Things To Do In SW Florida

The four astronauts headed to the moon next year on the Artemis II mission suited up and took a practice run to the launch pad in the new crew transport vehicles at Kennedy Space Center on Wednesday.

NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch along with Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen donned orange spacesuits and climbed into the curvy electric vehicles officially referred to as CTVs, as in crew transportation vehicles, and took the 9-mile ride from the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building to Launch Pad 39-B.

Guess who has arrived at Launch Pad 39B pic.twitter.com/4YPBIu6ylm

— NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems (@NASAGroundSys) September 20, 2023

The dry run is to demonstrate normal launch day procedures as they gear up for the mission that could fly as early as November 2024, taking the first crewed flight on NASA’s powerful Space Launch System rocket riding in the Orion space capsule on what is planned to be a 10-day mission that will take them out and around the moon, but not land. read more

Start searching for that long-lost shaker of salt: Plans are in motion to bring a Camp Margaritaville to Volusia County.

Randy Knapp, the developer who successfully delivered a Camp Margaritaville RV Resort to Polk County’s Auburndale in 2022, told GrowthSpotter that he’s working to open a second Jimmy Buffett-themed luxury resort campground in Central Florida along the banks of the St. Johns River in Astor, near the Lake County line.

These plans have been in the works since before the singer died on Sept. 1 of a rare form of skin cancer at his home in Sag Harbor, New York.

An entity affiliated with Knapp purchased the proposed site in 2020 for $3.5 million. Located north of State Road 40 and just south of Lake George, the land covers 88 acres and was formerly home to a once-thriving mobile home park and marina known as Jungle Den that had become rundown beyond repair.

Before Knapp acquired the property, the previous owners got approval from the Volusia County Council in November 2020 to rezone the parcels from commercial marina, mobile home park and rural agriculture zoning to planned unit development. read more

TALLAHASSEE — A warning to Floridians with Citizens Property Insurance coverage: Check your mailbox.

About 300,000 customers of the state-run insurer of last resort are receiving letters in the mail this month with an offer to switch to a private insurance company.

If customers don’t respond by Oct. 5, the letters state, customers can be forced to go with the private company at a potentially far higher cost. But in many cases, the customer can reject the offer.

A Citizens spokesperson said Tuesday that the vendor hired to print the letters has been inundated, meaning some policyholders are getting less than the customary 30 days to respond. Although the letters are typically dated Aug. 28, as many as a third of customers received them much later.

Some customers still haven’t been notified. Between 10,000 and 15,000 letters were sent out Tuesday, but everyone should receive the letters by Friday, Citizens spokesperson Michael Peltier said.

Because of the problem, Citizens is extending the deadline to respond to Oct. 10. Insurance agents have been alerted about the delays, he said. read more

Museum of Illusions Orlando will again mark Noche de Sabor, a 21-and-up event in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, at the International Drive attraction.

The Sept. 30 party will include a live DJ, dancing, access to a cash bar and a trip on The Wheel, the Icon Park neighbor of the Museum of Illusions. The observation wheel will be illuminated in the museum’s signature orange color during the event.

“Guests can learn about our illusions and Hispanic culture at the same time as they party the night away,” Stephanie Berrios, sales and marketing director, said in a news release.

The attraction is part of an international chain of museums that showcases more than 50 visual tricks, exhibits of scientific knowledge and photo opportunities.

Admission to the Noche de Sabor event is $35. Operating hours will be 6-9 p.m. For tickets or more information, go to moiorlando.com.

Email me at dbevil@orlandosentinel.com.