Florida's Latest News

Scott Singer nabs endorsement from National Association of Police Organizations

Police support for former Boca Raton Mayor Scott Singer’s bid to flip Florida’s 25th Congressional District red now extends beyond the Sunshine State.

The National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO) just endorsed him in his campaign against Democratic U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz.

The national group acted on the recommendation of the Florida Police Benevolent Association, which also backed Singer.

“NAPO is pleased to support your campaign and is confident you will continue your strong support of the law enforcement community in Congress,” NAPO President Michael McHale wrote in an endorsement letter Singer’s campaign shared.

The group says its membership includes more than 1,000 police organizations representing roughly 250,000 sworn officers.

Reset City Hall or break the status quo? Ausley and Matlow debate

Loranne Ausley wants to “hit the reset button” with a new city commission and city manager and “really start leading with progress and not division.”

Jeremy Matlow wants to bring big ideas and a change from “business as usual” while standing up to “extremism in our state and federal government.”

The two candidates for Tallahassee mayor talked about their plans for the city during a Sept. 25 debate hosted by the Tallahassee Democrat and its longtime election year partners, WFSU and the League of Women Voters, along with the Capital Region News Collaborative.

Matlow, who has served two terms as Seat 3 city commissioner, and Ausley, who served a combined 14 years in the state House and Senate, answered questions on issues ranging from Flock and school zone cameras to development and the city-county dust-up over fire service fees.

.

Florida Polytechnic University unveils images for $87M Student Achievement Center

Florida Polytechnic University is moving forward with plans for a new Student Achievement Center on its Lakeland campus.

The school unveiled renderings for the 138,000-square-foot facility. Officials are planning to have the structure open within two years.

The three-story building carries an estimated $ 87 million price tag and will feature a curved roofline and a glass façade designed for natural light and an open interior. The “ultramodern” structure will provide support for students enrolled in the school who are pursuing science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) studies.

Florida Poly officials say the facility will help lead the school’s expansion and modernization plans in the coming years.

“The Student Achievement Center represents the next chapter in Florida Poly’s extraordinary growth,” said President Devin Stephenson.

Florida counties push back on Apalachicola River dredging plans

With a Sept. 28 deadline approaching for public comment on a federal proposal to resume dredging on the Apalachicola River, Florida counties and river advocates are urging the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to consider alternatives they say could restore commercial navigation without repeating decades of environmental damage.

The Corps is preparing an Environmental Impact Statement to determine whether to restore a congressionally authorized 9-foot-deep, 100-foot-wide navigation channel as part of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. The review is the first major step toward potentially resuming dredging that ended on the Apalachicola in 2005.

Congress authorized the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint navigation project through the River and Harbor Act of 1945, which connected Apalachicola Bay with inland ports in Georgia and Alabama. Although dredging ended in 2005, federal navigation authorization remains in place.

At issue: Whether the Corps should restore the historic 9-foot-deep navigation channel or pursue a shallower alternative that local governments and environmental advocates say would support barge traffic while requiring less dredging and fewer environmental impacts.