1. Bye-Bye Badcock: A SWFLA staple for a century
Another piece of history will disappear from Southwest Florida with the upcoming closings of Badcock Furniture, a Sunshine State staple since 1904.
In its most recent earnings report, owner Conn’s HomePlus showed total revenue down 7.8% year over year, according to USA TODAY. The 134-year-old firm posted a net loss of nearly $77 million for the year.
It planned the closing of about 100 of its 550 locations including some Badcock Home Furniture & More locales. But then as Conn’s filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, it was announced this past week all 300-plus Badcock spots were to be shuttered by Halloween, with about 80 of them in Florida and at least seven in Collier, Lee, Hendry and Charlotte counties. – Phil Fernandez/USA TODAY Network-Florida
2. Stakeholder meetings mean closure of Lorenzo Walker Technical High School not a done deal
The decision to close Lorenzo Walker Technical High School may not be a done deal. That’s the takeaway from a recent discussion by the Collier County School Board.
At its meeting in July, the board once again heard an earful from current and former students, teachers and administrators of Lorenzo high school who strongly oppose the closure.
District superintendent Leslie Ricciardelli has pushed for the closure to allow for the expansion of the neighboring college. The district announced the plans in May, taking students, parents, teachers and the school board by surprise.
Dee Sudenick, a department chairwoman at the Lorenzo high school, appeared among the sea of opponents. She told the board the school’s small distinction is important, contributing to the academic success of its students, who might be lost otherwise.
Rather than shutter the school, she suggested the district should look to replicate its successful model.
“Success breeds success,” she argued.
A petition against the closure has garnered more than 2,340 signatures. – Laura Layden/USA TODAY Network-Florida
Is weed legal in Florida? What to know about Amendment 3 before the November election
Floridians are now less than three months away from finding out whether they can puff, puff, and pass without needing a medical card.
After facing some challenges in Florida’s Supreme Court earlier this year, voters will have a chance to vote for or against recreational marijuana legalization this November during the general election, otherwise known as Amendment 3.
To pass it needs to receive a supermajority or 60% of the vote.
Even if it does pass, the Florida Legislature has to decide on how to implement the law, including specific regulations around how much marijuana could be purchased at one time, potency limits, rules around marketing, and any other concerns that arise during the process. – Samantha Neely/USA TODAY
The top events of the week: 3 To Do: Second Tuesday announced, SWFL Anime-Fest and ‘As We Rise’
Expanded list of area events: SWFLA To Do List: ‘Family Movie Nights,’ Childhood Classics and Broadway’s next gen
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Publish date : 2024-08-08 10:31:00
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