Stack's arrival signals renewed confidence in automated vehicle tech
Argo AI’s demise symbolized the self-driving industry’s struggles. The return of its founders in a new venture, Stack, may signal the industry’s recovery.
Florida sports gambling fight heads to U.S. Supreme Court
TALLAHASSEE — Arguing that the outcome of the case could represent a “blueprint for expanding gaming outside of Indian lands,” owners of two Florida pari-mutuels plan to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on whether a multibillion-dollar deal giving the Seminole Tribe control of sports betting throughout the state violates federal law.
A Washington, D.C.-based appeals court last week refused to reconsider a ruling that found the 2021 agreement did not violate the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, which regulates gambling on tribal lands.
But a motion filed Friday by owners of Magic City Casino in Miami-Dade County and Bonita Springs Poker Room in Southwest Florida argued the decision conflicts with other appellate rulings and “enables an extreme shift in public policy on legalized gaming that, once started, may be difficult to stop.”
The three-judge panel’s June 30 ruling reversed a November 2021 decision by a federal judge who halted a 30-year gambling agreement signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis and Seminole Tribe of Florida Chairman Marcellus Osceola Jr. and approved by the state Legislature.
Olive Garden’s Never Ending Pasta Bowl is returning soon
The countdown clock for Olive Garden’s Never Ending Pasta Bowl promotion is ticking down.
The Orlando-based chain owned by Darden Restaurants will start serving unlimited fettucine, spaghetti, rigatoni and angel hair pasta on Monday. There’s actually a countdown clock on Olive Garden’s website.
For $13.99, customers can get unlimited pasta and sauce, served with breadsticks and soup or salad. They can add unlimited meat toppings such as meatballs or crispy chicken for $4.99.
The deal runs through Nov. 19.
It’s not unusual to see limited-time offers this time of year, a typically slow period for restaurants between Labor Day and the holiday season.
Never Ending Pasta Bowl took a hiatus during the coronavirus pandemic, but returned last year with the same prices it has this year. When it was previously offered in 2019 the special cost $10.99.
Olive Garden has not brought back its Never Ending Pasta Pass promotion, where customers could get the unlimited pasta as much as they wanted during the special in 2019 for $100 plus tax. Pasta Pass will not be offered this year, said spokeswoman Lauren Bowes.
Port Canaveral-bound Utopia of the Seas gets 1st taste of water
Royal Caribbean’s next Oasis-class ship Utopia of the Seas was put into the water for the first time over the weekend as construction continues ahead of its debut in 2024 from Port Canaveral.
While new class of ship Icon of the Seas debuting in Miami in January will take the title of world’s largest cruise ship, Utopia will hold the No. 2 spot, projected to be incrementally larger than sister ship Wonder of the Seas at 236,860 gross tons.
It will be the same length at 1,188 feet long, slightly less wide at 211 feet, still with 18 decks, but with 33 less staterooms so a smaller 5,668-passenger capacity based on double occupancy.
The float out, which is the ship’s first time in the water, occurred during a nearly 15-hour operation that featured the ship’s dry dock getting filled with 46 million gallons of water Friday into Saturday at the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France.
Disney: Black bear captured at Magic Kingdom; FWC relocating animal
A black bear visiting Walt Disney World disrupted Magic Kingdom operations Monday, with several rides and attractions shut down. State officials say the animal was likely just looking for the simple bear necessities.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reported in the early afternoon that biologists with the bear-management program had captured the female bear.
“In most cases, it is best for bears to be given space and to move along on their own, but given this situation, staff have captured the animal and are relocating the bear out of the park to an area in or around the Ocala National Forest,” according to an official FWC statement.
Tom Sawyer Island, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Liberty Square Riverboat and Walt Disney World Railroad were among several Magic Kingdom attractions that had been listed as “temporarily closed” on the My Disney Experience app. Disney, in conjunction with FWC, decided to reopen Frontierland, Liberty Square and Adventure around midday.