Miss Gainesville and Miss Ocala Competition to be Held at Eastside High School
The Miss Gainesville and Miss Ocala Organization Board of Directors have announced the 17th annual Miss Gainesville and Miss Ocala Scholarship Competition will be held on January 25, 2025, at 6:00 p.m. The Miss Gainesville and Miss Ocala Scholarship Organization welcome young women from our area to the competition, which will take place in the...
Florida Consumer Sentiment Outlook Continues to Climb
Consumer sentiment among Floridians soared in December to 86.4, its highest level in more than four years, jumping 5 points from a revised figure of 81.4 in November. Meanwhile, national consumer sentiment rose 2.2 points, continuing its fifth consecutive monthly increase. “As the year ends, Florida’s consumer sentiment has seen a notable positive shift, rising...
Florida’s Division of Emergency Management and UF Launch AI-driven Emergency Broadcast System
BEACON™ integrates AI technology with the resilience of traditional broadcast channels to ensure local citizens have 24/7/365 access to critical content. After another record-breaking Atlantic Hurricane Season Futuri, the global leader in AI technology for broadcast and public safety, in partnership with Florida’s Division of Emergency Management (FDEM) and the University of Florida, has launched...
HCA Florida North Florida Hospital Recognized as Top Hospital in Multiple Clinical Specialties
HCA Florida North Florida Hospital has announced it received an outstanding 10 Best Specialty Awards from Healthgrades, the No. 1 online resource Americans use when searching for a doctor or hospital. For 2025, Healthgrades ranks HCA Florida North Florida Hospital among the nation’s 50 best hospitals for vascular surgery and surgical care, and among the...
University of Florida to Acquire One of the World’s Most Powerful Supercomputers
The University of Florida Board of Trustees has approved investing $24 million to acquire a more advanced version of UF’s HiPerGator supercomputer. This acquisition will make UF one of the first higher education institutions in the nation to own such a machine, which includes a type of technology that is not even on the market...
Swearing-in ceremonies set for newly and reelected city commissioners
The swearing-in ceremony for Gainesville City Commissioner-elect James Ingle and Commissioner Desmon Duncan-Walker is scheduled the morning of the first Gainesville City Commission meeting of 2025. When: 10 a.m. Monday, Jan. 6 Where: The Historic Thomas Center Gardens, 302 NE Sixth Ave. Gainesville City Commissioner Cynthia Moore Chestnut will be sworn in via Zoom at...
UF/IFAS team secures $5M USDA grant to expand avocado production into Central Florida
Scientists with the University of Florida have secured a $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to combat the lethal Laurel wilt disease and the redbay ambrosia beetles responsible for it. The research aims to improve control and mitigation practices for avocado production in Florida. The grant, from the USDA’s National Institute of...
County Invests millions in East Gainesville projects and launches Forward Focus
2024 was a very productive year for the county’s efforts to invest in East Gainesville and the eastern portion of the county. A cornerstone of this effort is transforming the site of the old fairgrounds near the airport into the U.S. Army Reserve equipment concentration site. The fairground relocation was a strategic step to boost...