Peter Schorsch - page 483

Florida Department of Transportation officials say a new expressway linking two major roads in the Tampa Bay area will cost about $454 million — about $116 million more than first announced. Most of the extra expense is from buying right-of-way along the route, a cost estimated at $93.5 million. The expressway will eventually link Interstate 275 and U.S. 19, and the unfunded project has been moved forward by as much as 20 years. The Tampa Tribune reports that DOT officials revealed…

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A morning read of what’s hot in Florida politics. Today’s Rise and Shine Fact-iversary is brought to you by Sachs Media Group, the state’s dominant public affairs PR firm: Enjoy a butterbeer at the recently opened Diagon Alley in Orlando to toast Harry Potter’s birthday… and that of his real-life creator, J.K. Rowling. Harry Potter is perhaps the most important new fiction character in modern literature – aside from Christian Grey. Now on to the ‘burn … THE ECONOMY IS DOING SURPRISINGLY…

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Prosecutors in Orlando have dropped a misdemeanor charge of violating public meeting law against a former official with the Florida Department of Transportation. Prosecutors said Wednesday they have dropped the charge against former public affairs worker Rebekah Hammond, and she will now be available to testify against the two remaining defendants. Former Florida House member Chris Dorworth and former Orlando-Orange County Expressway Authority board member Scott Batterson still each face a misdemeanor charge of violating public meetings law. They are…

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First responders and job creators have given Republican candidate Richard DeNapoli some welcome news as he “fights the smears” in the race for House District 74. In an email to supporters, the Nokomis Republican announced endorsements from a trio of key groups — the Fraternal Order of Police, District 3, Suncoast Professional Firefighters and Paramedics and the Associated Builders and Contractors, Florida Gulf Coast Chapter. These organizations represent the men and women who risk their lives daily to protect citizens…

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Authorities say a man has died after diving for lobsters in the waters off South Florida. ON THE SAME DAY AS THE PREMIERE OF SHARKNADO 2. Coincidence, I think not. Pompano Beach Fire Rescue spokeswoman Sandra King says the 22-year-old man was on a professional dive boat Wednesday morning, diving for lobster in 40 feet of water. King says the man was unconscious when he surfaced. He was brought to shore and authorities took him to a hospital, where he…

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The first sign that the much ballyhooed Tampa Bay Times investigation into Florida Republican fundraising at South Texas’ King Ranch is more smoke than it is fire is the fact that its headline is a question, “Why won’t Florida GOP leaders talk about hunting trips to King Ranch in Texas?” If reporters Craig Pittman and Michael Van Sickler had nailed this story, they wouldn’t have to ask that question. But what Pittman and Van Sickler did do is make the…

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In recent days, Rep. Tom Goodson has come under fire from his primary opponent, George Collins, for not residing in the State House district he represents. Collins has noted that Goodson uses a $65,410 golf-course community condominium in Titusville for his District 50 address, rather than a $416,410, four-bedroom waterfront property in Rockledge that he owns with his wife. Goodson claims a homestead exemption on the Rockledge property. “It sounds a little cozy to be staying at your daughter’s apartment,”…

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