Local News Now

In the past week, sea water surface temperatures have ranged in the low to mid-eighties. Anglers fishing the surf and those fishing from the piers have been catching slot sized red drum, blue fish, black drum, whiting, and small hammerhead sharks. The large amount of mullet usually attracts a considerable number of tarpon, but as of now relatively only a few have shown up.

NSBNews.net photo by Henry Frederick / NSBNews.net went on a ride-along interview Saturday with Myron Hammond of Edgewater Towing & Recovery for his take on a proposal the Edgewater City Commission will consider tonight that could result in him losing two-thirds of his police towing contract to two outside companies. Why? That's what this investigative story will uncover.

EDGEWATER -- Myron Hammond of Edgewater Towing & Recovery is in the fight of his life to save his employees' jobs with the city officials on the verge of taking away two-thirds of his police towing services and giving them to Universal Towing and Bishop's Towing, two outside companies, even though he's done the job for 10 years and there is no cost savings to the municipality with the switch. NSBNews.net is the only media outlet to show any interest in getting his side of the story and the economic impact this would have on his business and his employees with families praying they won't lose their jobs as a result.

The story revolves around politics and accusations of favoritism. There's a big showdown at tonight's City Commission on the issue. NSBNews.net will have the full story, including exclusive video coverage, shortly, in advance of the meeting.

 Far more than any president in my lifetime, Barack Obama has used the executive order to bypass or contravene the legislative authority of Congress.

Developer: Funding secure, construction to resume in 3 weeks after off-site work done

NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- The way Mayor Adam Barringer sees it, the developers of the much-ballyhooed Hampton Inn and Suites on Flagler Avenue have three years to get the job done building it and the clock is ticking.

The way neighbor Deborah Dugas sees it, it has been an albatross from the onset and she hopes it never gets built, but she blames the city, not the developer.

The way local attorney Glenn Storch sees it, scuttlebutt that the lack of activity over the last couple of weeks is all to do about nothing. Well sort of.

"The property was funded -- the mortgage has closed," insisted Storch, who helped developer David Swentor of South Carolina-based Premier Development Corp. with all of the red tape, including securing of building permits and other zoning issues. "We're still waiting on a draw."

Swentor told NSBNews.net in a phone interview this morning that it's understandable with such a large-scale project like this in a small city that hasn't had anything of this magnitude in 30 years where people would become suspicious with the bulldozers silent just two weeks after a much-hyped groundbreaking.