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The stories near you

• Mainstreet Daily News: Former Gainesville mayor dies. "According to a city of Gainesville release, Lowe, 65, served as the District 4 commissioner from 2003-10 and then made history as the city’s first openly gay mayor, serving until 2013."

• The Alligator: Former Buchholz High School nurses face felony for failing to report sexual battery of 15-year-old. "A 15-year-old student at BHS stated she disclosed the incident of her sexual battery to the nurses but pleaded with them to not tell members of her family out of fear, according to the affidavit."

• Mainstreet Daily News: ACPS on-time graduation rates increase. "The Alachua County Public Schools’ (ACPS) on-time graduation rate for high schools increased in 2022 from 90.9% to 91.4%, according to data released Friday by the Florida Department of Education (FDOE)."

• WUFT News: Photos: Actors rehearse ahead of Hippodrome’s opening of ‘The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity.' "The show takes place at the Hippodrome in downtown Gainesville, Fla., and will run on the mainstage from Jan. 27 to Feb. 12."

• The Alligator: Beyond the headlines: Cotton Club Museum hosts panel on local race relations news coverage. "The event took the audience through the late 1800s and early 1900s of Black news not covered by the Sun and how southern newspapers are trying to make up for their mistakes."

• Gainesville Sun ($): Sweetwater Wetlands Park in Gainesville expands offerings with new electric tram. "A new electric tram is allowing people with mobility issues a chance to explore the more than 3 miles of trails at the 125-acre Sweetwater Wetlands Park in Gainesville."

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Around the state

• News Service of Florida:Judge refuses to dismiss migrant flights case. "Judge John Cooper’s ruling set the stage for a full hearing in the constitutional challenge filed by state Sen. Jason Pizzo, D-North Miami Beach."

• WMFE-Orlando: Eatonville residents speak out against sale of land where oldest Black school used to stand. "Some residents want the town of Eatonville to regain ownership over the historic site, while a developer plans to turn it into mixed housing."

• Florida Politics: Legislation pending to stop hate speech on Jacksonville buildings. "Currently, local ordinance lacks a mechanism to impose criminal penalties on responsible parties. But one Jacksonville City Council member says change is coming."

• Sarasota Herald-Tribune ($): LGBTQ+ families mull leaving Florida in wake of new culture laws. "Others are weighing leaving Florida, citing a shift in tolerance and policies they view as marginalizing the LGBTQ+ community as reasons they're looking for friendlier communities in new states – and even different countries."

• WFSU-Tallahassee: The typical peak for Florida's flu season comes in February, which means there's still time to get a flu shot. "Florida is about three months into its official flu season, but there are still about four months left. And Pharmacist and co-founder of Healthy Men, Inc, Salvatore Giorgianni says the season’s peak hasn’t come yet."

• NPR: First orca whale to be stranded in southeast U.S. in decades showed signs of illness. "The first orca whale to beach itself in the southeast U.S. in nearly 70 years died shortly afterward of an illness in Palm Coast, Fla., officials from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries division said."

From NPR News

• Legal: The Trump Organization has been ordered to pay $1.61 million for tax fraud

• National: Biden becomes the first sitting president to deliver a Sunday sermon at MLK's church

• Race: A cousin of a prominent Black Lives Matter founder died after being tased by police

• National: The U.S. could hit its debt ceiling within days. Here's what you need to know.

• Security: The U.S. has an overclassification problem, says one former special counsel

• National: What's behind the recent streak of billion-dollar jackpots in lotteries?

• Culture: A decade on, the 'This is fine' creator wants to put the famous dog to rest
Kristin Moorehead curated today's edition of The Point.