Williston City Council appoints
Mike Rolls as interim city manager

The four members of Williston City Council at the special meeting late Friday afternoon (April 10) are (from left) Williston City Councilwoman Alexa Haniff-Riccio, Vice President Michael Cox, President Darfeness Hinds, and Councilwoman Debra Jones. Also present, but not pictured, is Williston Mayor Charles Goodman. Councilwoman Meredith Martin was absent.

Story, Photos and Video By Jeff M. Hardison © April 10, 2026 at 8 p.m.
All Copyrights Protected By Federal Civil Law
Do Not Copy and Paste to Social Media or Elsewhere
     WILLISTON – During a 15-minute special Williston City Council meeting on late Friday afternoon (April 10), Williston Police Chief Mike Rolls became Williston City Manager Mike Rolls by a 4-0 vote of approval on a motion by Councilwoman Debra Jones, seconded by Vice President Michael Cox, with Councilwoman Alexa Haniff-Riccio and President Darfeness Hinds voting in favor of the Jones-Cox motion .
     Williston Mayor Charles Goodman said he felt a caveat included in the motion was “bizarre.”
     Indeed, it was different than normal.
     City Clerk Latricia Wright is to serve as a secondary sort of interim city manager, and in the absence of Rolls would be the city manager – according to the approved action.
~

City Clerk Latricia Wright and Interim City Manager Mike Rolls


Before the vote, Police Chief Mike Ross makes a statement about what he anticipates if chosen to be interim Williston city manager – including to make things as they should be. Click on the PHOTO to see and hear the 34-second video.
Video By Jeff M. Hardison – All Rights Reserved



Interim Williston Police Chief Matt Frotney, formerly Maj. Fortney


In this archived and copyright protected photograph from a banquet years ago, WPD Deputy Police Chief Terry Bovaird (who served as interim city manager as well as city manager), WPD Sgt. Mike Rolls (who is the interim city manager now) and WPD Chief Dennis Strow (who served as interim city manager) are seen in one photo.
Photo By Jeff M. Hardison – All Rights Reserved

     A finer point in the governance of Williston from Tuesday evening when City Manager Sue Beaudet was fired via a 4-0 vote of the City Council, until that moment shortly after 4 p.m. on Friday, is that Robert “Rob” Kilian, the Utility Director for the City of Williston, was the city manager as of Tuesday night, or since the wee hours Wednesday morning. Wright said Kilian told her that he did not want to be co-interim city manager, and therefore she was the city manager at that time.
     As noted, as best as can be determined, by the Friday afternoon actions, Kilian had surrendered the total interim city manager job to Wright.
     During the process Friday, it was noted that Rolls could not serve as both the city manager and the police chief at the same time.
     Hence, a document shows that Williston Police Department Maj. Matt Fortney is now the interim police chief until, or if, Rolls returns to the duty as police chief, and then Fortney would become a major again, unless he merited a deputy police chief title or a colonel rank then. 
     Fortney has far more years in the WPD than Rolls, where Fortney served for 29 years since February of 1997. Rolls became police chief on April 23, 2022, after earning the 2021 WPD Officer of the Year Award, when he was a sergeant with the WPD then.
     Mayor Goodman noted it is “bizarre” to note in a motion that Wright would serve as city manager in the absence of Rolls, because that is now an understood condition. Also, it would seem that she could not serve as the clerk at the same time as serving as “co-city manager.” There never before the Kilian-Wright days was there a “co-city manager” in Williston, although a city manager did appoint, and the City Council approved before the job of “deputy city manager” – although, that also is relatively uncommon.
     The mayor made it clear that he believes the 4-0 approved motion seems bizarre to him.
     Williston City Attorney Kiersten Ballou of the Folds, Walker & Maltby (or Folds & Walker) law firm of Gainesville was absent from the special meeting where the new interim city manager was appointed.

Williston city manager fired by 4-0 vote
By Jeff M. Hardison © April 8, 2026 at 4:30 p.m.
All Copyrights Protected By Federal Civil Law
Do Not Copy and Paste to Social Media or Elsewhere
     WILLISTON – Williston City Council Member Alexa Haniff-Riccio was absent from the Tuesday night (April 7) meeting when her four colleagues fired City Manager Sue Beaudet.

More Below This Ad

Click On Ad To Visit Website.

