Myles Graham.
“He's not just a player, he's a personality,” David said. "He bleeds orange and blue, the old cliche?, but it's true because of his dad."
And he’ll also touch on the transfer portal, Billy Napier’s future and the unfortunate situation with Trevor Etienne, who transferred out of Gainesville to go to Georgia and promptly got arrested and charged with DUI.
If you’re a Gator fan, or just love college football and the drama associated with it, then you have to listen to this podcast.
Find out why so many fans have checked us out and why our guests and journalists give you the best sports breakdowns in the state.
We can be downloaded wherever you listen to podcasts, or simply type in “The *State* of Florida Sports Podcast” into your favorite search engine. We also can be found on any of the 17 USA TODAY-Network Florida websites.
If you like it, you can check out previous shows, which feature current and former professional athletes and coaches, as well as our stable of journalists who cover beats and write columns, all of whom have a tie to the Sunshine State.
Walters can be reached at twalters@gannett.com
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