Welcome

To Village Spectator Newspaper and Lady Lake Magazine

To keep Florida residents and visitors safe, informed and aware about the status of the virus, The Florida Department of Health has launched a COVID-19 dashboard that will be updated twice daily.

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Village Spectator is more than just a monthly tabloid newspaper covering The Villages, and thrown into driveways in the area.

Our newspapers bring you columns by local writers like Florida State Senator Dennis Baxley, bringing news from Tallahassee. We share many news releases from the Governor’s office, and Ashley Moody, Attorney General’s office offering a monthly report. We also publish health tips, opinions, letters to the editor and much more in print and online. TomL said that! 352-804-1223.

Lady Lake Magazine has all of the same news as Village Spectator newspaper and is circulated to businesses, homes and some communities. Our philosophy and our job is to see that every person has the right to see their opinion in print. We believe in freedom of speech and freedom of the Press! If you need a service, or a company to do work for you, we will give your name to companies that can give you quotes. We offer a free referral service. Read our newspaper in print or online. You won’t be sorry. We offer many things online besides our newspapers. TomL said that! 352-804-1223

 

Call Tom (352) 804-1223

Email Tom at [email protected]

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Read more local and state news at our new all-encompassing website: www.tomlpublishing.com

U.S. 441 Reconstruction Project

This Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) project includes the widening of State Road (S.R.) 500/U.S. 441 from four to six lanes from Lake Ella Road to Avenida Central (at Griffin Avenue) along with the addition of bicycle lanes and sidewalks. The existing bridges over County Road (C.R.) 25 will be removed and replaced with an at-grade intersection.

Other project features include: signing and lighting, aesthetics (including landscaping), access management updates, and a plan for maintenance of traffic during construction.

The design phase of this project is anticipated to be completed by April 2019 with construction expected to begin in early spring of 2020. Please visit the FDOT project site for more information.

Flu-Fighting Facts

(NAPS)—The flu is nothing to sneeze at. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), influenza has resulted in between 9.2 million and 35.6 million illnesses annually since 2010. The best way to stay out of such statistics, the CDC says, is for everyone who is eligible and at least 6 months old to get a flu shot as soon as the vaccine becomes available.

To help, all CVS Pharmacy and MinuteClinic locations have the vaccine available seven days a week with no appointment needed.

Study Shows

That may be just as well, since the annual survey, conducted online by Harris Poll on behalf of CVS Pharmacy [1], found that two-thirds of those surveyed get a flu vaccine every year or plan to get one this year, a 5 percent increase from last year. [Read more…]

Gov. Scott: Florida Awarded More Than $50 Million to Fight National Opioid Crisis

Grant to Aid Communities as they Continue to Provide Treatment, Support Services

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Today, Governor Rick Scott directed the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) to begin utilizing a new federal grant to increase access to medication-assisted treatment, reduce opioid-related deaths and equip professionals with the necessary tools to combat the national opioid epidemic in Florida. DCF applied for and received more than $50 million from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to continue providing treatment and recovery support services for individuals seeking help for opioid use. This funding is in addition to $65 million that is already being used to combat opioid use and addiction. The Governor’s existing executive order enables DCF to immediately begin drawing down and distributing these funds. [Read more…]

School Deserts

(NAPSI)—The U.S. Department of Education reports that nearly 57 million children will go to shool in America this year. Some of them live in what are known as “education deserts,” but fortunately, there are solutions.

Mapping School Deserts

A new study used geospatial analysis software to map families’ drive times to schools, whether public, magnet, charter or voucher-accepting private schools. It discovered three kinds of deserts:

  • In A-rated school deserts, no A-rated schools of any kind are within a 30-minute drive for families in a given area;
  • In choice deserts, no options such as charter, magnet or voucher-participating schools exist within a 30-minute drive for families, other than the zoned traditional public school;
  • In educational opportunity zone deserts, families’ only option within a 30-minute drive radius is a D- or F-rated traditional public school.

[Read more…]

Junior’s Smokehouse Processing Plant Recalls Beef Jerky Products due to Possible Foreign Matter Contamination

Class II Recall 083-2018

Health Risk: Low

Sep 21, 2018

Congressional and Public Affairs
Autumn Canaday
(202) 720-9113
[email protected]

WASHINGTON, Sept. 21, 2018 – Junior’s Smokehouse Processing Plant, an El Campo, Texas establishment, is recalling approximately 690 pounds of ready-to-eat teriyaki beef jerky products that may be contaminated with extraneous materials, specifically pieces of hard metal, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced today.