     Timothy Ecker, a Williston resident, spoke during the public participation part of the meeting and said he thinks City Manager Sue Beaudet should have her employment terminated as he listed his reasons for this belief.
     Albert Fuller Sr. of Williston said the commentary he heard from employees that were fired reflects poorly on leadership.
     “I don’t think there’s any trust (in city leadership) and I think the morale, even though there has been an investigation nothing has changed,” Fuller said. “In fact, it’s probably getting worse. And so, somehow, we have to address that.”
     Fuller said two of the employees who did not have any idea they were going to be fired is indicative of a bad management practice. The employee who is fired, he said, should know that is coming.
     If there is a progressive discipline policy, then it must be followed, he said. 
     At least two employees, he said, had their employment terminated before an attempt was made to correct a behavior pattern that management saw as needing improvement. The workers reportedly were just fired with no series of verbal and written warnings, and advice on how to avoid termination.
     As a Williston resident, Fuller said, he is troubled when he sees city management is willing to train new employees rather than to help the current workers to improve. He reminded the City Council members present that city workers, like other people in jobs, are working to earn money to support their families.
     While Riccio was absent, Mayor Charles Goodman was present. Also present at the April 7 meeting were President Darfeness Hinds, Vice President Michael Cox and Council members Debra Jones and Meredith Martin.
     Fuller reminded the City Council that they are the deciders of fact. They need to find answers to questions that result from these workers being fired.
     Fuller has spent 38 years in public administration, including before he retired – as the director of UF/IFAS Levy County Extension. 
     Then, about an hour into the four-hour meeting, City Council Vice President Cox said that when he sees longtime employees terminated without a warning process beforehand, he feels it is a shame.
     Cox said he feels the city must follow established protocol rather than just terminating employees without warning.
     At the three- and one-half-hour mark of the meeting, the second public participation portion of the agenda started.
     Joab Penny, a Williston resident, asked the City Council about the ability of it to fire the city manager. He repeatedly endorsed firing Beaudet.
     Jonathan Barber said it takes years to train employees. One of the fired employees spoke again, at the second designated time for public participation.
     During the announcements part of the agenda, Councilwoman Jones brought up the city manager’s contract as she began a speech leading to a motion.
     On Feb. 25, 2025, Beaudet began as the city manager, Jones said as she read from the document. The $82,000 annual starting salary with benefits is noted in the contract, as is the ability for the City Council to terminate the four-year contract, Jones noted.
     Jones proposed terminating Beaudet’s employment unilaterally and without cause.
     Severance is about $19,000, Jones said. 
     Jones made the motion to terminate employment of Beaudet as city manager. Cox seconded the motion.
     Martin asked about listing reasons for the firing. Jones said she has spoken with employees and department heads, and Jones believes chain of command was not followed in some actions by Beaudet. Jones let Martin know that she feels her research is enough to make the motion to fire Beaudet.
     Jones said employees intimated to her that they fear repercussions from Beaudet if they speak out.
     Cox said to Martin that Council members should vote for what is best for the city rather than to be moved by her heart.
     Martin repeated that she would like answers to questions before she votes to fire the city manager. 
     Four people from the audience provided their input to the City Council during the discussion after the motion, second, and City Council comments. The unanimous message from the people in the audience at that time was to fire Beaudet.
     One employee said he has seen many police chiefs, city managers and City Council members over the years. He said the situation now is horrible and there is a need to move on. Another employee who was fired more than 11 months ago by a department head said that department head was pressured to fire him by Beaudet. He listed his many credentials and licenses and expressed a desire to work for the city again.
     One employee said management in the city should not violate the rules that apply to city employees who are part of a union.
     Martin said she wanted more discussion to reduce the odds of litigation as well as to assure that everyone on City Council is working from a set of the same facts before they vote.
     After that relatively long discussion, the vote was 4-0 to fire Beaudet.
     Among the many other actions in the several hours of meeting that started at 6 p.m. are the following:
     ● Mayor Charles Goodman honored Outstanding Student of the Month Kataleyah Leblanc, a seventh grader at Williston Middle High School.
     ● Some city employees that were terminated recently spoke during the public participation part of the agenda. City Attorney Kiersten Ballou advised the City Council members not to comment in response, in part due to allegations made by the former city workers.
     ● The consent agenda to approve the minutes from the March 17 meeting were approved by a 4-0 vote.
     ● Fire Chief Lamar Stegall announced that the Levy County Board of County Commissioners granted a request for $16,000 to help with equipment repair at Williston Fire Rescue.
     ● There was an announcement that airplanes practicing formation flying are expected to be seen around the city as they take off and land at Williston Airport, Friday (April 10) through Monday (April 13).
     The meeting that started at 6 p.m. ended at 11:30 p.m., with a little intermission in between.

