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Vol. 14 No. 18 Thursday, June 27, 2002 NewsObserver@netscape.net
Knights in shining armor
By BOB SOCKS
Mr. Knight mentioned that his total financial involvement will be around $20 million with the purchase of the building and interior work that needs to be done. Comments from local officials and dignitaries: Ray Sharkey, Port Canaveral Commissioner, "This is very exciting and Knight's Armament will bring lots of activity to Titusville and North Brevard." Paul Secor, TRDA and candidate for city council, "This move by Knight's Armament is the start of an economic movement for Titusville. Titusville has turned the corner." Mayor Ron Swank "It's great. We have finally put an end to a long stretch of disappointment and we can finally start healing." Tom Goodson, candidate for Port Commission, "It's wonderful. Titusville is starting to shine. Titusville deserves the best." Truman Scarborough, Brevard COunty Commissioner, District 1, "This is more than symbolic. Reed Knight has made a personal commitment to this community." Robbie Roberts, CEO of RKT Constructors, "This is going to awaken us again. This is just the start of great prosperity. Knight's Armament is a great omen." Bob Allen, State Rep, "State involvement was instrumental in bringing Knight's to Titusville. Local involvement made the deal work. Florida is serious about business and expansion." Linda Wetherman, President of EDC, "This is the biggest compliment – expansion to Titusville. Titusville is a community that matters. This is a new chapter for Titusville and Knight's Armament. Some of the guests: Brian Chase representing Congressman Dave Weldon, Representative Randy Ball, Representative Bob Allen, Representative Stan Mayfield, Truman Scarborough, Mayor Ron Swank, Jeff Rainey, Vice Mayor, Ken Ward, City Council, Conrad Eigenman, City COuncil, Ray Sharkey, Port Commission, Joe Matheny, Port Commission, Ralph Poppell, candidate for state representative, Tom Goodson, candidate for Port Commission.
Independence Day 2002
Immediately following the concert the Jaycees will launch their famous fireworks display. Capt. Ron Thorstad of Space Coast Nature Tours will be offering a special cruise on the Skimmer to assist the Jaycees with the cost of the fabulous fireworks show. Only 40 seats are available. For more information about the concert and the special fireworks cruise, please contact Capt. Ron at 267-4551. Hot food and chilled non-alcoholic beverages will be available. The Jaycees will have their dunk booth in the park and will be offering "glow necklaces" for sale after dark. Music by the very popular local group, Tandem Road Show, will start at 6:30 p.m. 50/50 tickets will be available to help defray the cost of the concert and pyrotechnics. For safety reasons, the Titusville Fire Department insists that all personal fireworks are prohibited in the park and pavilion area.
Downtown Titusville will be sizzling
From STAFF REPORTS
Kids ride free all summer
From STAFF REPORTS
Ride to Read is sponsored by the Brevard County Board of County COmmissioners, the Brevard County Library System, Space Coast Area Transit and Cumulus Broadcasting's WAIA 107.1 FM. "Thanks to the participation of the radio station, we were able to have 80,000 flyers printed and sent home with the kids before they got out of school," stated Liesenfelt. "Brevard County Schools saw how this program tied directly into their core curriculum of reading and assisted us by distributing the flyers to the school children." According to Liesenfelt, dispatchers are available to help kids figure out how to get where they want to go. For maps and schedules or personalized assistance in planning a trip, call 633-1878. Information is also available on line at www.ridescat.com. For library information, call 635-7826.
