FLORIDA DIGEST March 16, 2007

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The Independent

http://www.indynews.4t.com/Issue79/news4.html

Today's Date: March 16, 2007
Disabled Talent to Star At Closing of Arts Festival

By Paul Harris
PHarris@OurIndy.com

Greg Walloch is an unusual comedian. The fact that he is gay in this day andage is not that unusual. Thanks to the fact that there are many gay andlesbian festivals seeking performers many gays find places to perform. Whatmakes Walloch unusual is that he is also disabled and has lived withcerebral palsy all his life. Walloch is going to be one of the threeperformers who close the two week arts festival the has been organized byArtsUnited. He will be performing alongside Marga Gomez and Joe Kovacs withhis puppet "Madame."

The Independent was able to get hold of Walloch at his home in West Harlembefore he hit the road again. He describes his new show as a collection of"new stories and some of his greatest hits." It will include an excerpt fromhis show White Disabled Talent that was turned into an HBO special as wellas part of his show F**k The Disabled.

He has performed all over the place including Poland and even Tel Aviv inIsrael. In New York City he has played "Joe's Pub," which is a venue at theNew York Shakespeare Festival downtown, two or three times. He is a veryunusual performer and apart from being wickedly funny has the ability tomake the audience think, and, hopefully, challenge their preconceptions.

Walloch will be one of the three performers who will be performing at thefestival sponsored and, in large part, organized by ArtsUnited. The eveningwill be held at the Amaturo Theatre at the Broward Center starting at7.30pm. Tickets are available from the Broward Center box office at954.462.0222. See you there!



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The Express Gay News

http://www.expressgaynews.com/print.cfm?content_id=3524

Another makeover on Wilton Drive

Townhomes and retail space to replace boarded up strip south of Shoppes
By SHERI ELFMAN
Mar. 16, 2007

For more than a year now, the strip mall that formerly housed WiltingManners, CJ's Comics & Collectibles, About Town Lock & Sale and MarsupiumInc. has remained empty and boarded up.

Soon enough, the strip mall will no longer be an eyesore for the dwellers ofWilton Drive. It will be knocked down to make way for a 19,030-square-footdevelopment called Wilton Park.

Wilton Park, which will have 145 residential units, is being developed byNew Urban Communities, a company based in Delray Beach. The project shouldstart coming together late this year or early next, says Tim Hernandez,principal of the project.

The development will be a mix of townhomes and lofts, a pool and retailshops on the bottom floor.

Wilton Manors, which has fewer than 13,000 residents, ranks third in theUnited States for most gay residents per capita. When asked whether any ofthe shops will be gay-owned, Hernandez says he's not sure.

"I don't know yet," he says. "I'm sure there will be a mix of shops thatwill appeal to every aspect of the community."Local business owners are pleased

The addition of more shops is expected to make Wilton Drive even moreof a destination for gay residents and visitors. The area has a large mix ofgalleries, boutiques, restaurants, bars and clubs that rivals the shoppingarea on Las Olas.



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Express Gay News

http://www.expressgaynews.com/print.cfm?content_id=3525

Sounds of freedom

Flamingo Freedom Band to celebrate 20th anniversary with concert
By SHERI ELFMAN
Mar. 16, 2007

A prism breaks light up into several colors, an effect the Flamingo FreedomBand is hoping to mimic with its newest show called "Prism." Their concerton March 25 will break their band up into several smaller sections to createbeautiful music.

"It's modeled on a concert done annually at Florida State University," saysDan Bassett, the band's new artistic director.

This concert is in celebration of the Flamingo Freedom Band's 20thanniversary. The band is composed of 40 gay or lesbian performers and a fewstraight members. The band has grown a lot from its humble beginnings.

"It started out as a small number of people meeting in someone's livingroom," Bassett says. "We now have to rent space."

In fact, the band started out with only five members. Its first gigs werebacking the local Gay Men's Chorus and preparing marches to do at local gayfund-raisers. In the spring of 1987, the band became a nonprofitorganization. Through the years, as its grown, the band has performed atseveral Pride events and has traveled across the United States to perform.



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The Independent

http://www.indynews.4t.com/Issue79/feature3.html

Staff Report
News@OurIndy.com

Recently, AIDS activists held an event at Georgie's Alibi, one of SouthFlorida's leading gay watering holes, in an attempt to increase awarenessinside the gay population. The event which was attended by hundreds duringthe course of the evening had as its theme "Take Me, I Am Free" with condomsin upbeat and colorful packaging. Broward County Health Department launchedits new effort to inform the gay community where to get free condoms andhealth information on AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.According to recently produced statistics Broward County has the highestrate of new infections in the entire US.

One of those attending, Alberto M. Santana, an HIV Prevention CommunityPlanner and a statewide Latino AIDS Coordinator from Miami, said that theevent "reminded me of the late 1980's early 1990's outreach/prevention education days" and that he looked forward to trying to replicate similarevents in Miami-Dade.
He commented that "We need to reinvigorate our HIV prevention efforts bycreating events such as this one - because it brings the information to thepeople in a creative, non-judgment and interactive manner."