Sera and Weible win Cedar Key races
By Jeff M. Hardison © April 7, 2026 at 8 p.m.
     CEDAR KEY – The unofficial tally after 100 percent of the votes have been counted show the winners of the April 7 election in Cedar Key, according to information on the website of Levy County Supervisor of Elections Tammy Jones.
     For Cedar Key City Commissioner Seat 2, Patrick Callen received 188 votes (47.24 percent) and Nancy M. Sera won with 210 votes (52.76 percent), according to records.
     For Cedar Key City Commissioner Seat 4, Jeff Webb received 171 votes (42.88 percent) and Dell Weible won with 228 votes (57.14 percent), according to records.

Former Williston hospital
property up for auction
Base bid starts at least at $1,041,960.61
By Jeff M. Hardison © April 6, 2026 at 12 p.m.
All Copyrights Protected By Federal Civil Law
Do Not Copy and Paste to Social Media or Elsewhere
     BRONSON – Among the many pieces of real property being auctioned on April 13 is a former Hospital in Williston that has now been shuttered again for some years.
     The last name for the property was “Regional General Hospital,” and the former hospital located in Williston closed in June of 2019 following severe financial issues, including mounting utility debt.
     As a public service, Levy County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller Matt Brooks announced the tax deed auction of this prominent Williston commercial property.
     Due to its historical significance, size and location, the Levy County Clerk’s Office issued a special public notice to ensure broad public awareness.
     The auction is scheduled to take place at the Levy County Government Center, located at 310 School St., in Bronson, in the Levy County Board of County Commissioners Meeting Room at 10 a.m.. This property will be the first piece with its tax deed auctioned that morning -- April 13, starting at 10 a.m.
     This is Tax Certificate Number: 6574-19A. It is Levy County Parcel Number: 05076-001-00.
     The first bid will be at least $1,041,960.61 (more than $1 million), Brooks said on Monday (April 6). The Levy County Tax Collector’s Office will provided the Levy County Clerk’s Office with the updated figure before the auction opens that morning, and it will be announced.
     This function, like the other real property at auction on April 13, is to process the tax deed.
     All buyers who bid at auctions may want to remember to conduct their own research to discover any liens and encumbrances on property. This property has not been put up for auction earlier due to separate court proceedings involving its owner.
     After the first bid, the second bid could be just a bit higher but the minimum bid increments after the first bid must be at least $10,000, which is at the Clerk’s discretion. The next bids need not be limited to $10,000 more, but that is the set minimum for the auction process for this real property, which is a building and land.
     The winning bidder must submit a 5 percent deposit via bank cashier’s check only. 
     Tax Deed Sales are conducted based on certification received from the Tax Collector’s Office. All outstanding taxes from the original certification through the date of sale have been certified and included in the opening bid. Remember, additional taxes, liens, judgments or encumbrances not appearing in the certification may exist. Buyers are encouraged to conduct thorough due diligence and be aware of the potential “gap period” between report preparation and sale date.
     When a bidder is successful at a Levy County Tax Deed Auction and all statutory requirements are met, the Clerk issues a Tax Deed conveying ownership of the real property. The Tax Deed does not transfer ownership of personal property. Property NOT INCLUDED IN THE TAX DEED SALE is personal property. The Tax Deed does not convey ownership of personal or movable property, even if such items remain on site after the sale. Examples include furniture; medical or office equipment, computers, electronics, or supplies and the like.
     For additional information, please visit www.levyclerk.com (Tax Deeds section), or call 352-486-5266 ext. 1235, or email levypublic@levyclerk.com.

