A Sebring man remained in Highlands County Jail in lieu of $150,000 bail on Tuesday, after he was charged with animal cruelty and battery as a suspect in the beating of a Sebring woman and her pet pig. ...more

July 22, 2008

An arson suspect who State Fire Marshal investigators say was badly burned at the Rancher's Restaurant fire remained in the Falkenburg Road Jail in Hillsborough County on Thursday, awaiting extradition to Highlands County. Rancher's Restaurant was located at 15765 State Road 70 E., about a quarter mile from the Okeechobee County border. The 40-foot wide by 120-foot long structure was destroyed and the damage was estimated at $178,000, according to the State Fire Marshal's Office. ...more

June 26, 2008

TAMPA - An Okeechobee man who set fire to a Highlands County restaurant got caught up in the blaze and was taken to Tampa General Hospital, according to the state fire marshal's office. ...more

June 25, 2008

HIGHLANDS COUNTY — A burn victim was charged Tuesday in connection with an arson fire that burned down the Rancher's Restaurant early Sunday morning, said Lt. Brandon Ball, with the State Fire Marshal's Office. Robert Lee Marcum, 34, of Okeechobee, was arrested after a warrant was issued for his arrest, prior to Marcum's release from a Tampa General Hospital burn unit and being charged with arson and burglary, Ball said. ...more

June 24, 2008

SEBRING - The summer rains are coming but water restrictions are not relenting. The Southwest Florida Water Management District's Governing Board voted unanimously to extend the once-per-week restrictions that have been in place since January 2007 through Sept. 30. ...more

June 24, 2008

HIGHLANDS COUNTY — A fire that burned down the Rancher restaurant early Sunday morning was set deliberately, according to Sam Venzeio, State Fire Marshal spokesman. The 40-foot-wide-by-120-foot-long eatery was located at 15765 State Road 70, on the border of Highlands and Okeechobee counties, he said. The fire was called in at 1:12 a.m. Sunday. "We have developed a person of interest," Venzeio said Monday. "But, we're not releasing any name." One man, who is not a firefighter, was hospitalized at Okeechobee Hospital with serious burns and later was airlifted to Tampa General Hospital. His condition was unknown. ...more

June 23, 2008

In his folksy, commonsensical way, Ronald Reagan provided pretty solid guidance on how to decide for whom to cast your presidential vote. ...more

June 12, 2008

AVON PARK — Remember January, when gas was $3.25 a gallon? Wall Street analysts were predicting gasoline would sell for $4 a gallon this summer. And here it is, still three weeks before summer begins, and the Shell convenience store in Avon Park just raised its price to $4.059 for a gallon of unleaded. Don't blame it on the store, said Mohammed Shamim, the owner. The store is still making just two or three cents per gallon as its profit. But fuel sales are off 25 percent. Since convenience stores use gasoline as a price leader to draw customers inside the store, sales of groceries are off 30 percent, Shamim said. ...more

May 29, 2008

LAKE PLACID — Highlands County Lakes Manager Clell Ford said he hopes to begin dredging and cleaning up several residential canals feeding into Lake Istokpoga by November. The county already did some testing on 17 residential canals, including some of the canals located in Mossy Cove, Palms Estates and near the Istokpoga Marina. Ford said he also needed to choose a dump site for an estimated 25,000 cubic feet of sand and muck that would be taken out of the canals. The state budget has $800,000 slated for the maintenance work, and he said he'll try to get some of the needed permits for the projects next month if the county commissioners approve the project in today's meeting. ...more

May 20, 2008

I am a very active amateur astronomer and have lived in Highlands County since 1984. When I first arrived here I was awed at the dark night sky. The sights of the stars and the Milky Way were visible from most areas of Highlands just a short drive from the main city areas. Now, to see the pristine night sky, one has to go out past Lorida, or down to the Venus area. ...more

February 23, 2008