Newsroom

Two bands that include some of Gainesville’s most accomplished musicians pay tribute to the music of two iconic supergroups at the “Free Fridays” Concert Series on Friday, Aug. 24. This concert pays tribute to Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young; both groups featured superstar musicians Stephen Stills and Neil Young.

The City of Gainesville wants your feedback on future park improvements at the Lincoln Yard site, which is located between Southeast Eighth Avenue and Southeast 15th Avenue, east of Southeast 20th Street. Interested members of the public are invited to attend the project’s Open House Monday, Aug. 27 from 6-7:30 p.m. at the Gainesville Technology Entrepreneurship Center (GTEC) building, located on 2153 SE Hawthorne Rd. Come to learn about the project and site, and to let us know what improvements you would like to see at this location.

The public is invited to review and comment on the completed City of Gainesville State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) Annual Report Monday through Friday, 8 a.m.–5 p.m., until Monday, Sept. 10, 2018 at the office of the Housing and Community Development Division (Thomas Center ‘B’, 306 NE 6th Avenue, Room 245). The report covers years 2015-2018.

Heavy Petty returns to the “Free Fridays” Concert Series with a tribute to Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Friday, Aug. 17 from 8-10 p.m. Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Famer Tom Petty is one of the most famous musicians to hail from Gainesville, Florida. Heavy Petty is Gainesville’s own Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers tribute band.  The band first played on Valentine's night in 2010 at Common Grounds in downtown Gainesville. Since then, the five-piece rock ‘n’ roll band has played many different events and venues in and around Gainesville. Heavy Petty prides itself in playing Tom Petty songs with attention paid to strict interpretation, but also in being able to rock out, have a lot of fun and get the crowd involved. 

As part of the Nature Operation Division’s routine land management practices, a prescribed burn is scheduled for today, weather and site conditions permitting, at Morningside Nature Center, 3540 E. University Ave., beginning at 10 a.m. and ending before 5 p.m. This is an ecological fuel reduction burn, which will be conducted with support from the Florida Forest Service. All public access to the park and living history farm will be prohibited during the burn.

Gainesville has launched a new alert system to keep residents, city staff and emergency personnel safe and informed with fast and reliable emergency notifications and public service announcements. Gainesville partnered with Everbridge, the worldwide leader in unified critical communications, to communicate with citizens and businesses during emergencies and other critical events. Residents are encouraged to register immediately to receive these alerts at www.alertGNV.org.

The Gainesville Office of Equal Opportunity (OEO) is hosting a town hall style meeting as a follow up to “Understanding Inequity in Alachua County Study,” the racial disparity report that was released approximately seven months ago. The public event will be held at the Thelma Boltin Center (516 NE Second Ave.) Saturday, Aug. 11 from 10 a.m.-12 p.m.

The City of Gainesville is pleased to announce the launch a new tool centered around business development. The Business Permitting Portal (https://bizportal.cityofgainesville.org/) is designed to help residents understand the specific licenses, permits and other requirements for starting a business in Gainesville. This is an addition to Gainesville’s Right Site zoning portal which allows users to explore where different business types are permitted throughout the city.

The Duppies are a high-powered, seven-piece band formed in Gainesville in 2004. Since that time, this popular ska, rocksteady and reggae band has received the attention of audiences beyond the local scene by touring throughout the U.S. Band members include The Duppies founder, Brian Hiebel (lead vocals/percussion), Tony Farah (bass), Ryan Bonner (keyboards), Daniel Kinney (drums), Chris Chiares (guitar) and Jose Pineiro (sax/backing vocals).