EXCLUSIVE FIRST
Case reopens
after emergency injunctive relief sought
By Jeff M. Hardison © April 2, 2026 at 11:30 p.m.
All Copyrights Protected By Federal Civil Law
Do Not Copy and Paste to Social Media or Elsewhere
     BRONSON – An Eighth Judicial Circuit Civil Circuit Court case that had its first hearing set for June 12, 2025, and had been scheduled with jury selection set for March 2, 2026, and then had that civil circuit court jury trial cancelled -- has reopened, according to records.     The case of plaintiffs Robert Asbell, Romaine Asbell, Robert Caleb Mills and Paul E. House versus defendants (or respondents) Rhonda Wilkerson, Alphus Leniel Wilkerson, Levy County, Raymond Carris and Rebecca Carris was set for trial.
     The Honorable Eighth Judicial Circuit Court Judge Craig C. DeThomasis on Feb. 6 ordered the jury trial to be cancelled.
     The attorney for the plaintiffs was Victoria Rodicio based in Lutz. The attorney for Wilkerson and Carris was Kenneth Hood MacKay IV based in Ocala. The attorney defending Levy County from the complaint was Elmer Coronado Ignacio of the Nabors, Giblin & Nickerson law firm based in Tallahassee.
     On March 26, James Donald Holmes III filed an affidavit requesting Judge DeThomasis to impose action as emergency injunctive relief from a situation caused by someone erecting a significant barrier across what has been known for about 50 years now as Levy County Road 202 South, off of U.S. Alt. 27 – east of Chiefland and West of Levyville, on the south side of U.S. Alt. 27.
     Holmes noted he leases 20 acres on that road, which is also known as Northwest 20th Avenue. He maintains cattle on that land he leases. Access that existed before is now blocked.
     “I cannot access my cattle,” Holmes noted.
     In a recent conversation on the phone with Holmes, he told HardisonInk.com his issue is far less severe than some other property owners who are affected and significantly impacted by the barriers constructed recently.
     As of late Thursday afternoon (April 2), Judge DeThomasis had not set a date, time and place to rule on the request for emergency injunctive relief.
     In a separate by related action planned for the April 7 meeting of the Levy County Board of County Commissioners, there may be a petition provided to County Clerk Matt Brooks to show how some number of people in Levy County believe this situation where property owners are prevented from having access to their property – when that land had been accessible for decades before – is something the county government needs to either cure or at least prevent from happening again in the future.
     (Please see the related story, photos and video farther down on this page.)

Williston Rotary Club
wraps up March with stellar meeting
Mission slated to help African orphans

Williston Rotary Club President Robbie Sistrunk (left), Williston Rotary Club Treasurer Todd Etheridge (in back) and Williston Rotary Club Secretary Woodroe Blake Fugate walk toward the exit door as music from a choir singing in Bulembu, in Eswatini (formerly Swaziland), Africa plays over speakers. The gentlemen return to their work after the luncheon meeting on March 31.

Story and Photos By Jeff M. Hardison © April 1, 2026 at 3 p.m.
All Copyrights Protected By Federal Civil Law
Do Not Copy and Paste to Social Media or Elsewhere
     WILLISTON – Members and guests of the Williston Rotary Club on Tuesday afternoon (March 31) were treated to a special lunch, an extraordinary dessert and a program presentation with an international flavor.
     The program was about four young adults going to be part of a mission group heading for southern Africa this summer to volunteer to help orphans and staff members at an orphanage.
     As usual for this weekly meeting, some Rotarians and guests began socializing at about 11:45 a.m., and they learned that the normal caterers were celebrating a matrimony. Hence, the $5 lunch of the day was chopped Italian salad subs, with chips and a drink.

In a Styrofoam holder, chips and a submarine sandwich are seen before they were enjoyed For lunch in a meeting room at First Presbyterian Church of Williston at a Rotary Club meeting.


Still in plastic wrap, this Three-Layer Granny Epperson’s German Chocolate Cake is among items auctioned the night before to help subsidize the WMHS Red Devils Football Program. It was enjoyed by many at the March 31 meeting of the Williston Rotary Club.

