Lake County Report

Lake School Board slashes fee proposal

Looks like Lake County residents will have to pay fees to use public-school facilities such as ball fields and classrooms. But the amount the Lake School Board is proposing to bill them is way lower than it was a couple weeks ago, when officials first began discussing the idea.

At a meeting this evening, School Board members seemed to support a rate schedule that called for charging separate amounts for community groups and commercial entities. For example, instead of charging as much as $120 an hour for the public to borrow a high-school auditorium -- what the district had previously considered -- a community group would pay $20 an hour and a commercial agency would pay $40 an hour for such a large space.

The highest fee community members would pay for any facility is $20 per hour. The lowest is $8 an hour -- for a small classroom.

The board will take up the issue for a vote later this month.

Hundreds of new voters register before deadline today in Lake

Voter registration for the Nov. 4 general election in Lake County is officially over as the deadline to sign up was at 5 p.m.

I stopped by the office just before deadline time, and a line of people handed in registrations and quizzed elections officials with their questions about voting.

I got to chat with Supervisor of Elections Imogene Stegall, who told me hundreds of people from all party affiliations in Lake signed up to vote this year. As a continuous buzz surrounded the Tavares office, Stegall said the elections office in Clermont was "just as busy."

"W'eve been jammed," said Stegall, who acknowledged stacks of registrations piled up in her office. "We've had more people register" this year.

She smiled.

"It's good."

Stegall seemed excited for an anticipated busy Election Day where Lake voters will cast ballots for a number of races from President of the United States to town and city races such as Leesburg, Montverde and Minneola.

But more voters typicaly come out to vote in Lake during Election Day. Last year, there was a 77 percent turnout in the county, Stegall said.

"Lake County always has a good turnout for general elections," she said.

This year she expects the turnout to grow even more. She predicts at least an 80 percent turnout rate.

We'll just have to wait and see how many people really do turn out to rock the vote this Nov. 4.

Kitchen Worker Injured in Explosion

MOUNT DORA - A kitchen worker at the American Legion Hall on Highland Avenue was taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center today after she tried to re-ignite a pilot light, Fire Chief Ronnie Snowberger said.

The employee, who was not identified, was singed by the sudden flash inside the kitchen.

She was flown to the Orlando hospital as a precaution by authorities who were concerned that she may have suffered inhalation injuries when she struck a match and ignited natural gas in the kitchen, the chief said.

Snowberger said the incident occurred shortly after 10 a.m.

Last chance to register to vote in Lake!

I just popped over at the Supervisor of Elections office in Tavares to see how tihngs were going today--the last day to register to vote in Florida.

I could barely get myself through the door without bumping into the swarm of new voters packing into the elections office trying to register so they can cast their ballots during the Nov. 4 election.

Folks at the Lake elections office said they have been swamped all day, with crowds of people--looking to register to vote--piling in nonstop.

I'll be updating you all throughout the day to determine if more Lake voters than usual are getting out and voting this year. Stay tuned!

And if you've been toying with the idea of voting, today is your last chance to make it happen. You have until 5 p.m. in Lake County to hand in your registration in person.

If you don't want to drive out to the elections office in Tavares or the K-Mart Shopping Plaza on Highway 50 in Clermont (another spot to register in person), then mail it off today. You need to simply download an application online, and make sure the mailperson grabs your mail because it needs to be postmarked by today.

To find out the details of where and how to vote in Lake, go to the elections office Web site here.

Happy registering!

FEMA Opens Second Disaster Recovery Center

ASTOR - Residents who suffered losses and damage to their homes during Tropical Storm Fay can register for financial relief with the Federal Emergency Management Agency at the sheriff's substation here.

The Disaster Recovery Center opened today at noon at the substation, 55420 Front St.

The center, which will be staffed from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday, is the second to open in Lake County since high winds and relentless rains from the late August storm damaged businesses and homes.

FEMA reported that 162 Lake County residents have registered for assistance since the agency began accepting applications last month, including 103 people who have visited a similar center that opened Sept. 19 at the Lake County Fairgrounds in Eustis. More than $52,000 has been approved for residents affected by the storm.

The recovery center at the fairgroiunds, 2101 County Road 452, remains open.

Residents ought to register with FEMA even if they aren't certain they qualify for relief. To apply, residents must provide the agency with a telephone number, a Social Security number, a current mailing address, the address of the damaged property, a brief description of damages and insurance information if available.

The recovery center staff can answer claim questions and provide links to other helpful programs.

Residents also may apply for assistance by calling FEMA's hotline at 800-621-3362 or by visiting the agency's Web site, www.fema.gov. FEMA's hotline provides information to applicants in both English and Spanish.

FEMA also has helped residents of Volusia County apply for and receive relief aid.

More than 1,600 people applied for disaster assistance in Volusia County, where the storm flooded neighborhoods in Debary and where the swollen St. Johns River remains a concern for residents along its banks.

FEMA spokeswoman Amanda Bicknell said the agency has approved more than $1.5 million in assistance for Volusia County residents. The aid has been distributed in the form of grants and low-interest, disaster loans.

Glass keeps raising more money

With a month left until the election, Lake School Board candidate Coranelle Glass is raking in the cash.

