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Unemployment drops, but labor force shrinks

The size of Franklin County’s labor force shrank, even as the unemployment picture improved slightly in July. According to preliminary numbers released Friday by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, the preliminary seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in July was at 4.4 percent, two-tenths of 1 percentage point below the June rate of 4.6 percent. This…

Franklin County Proud!

It was an afternoon of Franklin County Proud of its All-Star teams, from its littlest Darlings to the Team Florida boys to the older traveling ball Sandlot squad. In a spirited parade Sunday afternoon through the streets of Apalachicola, led by Police Chief Bobby Varnes, with the ballplayers riding high atop the Apalachicola fire trucks…

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Alligator Point flourishes under new neighborhood leadership

It’s not your father’s taxpayers’ association anymore. In fact, the Alligator Point St. Teresa Association is blossoming, having ventured out with a rejuvenated outreach to the community. A July 4 catered affair for members at Kay McCord’s home at Mariner Circle not only celebrated the nation’s independence, but the newfound independence of the association. In…

COVID positives rise in Franklin, fall in Gulf

Gulf County is seeing continued improvement in its positivity rate for COVID-19, while Franklin County is going in the opposite direction According to a news release from the Florida Department of Health serving both counties, during the first week of August, nearly two out of every five people tested for the coronavirus in Franklin County,…

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Franklin County spared Fred’s fury

The first significant storm of the 2021 hurricane season to hit Franklin County stormed in with all the finesse of Fred Flintstone and then left with the nimbleness of Fred Astaire. With students hunkered down at home, Tropical Storm Fred made landfall at Cape San Blas around 3:15 p.m., Monday afternoon, flooding roadways and tearing…

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Health officials work to dispel vaccine rumors

The Florida Department of Health in Franklin and Gulf counties is pushing forward with a clear message on vaccinations – they are effective and a critical tool to keeping what has become a resurgent pandemic under control. And they are taking on misunderstandings and rumors surrounding the shots. “The vaccine helps protect you and the…