     Those delicious submarine sandwiches were prepared and packaged by the students in the culinary arts program at Williston Middle High School (WMHS).
     The dessert, though, must have cost far more than what could be paid for by members and guests who had planned their lunch that day to be in the Williston Rotary Club area for meetings at First Presbyterian Church, 247 N.E. First St., in Williston.
     This dessert was a Three-Layer Granny Epperson’s German Chocolate Cake. That very cake was among items auctioned the night before to help subsidize the WMHS Red Devils Football Program.
     Williston Rotary Club Secretary Woodroe Blake Fugate said the auction the night before brought in between $27,000 (twenty-seven thousand dollars) to $28,000. Williston Rotary Club Treasurer Todd Etheridge brought the cake to the meeting.
     Williston Rotary Club President Robbie Sistrunk started the meeting right on time with the clang of the Rotary Bell.
     Even after normal socializing before the start of the meeting, this club, which has “Is it fun?” as being one of the tenets of the modified Four-Way Test questions.
     “The Four-Way Test of the things we think, say or do” is a test used by Rotarians worldwide as a moral code for personal and business relationships. The test may be applied to almost any aspect of life.
     The test was first scripted by Herbert J. Taylor, an American from Chicago. It was later adopted by Rotary International, the global federation of Rotary service clubs.
     The test questions follow:
     1. Is it the truth
     2. Is it fair to all concerned?
     3. Will it build goodwill and better friendships?
     4. Will it be beneficial to all concerned?
     As noted, the fifth question of these club members is “Is it fun?”
     With that fun-spirit in mind, there was some banter and joking related to peanuts covered in chocolate and who the actual chef of this item was, according to some recitation of alleged verbiage from the auction.
     So, among the many items bought at auction, in addition to this cake, were chocolate-covered peanuts. That set of auction-worthy chocolate-covered peanuts came into being thanks to none other than the work of Dedee McLeod, a longtime Williston Rotarian.


Seen before the start of the program during a photo opportunity are (from left) Joelle Higgins, Sarah Michelle Swartz, Bailey Wilkinson, Dedee McLeod, Riley Dority, Luna Martinez and Elizabeth Bloom are seen at a table.

     The program presented that Tuesday afternoon was more serious than fun, although there is joy heard from the young people who plan to travel far to help orphans and others in Africa.
     Sarah Michelle Swartz, Joelle Higgins, Riley Dority and Elizabeth Bloom are the people at the Rotary Club meeting who plan to be on this mission trip to a small, deserted former mining town named Bulembu, that is located in Swaziland, Africa.
     Ms. Swartz mentioned that her husband – Larry Swartz, a teacher at Bronson Elementary School – is going on this trip, too. He could not be at the Rotary Club meeting on Tuesday afternoon because he was teaching children.
     The trip will be from July 16 through July 29, Swartz said. The cost for the whole team of five people to go there for two weeks and then return is $20,000, she said. That includes airfare and everything.
     She is familiar with this part of Africa.
     Swartz spent almost all of the first six years of her life in Swaziland (now named Eswatini), Africa, as the child of her American missionary parents, she said. Since leaving Swaziland (now known as Eswatini), she has returned four previous times and this trip will mark a fifth trip there, she said.

 
Sarah Michelle Swartz points to an area she enjoyed seeing when she visited what is now Eswatini ( and was then Swaziland, Africa) 10 years ago.

