Thank you Mayor George Hensley for opening words at the Orange Blossom shuffleboard tournament. Sebring's Orange Blossom Tournament was sponsored by Dell Realty and the Blue Crab Restaurant and Sports Bar. The people who made this happen, John Bushee, Tony Beckwith, Jim Edwards, Harold Miller, Jim Mondry, Don Rohman, George Rosema, Peter White and Carl Wile. These people worked in the cold outside from 7 a.m. until 5 p.m. both days. ...more

January 8, 2008

SEBRING — Fried green bean sticks are described by Keith Schroeder as "awesome and addictive." Although not available yet at Hungry Howie's Pizza and Sub Buffet in Sebring, they will be soon. Schroeder, who owns the eatery with his wife, Donna, and father, Mike, is expanding the menu. They are also putting a bar in the restaurant located in the Sebring Plaza shopping center. A January opening is planned for the bar, called Skeeters Sports Bar. ...more

November 25, 2007

Mark Ferguson took a pioneering leap of faith in 1993 when he converted an old Sunoco gas station into a sports bar, hoping the city would land a baseball team. It arrived five years later. ...more

November 11, 2007

Fugitives beware. A new squad at the Florida Department of Corrections has helped to locate, and has aided in the arrest of, seven suspected prison fugitives - all within the past four weeks. Each of the seven had been on the lam for at least 20 years. ...more

November 6, 2007

TAMPA - The man who had been on the lam since he escaped prison in 1979 will remain behind bars without bail after his arrest Thursday, a judge ordered today. ...more

October 26, 2007

The nation's first HipHopSodaShop, a music-themed restaurant and video gaming center, is expected to open before the end of the year on Fowler Avenue. ...more

October 19, 2007

When the Lightning signed defenseman Brad Lukowich to a three-year contract this summer, they did more than bring back a savvy veteran who helped Tampa Bay win the Stanley Cup in 2004. ...more

October 9, 2007

AVON PARK — Amid the dirt and the construction cones that dotted Main Street for some time, David Greenslade of the Avon Park Chamber of Commerce is expecting a bit of an uplift in downtown, with some new businesses expecting to pop up by early November. The new Heartland National Bank branch previously told Greenslade it should be completed by the end of October, bringing the downtown area its first bank in more than a year, when the Wachovia branch closed its doors. The way he saw it, Greenslade expected the bank to bring back confidence for businesses to enter downtown, a part of the city that has been cluttered with vacant office space and several near-vacant buildings. "We're excited about the fact that they feel it's a great location for them," Greenslade said. If the Heartland National Bank goes as planned and remains in business, it could be part of a reversal for the downtown area. ...more

October 8, 2007

The city council has given initial approval to a beer and wine license for a proposed sports bar on Nebraska Avenue. ...more

September 26, 2007

North Port police hope two billboards will help generate clues about the slaying of a 6-year-old girl. ...more

September 17, 2007