An advocacy group formed in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina to keep tabs on the U-S Army Corps of Engineers has launched a Florida chapter. Levees – dot – Org is a non-profit, grassroots organization whose mission is to hold the U-S Army Corps of Engineers accountable for the design, construction and performance of the projects it builds. The group wants state and federal lawmakers to closely scrutinize the Corps and its many projects. Florida Atlantic University professor of urban and rural planning – Joyce Levine is the group’s new Florida Director. She says there are correlations between New Orleans and the area south of Lake Okeechobee…

“What we’re seeing here with the dike is an independent review group comes in, looks at the dike, goes over all the information about it and says you know folks, this is at very high risk of failure – particularly in a stronger hurricane. And we’re getting the same response from the Corps that we got before Katrina, which is Oh there’s nothing wrong with the dike, yeah it needs a few repairs but it’s got a lot of good years in it…this report is alarmist.”

Levine says after what happened in New Orleans…there’s no such thing as alarmist anymore.

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An organization formed in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina has expanded into Florida. Its mission: to hold the U-S Army Corps of Engineers more accountable for its work. The state office of “Levees-dot-Org” is headed by Joyce Levine, a professor of urban planning at Florida Atlantic University. She points to a recent independent review of the dike around Lake Okeechobee as the primary reason for the expansion. The review concluded the dike had a 1 in 6 chance of failing if faced with a strong hurricane. Corps officials have called it ‘alarmist’.

“You know we’ve got a clash here of threat and protection, and the threat is getting bigger and the protection is getting weaker. So for them to say it’s alarmist and nothing more needs to be done than routine maintenance and repairs seems a little suspicious to me.”

The Corps is working to shore up parts of the dike that are leaking. The 300-million-dollar, 25-year project began earlier this year…but has been delayed because of complications.

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REPUBLICAN FLORIDA CONGRESSMAN MARK FOLEY ANNOUNCED HE WILL RESIGN TODAY (FRIDAY) AFTER ALLEGATIONS HE SENT INAPPRPROPRIATE E-MAILS TO A TEENAGE, MALE, CONGRESSIONAL PAGE. CHAD PERGRAM REPORTS FROM CAPITOL HILL.



THE ANNOUNCEMENT SHOCKED WASHINGTON...ESPECIALLY REPUBLICANS...WHO ARE FIGHTING TO KEEP CONTROL OF THE HOUSE.



THE E-MAILS APPARENTLY CAME LAST YEAR...WHEN THE PAGE WAS 16. THE PAGE...WORKED FOR REPUBLICAN LOUISIANA CONGRESSMAN RODNEY ALEXANDER.



FOLEY REPORTEDLY ASKED THE BOY HIS AGE...AND WHAT HE WANTED FOR HIS BIRTHDAY.



IN A STATEMENT, FOLEY SAID HE IS QUOTE.."DEEPLY SORRY AND I APOLOGIZE FOR LETTING MY FAMILY DOWN...AND THE PEOPLE OF FLORIDA...I HAVE HAD THE PRIVILEGE TO REPRESENT.



HOUSE SEPAKER DENNIS HASTERT OF ILLINOIS...SAID HE WAS RECIEVING FOLEY'S LETTER OF RESIGNATION.



HASTERT



FOLEY'S WEBSITE STATES THE 6-TERM CONGRESSMAN...IS CO-CHAIRMAN OF THE MISSING AND EXPLOITED CHILDRENS CAUCUS...AND HAS SPONSORED LEGISLATION...ATTACKING THE CHILD PORN INDUSTRY.

A group of Southwest Floridians spends every month during rainy season monitoring frogs. Lyn Millner caught up with some of them to find out what they hear and why they listen.

The circus could come home to Sarasota after nearly 50 years. Sarasota County Agricultural Fair Association officials are working with the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey on plans for a new arena that could finally bring "The Greatest Show on Earth" back to town. Ringling Circus Museum curator Debbie Walk explained why the circus left Sarasota in the first place and initially went to Venice.
“When you left the wagons and the street parades behind you, you didn’t need the big piece of land. And they moved into something that was much more useful for the arena show. They left Venice in the 1990’s and now they are getting ready for the next season at the Tampa fairgrounds.”
Current circus owner Kenneth Feld built the company into an enterprise that includes three Ringling Brothers shows and six Disney On Ice performances, all of which could train in Sarasota. The new 60,000-square-foot facility could open in a year hosting community events in addition to winter circus rehearsals.

Naval crews from some Caribbean and Latin American countries will soon do part of their training here in southwest Florida…thanks to a collaboration between the U-S Department of Defense, and the Lee County School District. The new program is called Operation Enduring Friendship. The Defense Department contracted with Naples Yacht, and ‘Nor-Tech Hi-Performance Boats of Cape Coral’ to build 8 interceptor ships. They’ll be used by the militaries of several Caribbean & Latin American countries to combat smuggling.
Lee Schools spokesman - Joe Donzelli – says once built, the vessels will need crews to maintain them…and that’s where the district comes in…

“We were approached because of the programs we have in place – specifically the facility at High Tech Central, which is located right here in Fort Myers. We were asked if we could provide the training component for this program…and we couldn’t jump at it quick enough.”

Donzelli says the new partnership comes with little cost to the district.
The first class gets underway in January with a crew from Panama. Another one from the Dominican Republic will follow after that.