    Her most recent venture was 10 years ago. A girl who Swartz saw and helped as a student a decade ago has completed coursework in college and is now a teacher in the very place where that young woman was a student, Swartz said.
     Higgins told the people at the meeting that her friend and co-worker at the Levy County Prevention Coalition (LCPC), Swartz, had spoken with her about Swaziland. They had discussed Higgins going on a mission there, and now it is coming to fruition.
     Bloom said she has been at the LCPC for three years and is an enrichment specialist. As she introduced her colleagues set to go on this mission trip to Africa, Swartz had mentioned that while some of the people on this mission are involved with the LCPC, this is not something connected with the group whose missions are all in Levy County.
     The group consisting of teachers and non-profit workers, aims to restore the town and support orphans.
     Bloom said she is familiar with mentoring young children, including those who are kindergarten students. When Bloom heard Swartz speak about the need for people to help the residents of Bulembu, she felt moved to go and do what she can.
     Dority said he is “the psych coordinator” at LCPC. He deals with behavioral issues and tries to help elementary-age children improve their lives. He said he looks forward to going to Bulembu and serving the children there as he serves the children at Williston Elementary School.
     As noted, Bulembu is a former mining town. The Bulembu asbestos mine (formerly Havelock Mine) in Eswatini, formerly known as Swaziland, Africa, closed in October 2001 primarily due to the depletion of economically viable asbestos reserves and a sharp decline in global demand caused by severe health concerns regarding asbestos as a carcinogen. The closure marked the end of 62 years of operation.
     Now, it is a place where people are continuing to help orphans.
     Estimates suggest there are between 100,000 and 200,000 orphans in Eswatini (formerly Swaziland), largely due to the world’s highest HIV/AIDS prevalence rate, which has left many children without caregivers.
     More than 50 percent of the country’s population is orphaned, Swartz said, and 31 percent of the population is living with HIV/AIDS. Swartz said Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) is the geographical size of the state of New Jersey.
     The crisis is so severe that many orphaned children live in child-headed households, relying on community support for survival.
     By the year of 2050, Swartz said, the people of Swaziland were projected in the year 2000 to no longer exist – unless something did not happen to change that course. 
     Bulembu is a secluded mountain community, with only one way in and one way out, she said. 
     Entrepreneurs from Swaziland, Canada and South Africa, she said, bought the abandoned mining town and have been renovating it since 2000. The mission in Bulembu is to create a self-sustaining community, Swartz said.
     Current industries are helping support the children, Swartz said. These ventures are focused on forestry, tourism, and community enterprises. Key industries managed by Bulembu Ministries include a timber plantation (pine/eucalyptus), a sawmill, honey production, dairy farming, a bakery, and eco-tourism.
     Woman are creating arts and crafts to sell to visitors, Swartz said. There is a country lodge that is similar to a hotel, with a conference center, she added. Training groups are among the people hosted at the country lodge.
     She said the bakery creates “the best doughnuts in the whole wide world.”
     As for the dairy products, there is one that the children of the area enjoy but that Swartz prefers not to eat. The dairy product often consumed with porridge in the region (including Bulembu, Eswatini) is Amasi (or emasi in Swazi).
     It is a thick, fermented, and soured milk product similar to cottage cheese or plain yogurt. It is commonly poured over maize meal porridge (pap) or used as a staple dairy addition to porridge breakfasts to help provide the children with nutritious meals.
     Another industry that has come to be there is bottled water for people to buy there and elsewhere in Africa.
     Bulembu Water is a local enterprise established in 2008 to help make the town self-sufficient, producing over 94,000 liters (about 25,000 gallons) of spring water per month.
     The product range includes various sizes, including 500 milliliters and 18.9-liter bottles.
     The water bottling plant has updated its technology, using custom labelling machines and adding products like sparkling water.
     Bulembu Water produces both still and sparkling water in glass and plastic bottles, often sold under the “Emlembe” brand name. 
     The water initiative is part of Bulembu Ministries’ efforts to create a sustainable town that supports local orphaned and vulnerable children.
     Swartz shared information about many parts of the community including a point that is the highest mountain in the area.
     She let listeners know that the group needs some more funding to make the trip there and back. Her presentation intimated that this team of five wants to be part of many individuals who are demonstrating “the awesome power of God” to bring hope for this town to continue progress in its effort for sustainable child care for these many orphans.
     Anyone who has questions or wants to donate is asked to please send an email to smswartz@levyprevention.org, or to call 321-274-7145.
     “If you would like your donation to be tax deductible,” she noted, “please make a check out to ‘Mission Discovery’ and put ‘Bulembu Mission’ in the memo.”

EXCLUSIVE FIRST

Road barricade stops
Levy County man
from emergency services
Wheelchair-bound sister cannot
visit brother at his residence

Double yellow painted lines on asphalt show a motorist heading either way on Northwest 20th Avenue (Levy County Road 202 South) that they cannot legally pass another vehicle there. Whoops. No vehicles can go either north or south on that road now.

Story, Photos and Video By Jeff M. Hardison © March 30, 2026 at 10 a.m.
All Copyrights Protected By Federal Civil Law
Do Not Copy and Paste to Social Media or Elsewhere
     LEVY COUNTY – Levy County Road 202 South, from U.S. Alt. 27 -- just east of Lighthouse Word Church -- has been barricaded so that no person can travel on it.
     Not only that, but there is a sign warning “No Trespassing – Violators Will Be Prosecuted.” This scene brings into question issues of property rights, public safety, love for neighbors and other concepts.
     On Palm Sunday (March 29), a few people provided an actual journalist with information to answer questions triggered by Romaine Asbell, when she asked the multiple award-winning reporter, editor and publisher to sign a petition that she said she plans to present to the Levy County Board of County Commissioners.
     “Will you sign my petition, Mr. Hardison?” she asked on Friday morning (March 27) as she recognized him at a Chiefland place of business.
     In a subsequent telephone call on Saturday evening (March 28), Asbell let the journalist know that Dulce Guerrero would be at a table with more petitions on the grass next to the intersection of U.S. Alt. 27 and Northwest 20th Avenue (Levy County Road 202 South) on Palm Sunday (March 29) starting at 9 a.m.
     The journalist put on his “Go-To-Town” sneakers and began seeking answers to see the purpose of this petition. People in the United States have a constitutional right to petition the government with complaints. This is known as the right to “redress of grievances.” 


