Things To Do In SW Florida

By STEVEN SLOAN

ALLENTOWN, Pa. (AP) — When Idalia Bisbal moved to this Pennsylvania city synonymous with America’s working class, she hoped for a cheaper, easier life than the one she was leaving behind in her hometown of New York City.

About three years later, she is deeply disappointed.

“It’s worse than ever,” the 67-year-old retiree, who relies on Social Security, said when asked about the economy. “The prices are high. Everything is going up. You can’t afford food because you can’t afford rent. Utilities are too high. Gas is too expensive. Everything is too expensive.”

Bisbal was sipping an afternoon coffee at the Hamilton Family Restaurant not long after Vice President JD Vance rallied Republicans in a nearby suburb. In the Trump administration’s second high-profile trip to Pennsylvania in a week, Vance acknowledged the affordability crisis, blamed it on the Biden administration and insisted better times were ahead. He later served food to men experiencing homelessness in Allentown. read more

In IRA expert Ed Slott’s recent monthly newsletter, Ryan McKeown, CPA, CFP, a senior vice president and financial adviser with Wealth Enhancement, wrote an excellent article summarizing the advantages of using health savings accounts (HSAs) accounts as a long-term investment. I will summarize some of its points.

First, here’s some background on HSAs. Individuals and family units can establish these accounts funded with tax-advantaged contributions. Owners can withdraw funds from an HSA to meet medical and dental expenses both prior to and during retirement. There are several tax advantages associated with these accounts.

However, in order to establish an HSA, owners are required to purchase insurance in a high-deductible health health plan (HDHP). As long as they’re covered by an HDHP, owners can make contributions to their HSA up to age 65, when individuals generally sign up for Medicare. Account owners can make withdrawals to cover medical and dental expenses at any time. And those withdrawals are tax free — as long as withdrawals are made for medical expenses at any time. read more

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE

Elon Musk, already the world’s richest man, scored another huge windfall Friday when the Delaware Supreme Court reversed a decision that deprived him of a $55 billion pay package that Tesla doled out in 2018 as an incentive for its CEO to steer the automaker to new heights.

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Besides padding Musk’s current fortune of $679 billion, the restoration of the 2018 pay package vindicates his long-held belief that the Delaware legal system had overstepped its bounds in January 2024 when Chancellor Kathaleen St. Jude McCormick rescinded the compensation in a case brought by a disgruntled Tesla shareholder. read more

Kroger Co. has defaulted on its agreement with the City of Groveland, and city officials are demanding the company pay back $1.4 million by the end of January.

The city decided this week to seek the money it spent helping the national grocery chain open an eCommerce fulfillment center.

Kroger announced last month it closing the three-year-old facility, though its agreement with Groveland said it would operate for 15 years, providing at least 60 jobs. It ended up employing more than 900 people but failed to stick around.

The city wants its money back by Jan. 30.

As part of an incentive agreement, Groveland of waived building permit fees and offered tax rebates to Kroger.

“Failure of Kroger to maintain substantial operations at the project site constitutes a material breach in the agreement,” said Tim Maslow, the city’s Community and Economic Development Director, during the city’s council meeting Monday. “In other words, there is a claw-back mechanism.”

Kroger announced on Nov. 18 that it would be closing the facility at Ford Commerce Park by Feb. 1. The closure is set to impact about 935 on-site employees and nearly 500 others, many of them delivery drivers, stationed in Jacksonville, Rockledge and Tampa. read more

Five people have filed separate lawsuits against Universal Orlando Resort, claiming they suffered severe and permanent injuries — in some cases, bleeding of the brain, spinal cord damage and paralysis — after their heads slammed repeatedly against the seat in front of them while riding Stardust Racers at the new Epic Universe theme park.

It’s the same intense roller coaster that 32-year-old Kevin Rodriguez Zavala rode on the night of Sept. 17 and died shortly afterward.

Filed Thursday in Orange County, the lawsuits come just days after the attorney for Zavala’s family announced a confidential settlement and “amicable resolution” with the theme park regarding his death.

Witnesses said they saw Zavala’s head slam repeatedly against the seat in front of him during the ride, according to an Orange County Sheriff’s report released two days earlier.

The lawsuits also name Mack Rides, a German-based company that designed and manufactured Stardust Racers, as a defendant. The riders all seek more than $50,000 in damages, primarily to help pay for ongoing medical costs. read more