FloridaSnapshot.com http://www.floridasnapshot.com From Mickey to Miami, what's hot (and cool) to see and do in the Sunshine State. Wed, 10 Mar 2010 03:34:11 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 en Alachua Conservation Trust Adds to Paynes Prairie http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/03/09/alachua-conservation-trust-adds-to-paynes-prairie/ http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/03/09/alachua-conservation-trust-adds-to-paynes-prairie/#comments Wed, 10 Mar 2010 03:34:11 +0000 Staff Reporter http://www.floridasnapshot.com/?p=546 TALLAHASSEE – Gov. Charlie Crist and the Florida Cabinet approved an option agreement today between the state of Florida and the Alachua Conservation Trust, Inc. to expand recreational opportunities and conserve precious natural resources. The 500 acres located southeast of Gainesville is a critical addition to the Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park and a deal the state has been looking to strike since the early 1970s.

“With Governor Crist’s and the Cabinet member’s signatures on this agreement we finalize an important project that will help promote nature-based tourism and be a beautiful area for Floridians and visitors to enjoy,” said DEP Secretary Michael W. Sole. “Paynes Prairie is rich in natural resources and today’s agreement will help protect important wildlife habitat and at the same time enhance recreational opportunities.”

Paynes Prairie stretches out across 21,000 acres and is a natural resource of national importance.  In 1971, Paynes Prairie was designated a national landmark by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior because it possesses exceptional value in illustrating U.S. heritage and is one of only 600 designations nationwide.  Paynes Prairie contains more than 800 plants and a large variety of wildlife including bison, cracker horses and more than 270 species of birds.

Since a significant portion of the Paynes Prairie basin is located on this property, it is important for Floridians to possess ownership.  As part of the recreational planning process a trail hub to connect Prairie Creek Preserve to the east and Gainesville-Hawthorne State Trail is being explored. Acquiring the land will protect the amount and quality of water that feeds Paynes Prairie, help conserve wildlife habitat, increase recreational activities and provide better park management.

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]]> http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/03/09/alachua-conservation-trust-adds-to-paynes-prairie/feed/ Rolex Sports Car Series in Homestead http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/03/06/rolex-sports-car-series-in-homestead/ http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/03/06/rolex-sports-car-series-in-homestead/#comments Sat, 06 Mar 2010 12:20:33 +0000 Staff Reporter http://www.floridasnapshot.com/?p=544 * Nineteen Year Old Racing Sensation Dion von Moltke Roars Into Miami For Grand Prix of Miami

HOMESTEAD - Nineteen year old racing sensation, Dion von Moltke (www.dionvm.com), is roaring into Miami for the Grand Prix of Miami, March 5-6, 2010 at the Homestead Miami Speedway.

As the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series returns to Miami, all eyes will be on Dion as he returns to Doran Racing, driving with Memo Gidley. Dion will be driving the car #77, a Ford-powered Dallara Daytona Prototype that is being sponsored by McDonalds/South African Airways/P1 Groupe. This is a homecoming in many ways for Dion as Doran Racing gave him his Daytona Prototype start, and he currently lives in Miami attending college fulltime at Florida International University (FIU). P1 Groupe also provides driver management services for Dion, from sponsorships to marketing.

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]]> http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/03/06/rolex-sports-car-series-in-homestead/feed/ Five for Fighting Headlines SunFest April 28 http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/03/03/five-for-fighting-headlines-sunfest-april-28/ http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/03/03/five-for-fighting-headlines-sunfest-april-28/#comments Wed, 03 Mar 2010 14:04:02 +0000 Staff Reporter http://www.floridasnapshot.com/?p=543 WEST PALM BEACH - SunFest, Florida’s largest music, art and waterfront festival, announced several national acts scheduled to appear at the 28th annual event being held April 28-May 2, along one of the most scenic sections of Flagler Drive in downtown West Palm Beach.

National acts scheduled to perform include Weezer, ZZ Top, Shinedown, Ben Harper and Relentless7, Patti LaBelle, Maze featuring Frankie Beverly, Flaming Lips, Rise Against, B-52’s, Damian Marley, Nas, Five For Fighting, Flogging Molly, Sister Hazel, Better than Ezra, Marcus Miller, Classic Albums Live, and The Charlie Daniels Band. Additional entertainment announcements will be made as they are confirmed.

See www.sunfest.com

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]]> http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/03/03/five-for-fighting-headlines-sunfest-april-28/feed/ Great Deals In Florida’s Boca Grande http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/27/great-deals-in-floridas-boca-grande/ http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/27/great-deals-in-floridas-boca-grande/#comments Sun, 28 Feb 2010 02:48:57 +0000 Staff Reporter http://www.floridasnapshot.com/?p=542 BOCA GRANDE - This town on Gasparilla Island, partly in Charlotte and partly in Lee County, is a happy little place devoid of the new money mansions that litter many once great Florida resort towns. Nevertheless, it isn’t backward, or frozen in time. The old Gasparilla Inn still rules the town.