Looking north toward U.S. Alt. 27, there is a stop sign, indicating that not long prior to Palm Sunday 2026, there were vehicles heading this way.

Levy CR 202 South intersects with U.S. Alt. 27, a paved, divided highway. Paul Edward House has his mailbox here, and it sits next to a neighbor’s mailbox on U.S. Alt. 27, just to the east of Levy County Road 202 South (aka Northwest 20th Avenue).


Paul House and Dulce Guerrero stand in front of the formidable barrier to anyone who may want to use a road that had been used for several years before the blockage was placed.


Paul House’s wheelchair-bound sister Wanda House Perez can no longer visit her brother because that wheelchair cannot jump the fences or cross the rough terrain required by humans now who want to reach his residence. 'Why?' she and others ask.


Westbound motorists on U.S. Alt. 27 see that Levy County Road 202 North is open for travel.

Eastbound motorists on U.S. Alt. 27 see that Levy County Road 202 is a junction of this highway. Reaching that intersection, there is only an arrow to go to CR 202 North.


Dulce Guerrero’s cattle are among the first of her livestock and pets to meet a visiting journalist. Pigs, goats and dogs saw the visiting man on Palm Sunday too.


Once past a gate, the presence of large farm animals is more interesting for a writer who is not a rancher.


This is Northwest 97th Lane as seen from one side of a barbed wire fence, looking south. This dirt road would be the road Paul House would use to go to Northwest 20th Avenue to reach U.S. Alt. 27 from his house, but a neighbor has barricaded the easement.


Looking through briars and brambles, this is the residence of Paul House. He no longer has easy methods to reach stores because he must walk across about two or three city blocks of property that is very rough to reach where a neighbor lets him park his truck now.


This is the scene of blockage as photographed from the median of U.S. Alt. 27 on Palm Sunday.


Some of the cattle owned by Dulce Guerrero are seen as the animals greet a visiting journalist who took a ride in an all-terrain utility vehicle across land on Palm Sunday 2026, where he saw cattle, pigs and goats, demonstrating where Paul House must walk to reach his pickup truck. This video shows about one-quarter of the path House must take now on foot to reach his pickup truck. Click on the PHOTO to see and hear the video.
Video By Jeff M. Hardison – All Rights Reserved

