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The top stories near you
• A proposed rock climbing facility expected to be located between Alachua and Gainesville has the potential to be the tallest indoor rock climbing location in the world. Still, some local rock climbers question its value to the community. (WUFT News) • Gainesville voters have the chance to vote in next week’s municipal election on whether or not to change the city charter to create a new arm of city government that could make changes to it every 10 years. That has been difficult to do in the past because 10 percent of city voters would need to sign a petition within 90 days or six out of seven city commissioners must vote to put it on the ballot. (WUFT News) • Former Alachua County Manager Lee Niblock is receiving deferred prosecution in a pair of battery cases. (Gainesville Sun) • Charlotte Russe in Gainesville's Oaks Mall will continue to have sales up to 40 percent off of its products as the store prepares to shut down along with all of its other locations nationwide. (The Alligator)
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Around the state today
• A bill that could force Florida to address a key effect of climate change — sea level rise — is moving through the Florida Senate. (Sarasota Herald-Tribune) • A Clearwater company named OnMed revealed its first station that links patients with doctors or nurses through a teleconference and then provides the patient with medication. It is the first of its kind and is scheduled to open in Mississippi. The company hopes to see two locations in Florida later this year. (Tampa Bay Times) • Veterinarians in the Florida Keys are now caring for 22 badly injured turtles found stranded on a beach in Central Florida. These reptiles were malnourished but doctors said there is “no smoking gun” or definitive reason why the turtles were in this condition. (FLKeysNews) • The U.S. Coast Guard caught 26 Cuban migrants in a wooden sailboat along the Florida Keys. The vessel was disabled. One of the passengers was detained for “further investigation and possible prosecution” and the other 25 were sent back to Cuba. (FLKeysNews) •Although there are no accurate figures as to the number involved in human trafficking, Florida is estimated to rank among one of the top states. Lawmakers are beginning to address the issue by encouraging the community to speak up and hold people accountable for these actions. (WFSU)
News from NPR
• National: Gov. Gavin Newsom Suspends Death Penalty In California • National: At Least 50 People Charged In College Admissions Scandal • World: Cardinal George Pell, Former Vatican Official, Sentenced To 6 Years In Prison • Politics: CEO Says Wells Fargo Has Transformed After Scandals; Lawmakers Are Skeptical • Politics: Georgia Woman Arrested and Accused Of Aiding ISIS Cyber Group That Made "Kill Lists" • Politics: White House Spokesman Discusses Path Ahead For Trump's National Emergency Declaration • Business: A Tale Of Two Dollar Stores • Health: Measles Is Spiking Around The Globe. How Worried Should We Be?