There is nothing completely showy here, real estate wise; you will have to head up to Casey Key in Sarasota for that. Instead, there are some nice condos, great houses and lots of Northeastern bluebloods on golf carts.

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]]> http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/27/great-deals-in-floridas-boca-grande/feed/ Fun Real Estate in Hobe Sound http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/27/fun-real-estate-in-hobe-sound/ http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/27/fun-real-estate-in-hobe-sound/#comments Sun, 28 Feb 2010 02:35:29 +0000 Staff Reporter http://www.floridasnapshot.com/?p=541 HOBE SOUND - What’s more fun than looking at a few $1 million plus houses in Hobe Sound and Jupiter, Florida? Below, a little Trulia Slideshow of the top listings in the area, which is in Martin County north of Palm Beach.

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]]> http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/27/fun-real-estate-in-hobe-sound/feed/ JW Marriott Miami Set for Boulud’s db Bistro http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/27/jw-marriott-miami-set-for-bouluds-db-bistro/ http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/27/jw-marriott-miami-set-for-bouluds-db-bistro/#comments Sun, 28 Feb 2010 01:52:05 +0000 Staff Reporter http://www.floridasnapshot.com/?p=540 MIAMI, Feb. 25 - The JW Marriott Marquis Miami, set for mid-2010 opening, will be home to Florida’s first db Bistro Moderne. The concept French-American restaurant by Chef Daniel Boulud will be modeled after the New York City version.

“I am excited to announce the addition of db Bistro Moderne to our first-class hotel,” said Florencia Tabeni, General Manager of JW Marriott Marquis Miami, in a PR Newswire press release.

Located in downtown’s new Metropolitan Miami development, the restaurant’s interiors by Yabu Pushelberg will feature a dining area with striking contemporary accents and soaring 18-foot ceilings, as well as a stylish bar and lounge and street-level terrace overlooking the Miami river.

There are three distinct main dining areas, each with its own aesthetic appeal. At the center lies a room with sleek white washed oak floors and wall paneling, steel grey canvas and distressed leather upholstery and a geometric patterned ceiling. To the right lies the persimmon room with curved banquettes upholstered in deep mustard colored canvas and leather. To the left is a smaller more intimate room with a single central sandstone topped harvest table and walls lined with tinted mirrored trays. The seductive lounge area’s bar is faced in bronze metal and mirror and features an inviting over-sized tufted chaise long as a focal point and an inviting space to linger with a cocktail. Adjacent to the restaurant’s entrance is its impressive wine tower, itself an intimate dining space lined with a patchwork of glass tiles in shades of gray and bronze.

“db Bistro Moderne has a great urban energy to it that should fit in nicely in Downtown Miami and the city’s already superb dining scene,” says Boulud. “It’s known for being accessible and affordable, and for serving very comforting French cooking prepared with care and quality ingredients. And, yes, I admit we’re also known for serving a superb burger. It’s not the kind of formal French restaurant you save for a special occasion. It’s the kind you return to often for the dishes you love and remember and for the easy going feel of the place.”

The French restaurateur’s new Miami outpost will be led by some of Boulud’s dedicated and highly talented team including General Manager German Alvarado and Executive Chef Jarrod Verbiak. German is a veteran with more than 12 years of experience in three of the chef’s New York City restaurants including DANIEL, Cafe Boulud and Bar Boulud. He has worked his way up through the front of the house to become a trusted manager with a real affinity for taking care of guests. Jarrod Verbiak is equally strong proof of the restaurant careers Boulud has nurtured amongst the talented young people under his watch. Jarrod joined the renowned chef directly upon graduating from the Culinary Institute of America in 2002. While he began as a cook at DANIEL in New York, Jarrod went on to become a sous chef at Daniel Boulud Brasserie in Las Vegas and later Cafe Boulud in Palm Beach. Most recently, he was a key member of the opening team of Maison Boulud in Beijing.

db Bistro Moderne will open in the fall of 2010 and will serve lunch Monday - Friday from noon to 2:30 p.m., dinner Sunday & Monday 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., Tuesday - Thursday from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m., and Friday & Saturday until Midnight, with a weekend brunch Saturday - Sunday 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Infusing sophistication, design, art, fashion and technology, the 41-floor JW Marriott Marquis sets a tone of prestige with its diverse landscape of business, leisure, dining and entertainment pursuits. In addition to the acclaimed db Bistro Moderne, the hotel will feature two entertainment/lifestyle floors with a world-renowned Jim McLean Golf School, one-of-a-kind 10,000-square-foot NBA approved basketball court, tennis court, media room, billiard room, virtual bowling alley, fitness center and full service spa. Pairing style and elegance with a sense of informality, its spacious accommodations include luxurious bedding, a pillow menu, plush bath linens, in-room computer with high-speed Internet access, 50″ flat-screen high definition television, personal electronics connectivity panel, television embedded in the bathroom mirror and an in-room espresso maker.