The new marketing campaign will highlight prevention messages targeting gaymen and list local contacts for condom distribution and health information.



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The Independent

http://www.indynews.4t.com/Issue79/feature4.html

Today's Date: March 16, 2007
Lambda Legal Annual Event at Bonnet House

By Paul Harris
PHarris@OurIndy.com

Lambda Legal, the organization that fights for the legal rights of gays,lesbians, bisexuals, and transgender people, along with those living withHIV, is holding its annual reception at Fort Lauderdale's noted Bonnet Houseon Sunday, March 25. The event starts at 5pm and runs until 7:30pm. Lastyear the guest speaker was Paul Smith, the attorney who successfully foughtthe crucial Lawrence vs. Texas case before the U.S. Supreme Court, theresult of which has changed the legal landscape for gays throughout thecountry.

This year there will be two guest speakers. One of the speakers is aplaintiff that Lambda Legal is currently representing, Lorenzo Taylor, whowas denied employment in 2001 by the US State Department in the ForeignService because of his HIV status. This was in spite of the fact that otherpeople with chronic conditions have been employed overseas and that he wassuperbly qualified.

Taylor is fluent in three languages, holds an International Relations degreefrom Georgetown University School of Foreign Service and has worked innational and international non-profit organizations on designing andevaluating disease prevention programs.

Since Condoleeza Rice is the Secretary of State, heading the StateDepartment, the legal docket identifies the case as "Taylor v. Rice." Thecase will be argued before the United States District Court for the Districtof Columbia Circuit. The Independent was able to interview Taylor eventhough the case is still very much 'active.'

Taylor said that he had been "dissuaded from pursuing employment in thestarkest of terms and told in writing by the state medical office that'Because new applicants for the Foreign Service must be available worldwide(Class 1), those who are HIV-positive will not be eligible for employment,'effectively and illegally barring anyone with HIV from being hired to serveas a foreign service officer. This policy is flat wrong and someday it willchange."



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The Sun-Sentinel

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-315water,0,6858737,print.story?coll=sfla-home-headlines

Water-use restrictions start next week in South Florida

By David Fleshler
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
March 15, 2007, 11:28 PM EDT

City inspectors, armed with citation books, will cruise the streets ready topounce if they find a sprinkler operating illegally. Neighbors will beencouraged to rat each other out for watering on the wrong day. Helicopterswill hover above farms and golf courses, taking satellite coordinates ofpumps operating in violation of water-shortage orders.

This is the new era of water restrictions. It begins next Thursday, whenrules approved by the South Florida Water Management District take effect.

With South Florida enduring its worst drought since 2001 and the risk ofwildfires growing, the district's governing board on Thursday unanimouslyapproved restrictions on lawn watering, car washing, golf course irrigationand other activities that use large amounts of water. Residents will beallowed to use sprinklers on alternate days and at specified times, with thegoal of reducing consumption by 15 percent.

Almost half of all drinking water in South Florida goes toward wateringlawns, according to the district, which controls water supply and drainagefor 16 counties in Central and South Florida.

District officials said the restrictions may become permanent and thattougher rules may be necessary.



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The Sun-Sentinel

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-cexemptmar16,0,742148,print.story?coll=sfla-home-headlines

Want to wipe out high property taxes? End exemptions to sales tax, studysays

By Jamie Malernee
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
March 16, 2007

In Florida, clothing and gasoline are taxed, but Super Bowl tickets and cowsteroids aren't.

In fact, so many items are exempted by law from the state's sales tax thatif those loopholes were closed, state legislators could reduce or eveneliminate property taxes on residents' homes, according to official stateestimates released Thursday.

Instead, Republican and Democratic legislators have proposed raising thesales tax; one plan would make it the highest in the nation.

Items exempt from the 6-cent-per-dollar state tax range include necessitiessuch as food and medicine and oddities like ostrich feed, human organs, fishbreeding products and fill dirt.

And rather than revoke special privileges for even a sizable fraction ofthose items, state legislators this year have proposed a new crop of salestax exemptions, including breaks for anyone buying a part-ownership in aprivate jet.




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The Sun-Sentinel

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/local/sfl-315zinsurance,0,7431350,print.story?coll=sfla-business-front

Savings on property insurance may be much less than state officialspredicted

By Kathy Bushouse
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
March 15, 2007, 9:28 PM EDT

Florida's biggest private property insurers are asking for price cuts farless than state estimates, which means many home and condominium ownersmight not see the double-digit annual premium savings state leaderspredicted in the wake of the state's new insurance law.

Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty recently estimated insurersshould be able to give property owners an average rate cut of 24 percentstatewide on their overall premiums. He said companies would have to justifytheir figures if they were below the state's numbers.