The ready-to-eat teriyaki beef jerky items were produced on Aug. 9, 2018. The following products are subject to recall:

  • 4 oz. plastic pouches of “BUC-EE’S HILL COUNTRY BRAND TERIYAKI BEEF JERKY, MADE IN TEXAS FROM SOLID STRIPS OF BEEF, READY TO EAT,” labeled with BEST BY 08-09-2019, and a lot code of 220-272.

[Read more…]

The State of Florida Has Taken Action on Red Tide:

Florida Fish and Wildlife

FWC and DEP have provided an additional nearly $2.2 million to Mote Marine Laboratory for the initiation of its field testing of a specialized clay focused on quelling red tide and expansion of its Ozone Treatment System which takes water containing the algae that causes red tide and filters it, returning clean water back to areas impacted by this naturally-occurring algae.

Governor Scott sent a letter to FWC urging the Commission to take the following action on red tide:

Create the Florida Center for Red Tide Research, a new resource for local communities impacted by red tide;

Re-establish the Florida Harmful Algal Bloom Task Force; and

Request an increase of funding for red tide research during the upcoming 2019 Florida Legislative Session.

At Governor Scott’s direction, FWC has partnered with world-renowned experts and scientists from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Mote Marine Laboratory, the University of South Florida and DEP to focus on using a form of specialized clay to quell the effects of red tide. See the announcement https://www.flgov.com/2018/09/19/gov-scott-fwc-launches-innovative-partnership-with-world-renowned-scientists-to-combat-red-tide/ [Read more…]

Gov. Scott: Nearly $2.2 Million Investment to Expand Mote Marine Laboratory Ozone Systems, Clay Testing Combatting Red Tide

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Today, Governor Rick Scott announced that the State of Florida will direct a $2,178,000 investment to test innovative technologies to mitigate the effects of red tide utilizing specialized clay field experiments and other innovative approaches for controlling and mitigating the impacts of red tide including expansion of Mote Marine Laboratory’s Ozone Treatment System. Mote Marine Laboratory has continuously and successfully tested the Ozone systems in both their tanks at the Mote Marine Laboratory aquarium in Sarasota and most recently in canals in Boca Grande. These systems have proven to successfully clean water, ridding it of the algae that causes red tide. Three additional mitigation technologies are also in development at Mote Marine Laboratory. Last week, Governor Scott announced a partnership between the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and world-renowned experts and scientists from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Mote Marine Laboratory, the University of South Florida (USF) and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to focus on using a form of specialized clay to quell the effects of red tide. Red tide is naturally-occurring algae that has been documented along Florida’s Gulf Coast since the 1840’s and occurs nearly every year. For more information on red tide in Florida, go to http://myfwc.com/research/redtide/faq/. [Read more…]

False Information about FAIRtax

Florida governor candidate Adam Putnam has endorsed false information about the FAIRtax bill HR 25 as co-sponsored by Ron DeSantis.  FAIRtax is not in addition to the federal income tax.  The FAIRtax is REPLACEMENT tax  for the present income/payroll tax system. Representative DeSantis understands the evils of the present federal income/payroll tax system.

Florida has no state income tax. Unlike other states which have both state income taxes and state sales taxes, the state of Florida receives its revenue from a state sales tax.  This appeals to many who are moving to Florida to escape their states’ income taxes and , more importantly, to have financial liberty.  Residents choose when they pay state sales taxes by their spending habits .  All the while all people who make purchases in the state contribute to the state coffers. What is working best for Florida is also best for the country by having FAIRtax ,the national sales tax, provide the same amount of federal revenue and apply fairly to all citizens.   [Read more…]

Gov. Scott Reappoints Two to Department of Elderly Affairs Advisory Council

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Today, Governor Rick Scott announced the reappointment of two to the Department of Elderly Affairs Advisory Council.

Kerry Marsalek, of Clearwater, is the manager for the Clearwater Office on Aging. She is reappointed for a term beginning September 27, 2018, and ending September 30, 2020.

Dr. Mohammad Choudhry, 52, of Leesburg, is a Neurophysician. He is reappointed for a term beginning September 27, 2018, and ending September 30, 2019.