On May 6th 2024, the Children’s Services Council of Leon County (CSC) held a finance and budget meeting to review the proposed amended budget for the 2023-24 Fiscal Year. The Council’s proposed amended budget totals $9,570,687 (this includes rollover from previous year) with $7,427,764 or 77.6% of the total allocated to programs. Non-program expenses include $1,223,803 in administrative expenses, $763,919 in reserves, and $155,200 in various fees. There are a number of categories under “Compensation and Employee” that are rising in cost. Health insurance is going from $126,288 to $145,000, pay ..read more

At the February 7, 2024, city commission meeting, Commissioner Jack Porter made a motion related to the city’s parking regulations and the Commission directed staff to bring back an informational item regarding parking standards. The current conversations around parking minimums nationwide have at their core the intent to increase walkability, the use of multiple transportation means, and pedestrian safety.  According to the agenda item, the City’s existing regulations provide the flexibility to tailor minimum parking requirements to the specific needs of a given development while also wh ..read more

A group that City Commissioner Jack Porter is affiliated with, Local Progress, released a statement on Friday, May 3rd, supporting pro-Palestinian demonstrations which have spread across university campuses over the last couple of weeks. Porter, who is listed as an organizing member of the Florida branch of the group, was one of over 300 members of the progressive group that signed a resolution in January, 2024, calling for a cease fire in the Israel-Palestine conflict. The group did not release a statement in the days or weeks following the October 7 attacks on Israel. In the recent ..read more

At the next Tallahassee City Commission meeting, elected officials will receive an update on the Public Safety Camera Initiative. According to the agenda item, the Tallahassee Police Department (TPD) is embarking on a public-private camera partnership that will further leverage the resources of the Capital Region Real Time Crime Center to respond to and solve crimes. Once launched, citizens can participate in the program by registering their cameras or by integrating their cameras with the addition of an edge device. In the event of a reported crime, this registry can be used by TPD to know wh ..read more

Sponsored by  FOODIES TAKEOUT & DELIVERY DOWNLOAD FOODIES APP Select a Restaurant and Place an Order LOCAL NEWS Tallahassee Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) received high marks as a leading metro area in the ‘2023 Leading Metro Locations’ report published in the Q4 2023 issue of Area Development magazine. The Tallahassee MSA distinguished itself from other communities in the United States. The Tallahassee MSA ranked # 1 in the U.S. in the “Economic Strength” category & #2 in the Mid-Sized Metro Locations category. Florida A&M University just got a whole lot richer thanks ..read more

At the conclusion of the April 24th Tallahassee City Commission meeting, Mayor John Dailey took an opportunity to respond to City Commissioner Jeremy Matlow’s continued attacks on the Tallahassee Police Department related to a recent DUI case. At the meeting, Dailey stated, “I’m getting tired of this Board criticizing police action after it goes to a jury of our peers. Commissioner Matlow I think it’s unacceptable. Look, we don’t have any control over the judiciary whatsoever. That is a completely separate body of government.” However, he was quickly interrupted by Matlow who said, “That is ou ..read more

Four months into 2024, the number of crime incidents reported by the Tallahassee Police Department are down when compared to 2023. TPD Incidents The daily TPD incident reports indicate that the total number of incidents through April 30 are down 11.1% when compared to the same period in 2023. TR’s last report indicated the total number of crime incidents was down 9.3% year-to-date. The numbers show that property crime incidents are down 11.8% and violent crime incidents are down 9.7%. Property crimes encompass burglaries, thefts, incidents of vandalism, and violent offenses, including agg ..read more

The Leon County Commission (LCC) voted unanimously to accept a report on the preliminary budget overview which included performance raises for all employees averaging 3%. The FY2025 estimates indicate a revenue increase of approximately $15 million. This estimate is based on a 6.5% increase in property values which, under the current millage rate, would result in an additional $11.84 million in property tax revenues. Approximately $9.8 million of the new revenue would be allocated to law enforcement. The estimated growth in the Sheriff’s budget is currently higher (9.52%) than the projected pr ..read more

On April 22, 2024, Leon County School (LCS) Board Member Alva Smith stated one of her budget priorities is to look at the financial impact of downsizing the school district due to declining enrollment. Smith explained it was a vital conversation about downsizing stating, “We are not being fiscally responsible and good stewards of tax payers’ dollars if we do not discuss downsizing in this district.” She continued, “If we do not discuss closing a school, we are not being good stewards.” The table below provides the unweighted student full-time equivalent, or FTE, for 22 Leon County elementary s ..read more

The Tallahassee Police Department (TPD) recently announced the implementation of the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN) program to aid in solving and preventing violent crimes involving firearms in the community. Within a few months of NIBIN’s inception, detectives developed over 65 leads in cases. NIBIN utilizes cutting-edge technology to capture and compare images of submitted ballistic evidence from shooting scenes and recovered firearms, significantly boosting the rate of return on ballistic evidence. Through automated and manual analysis, NIBIN allows law enforcemen ..read more