The state's estimates are based on savings insurers would get from changesthe Legislature made to the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund in January.Private insurers are now able to get less expensive reinsurance coverage tohelp pay hurricane claims from the state fund and are required by law topass the savings to customers. Thursday was the deadline for insurancecompanies to submit rate reduction requests to the state.

State Farm Florida Insurance Co., the state's largest private home insurerwith more than a million customers, on Thursday requested a statewideaverage decrease of 7 percent, mirroring projections the company made backin January. In Broward County, State Farm Florida's proposed savings rangefrom 8 percent to 9.4 percent for customers west of the IntracoastalWaterway, while in Palm Beach County the savings is from 8.5 percent to 9.4percent for customers west of the Intracoastal.

USAA, the state's No. 5 property insurer, on Thursday requested a decreaseof 3.1 percent.



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Gainesville.com

http://www.gainesville.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070315/APN/703153654&template=printart

Article published Mar 15, 2007
Mar 15, 2007

Florida Democrats urge congressional action on election dispute

The Associated Press

Florida Democrats asked a U.S. House committee Thursday to begin reviewing adisputed election in the state's 13th Congressional District after thedisclosure that touchscreen voting machines used in Sarasota County had ananomaly.

The nine Florida representatives cited press reports that Elections Systems& Software had informed state and local election officials of the matternearly three months before the November election, which was decided by just369 votes.

The company's iVotronic machines were exhibiting slow response times inhighlighting candidates' names after voters had made their selections,according to an Aug. 15 memo.

The Floridians sent a letter to House Administration Committee ChairwomanJuanita Millender-McDonald, D-Calif., asking for the immediate formation ofa task force to review the election, won by Vern Buchanan, a Longboat KeyRepublican.

"That these revelations are coming to light now, through press reports,suggests that the potential for fraud in this election was real, that it wasknown by the responsible officials and that these officials did nothingabout it," the lawmakers wrote.



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The Palm Beach Post

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/business/content/business/epaper/2007/03/16/m1a_INSURE_0316.html

Insurers whittle proposed rate drops

By Randy Diamond
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Friday, March 16, 2007

For thousands of frustrated Floridians, the big homeowners insurance ratereductions promised by state lawmakers and Gov. Charlie Crist may nevermaterialize, judging by the companies' own filings.

The state's homeowners insurers were required to file proposed reductions inpremium rates by Thursday, according to the reform hammered out by lawmakersin a weeklong special session in January.

Little relief

Florida's homeowners insurers filed their proposed premium rate reductionsThursday, many of which fell short of the state's goal of 24 percent.Following are the filings submitted by some of the state's biggestcompanies:

State Farm Florida Insurance Co. - 7.0 percent

Allstate Floridian Insurance Co. - 14.2 percent

Nationwide Insurance Co. of Florida - 4.6 percent



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The Sun-Sentinel

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-cexemptmar16,0,742148,print.story?coll=sfla-home-headlines

Want to wipe out high property taxes? End exemptions to sales tax, studysays

By Jamie Malernee
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
March 16, 2007

In Florida, clothing and gasoline are taxed, but Super Bowl tickets and cowsteroids aren't.

In fact, so many items are exempted by law from the state's sales tax thatif those loopholes were closed, state legislators could reduce or eveneliminate property taxes on residents' homes, according to official stateestimates released Thursday.

Instead, Republican and Democratic legislators have proposed raising thesales tax; one plan would make it the highest in the nation.

Items exempt from the 6-cent-per-dollar state tax range include necessitiessuch as food and medicine and oddities like ostrich feed, human organs, fishbreeding products and fill dirt.

And rather than revoke special privileges for even a sizable fraction ofthose items, state legislators this year have proposed a new crop of salestax exemptions, including breaks for anyone buying a part-ownership in aprivate jet.



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West Palm Beach Pride Festival

March 25th
12pm-6pm
Bryant Park
Lake Worth, FL

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!

Email hrc_southflorida@yahoo.com
to sign up for one of the following time
slots on Sunday, March 25th:
12:00pm-3:00pm
3:00pm-6:00pm



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Please Join Us for
West Palm Beach Pride!

Mark your calendars! HRC needs you to be part of the HRC Equality Mission!Your help is needed to make an America where GLBT people are ensured oftheir basic equal rights, and can be open, honest and safe at home, at workand in the community.

The HRC booth needs your help! Come volunteer with us!

Or just come stop by the booth to see fabulous items we will have forpurchase!

Don't worry if you have never volunteered or if you are a veteran with us -
e welcome everyone!



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Reminder From Terry Bush & Rob Hepler
Endless Summers Realty
Endlesssummers@aol.com

This is a reminder that the Island City Art Walk is Friday March 16th from 7pm - 10 pm. Endless Summers Realty is proud to have artist Peter Sentkowskipresent a new photography exhibit put together for this event. Thephotography will be available for sale. The exhibit is titled "PAIRS OFPEARS"........

Hope To See You Friday Night!


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