     Protected by The First Amendment to the United States Constitution, this right allows Americans to ask federal, state or local governments to fix problems or change policies without fear of punishment from the government.
     Free speech, free press, free assembly and free religion – are among the rights currently protected for Americans under The First Amendment. The first 10 amendments are known as The Bill of Rights, but this story reflects existing circumstances related to property rights, the law, and hints at what is legal may not be morally sound from a Christian perspective.
     Facts and evidence found on Palm Sunday 2026 indicate actions by one or more property owner(s) have (or has) physically stopped ingress and egress on what was not-so-long ago a public road designated with a numeric identity, where ambulances and vehicles necessary to provide utility service could travel with relative ease.
     For at least a few days, as of March 29, a Levy County man who lives in a mobile home can no longer take his pickup truck to or from his residence.
     Likewise, any cruiser, ambulance or fire truck from Levy County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO), Levy County Fire Rescue would need staff members to carry bolt cutters and a large chainsaw to render aid to him.
     Paul E. House now resides in a landlocked residence, according to what was found on Palm Sunday by visiting the area.
     A person can own a residence in Florida that lacks direct access by road, often referred to as landlocked property. While this means no public road connects to the property, the owner typically has a legal right to access it via an easement across neighboring land for vehicles and utilities.
     House and others in 2024 faced a similar issue, Guerrero said. There was a gate across the road. A judge ruled that gate must be removed, she said, but it took five months back then, for the wheels of justice to turn in favor of the people of Florida in that civil circuit court case.
     Guerrero owns cows that graze on property that is on the southwest corner of the intersection of Alt. 27 and Levy County Road 202 South (Northwest 20th Avenue). That land is owned by her former cousins-in-law, the Pinero family, who allow that agricultural enterprise to occur there, she said. Guerrero’s husband died four months ago, in November. The Pineros are his cousins by blood.
     She lets House park his pickup truck on her property -- that is a bit to the west of Northwest 20th Avenue, and immediately adjacent to Lighthouse Word Church on U.S. Alt. 27. To reach his truck parked there now, because it no longer has a drivable route to U.S. Alt. 27, he has a bit of walking.
     To get into his truck and drive, House, a 64-year-old man must cross fences and go through livestock gates and walk through rough terrain.
     During a conversation with House on Palm Sunday, he said the deed for his property includes a designated easement for access to it. Over time, since the Seven Chiefs Development Co. subdivided the land and parcels were subdivided more and sold, easements were revised.
     Neighbors to the east of the Pinero property, on the other side of Northwest 20th Avenue – Raymond and Rebecca Carris, and to the south of them Alphus and Rhonda Wilkerson, may be the families who erected the barrier that stops easement along Levy CR 202 South.
     Not only are emergency vehicles, delivery vehicles, utility vehicles and others no longer able to use Northwest 20th Avenue off of U.S. Alt. 27 to reach House’s mobile home, but his wheelchair-bound sister Wanda House Perez can no longer visit her brother.
     Perez and her husband have been visiting her brother there for the past four years as they come to Florida from Maryland for a seasonal escape from snow.
     On Palm Sunday, she was ready to show photos of them making cookies at his residence as proof of this truth.
     What can be done to overcome what Alphus Wilkerson, or others, did as the created this barrier that stops emergency vehicles and sisterly visits, and more?
     As for House, Guerrero will let him continue to walk across pastureland and through thorny underbrush of undeveloped property to reach his truck parked on her residential property next to Alt. 27.
     She told a story about how she met this neighbor years ago. She and her husband were living in an RV as they built their house. The woods were far thicker back then. One early night, when it was relatively dark, she saw a man walking through the woods.
     Her husband armed himself, as one does when one answers a knock on a door by a stranger at their home in the woods at night.
    House introduced himself as their neighbor and he gave them a carton of fresh eggs. From then on, they remained friendly neighbors, including when her husband spent his last days at Haven Hospice – west on U.S. Alt. 27 in Chiefland, she said.
     And now, there are other neighbors who seem to be conducting unneighborly actions.
     Mending Wall is a famous 1914 poem by Robert Frost about two neighbors who meet annually to repair a stone wall between their properties, exploring themes of tradition, boundaries, and human separation through the simple act of rebuilding a fence.
     The narrator questions the wall’s purpose. His apple trees don’t need to be kept from his neighbor’s pines, but the neighbor insists, “Good fences make good neighbors,” a phrase that becomes central to the poem’s meditation on the need for and meaning of barriers in life. 
     The two farmers walk a line, replacing stones that have fallen, with the narrator questioning the necessity of the wall while the neighbor stubbornly upholds tradition. 
     The wall represents more than just a physical boundary; it symbolizes social, psychological and even personal barriers between people. 
     The poem contrasts the narrator’s desire for openness and questioning with the neighbor’s adherence to the old saying, “Good fences make good neighbors.”
     It explores the tension between tradition and change, the nature of community, and the unspoken barriers that separate one from another.
     As for this barrier in Levy County, several people have signed, are signing and will sign a petition for the Levy County Commission to do something to rectify issues caused by this formidable physical barrier.
     Eventually, though, the people may see the five county commissioners throw their hands in the air as they surrender to what has come to exist. The Levy County Commission cannot do anything about the Road Department that no longer maintains the road, which is on land owned by Wilkerson and others. That ship has sailed.
     As for an easement becoming closed by a landowner, that is a matter for a jury to rule upon if it reaches court.
     Ultimately, this may reach a magistrate, a county court judge or a circuit court judge, and perhaps a civil circuit jury will rule on a legal request for people affected by the barrier to “be made whole again” by restoration of access formerly enjoyed and now denied.
     Then again, maybe not.

197^th Performance

Gilchrist County Sheriff Bobby Schultz sings the HardisonInk.com jingle at the Historic Trenton Train Depot on March 4, 2026. Jeff M. Hardison asks people to sing the jingle, and some of them agree to sing it. (Thanks people!) CLICK ON THE PICTURE ABOVE TO SEE AND HEAR THE VIDEO ON YouTube.com. The very first person to sing the jingle was Danesh “Danny” Patel of Danny’s Food Mart in Chiefland in March of 2013. HardisonInk.com started as a daily news website on Feb. 1, 2011.
Photo and Video by Jeff M. Hardison © March 4, 2026 at 9 p.m.
All Rights Reserved - Do Not Copy And Paste Anywhere Else