In today's Scoop:
🏘️ Newberry approved CountryWay II for 500 homes on 160 acres
💸 Gainesville's two-bedroom rent benchmark is up more than 50% since 2020
🌲 Black Lake Preserve opened 287 acres and more than three miles of trails
🔥 Wood-fired pizza and hand-rolled bagels on SW 4th
At 307 SW 4th Avenue, Humble Wood Fire serves wood-fired pizza and hand-rolled bagels. The Gainesville business dates to 2012, and its mobile setup still handles food-truck stops and catered events around town.
Everything starts from scratch, from a handmade 800-degree oven to organic bagels rolled each morning. The catering crew brings the oven to weddings, parties, and events, while the bagel shop opens daily at 7 a.m.
Read more here.
⚙️ If You’re Copying and Pasting the Same Thing 10 Times, Automate It
Every growing business has a task employees repeat so often that nobody questions it anymore. Copying information between systems, rebuilding invoices, updating reports, scheduling jobs, sending follow-ups, and filling out the same documents can quietly consume hours every week.
Gainesville-based SmartFl8w finds those bottlenecks and builds systems that handle the repetitive work automatically. Founder Fabien Sarran has worked in automation for more than 15 years, long before every software company started adding “AI” to its name.
His approach is practical: map the process your team already follows, then use low-code tools, custom programming, or AI only when it’s reliable enough for the job. One recent system reads incoming invoices, checks the item information against a separate database, and creates the new client-ready invoice automatically.
SmartFl8w’s free consultation includes a review of your current tools and processes, actionable automation ideas, and clear next steps. It takes 30 to 45 minutes, with no cost or obligation.
🏘️ Newberry approves 500-home CountryWay II
The Gist: The Newberry City Commission unanimously gave final rezoning approval Aug. 24 to Norfleet Construction Group's 500-home CountryWay II project on 160 acres beside CountryWay TownSquare. The plan allows up to 636 units, 3,500-square-foot minimum lots and a new collector road to State Road 26.
Why It Matters: CountryWay II pushes Newberry past 2,000 homes approved this year, adding to a fast-growing pipeline that includes two other large developments.
Read more here.
💸 Gainesville two-bedroom rent benchmark climbs 54%
The Gist: HUD's fair-market rent for a two-bedroom in the Gainesville metro climbed from $971 in 2020 to $1,493 in 2026, a 54% increase. UF's cheapest traditional double rose from $3,556 per semester last year to $3,929 this year.
Why It Matters: With UF estimating $25,830 for a full in-state undergraduate year, students report taking extra jobs, sharing leases and cooking to close the gap.
What's Next: UF trustees have approved combined 6.5% yearly housing increases through fiscal 2030, though rates are still reviewed annually.
Read more here.
🌲 Black Lake Preserve opens 287 acres in Melrose
The Gist: Alachua County opened the 287-acre Black Lake Preserve on Aug. 21 after buying the land for $2.3 million in 2020 with Wild Spaces Public Places surtax money. Visitors get a 500-foot accessible paved path and more than three miles of hiking trails.
Why It Matters: Land once planned for housing now protects wetlands that store and filter rainwater while giving the Melrose area a nearby public nature park.
What's Next: Starting Oct. 1, the preserve's daily closing time shifts from 8 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Read more here.
🎨 Design + Doodle Lab | Cade Museum for Creativity and Invention | Gainesville | Friday, August 28, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. | More Drop in for all-ages art projects and build freely with open supplies.
🔬 Little Sparks | Cade Museum for Creativity and Invention | Gainesville | Saturday, August 29, 10:15-11 a.m. | More Babies through preschoolers explore science with music, movement, crafts, and stories.
🦕 DINOSAURS: A Story of Survival | Kika Silva Pla Planetarium | Gainesville | Saturday, August 29, 3-3:30 p.m. | More Follow Celeste and Moon through the Mesozoic Era in a 30-minute fulldome show.
🏐 Florida Gators Volleyball vs. Stony Brook | Stephen C. O'Connell Center | Gainesville | Sunday, August 30, 1 p.m. | More Cheer on Florida, grab a schedule poster, and stay for the post-match mingle.
🔎 Artful Adventures & Hidden Clues | Archer Branch Library | Archer | Wednesday, September 2, 2-3 p.m. | More Kids follow a weekly scavenger hunt and complete a pre-prepared craft.
🎭 a river of all my lost loved ones | Hippodrome Theatre | Gainesville | Friday, August 28, 4:30-5:30 p.m. | More Watch 600 children's drawings transform the Hippodrome columns during a live music opening.
🖼️ ArtWalk Gainesville | Multiple Locations | Gainesville | Friday, August 28, 7-10 p.m. | More Tour galleries, studios, bars, and live performances at your own pace across Gainesville.
🎺 Free Fridays Concert Series with Sooza Brass Band | Bo Diddley Plaza | Gainesville | Friday, August 28, 7-9 p.m. | More Sooza Brass Band blends funk, jazz, and metal at this free outdoor show.
🎸 Foxtide with The Braymores | Heartwood Soundstage | Gainesville | Saturday, August 29, 6:30 p.m. | More Catch Southern California indie rock trio Foxtide with Chicago alt-folk group The Braymores.
🎹 Faculty Piano Recital: Hsiang Tu | UF School of Music | Gainesville | Monday, August 31, 5:30-7:05 p.m. | More Hear Schubert, Brahms, and Beethoven, including the Waldstein Sonata, at this free recital.
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