The Tavares High School teacher has collected an additional almost $4,000, according to her most recent campaign-finance report. Those reports were due Friday evening.

Her opponent in the race to represent District 4, County Commissioner Debbie Stivender, collected $700.

The grand total ... Coranelle: $30,630. Debbie: $12,905.

Meanwhile, in Lake County's second School Board race, the two candidates are still pretty close in terms of fundraising. But contractor Jim Richardson has a small edge over Rosanne Brandeburg, who's the executive director of Lake-Sumter Community College Foundation.

Jim has received $21,722 so far while his opponent for the District 2 seat has $18,988.

"Bug Lawyer" Wins Settlement from Pest-Killer Orkin

WILDWOOD - Exterminating giant Orkin has pledged to repair a termite-ravaged condominium complex in Sumter County as part of a legal settlement that could cost the company an estimated $6 million in fix-up costs.

The company did not accept responsibility for pest damage at the Sandalwood Condominium Association at Wildwood, a 104-unit residential community near the intersection of State Road 44 and County Road 468.

But Peter M. Cardillo, known as the "bug lawyer" because his Tampa-based practice specializes i n termite cases, said the company failed to properly treat Sandalwood's 13 residential buildings and clubhouse, rid the complex of the wood-eating pests or live up to other promises and guarantees in its contract.

Orkin spokeswoman Martha Craft acknowledged the resolution of the lawsuit today but declined to comment further "until everything has been formalized."

(To see what the wood-eating pests look like, click on the photo below.)

The civil trial was set to begin next month and last three weeks during which Cardillo was prepared to prosecute charges of criminal racketeering, breach of repair, breach of duty and false advertising - for which the condominium association could have asked jurors to impose punitive damages on the Atlanta-based exterminator.

According to the lawsuit, which was filed eight years ago in Circuit Court in Sumter County, the condominium association also accused Orkin of violating Florida's Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.

Under terms of the settlement, Orkin also agreed to pay the condominium association $815,000.

Cardillo, who drives a car with the personalized license plate "BUG LAW," said he also won earlier settlements on behalf of the condominium association from Sandalwood's insurers that were worth more than $2 million.

Court filings show that Orkin attempted to avoid liability for termite damage by arguing that water leaked in and around the buildings, fostering the infestations that caused concern for Sumter County building inspectors.

"Orkin's position was that they didn't do anything wrong," Cardillo said. "Our theory was that they either didn't do anything at all or they didn't do it right. Orkin couldn't find records in their file so they don't know what they did."

The company no longer has a Leesburg office which serviced the original contract that was executed in 1984, more than a decade before the complaints began.

Though the condominium association estimates that building repairs will cost $6 million or more, Orkin officials believe the repairs can be completed much cheaper - for perhaps as little as $2 million, Cardillo said.

Villages residents will meet Monday to discuss a possible performing arts center in community

The Volunteers Performing Arts Alliance, a group in The Villages hoping to create a performing arts center at or near the retirement development, will hold a meeting Mon., Oct. 6 at 7 p.m. at the Laurel Manor Recreation Center.

At the meeting held only for Villagers, members will discuss building a performance budget for operating and managing a potential theater, said resident Barbara Hays. Refreshments will be served at 6:30 p.m. prior to the meeting.

The alliance is comprised of a group of residents from The Villages interested in developing a performing arts center in the community of about 70,000 people. Current members hope to plan a center to serve Lake, Marion and Sumter counties, Hays said.

For more information, contact Barbara Hays at 352-753-8877.

Villages resident wins 25K on 'Millionaire' show

TV critic Hal Boedeker posted this on his TV Guy blog.

Bunny Von Tilzer of The Villages collected $25,000 on Wednesday's "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire."

She used her "Ask the Audience" lifeline on the $25,000 question.

The question: "Where is your iliotibial band?" She went with the audience's suggested answer -- along your thigh -- and won the money.

But the $50,000 question stumped Von Tilzer. It was: "Which of these famous paintings is part of 'The Frieze of Life,' a larger series of works by the same artist? A: The Scream. B: Nighthawks. C: Christina's World. D: Water Lilies."

Von Tilzer used her "Ask the Expert" lifeline -- the expert was journalist Lyn Payne of Orlando. Payne didn't know the answer. Von Tilzer also used the "Double Dip" lifeline, but gave two wrong answers. So she left with $25,000. By the way, the right answer is A: The Scream.

"Millionaire" airs at 9 a.m. weekdays on WFTV-Channel 9.

Mortgage Failures Hit New Low in Lake County

TAVARES - Property owners continue to default on mortgages in Lake County at a record pace, according to unofficial tallies of foreclosure filings, which - for the first time ever - topped 500 for a month.

Lenders took legal action against 507 delinquent property owners in Lake County in September, the county's worst, one-month total ever. The previous one-month high was set in July when 438 foreclosures were filed in Circuit Court in Tavares by banks, savings and loans, mortgage companies and other lenders.

September's filings pushed foreclosures in Lake County over the 3,500 mark for the year.

Last year, lenders filed 2080 foreclosures in Lake County, a record that lasted until early June, when another onslaught of foreclosure establishing a dubious, new 12-month mark.