Jacksonville shop salvaging items from Jacksonville Landing before demolition

Neighbors in St. Johns County could soon have another option when it comes to health care. Flagler Health+ has plans to build a health and wellness campus in Durbin Park, which will include a hospital and health village.  Action News Jax Courtney Cole gave us details on the project and talked to neighbors to see how they feel about the possible new addition.  'It’s amazing, the progress they’re making!' Linda Jackson exclaimed.  Jackson said she’s lived in St. Johns County all her life.  She said growing up in a small town, St. Augustine, she’s excited to see signs of new development.  'These streets, this was nothing but trees,” Jackson told Cole.  Now, neighbors feel like there are constantly new things popping up, including between I-95 and State Road 9B.  That’s where Flagler Health+ is working with developer GATE Lands.  They're planning to build a comprehensive, 40-acre health and wellness campus.  It will include a health village with family practice, women’s care, pediatrics, urgent care and an 80-bed hospital, set to open in 2023.  While we were driving in the area, we noticed a couple of urgent care centers affiliated with Baptist Health.  Baptist Medical Center South is also only about a 6-mile drive from the area.  When Cole asked the spokesperson for Flagler Health+ about any concerns involving their proximity to other competing hospitals, here’s what they had to say:  “Our market assessment demonstrates a clear need for more health care providers and additional hospital services in the northern part of St. Johns County. Flagler Health+ has been caring for the residents of St. Johns County for more than 130 years and we are excited to bring a new concept in health and wellness to the area that will meet identified needs and advance the physical, social and economic health of this community.”  Neighbors said they’re OK with having a lot of options.  “As long as it’s for the people and not for their pocket, that will be fine,” Jackson said.  But there is something Jackson said she’d like to see come to Durbin Park: “Target! We need a Target!”  Flagler Health+ told Cole the project would cost approximately $200 million.  Flagler Health+ plans to break ground on the project this fall and open it in phases once it receives final approval commission.

After a week of investigation, the school district said the Clay County District Schools Police Department “could not establish a causal relationship between the food and the alleged illnesses” of Oakleaf Junior High School students whose parents said they tested positive for THC after eating food served during a class presentation on February 7.  QUICK FACTS:  The Clay County School District says investigators have not been able to confirm bread brought into a classroom was laced with THC and made children sick.  Some parents told Action News Jax they are frustrated with the results of the investigation and want more accountability from the school.  “Not even the place that you send them where they’re supposed to be okay during the day is OK either,” parent Alysha Pierre said.  Pierre’s stepson was one of the 8th grade students that tested positive for THC. She showed the lab results to Action News Jax reporter Elizabeth Pace.  “It makes me angry because these big corporations have all these people, you have these people to back you, but who protects my children, that’s what I want to know,” Pierre said.  After hearing the conclusion of the investigation, some parents told Action News Jax they are frustrated and want accountability from the school.  “Just for someone to stand up and say, ‘You know what, something obviously happened and someone is going to take responsibility,’” Pierre said. “But to me it just seems like it’s not going to happen and I’m not surprised at it at all.”  The Clay County School District released the following statement on the investigation:  “The Clay County District Schools Police Department learned that several students and a teacher at Oakleaf Junior High School claimed to be ill after consuming food during class on Friday, February 7, 2020. After more than a week of investigation, which included interviews and testing, the Police could not establish a causal relationship between the food and the alleged illnesses. This event has provided an opportunity for the District to review existing policies on food prepared outside of the cafeteria. As always, safety is the highest priority and the District will continue to search and identify ways to increase positive experiences for all students and staff.”

A court ruled that Florida cannot bar felons who served their time from voting, even if they haven’t paid their fines or court fees. Amendment 4, approved by voters in 2018, allowed nonviolent felons who served their time to regain the right to vote. Lawmakers passed a bill in 2019 that required some of those felons to pay off court fees, fines and restitution before they were able to vote. That law is now being argued in court. A three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the original ruling by a Tallahassee federal judge that requiring paying all fines and fees first is an unfair poll tax. Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state will immediately ask the entire 11th Circuit to reconsider the ruling. It was not immediately clear whether felons with unpaid fees would be able to vote by the upcoming primaries.

The St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office is asking the community for help in identifying a body that was found behind a Family Dollar on Feb 14, around 10 a.m. According to SJSO, the body was recovered behind Family Dollar at 500 SR 16, St. Augustine.  The St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office describes the body:  40’s to early 50’s  Approximately 6-feet tall  165-pounds  Medium length dark hair  Scruffy short beard with some graying  Wearing black flip-flops, khaki cargo shorts, long sleeve dark grey pullover sweatshirt  Tattoo of a small Celtic type cross on the inside of his right leg above the ankle  Anyone with information on the possible identity of this individual is asked to contact Detective James Jackson of the Major Crimes Unit at (904) 209-2142 or email jpjackson@sjso.org.

Authorities in Missouri have arrested three relatives after an 11-year-old girl gave birth last week in a bathtub at a home in the St. Louis suburbs, according to multiple reports. An adult man and an adult woman have been charged with endangering the welfare of a child in connection to the case. A 17-year-old boy was also arrested on charges of incest, statutory rape and statutory sodomy of a child younger than 12 years old, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and The Associated Press. The birth was discovered after a man brought the newborn to a hospital, claiming the child had been left on his front porch, KSDK reported. Charging documents obtained by the news station showed the infant had a body temperature of 90 degrees and still had an umbilical cord and placenta attached after being brought to the hospital. The man later admitted that he was related to the baby and told authorities he was unaware the 11-year-old girl was pregnant until she gave birth to the child, according to the AP. The man was arrested and charged with endangering the welfare of a child, KSDK reported. A judge ordered him held in lieu of a $10,000 cash-only bond. Charging documents said he came to the country illegally and had previously been deported, according to the AP. In a probable cause statement obtained by the Post-Dispatch, authorities said a 17-year-old boy related to the 11-year-old girl admitted to having sexually assaulted the girl about 100 times. After his arrest last week, a judge ordered him held in lieu of a $25,000 bond, according to the newspaper. Authorities made a third arrest in the case Tuesday, charging an adult woman with failing to provide the 11-year-old with medical care as she was giving birth. She was ordered held in lieu of a $10,000 bond, according to the AP.

Contigo recalls children’s water bottle replacements due to choking hazard

Remembering D.W. Perkins

Flagler Health adds to Durbin Park

Hotel tenants concerned by recent violence

Remains found at work site in North Jacksonville