Local mini-vacations a great sabbatical that makes senseOp-EdFor Sue and I it was yet another Tour de Disney two weeks ago when we spent another day at Disney's Animal Kingdom - and another at the Magic Kingdom. So why where we there again in less than a year?We took the kids over. All four of them (maybe six if we count). The kids were my stepson, his wife and their two children; Keith, 5 and Katie, 8-months. While Phillip has been there several times, it was the first time for his family - and they had a ball. We made our reservations at the Animal Kingdom Lodge, where the kids loved watching the animals ambling around under the hotel balcony and had a million questions about what they were doing there. Arriving early Tuesday morning, our first trip was to the animal attraction where we spent the entire day. Since Sue and I already knew the drill, and since she used an electric vehicle as a result of a still bothersome knee operation, we soon separated allowing them to get in all they could in between the several rain showers as their hosts found a friendly pit stop to relax between rides on the white water rafting attraction -which we missed the first time around. A word of caution: before being seated a sign warns that "you will get wet, and sometimes soaked." Between natures downpour and the spigots that spew hundreds of gallons of H2O on fully clothed passengers you assuredly will be "soaked." After this rafting you'll excuse me if I don't plan a white-water trip to Colorado. Disney has so many rafts they could use a traffic-light buoy. I suggest buying a plastic poncho before you begin racing down the rapids. I suggest that because when we returned to the ice cold lobby of the hotel to check in we were shaking vigorously in our sopping clothes. It took a long, hot shower before we stopped trembling. In fact, I believe that could be the reason that Sue damned near courted a case of pneumonia and was laid up for four days shortly after our return. We were so soggy when we got to our rooms I hung everything we wore over the balcony to dry. That's a no-no. It wasn't long before some CIA desk clerk called our room and requested I remove the offending articles post haste. It wasn't the Disney image. I felt like the staff believed they rented the room to the Jobe family, made famous in Tobacco Road, and that I must have been Jeter. Anyway, the kids enjoyed every moment of the trip. I particularly recommend that you not miss the Festival of the Lion King. That 35 minute spectacular of dancing, singing, acrobatics with swinging monkeys is alone worth the price of admission to the park. The beauty of the trip is that it's just a hop, skip and jump from Titusville. Taking the Greenway, it was exactly 63 minutes door to door. Keep in mind that the transportation cost is the cheapest part of the trip. Even those flying in from Gibralter will find that their Visa card gets worn out quickly from use. There should be a limit to how much time anyone has to spend in a car on vacation. I think about two hours is tops - which is why we like living in the neighborhood. If the attendance figures two weeks ago were a good indicator about our economy we're in pretty good shape - both attractions were jamming. I've been told that the best time to visit Disney is October, when kids are back in school, and late January or February. The problem is that while crowds are thinner some of the attractions could be closed for renovations. However, that I could handle. Second Day: Kids stay up longer than adultsMuch to our chagrin we arrived an hour too late at Magic Kingdom and all the electric strollers and carts were gone - meaning Sue had to walk the course. Which also meant a lot of stopping and resting. I found it hard to believe that that many people use those things. Actually, more than half are used by fat kids. I know this is not politically correct but I watched as overweight parents shelled out $20 to $40 for wheels for obese offspring who were obviously endomorphic - a condition apparently encouraged by mommy and daddy. I can now understand why Southwest Airlines has a policy of charging overweight passengers for two tickets if they spill over into their neighbor's seat. It makes sense. If you consume more than one seat because of what you eat you have to buy more than one seat. While advocates for the obese are outraged about the rule they should observe what I did. At one ride, the Alien encounter, I had one boy about 12-years old and weighing approximately 190 pounds sitting next to me. When the bar was lowered to keep him from falling out it barely missed squeezing him to death as it passed over his prodigious stomach. About two hours later I would swear that I ran into this same family at a McDonald's operated restaurant and watched as they wolfed down a dozen triple cheeseburgers, chased with several burlap bags of fries. If this ain't gluttony I don't know what is. Sorry, but these parents are the corpulent initiators of their childrens problems and should be flogged.This should encourage some letters from readers who think I'm unfair. Go for it and I'll recite some other alarming statistics in a future column. Moving on, I should mention a couple other items about the trip to Mickey's Place. Disney is for adults also, if you know where to go - especially dining. Since we sampled the restaurants at Animal Kingdom as well as other resorts, we found that one of our favorites is located at the Boardwalk resort. It's called the Cape May Cafe and is only an 8 minute drive from where we were staying. They feature a marvelous sea food buffet - a smorgasbord of shellfish. For about $20 per person it's one of the best values over there. So good that I wouldn't mind driving over any evening just to pig out. My wife agrees with me. When I say it's not just for kids I'm serious - particularly if you want to feel like one even at our (my) age. On our last trip I was probably the only 69-year old idiot who went down the pool slide on my stomach, which drew amusing looks from the lifeguard. This year I was unquestionably the only 70-year old geezer daring Space Mountain - the 60 mile per hour roller coaster ride through the small, dark tunnels. Sue joined me but I suspect it was to assure herself that if I further damaged my lower back she was available to escort me to the nearest orthopedic surgery center for final evaluation and perhaps to make the final arrangements. I do know that we would not - or could not - keep up with the little ones. Although we had already retired to our room I learned that little Katie stayed awake (and alert) through the entire Main Street Electric Light Show that lasted until 10 p.m. So did 5-year old Keith and his mother Cheri. Final observations on vacationsDuring my several periods of rest on the parks benches I noticed that none of Disney's guests wear old sneaks. I took an informal survey and discovered the following after Sue asked, "What on earth are you looking at so intently?""Peoples shoes." My analysis is that everybody buys new sneakers before they come down to Disney World. While adults wear white, their kids wear a rainbow of colors on their feet. Blacks also wear white designer footwear. Geezers and foreign visitors tend to favor sandles with brown or black socks. No one wears boots or dress up lace ups, and only one in 500 wear long pants. Therefore the new shorts are usually purchased at the same time as the sneaks. I wonder if they knew before arriving how much walking was involved would they later regret not packing their old ones for comfort instead of appearance. My reporter instinct almost prompted me to stop some people and interview them about their shopping and packing habits but Sue correctly suggested that some would call park security complaining about a berserk journalist with a foot fetish. I've probably traveled more than most people, which may have something to do with the way I feel about leaving home. Going somewhere just to go doesn't appeal to me anymore. There are too many people looking for some Shangri-la that doesn't exist. I've been to 39 states and those places that used to be exciting to visit because they were different from what we're used to are no longer different. It isn't where you go, it's about what you do that is interesting when you get there. I still can't break old habits, or my routine, just because I'm away from home. I still get up early because of some neurotic premonition that the world is passing me by. The trick is not in getting over this feeling but in not caring whether it does or not. I know some people who enjoy planning a vacation more than actually taking one. The day they arrive they start talking about when they're going home. You will notice that you no longer see any tourist ads enticing you to visit Israel. I remember one that said; "Where on earth could be closer to heaven than Israel." Never mind that you could be blown up on a bus today, but what about the food? Even people I know that love Israel say the food is lousy - except for the pizza joints which seem to attract terrorists. Of course, you never hear anyone bragging about the food in heaven, either. Anyway, when traveling I usually pack the same old golf shirts - the comfortable ones. Usually the occasion to wear a new one never comes. The thing all of us need to get away from for a good test is impossible. We need to get away from ourselves. There are times when I simply want to stay home, plant flowers and bushes, clean my golf clubs, read a good book, and watch things grow ......
