WUFT News News and Public Media for North Central Florida from the University of Florida in Gainesville
Subscribe to The Point, arriving in your inbox Monday through Friday at 8 a.m. The stories near you • WUFT News: East Gainesville neighbors fight the expansion of a landfill in their backyard – again. “To the west of the landfill is Showers of Blessings church. To the north, an organic …
Read More »University of Florida students, faculty offer opinions on UF President Ben Sasse as he takes office
Tensions ran high on the University of Florida campus on Monday as the state’s flagship higher education institution welcomed President Ben Sasse on his first day in office. The former U.S. senator this week officially became the top-5 university’s 13th president, taking the reins from predecessor Kent Fuchs after being …
Read More »City of Gainesville kicks off Black History Month with Black love celebration
About 30 onlookers gathered on Friday inside the historic Thomas Center to observe some of Gainesville’s most hidden talent. The city and Bailey Learning and Arts Collective partnered to produce “A Celebration of Black love, arts and poetry.” An intimate crowd cheered as local poets recited original pieces and local …
Read More »Community gives back to Gainesville waiter after he survives motorcycle accident
Wearing a helmet and gear while riding his motorcycle is non-negotiable for Brad Coblentz. But one wrong turn from an uninsured driver left him with 30 staples in his neck, nine broken ribs, a broken wrist — and no way to pay for it. Without relatives in town, the 42-year-old …
Read More »Gainesville music scene bounces back after COVID-19
After three years of desolate discos and unfathomable changes, Gainesville has finally regained its soul. Artists, venue owners and inspired individuals all fought to keep the music scene alive during the pandemic. And that created a resilient framework and set the stage for a comeback. Brandon Telg, 33, co-founded a …
Read More »University of Florida students “Chomp Hate” in Plaza of the Americas
Just steps away from the hubbub around a suspicious package alert at Turlington Plaza on Thursday afternoon, a sea of people crowded the heart of the University of Florida’s campus. While the nearby area around Turlington Hall was deserted as authorities cleared the area and determined the package posed no …
Read More »The Point, Feb. 1, 2023: Gainesville continues to tackle traffic ‘crisis’
Subscribe to The Point, arriving in your inbox Monday through Friday at 8 a.m. The stories near you • WUFT News: City of Gainesville holds corridor walks as it declares a traffic ‘crisis’. “According to a document that outlines the city’s project limits, about 86% of the crashes resulted in an …
Read More »Holocaust survivor rocks the Chabad with Klezmer music
Four days after International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Saul Dreier, founder of the Holocaust Survivor Band on Tuesday made a special visit to Gainesville at the University of Florida’s Chabad and Jewish Student & Community Center. Family members told Dreier, 97, that creating a band wouldn’t be the best of ideas …
Read More »Lawmakers propose making it easier to impose death penalty in Florida
After a jury couldn’t agree on the death penalty in Florida’s deadliest school shooting, Republican lawmakers in Tallahassee are proposing to make it easier to send condemned convicts to death row. The changes – which would allow a jury to recommend the death penalty even when only eight of 12 …
Read More »Jacksonville band to perform at Okeechobee after winning battle-of-the-bands competition
From rehearsing in a construction warehouse to taking the stage at Okeechobee Music & Arts Festival, Jacksonville-based band Sauce Pocket has made strides in leaving its mark on the Florida music industry. The five-man band secured an all-expenses-paid spot to perform at this year’s Okeechobee Festival from March 2 to …
Read More »