News from the City of St. Augustine

Posted on January 13, 2020 by PluggedInto in Community, Local Events, St. Johns // 0 Comments

Ceremony set for 11:00am, Friday, January 17

The public is invited to join the City of St. Augustine’s commemoration of Arbor Day next Friday, January 17 at 11:00am at the Joe Pomar, Jr. Park, located at 1600 Masters Drive.

The annual ceremony traditionally includes the planting of trees by city officials and presentations by the Street Tree Advisory Committee (STAC) with Smokey Bear leading the distribution of saplings to choose from: Southern Red Cedar, Sweet Bay Magnolia, and Florida Loquat.

Download our Right Tree, Right Place information and a guide on how to plant bare-root trees. Read the full story at www.CityStAug.com.

Matanzas 5000 and Fun Run, Saturday, January 18

Starting at 6:30am, the east bound lane of W. Castillo Dr. will be closed in order to allow organizers to setup for the race. Access to the parking garage will be via San Marco Ave. and W. Castillo Dr. or by Orange St. and Cordova St.

The race starts at 8:00am at Francis Field and continues east on W. Castillo Dr., then south on S. Castillo Dr./Avenida Menendez and Marine St., west on South St. then makes its way back north along Cordova St., Bridge St., Granada St., King St., Sevilla St., Valencia St., Riberia St., W. Castillo Dr. to the finish line near Project SWING.

At 9:15am, there will be a one-mile Fun Run along the streets in the vicinity of Francis Field using W. Castillo Dr., Cordova St., Orange St., Riberia St.

All affected streets are expected to return to normal use by 10:00am. For event information, including a map of the racecourse, visit www.matanzas5k.com.

March for Life, Saturday, January 18

The walking procession begins at 11:20am from the Mission Nombre de Dios on San Marco Ave., continuing south to S. Castillo Dr., then along St. George St. to the Plaza de la Constitución for an event lasting until 2:00pm. During the procession, which is expected to last less than 30 minutes, vehicular traffic along San Marco Ave. south of Mission Ave. will be interrupted.

To avoid delays during the event, motorists may wish to use Ponce de Leon Blvd. (US 1) rather than San Marco Ave., and are urged to use caution in the vicinity of the Plaza from noon until approximately 2:00pm.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration, Monday January 20

The procession will depart St. Paul’s AME Church, 85 M L King Ave. at 11:30am and walk along M L King Ave., then east on King St. to the Gazebo in the Plaza de la Constitución for an event.

The procession will necessitate brief interruption of vehicular traffic along M L King Ave. and King St. during the procession lasting for approximately 15 minutes. Motorists may wish to use alternative routes to avoid delays.

Free admission to full-length film, America’s Untold Story

Of the 21 films being screened at the 10th Annual St. Augustine Film Festival, there is one in particular that may be of local interest, America’s Untold Story, a four-hour documentary about Historic St. Augustine.

When PBS aired the original two-hour documentary, Secrets of Spanish Florida – Secrets of the Dead in December 2017, much of the story was still left untold. So a four-hour version, America’s Untold Story, was released on DVD.

Now, in a two-part presentation, America’s Untold Story will be shown free of charge on Thursday, January 16 at 7:00pm, and Sunday, January 19 at 6:00pm at Flagler College’s Lewis Auditorium.

The film tells the story of the first permanent European settlement in the nation, founded two generations before the Pilgrims arrived in 1565. America’s Untold Story uncovers the story of America that never made it into textbooks. The film was shot in and around Saint Augustine and is narrated by Jimmy Smits.

Visit the St. Augustine Film Festival website for information about this attending this film presentation and the entire lineup.

SJC Library hosts presentation prior to site tour

On Saturday, January 25, at 10:30am, Historic Preservation Officer Jenny Wolfe will offer a free presentation of the historic Waterworks Building at the St. Johns County Library Main Branch, 1960 N. Ponce de Leon Blvd.

The presentation will be followed by a guided tour of the Waterworks Building which itself is located at 182 San Marco Ave. Registration is required and is available online here or by calling the Main Library at 904.827.6940. Read more at www.CityStAug.com.

Full-time and part-time positions open

The U.S. Census Bureau is hiring now for a variety of temporary full-time and part-time jobs, including office operations supervisors, office staff, census takers, and recruiting assistants. To be eligible, you must be at least 18 years old, have a valid Social Security number, and be a U.S. citizen. Candidates must complete an online job application which includes assessment questions about your education, work, and other experience.

Competitive wages, reimbursable expenses, flexible work hours! Help our community to ensure participation in the 2020 census so everyone is counted. From congressional representation to federal funding of local programs – it’s all determined by the data collected from the census, so be part of history and apply online here.

MLK holiday schedule

City offices closed, no change in solid waste schedule

Offices for the City of St. Augustine will be closed on Monday, January 20 in observance of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, but solid waste collections will remain on their regular schedule.

Parking in city-owned parking lots and on-street parking is free on all national holidays; however, parking rules are still enforced at the Castillo de San Marcos and the downtown parking garage. Drivers are urged to confirm that a lot is owned by the City of St. Augustine and not privately operated as many of those lots have strict towing policies.