By BOB SOCKS Get ready for the "age wave""Old Folks at Home" may come to mean more than the title of Florida's state song as the huge and aging baby-boom generation exerts pressure on social services and politics. Unlike the sentimental tribute in Stephen Foster's lyrics, these old folks comprise an "age wage" expected to wash across Florida in the next three decades, with their infirmities forcing state government to help them and their sheer numbers dominating politics even more than today's powerful retirees.In addition to the demands caused by its burgeoning elderly population, the state will be strained socially and economically by rapidly growing numbers of school-age youths, continued urban sprawl and greater ethnic and racial diversity. Facts and figuresSenior population will literally explode after after 2010 with the retirement of the baby-boom generation.By 2025, as many as 22 of the state's 67 counties are expected to have senior populations larger than 30%. As more seniors stay here into their 80s and 90s and are joined by baby boomers, they will place extraordinary demands on state services and facilities.By sheer numbers, these retirees will become the single most influential group in state politics, shaping the political agenda and candidates platforms at all levels of government. At the local level, they will have the ability to decide most elections. In a number of Florida communities, the senior population already constitutes as much as a third, and in some cases 40 percent of the vote. Growth will remain the dominant feature of life in Florida for most of the 21st century, but the pace should ease allowing the state to feel less like a boomtown with a boomtown mentality. Changes in the tax structure are unlikely because low taxes are part of Florida's appeal and one of the main reasons people move here. The exception would be is Florida faces a crisis in its education system or in the ability of local government to meet the needs of retirees. As a proportion of the population, Florida's children and youth group is the second largest nationally and likely to place tremendous demands on the state's education system. Synopsis of the future: the greatest challenge for Florida in the coming decades will be developing the political will to respond to mounting environmental, economic, and social pressures. Excerpts from the book "Florida Megatrends" by David Colburn and Lance de-Haven-Smith. Strictly my opinionKudos to City Councilman Jeff Rainey for a great oratory on Tuesday night, June 11th, at the city council meeting. Jeff refuted two Port St. John leaders who addressed the council regarding the zoning of the Flagler Property (Hwy. 405 to Kings Hwy.). These two women who are pushing the new Port St. John city concept were very negative toward Titusville and gave the distinct impression that they wanted nothing to do with Titusville nor our citizens. They mentioned they did not want our kids in their schools, nor our citizens using their parks or civic center. Jeff pointed out that they should be addressing their elected officials, aka the County Commissioner. By the way, the chances of Port St. John voting themselves into a city this fall in the election is slim to none. My feelings are that they will get less than 30% positive votes.Kudos to the Titusville Police Department for capturing six bank robbers in one 24 hour period. Great job. AMTRACK to Miami may be in trouble. According to recent stories in the paper, AMTRACK needs $200 million immediately or they will be forced to shut down. President Bush says no more money. A decision will be made in the next two weeks. Don't buy your ticket just yet. Economics of supermarket shoppingIn my continual quest to upgrade my readers with trends, the following information pertains to the economics of supermarket shopping:
Roadhouse Grill updateLook for Roadhouse Grill to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization as early as August. Ayman Sabi, chief executive officer of the Pompano Beach restaurant chain, said the reorganization plan will go to creditors and shareholders for a vote and the company is optimistic it will be accepted and confirmed by the court. A group of unsecured creditors affiliated with Orlando-based CNL Restaurant Properties forced the chain into bankruptcy court earlier this year.Real estate transactions of note
Quote of the Week:
Are you looking for a place for your mother or father for a few hours a day or all day while you work? Sand Point Senior Living is now offering adult day care. Call them at 383-6000 for an appointment.
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