Things To Do In SW Florida

By MARC LEVY

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The bid by Japan’s Nippon Steel to buy U.S. Steel may have a new lease on life after the Biden Administration extended a deadline for the Japanese steelmaker to abandon plans to acquire the storied Pittsburgh company after President Joe Biden blocked the deal.

The new deadline, now in mid-June, was viewed by U.S. Steel — and investors — as an opportunity for the companies to complete the acquisition, even though President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office in a week, also opposes the deal.

Biden nixed the acquisition this month citing a potential threat to national security, though the U.S. Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, known as CFIUS, failed to reach a consensus on the security issue.

“We are pleased that CFIUS has granted an extension to June 18, 2025 of the requirement in President Biden’s Executive Order that the parties permanently abandon the transaction,” U.S. Steel said in a statement Sunday. “We look forward to completing the transaction, which secures the best future for the American steel industry and all our stakeholders.” read more

Florida preschoolers are eligible to receive free admission to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex for the rest of 2025.

The Junior Space Explorer Pass is for Florida residents aged 5 or younger. Pre-registration is required at the attraction’s website (kennedyspacecenter.com). It is not available at the front entrance to the complex.

Registration must be completed by Feb. 24, and then the pass is valid through Dec. 31.

A valid form of ID, such as a copy of a certified birth certificate or travel passport, must be presented to verify a child’s age before entry. Children must be younger than the age of 6 at the time of redemption. (School IDs or children’s security IDs are not accepted.) Parents and guardians should have a photo ID with proof of Florida residential address.

Some block-out dates may apply, including for special events and launches.

The visitor complex, located in Brevard County, includes the Space Shuttle Atlantis exhibit, Shuttle Launch Experience, Spaceport KSC, IMAX movies, Gateway: The Deep Space Launch Complex, “All Systems Are Go” stage show, space relics, a bus tour, the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame and more. read more

SpaceX knocked out another launch on Monday sending up the fifth Space Coast mission of the year.

A Falcon 9 rocket carrying 21 satellites took off through overcast skies at 11:47 a.m. from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40.

The first-stage booster for the mission made its 15th flight with a recovery landing downrange on the droneship A Shortfall of Gravitas stationed in the Atlantic.

SpaceX has flown all launches so far this year from the Space Coast with four from Cape Canaveral and one from Kennedy Space Center.

Blue Origin had been lined up to be No. 5 earlier Monday on the debut launch of its New Glenn rocket at Canaveral’s Launch Pad 36, but the company scrubbed the attempt “to troubleshoot a vehicle subsystem issue,” and has not announced a new target launch attempt.

SpaceX has its second KSC launch of the year lined up for early Wednesday with a target 1:11 a.m. liftoff of a Falcon 9 carrying a pair commercial lunar landers, one for Firefly Aerospace and one for Japanese company ispace. read more

DEAR TRAVEL TROUBLESHOOTER: I prepaid for two nights in a hotel through Booking.com. But when I arrived, an employee said their confirmation system was down, and there was no record of the reservation or an ability to accept any reservations from Booking.com. So, I was unable to use this reservation.

I immediately contacted Booking.com and asked for a refund. The company asked for information about my reservation, which I sent. It’s been weeks since I asked for my money back, and I’ve repeatedly asked Booking.com about my refund. No one is answering. Can you help me get my $125 back?

— Justin Baribeau, Wickliffe, Ohio

ANSWER: You should have received an immediate refund from Booking.com — not a runaround.

I checked with Booking.com, and it says it experienced a system error when you tried to check in. This means that the hotel couldn’t see your reservation and couldn’t accept any new reservations from Booking.com, so calling the company and asking it to help wouldn’t have worked. read more

The landlord who sued TGI Fridays last year to evict the restaurant from its Mall at Millenia location will tear down the building and bring in a new tenant.

Cameron Group Associates, which owns about a dozen retail parcels around to the mall, received a demolition permit for the restaurant building at 4151 Millenia Blvd, according to a report in GrowthSpotter. The landlord evicted the TGI Fridays franchisee, Orlando Restaurants Inc., in October for nonpayment around the same time the chain’s parent company filed for Chapter 11 reorganization.

The company auctioned off the restaurant’s fixtures and equipment, and buyers were at the property last week removing everything from booths to light fixtures.

Cameron Group, a partnership led by real estate investors Frank and Steven Schrimsher, restauranteur John Rife and Shutts & Bowen attorney Jim Willard, declined to identify the new tenant. But the partnership has leased the 1.85-acre parcel to an affiliate of auto magnate Terry Taylor, who currently owns and operates the Infinity and Aston Martin/Lotus/Moke dealerships next door. Taylor, a Palm Beach billionaire, owns 120 dealerships across the U.S., including four in Orlando: Porsche, Jaguar/Land Rover, and Lincoln Mercury, in addition to the Millenia complex. read more