Local News 11-22-23
Just a reminder, if you’d forgotten – today’s your last chance this week to transact any business with the County or local governments. All offices will – of course – be closed tomorrow on Thanksgiving, but most will take Friday off as well to let employees spend time with family – and on Friday, maybe, their credit cards.
Just to give you a heads-up for next week – a main Sebring thoroughfare will be closed down for a couple weeks starting Tuesday. Lakeview Drive just south of Veteran’s Beach on the western shore of Lake Jackson will be closed for roadway maintenance. You can get back onto 27 – where they’d rather have through traffic anyway – at Vicki Drive and Bayview Streets.
Florida’s largest grocery chain got a bit of a “hit” yesterday. Last month, three former assistant department managers from different states filed a federal lawsuit against Publix claiming Florida’s largest grocer did not pay them for overtime work. Yesterday, a Tampa federal judge added hourly managers from store departments like bakery, deli, meat, produce, seafood and grocery. Assistant department managers and department managers worked about three to five hours overtime without pay every week, according to the lawsuit.
An annual event to help the less fortunate this season kicks off this weekend – the annual Alan Jay, Highlands Sheriff’s Department and Highlands Radio Group Toy Drive. New, unwrapped toys can be dropped off at any Aln Jay Dealership in Highlands County or at the Highlands Radio Group Studios on Highway 27 North on Fairmount Cinema Plaza before December 8. If you know a family in need, log on to copschristmas.com – this drive gets vetted, by the by, by the Cops Adapt unit to make sure the requests are real, so you know the toys are going where they’re needed.
A train derailed in Fort Meade early yesterday morning near the Mosaic Plant. The Polk County Sherriff’s office says it happened at 1:47 a.m; 10 cars came off the track. There were no reported injuries. Officials said there wasn’t a hazmat situation.
With the Black Friday shopping crunch less than 48 hours away, it’s a good time to remind you that the two busiest shopping days of the year are when the highest number of fraudulent credit card purchases are made. Buying online? Make sure it’s a trusted site. Buying in person? Watch the card, use a chip card reader whenever you can and don’t lose sight of the card when you hand it to a clerk.