I'll Have The Brontosaurus Walt Disney World was slated Tuesday to open its dinosaur-themed restaurant called T-Rex at its Downtown Disney resort area in Lake Buena Vista. The restaurant is the first project in Disney's pursuit of more family-oriented dining and shopping in an area that until recently had a strong focus on its Pleasure Island nightclubs. Disney closed most of its clubs last month. ...more

October 15, 2008

Gov. Charlie Crist has approved a $1 million grant to conduct site planning and a market study for prospects to expand the 500-acre Florida Agriculture Center and Horse Park just south of Ocala. The park the Legislature created in 1996 serves multiple uses in the heart of the Ocala area's horse farm country, including the official training facility for the U.S. Equestrian team. ...more

October 14, 2008

A Florida man convicted of shooting two young sisters in the head after raping and shooting their mother was executed Tuesday after a nearly two-hour delay while authorities awaited final rulings from the U.S. Supreme Court. ...more

September 24, 2008

SEBRING — It's just a refrigerated trailer, but for one Desoto City civic group, it's a brand spanking-new humanitarian effort they're trying out in Florida. The Fraternal Order of Eagles' Disaster Relief Trailer, parked in front of the club's hall, already has several pallets full of emergency ration bars and water. Joe Waters of the Eagles in Sebring said this was one of two stationed in Florida, with the other one in the Ocala area. The trailer would go wherever the county's Emergency Operations Center tells them to go. "If they were in need of it ... we would take it anywhere they want," Waters said. ...more

May 19, 2008

Conversations about race never seem far from the surface in Ocala. In a barbershop off the downtown square, on a porch stoop across the railroad tracks and on a sandy riverbank, Marion County residents are discussing the validity of statements made by a movie star who recently called into question the area's racial morality. ...more

January 13, 2008

OCALA - Over the past decade or two, the sprawling horse farms that once buffered downtown Ocala from the chaotic bustle of Interstate 75 have given way to progress. Now, out-of-town travelers seeking respite in the natural beauty of the Ocala National Forest or heading to meetings at downtown offices pass by scores of convenience stores, chain restaurants and strip malls. Despite the changes, Ocala has remained a truly Southern town. Like much of the South, Ocala faces continuing questions — from residents and outsiders — about race relations. ...more

January 11, 2008