Career in tourism industry a constant for Carl Watson

Headline Surfer photo / Carl Watson as shown on his first day at work in the New Smyrna Beach Visitor's Center.

NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- You could say Carl Watson's personal and professional live have come full circle.

He's right back to where he started on both fronts and really lovin' it.

Watson, born in Cocoa Beach and a 1965 graduate of Mainland High School in Daytona Beach, is back home so to speak as the new director of the Southeast Volusia Advertising Authority and its associated New Smyrna Beach Visitor's Center on State Road 44.

It has been a long journey from the Sunshine State to the Longhorn State and back to the Sunshine State, again.

Such is the life of a professional man, whose job it is is to attract traffic -- people traffic, that is, for overnight hotel and condo rental accommodations, the very essence of the ad authority, funded through the collection of bed taxes shared with the county and state.

PORT ORANGE -- August is a busy month in municipal government beginning with Tuesday's City Council meeting.

The meeting gets under way at 6:30 p.m. in the Port Orange Council chambers. The following night the Code Enforcement Board will meet at 5:30 p.m. in the council chambers.

DAYTONA BEACH -- Not content with using the Central Florida media outlets to humiliate a 17-year Daytona Beach cop who left the police force after nude photos of her surfaced, Police Chief Michael Chitwood went on WNDB's "The Marc Bernier Show" and added more insult to injury, describing former Sgt. Penny Dane as "a piece of work."

NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- Even though the official police homicide traffic report has yet to be turned in, New Smyrna Beach's worst fears have been realized in using taxpayer monies intended to fight blight instead for alcohol-fueled street parties: The horrific death of a 32-year-old Port Orange mother of three young daughters.

Headline Surfer photo by Serafina Frederick / New Smyrna Beach City Commissioner Jason McGuirk is shown at far left on a city fire truck with Mayor Adam Barringer during the 2012 Christmas parade, less than a month after he was sworn into office. McGuirk became a city commissioner-elect in June when no one else qualified for the position while he kept a law profile, which he continues to do.

NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- Like a game off dominoes, soft ice cream maven Jason McGuirk announced his candidacy in September 2011 as the heir-apparent to zone 3 City Commissioner Jim Hathaway who had earlier announced he was running for the 2012 election for the dist. 3 seat on the Volusia County Council.

Headline Surfer locator map / The deadly blaze occurred 1:30 a.m. Monday at an apartment complex in the 1400 block of South Nova Road.

DAYTONA BEACH -- A 47-year-old man was found dead early this morning in his dwelling unit in the Ridgecrest Park Apartments, officials with the Daytona Beach Fire Department said.

Firefighters responded to 9-1-1 calls at 1:30 in the apartment complex in the 1400 block o South Nova Road.

After forcing their way into the apartment where the flames originated, firefighters found a 47-year-old man lying face door behind the door and unconscious and not breathing, apparently overcome by heavy smoke and unable to get out in time.

Unable to revive him during transport to Halifax Health Medical Center, the man was pronounced dead a short time later in the emergency room. The victim's name was not released while authorities try to make contact with his closest relatives. 

NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- The sun is setting on July and making way for August, but before the month is over lets take a look at what July brought us for tourism fun.

Yes, the Fourth of July fireworks were were short, thanks to an errant projectile that landed on a tiki hut and caught fire to the straw and thatch roof, but they certainly were pretty while they lasted. 

Though the fireworks were to go for about 15-18 minutes, at about the 8-minute mark one of the projectices didn't climb as high as expected from the barge where it was shot from in the Intracoastal Waterway and landed on the roof of the tiki hut on the site of the ciry's former administrative office building, alao known as the AOB site.