Scheduled to open in mid 2010, the JW Marriott Marquis Miami is located at 345 Avenue of the Americas. The hotel will be located within the hotel tower of Met2 along with a second hotel, the new luxury boutique Hotel Beaux Arts Miami, and at the center of the business, entertainment and lifestyle complex of Metropolitan Miami. It is located a few blocks from the American Airlines Arena, the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, and Brickell, Miami’s Financial Center, and just a ten-minute drive from South Beach and the Port of Miami.

See www.jwmarriottmarquismiami.com or info on db Bistro Moderne and Daniel Boulud at www.danielnyc.com.

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]]> http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/27/jw-marriott-miami-set-for-bouluds-db-bistro/feed/ Great Time For Sarasota Real Estate http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/27/great-time-for-sarasota-real-estate/ http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/27/great-time-for-sarasota-real-estate/#comments Sun, 28 Feb 2010 01:25:29 +0000 Stratford Chellowe http://www.floridasnapshot.com/?p=539 #tSlideShow{ position:relative; width:450px; } #tSlideShow .tSlideShowFL a, #tSlideShow .tSlideShowFR a{ color:#06C; text-decoration:none; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:10px; } #tSlideShow .tSlideShowFL a:hover, #tSlideShow .tSlideShowFR a:hover{color:#DF7E00 !important;text-decoration:underline !important;}

This is a great time to look at Sarasota Real Estate under $200K. Some good stuff still out there.

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]]> http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/27/great-time-for-sarasota-real-estate/feed/ Save the Kissimmee Kast Shuffleboard Courts http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/26/save-the-kissimmee-kast-shuffleboard-courts/ http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/26/save-the-kissimmee-kast-shuffleboard-courts/#comments Sat, 27 Feb 2010 01:32:15 +0000 Staff Reporter http://www.floridasnapshot.com/?p=538 KISSIMMEE - In an unwise decision, civic leaders in this town are planning to demolish the town’s shuffleboard courts. They date from 1941 and are the Kast Shuffleboard Courts.

That news according to The Daily City blog. The blog has photos and a whole story on the issue.

Because the city does not know how to market the shuffleboard, and their leaders lack imagination, the courts will disappear.

Certainly, shuffleboard players are aging, but the solution is not to rip them down. If anything, when the times are tough, cities need to preserve what they have and encourage its use. How about encouraging younger folks to hang out and use the shuffleboard facility?

Kissimmee can never compete with Disney; it needs to do its own thing for the 21-plus set. Curling was once as un-hip as shuffleboard, but a bit of Scotch whiskey and media exposure made it fun.

Add some rum on Friday nights and Kissimmee might have a hit on its hands.

Join their support group on Facebook.

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]]> http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/26/save-the-kissimmee-kast-shuffleboard-courts/feed/ Save Silver Spring Movement Grows http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/26/silver_springs/ http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/26/silver_springs/#comments Sat, 27 Feb 2010 01:14:39 +0000 Staff Reporter http://www.floridasnapshot.com/?p=536 OCALA - Citizens of this Florida town, home to Silver Springs, are banding together to help support the historic attraction. The park is deteriorating, and locals feel that the management is letting it run down. Monkeys. Glass-bottom boats. Ross Allen milking rattlesnakes. Great old memories. Sign up for their Facebook page at Save Silver Springs Now. The [...]]]> A new movement to support the revitalization of Silver Springs gains momentum.OCALA - Citizens of this Florida town, home to Silver Springs, are banding together to help support the historic attraction.

The park is deteriorating, and locals feel that the management is letting it run down. Monkeys. Glass-bottom boats. Ross Allen milking rattlesnakes. Great old memories.

Sign up for their Facebook page at Save Silver Springs Now. The Facebook group talks about the issues, and what you can do.

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]]> http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/26/silver_springs/feed/ Incredible Mr. Limpet at Weeki Wachee in 1964 http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/26/incredible-mr-limpet-at-weeki-wachee-in-1964/ http://www.floridasnapshot.com/2010/02/26/incredible-mr-limpet-at-weeki-wachee-in-1964/#comments Fri, 26 Feb 2010 19:19:14 +0000 Staff Reporter http://www.floridasnapshot.com/?p=535

Here, a fascinating video of the premiere of The Incredible Mr. Limpet, a part-animated movie about Weeki Wachee. It’s mermaids galore. The world’s first underwater premiere.

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