New St. Augustine pool ready to open

Submitted by Jessica Clark, Reporter

Wednesday, May 22nd, 2013, 7:05pm

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. -- The brand-new pool at the Willie Galimore Center in St. Augustine is ready to open.

"It's exciting," Judith Seraphin said, "We are loving it."

Seraphin works and lives in the Lincolnville neighborhood near downtown St. Augustine.

"We have a lot of things happening but there's still a lot to be done," she said. She is also the neighborhood association president, but she never swam in the old pool.

"I kind of looked at it and just ... " she shook her head.

Swim teams often used to practice there, but the health department eventually shut down the former pool and St. Johns County closed it in 2009.

Jim Piggot with the City of St. Augustine said the county "couldn't afford to make all the adjustment and changes to the pool to get it operational again."

With no lifesaver in sight, St. Johns County gave it back to the City of St. Augustine with $400,000 last year.

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Tall ship sails into St. Augustine to much fanfare

Submitted by Jessica Clark, Reporter

Wednesday, May 22nd, 2013, 12:08am

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. -- A tall ship named El Galeon sailed into St. Augustine on Tuesday.

It's a replica of a 17th century ship from Spain.

Several personal, smaller boats were in bay near downtown St. Augustine, waiting to welcome El Galeon to the Old City.

The Black Raven Pirate Ship of St. Augustine was one of the bigger vessels in the welcome party.

Jason and Michelle Gamble and their daughter, Hannah, just so happened to be on vacation from Alabama and they were on board the pirate ship Tuesday for all the fanfare.

"They just told us about it and we jumped all over it," Jason Gamble said.

"It's amazing! We just came to have fun and we get an opportunity here," Michelle Gamble said.

In the distance, just inside the St. Augustine inlet, El Galeon was spotted.

People came into downtown just to watch. They stood atop the Bridge of Lions and along the seawall.

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Fire at Bono's Barbeque

Submitted by FirstCoastNews Web Staff

Tuesday, May 21st, 2013, 2:09pm

ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. -- The St. Johns County Fire Rescue responded to a fire at Bono's Barbeque on the 2000 block of US1 South Monday night, according to a release from St. Johns County Fire Rescue.

At the time of the fire the business was closed, the report detailed, and the fire was centralized to the barbeque pit area of the restaurant.

The SJCFR contained the fire and conducted a search for possible occupants. The release confirmed that the restaurant was unoccupied at the time of the fire.

There were no injuries reported and the cause of the fire is still under investigation by the SJCFR Fire Marshals Office according to the release.

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Alcohol law may change in St. Augustine

Submitted by Jessica Clark, Reporter

Monday, May 20th, 2013, 7:47pm

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. -- Spencer Hooker owns The Kookaburra in St. Augustine. It's a café.

"We do coffee, espresso and Aussie meat pies," Hooker said.

His tiny but popular business is at the bottom of a building located next to the Cathedral Basilica in downtown St. Augustine.

"Beer goes well with Aussie meat pies," Hooker said. "We'd love to be able to carry beer and wine here."

But, according to city law, he can't sell beer because his business is too close to a church.

"We happen to be 63 feet away from the Cathedral Basilica. We measured it out," Hooker added.

The current city ordinance prohibits sale or consumption of alcohol within 100 feet of a church or school.

When Wells Fargo recently moved out of the building on Cathedral Place, the city said the building's owner considered a restaurant.

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Eighth student surprised with $1,000 Hero Next Door scholarship

Submitted by FirstCoastNews Web Staff

Friday, May 17th, 2013, 6:40pm

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. -- A knock on the door is how Katherine Landis woke up Friday morning.

The 18-year-old thought she might be able to sleep in a little bit, after all it was her first day of summer vacation.

Little did she know her mother, Karen, entered her in the First Coast News' Hero Next Door student scholarship giveaway.

Then Katherine was surprised as a winner bright and early Friday on Good Morning Jacksonville with a $1,000.

"I had no idea. I didn't even know she entered it," she said.

Katherine is a soon-to-be graduate of Pedro Menendez High School, where she maintains a 4.24 grade point average.

Her mom nominated her for more than her academics, though.

Katherine also has volunteered for three years at Relay for Life in St. Augustine, and she has cut her hair five times for Locks of Love.

"My hair grows really fast, so I donated it when I was like 5. Then I kind of made a habit of it," she said.

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Power bill scam hits local businesses

Submitted by FirstCoastNews Web Staff

Thursday, May 16th, 2013, 8:11am

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. - The St. Augustine Police Department has issued a telephone scam warning to local businesses.

A man identifying himself as Steven Martinez, claiming to be a representative of Florida Power and Light, has called at least three different businesses in St. Augustine.

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Who is Lilly Ann Chavez?

Submitted by Jessica Clark, Reporter

Thursday, May 16th, 2013, 5:03am

ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. -- Since the death of much-loved St. Augustine waitress Barbara Parchem, her daughter has been in the local spotlight.

First Coast News has gathered information from online sources, public documents and from her attorney.

Lilly Ann Chavez, 43, was born in 1970 in Illinois, just outside Chicago, according to court records.

According to her Facebook page, she went to high school in Michigan, but Chavez and her family eventually came to Florida.

"She's a local resident, lived here 16 years. Her whole family is here," said Chavez' attorney, Tom Cushman.

Chavez has grown children and siblings in the St. Augustine area. She studied ultrasound, according to her Facebook page, and she has worked in medical offices.

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