Volusia News Now

Dist. 3 County Council candidate Jim Hathaway, shown far left) has picked up endorsements from Volusia Building Industry Association and the Sierra Club while fellow candidate Deb Denys has won the endorsement of the New Smyrna Beach Board of Realtors. And candidate Justin Kennedy is content with endorsements from the Volusia Sheriff's Deputies Association, Volusia Teachers Organization, Edgewater Professional Firefighters Association and the Daytona Beach Fire/Rescue Association.

NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- They're not quite Olympic gold medals, but for the three candidates running for Volusia County Council dist. 3 seat in Tuesday's primary, endorsements are golden.

NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- I am astonished that a statement of personal and religious belief by an executive of an American corporation, in this case Chick-fil-A, is being used as a clarion call to boycott and destroy the business. It is especially troubling that the people who are contesting this individual’s right to religious freedom and to speech based on those beliefs are doing so in the name of their own freedoms of expression and identity.

DAYTONA BEACH SHORES -- Today Mitt Romney nominated Paul Ryan, seven-term Congressman from Wisconsin and Chairman of the House Banking and Finance Committee as his vice-presidential running mate. The decision has its pluses and its minuses.

NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- Lightning from a fast-moving thunderstorm rolling through the city struck a substation transmission line and as a result knocked out power for customers in parts of the city.

The Utilities Commission of New Smyrna Beach posted the following alert on its website about 30 minutes ago:
Lightning strikes during the severe storm that came through about 7:30 pm caused significant outages throughout the UC service area. There are crews working to restore electric service as quickly as possible."

An earlier posting stated: "The Lightning caused an outage in the transmission line between Field Street and Smyrna Substations about 7:30 Saturday night. Crews are working in the problem."

Headline Surfer has not been able to reach anyone from the utilities commission to get a fixed number on how many customers are without power or when power will be fully restored. The 24/7 Internet newspaper is monitoring the situation and will provide updates.

EDGEWATER -- With all of the presidential elections, 13 in all or 52 years to the present day starting with FDR in 1933, I have never witnessed the personal mud slinging of this year between President Obama and Republican nominee Mitt Romney.

DELAND -- Joseph Protopapa, director of integrated career services and employer relations at the Career Center at the University of Akron (Ohio), has been selected as Stetson University's executive director of career development and academic advising. He starts this month.

DAYTONA BEACH -- More Fortune 500 companies are involved in NASCAR than in 2008, according to a recent review of brands currently using the sport to drive business.

The analysis looked at companies that either sponsor NASCAR teams, tracks, the sanctioning body, or are media partners. The number of current Fortune 500 companies invested in NASCAR (114) remains higher than any other sport. In 2012 alone, more than 24 brands entered the sport, including a handful of Fortune 500 companies.

"Some of the world's most profitable and successful corporations choose NASCAR to help drive their businesses," said Brian France, NASCAR chairman and CEO. "These companies bring a great amount of rigor to where they make investments. This is especially true when it comes to marketing - and the sponsorship channel in particular - where they are looking for strong return on investment."

"Some of the world's most profitable and successful corporations choose NASCAR to help drive their businesses," said Brian France, NASCAR chairman and CEO. "These companies bring a great amount of rigor to where they make investments. This is especially true when it comes to marketing - and the sponsorship channel in particular - where they are looking for strong return on investment."

Headline Surfer photos by Henry Frederick / County Council Chair Frank Bruno and council member Joie Alexander show their appreciation for members of the Daytona Area Chamber of Commerce and reprentatives of five other chambers during a luncheon Thursday.

DELAND -- County Chair Frank Bruno told 50 chamber executives and other business leaders at a luncheon today the naysayers will always be critical of issues like the Ocean Center and its reliance on taxpayer funding, but overall he's pleased with the way things are going.