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The Lee County School District’s High Tech Central will soon be home to a training program for naval crews from Latin American and Caribbean countries. The U-S Defense Department has tapped two local companies – Naples Yacht, and ‘Nor-Tech Hi-Performance Boats of Cape Coral’ –to build 8 military vessels.

District spokesman – Joe Donzelli – says they’ll provide the ships – and Lee County Schools will provide a place to teach their crews how to maintain them…

“As far as the military procedures that’ll all be done by the militaries of the respective countries. The training that’s going to be going on here is to make sure that those boats can operate so these individuals can do their job.”

Naples Yacht will hire specialized instructors…and pay for tools needed for the training.The first crew will come from Panama…and will get started in January. Next it’s the Dominican Republic and other countries after that.

The circus could come home to Sarasota after nearly 50 years. Sarasota County Agricultural Fair Association officials are working with the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey on plans for a new arena that could finally bring "The Greatest Show on Earth" back to town. Ringling Circus Museum curator Debbie Walk explained why the circus left Sarasota in the first place and initially went to Venice.
“When you left the wagons and the street parades behind you, you didn’t need the big piece of land. And they moved into something that was much more useful for the arena show. They left Venice in the 1990’s and now they are getting ready for the next season at the Tampa fairgrounds.”
Current circus owner Kenneth Feld built the company into an enterprise that includes three Ringling Brothers shows and six Disney On Ice performances, all of which could train in Sarasota. The new 60,000-square-foot facility could open in a year hosting community events in addition to winter circus rehearsals.

A nonprofit that rewards tipsters has denied an award in the long-unsolved killings of two civil rights activists, fueling criticism that the reopened investigation by Attorney General Charlie Crist's office did not solve it.

Central Florida CrimeLine said no one would get the 25-thousand dollar reward offered for information in the 1951 murders of Harry T. Moore and his wife, Harriette.

Last August, at the conclusion of a 20-month investigation, Crist announced that the killers had at last been identified. But a researcher who wrote a book about Moore, now says that Charlie Crist got it wrong.

Rick Stone reports with from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
The story was co-produced by Rhonda Miller of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

Ivory-billed woodpeckers were thought to be extinct until 2004 when a fleeting video image, shot in an Arkansas swamp, was made public. The search for more conclusive evidence brought wildlife biologists to the swampy forests of the Florida Panhandle where they say they saw the bird, but failed to photograph it. The search resumes in November – funded it part by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. FWC Biologist Karl Miller says a positive I.D. could have wide ranging benefits.

“The river systems in north Florida are extensive and fortunately so much of the wildlife habitat in the old growth swamp forests in our state is still intact in North Florida and I hope that it would help to get a little more attention on preserving and managing that habitat for all wildlife not just ivory-bills

The researcher team from Auburn University also says it found what look like ivory-bill nesting cavities in large trees. This nesting season cameras will be trained on those trees in hopes of capturing images of what some call “The Lord God Bird”.


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Wildlife Biologists from Auburn University published a report this week that they’ve seen, heard and found the probable nesting sites of ivory-billed woodpeckers in the Florida Panhandle. But they failed to get a photograph of the rare bird that some ornithologists fear is extinct. So the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is going to help – providing funding to help capture the ivory-bill’s image. FWC Biologist Karl Milller says camera’s will be trained on tree cavities that are probable nesting sites.

“They do plan use a lot of remote cameras that will record birds coming and going from cavities so that is part of their search plan, they also will have enough people working out in the field to spread out and hopefully cover the area pretty intensively and do a lot of watching waiting and listening.”

The last documented sighting of an ivory-billed woodpecker was in 1944. A video image of 2004 sighting in Arkansas is still being disputed.

Naval crews from some Caribbean and Latin American countries will soon do part of their training here in southwest Florida…thanks to a collaboration between the U-S Department of Defense, and the Lee County School District. The new program is called Operation Enduring Friendship. The Defense Department contracted with Naples Yacht, and ‘Nor-Tech Hi-Performance Boats of Cape Coral’ to build 8 interceptor ships. They’ll be used by the militaries of several Caribbean & Latin American countries to combat smuggling.
Lee Schools spokesman - Joe Donzelli – says once built, the vessels will need crews to maintain them…and that’s where the district comes in…

“We were approached because of the programs we have in place – specifically the facility at High Tech Central, which is located right here in Fort Myers. We were asked if we could provide the training component for this program…and we couldn’t jump at it quick enough.”

Donzelli says the new partnership comes with little cost to the district.
The first class gets underway in January with a crew from Panama. Another one from the Dominican Republic will follow after that.

-----
The Lee County School District’s High Tech Central will soon be home to a training program for naval crews from Latin American and Caribbean countries. The U-S Defense Department has tapped two local companies – Naples Yacht, and ‘Nor-Tech Hi-Performance Boats of Cape Coral’ –to build 8 military vessels.

District spokesman – Joe Donzelli – says they’ll provide the ships – and Lee County Schools will provide a place to teach their crews how to maintain them…

“As far as the military procedures that’ll all be done by the militaries of the respective countries. The training that’s going to be going on here is to make sure that those boats can operate so these individuals can do their job.”

Naples Yacht will hire specialized instructors…and pay for tools needed for the training.The first crew will come from Panama…and will get started in January. Next it’s the Dominican Republic and other countries after that.