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HOW TO CELEBRATE JUNETEENTH IN SARASOTA AND MANATEE COUNTIES
FROM SARASOTA MAGAZINE
Juneteenth marks the day when enslaved people in Texas finally received word from the U.S. government that they were free–a full two years after Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation in 1863. As federal troops arrived in Galveston, U.S. Gen. Gordon Granger read General Orders No. 3: “The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free.”
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TRUSTEES HAMMER OUT DETAILS OF HOW USF WILL YIELD CAMPUS SPACE TO NEW COLLEGE
FROM WUSF
A facilities plan and a joint transfer agreement for the USF Sarasota-Manatee campus were approved. It includes buildings, classroom furniture and fixtures. Not included are students and employees. USFSM campus board Chair Rick Piccolo described the plan as “difficult to endorse” but joined the rest of the trustees in voting for the joint transfer agreement on Wednesday.
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DETAINEES AT ALLIGATOR ALCATRAZ NOW GONE, BUT CLEANUP AND REPAIR EXPECTED TO TOP $40 MILLION
FROM WGCU
Despite news that the last detainee is gone from the immigration detention facility known as Alligator Alcatraz, the environmental groups that sued to shut it down gathered online Wednesday to make it known that they are nowhere near done. The massive immigration detention center was built on a public jetport within the Everglades’ Big Cypress National Preserve by the State of Florida, and without the environmental reviews or permitting required by the Endangered Species Act.
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SARASOTA TEST PILOT TAKES NEXT STEP IN ELECTRIC FLIGHT
FROM SARASOTA HERALD-TRIBUNE
Sarasota-based test pilot Miguel Iturmendi logged another aerial first recently when he flew his world-record-setting Helios Horizon electric airplane with solid-state batteries. The solid state batteries, which Iturmendi developed and created locally, double the range and flight time possible compared to electric-vehicle batteries. Solid-state batteries can also be charged from almost empty to 80% full in less than 15 minutes.
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FORMER MANATEE COUNTY COMMISSIONER SATCHER TOO LATE FOR 2026 CONGRESSIONAL BID
FROM EAST COUNTY OBSERVER
Former Manatee County Commissioner James Satcher, who launched a campaign to seek the Republican nomination to represent Florida’s 16th Congressional District, dropped out because he came up short on the $10,440 filing fee. “It was an amount of money that should've been easy to raise,” he said. “Obviously, Sydney Gruters has a stronger campaign than I realized. People are motivated to support her. Nobody even wanted to hedge their bets.”
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FPL PARENT COMPANY AGREES TO $150 MILLION TO END LAWSUIT OVER PAST CONTROVERSIES
FROM FLORIDA TRIB
Florida Power & Light’s parent company, NextEra, agreed to a $150 million proposed settlement that would close the book on a class-action lawsuit that accused the company’s leaders of making misleading statements several years ago. The lawsuit centered on a wide range of alleged misdeeds uncovered by Florida newspapers years ago, including the involvement of FPL’s outside political consultants in efforts to warp Florida elections through the use of “ghost” candidates, use of dirty tricks to acquire Jacksonville’s city-owned electric utility, surveillance of a journalist and attempts to control media coverage.
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IS THE MANATEE COUNTY CRUISE PORT TERMINAL PLAN DEAD? WHAT LOCAL OFFICIALS SAY
FROM BRADENTON HERALD
County officials say a proposal to build a massive cruise ship port in coastal Manatee County has not moved forward since it sparked fierce community backlash and a new law aimed at blocking it earlier this year. A development application submitted for the project in January is no longer active, officials say, and the county has not received any new proposals since then.
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WAR HANGS OVER AMERICAN FARMERS AS FERTILIZER PRICES RISE
FROM THE NEW YORK TIMES
One of the largest fertilizer companies in the world, the Mosaic Company, is losing money because a small amount of a specific ingredient is stuck in the Strait of Hormuz. Mosaic makes phosphorus fertilizer, which contains sulfur and ammonia. The war in Iran has disrupted the world’s supply of sulfur, a fifth of which travels through the strait. The price Mosaic receives for one ton of fertilizer is about $800, and half that cost — before processing, shipping and labor — now goes just to acquiring sulfur.
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FEATURED ARTIST FINDS HUMAN FIGURES IN FABRIC
FROM ARTSBEAT
Miami-based artist Maria A. Guzmán Capron was born in Milan to Peruvian and Colombian parents before moving to Texas as a teenager. Those experiences of growing up between cultures play a big role in her work, especially in how she explores identity. Capron creates vibrant textile pieces made from hand-dyed and painted fabrics. Each work is carefully placed together. Through her family and the way they helped her express her work, she encourages viewers to think about their own identities and how they’re shaped by culture, background, and personal experiences. The Sarasota Art Museum is highlighting her work in the exhibition “Penumbra,” which is on display through Sept. 27.
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TAKE A LOOK INSIDE THE STRAZ CENTER'S $100M EXPANSION
FROM TAMPA BAY TIMES
Tango dancing and Spanish opera by the Riverwalk. A swanky rooftop bar and two new restaurants. Expanded classrooms for military veterans and young artists to explore their craft — plus stages for them to show off what they’re learning. All of this and more is coming to the David A. Straz Jr. Center for the Performing Arts. A new fly-through video rendering of the $100 million expansion offers an updated preview of what’s coming to Tampa in fall 2027.
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