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As a young girl, Sabrina Langlois loved to sing but suffered from severe stage fright. It’s a good thing she was able to get over that, since her co-stars in The Secret River also include bears and alligators, but it’s enough to make anyone a little nervous. The animals will become real-life puppets when Opera Orlando reprises the family-friendly 65-minute chamber opera “The Secret River” at Mead Botanical Gardens on March 6 and 7. This work is special to the opera company, as it was the first work commissioned by the company. This revival celebrates Opera Orlando’s 10th anniversary. Langlois,…
“The Big Sugar Muzzle Clause is Dead,” a press release from Captains for Clean Water (CFCW) states. This week, CFCW, along with other advocacy groups, won a major battle after a provision in a Florida House bill that raised free speech concerns was removed. The removed portion was known as Section 47 of HB 433. CFCW says the bill’s language would penalize groups like them, including fishing guides, scientists, journalists, parents and anyone seeking to raise concerns about environmental or public health impacts. CFCW’s allies opposing the bill included groups associated with President Trump, such as MAHA (Make America Healthy…
WINTER HAVEN – A new roller coaster at Legoland Florida takes riders into an outer space-like situation that can cause mild out-of-body sensations. The Galactic Coaster opens to the public on Friday. The new attraction has a rotating element. Eight-passenger vehicles (two rows of four people each) rotate as they move forward and up and down along the indoor coaster’s rails. Close encounters swoop in with celestial bodies, Lego blocks in anti-gravity mode, and swarms of separators, a kind of celestial anthropomorphic tool that pries open Lego blocks in the real world. Before boarding, passengers customize their vehicle by selecting…
The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida has issued a public statement regarding the Port St. Lucie-based tax preparer being found guilty of tax evasion and lying on naturalization applications. A Port St. Lucie tax agent was sentenced on February 11 to 36 months in federal prison for defrauding taxpayers of more than $175,000 and attempting to obtain U.S. citizenship by concealing his crimes from immigration officials. U.S. District Judge Donald M. Middlebrooks sentenced Wislett Metayer, 45, and ordered her to pay $167,792.45 in restitution. A federal jury in West Palm Beach previously convicted Metayer on 32 counts…
Florida Attorney General James Usmeyer on Monday announced the arrest of repeat offender Oscar Fowler, whose federal sentence was commuted in the final days of the Biden administration. Fowler was taken into custody at the St. Petersburg Police Department on February 23, 2026, and is currently facing multiple state charges, including two counts of intent to sell a controlled substance and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Officials say the state charges mirror federal crimes for which Fowler was previously convicted. Fowler was serving a 12-and-a-half year federal prison sentence before it was commuted near…
Three members of a Jacksonville-based drug trafficking organization have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in a violent revenge shooting and widespread marijuana distribution conspiracy along Interstate 95, federal prosecutors announced. James Toney, 20, of Jacksonville, was sentenced to 16 years in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Harvey Schlesinger. Toney was convicted of conspiracy to distribute marijuana, committing a drive-by shooting in furtherance of a felony drug crime, and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence. In related sentences, Javon Davis, 27, was sentenced to seven years in federal prison, and Christian Guyton, 23, was sentenced…
With just weeks left in Florida’s 2026 legislative session, legislation addressing property taxes is beginning to move forward, but most legislative proposals may have to wait until next year. Here’s what happened last week so far: The Florida Legislature passed a constitutional amendment on the November 2026 ballot that would eliminate all non-school property taxes on homestead properties. If the measure, in its current form, appears on this year’s state ballot and is approved by voters, it would immediately reduce local government tax revenues starting in 2027. Florida Tax Watch says local governments will lose $14.7 billion in savings to…
Their number is 143 million. That’s the number of tourists visiting the state in 2025, according to Visit Florida estimates. The Sunshine State has bucked the national trend of declining tourism. “This year was another record year for our state’s tourism industry,” Governor DeSantis’ office said in a statement. According to Visit Florida, 33.5 million visitors visited the state in the final quarter of 2025, the highest number of visitors in the fourth quarter ever. Who has visited this state the most? Preliminary estimates suggest that 131.1 million Americans will travel to Florida in 2025, with domestic travelers accounting for…
Five years past the expected opening date and $20 million later, St. Petersburg’s highly anticipated food and beverage hall is finally making its grand debut. Central Park St. Pete officially opened to the public on Feb. 23, inside the five-story building at 551 Central Ave. The sprawling 28,000-square-foot space, formerly home to the old Woolworth building, has been in the works since early 2020 and was initially slated to open in summer 2021. Construction lags, permitting setbacks and a number of other issues caused delays over the years, but now the spot is finally ready to welcome diners — that…
A Democratic victory in Florida would still result in a sharp increase at the state and legislative level. The political action committee Future Democrats PAC is backing a national slate of candidates and is currently targeting the Florida House district held by Republican Rep. Randy Fine. Why the Randy Fiennes District? Democrats believe they may have a shot at Ms. Fine’s House seat, given that she received fewer votes than her predecessor and President Trump in last year’s special election. In 2024, then-Congressman Mike Walz won 67% and President Trump 65%. In 2025, Fine received only 57%. Democrats note that…