Local News Now

Vice Mayor: 'Something stinks here' with Daytona players Kent Sharples and Glenn Storch telling us to change zoning for something big and not telling us what it's for'

OAK HILL, Fla. -- Volusia County government leaders and influential Daytona insiders like Kent Sharples and Glenn Storch have apparently gotten Oak Hill Mayor Douglas Gibson to sign a "confidentiality agreement" that bars him from publicly discussing what type of manufacturing development is being sought on a 415-acre site that includes two historic African-American cemeteteries just south of City Hall.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Going by the wayside is the black & white checkered flag seating at Daytona International Speedway, which has many fans have asking: Why are the new seats in all kinds of different bright colors? Reds, blues, yellows, and whites?

Photos for Headline Surfer® /

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Central Florida’s Daytona Beach International Airport will become a new destination for New York City's JFK Airport-based a year from now, the air carrier announced Friday.

The carrier will operate daily service from Terminal 5 at John F. Kennedy International Airport (IATA code JFK) to Daytona Beach International Airport (DAB), using Airbus A320 jets configured with 150 or 165 seats.

And nobody in Volusia County government is happier with the news than first-term County Chair Jason Davis, who put a premium on economic development and tourism as major points in his 2012 election campaign. 

Graphic for Headline Surfer® /

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Like a used-car salesman, Daytona International Speedway President Joie Chitwood, III, has been talking about the new wider plastic seats installed as part of the $400 million Daytona Rising. And he's turned to Facebook to put fannies in those seats, even though a sellout is iffy.

So DIS has turned to Facebook. Yes, Facebook. Imagine the ridicule the NFL would face for pushing Superbowl tickets on the the social media site. After all, the Daytona 500 is billed as the Superbowl of NASCAR.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- HeadlineSurfer.com was denied media credentials for Speedweeks 2015 because of its exclusive coverage of the billionaire France Family's (and proxies ) of a quarter million bucks in the campaign coffers of politicians in hopes of obtaining $250 million in taxpayer subsidies. So the internet newspaper turned to YouTube to provide coverage of what drivers like 2014 Daytona 500 winner Dale Earnhardt Jr. had to say.

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. -- On Tuesday, municipl leaders will take formal action to confirm 54-year-old Mike Coffin as the city’s top cop, s forgone covlusion since he's the hand-picjked choice of the city manager.

He also was the strongst candidate ranked informally by Mayor Jim Hathaway. 

"i like his experience and his appraoch to policing -- his no-nonsense approach to serving the public," Hathaway told Headline Surfer®.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- Dale Earnhardt Jr. knows how to get the job done when it comes to racing at Daytona as the countdown begins for Speedweeks and the 500 race on Feb. 22. But Earnhardt was nervous as all nervous heck in the hours leading up to his appearance on "Jimmy Kimmel Live," last September to hype NASCAR's Chase championship format.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Select fans will be paired with crew chiefs foe the Sprint Unlimited, a new way to boost attendance for the opening Speedweeks race at Daytona International Speedway.

NASCAR has announced that the Speedweeks 75-lap Sprint Unlimited at Daytona International Speedway on Saturday will be split into two segments. A competition caution at lap 25 will separate the segments in the non-points event, scheduled for an 8:15 p.m. ET start . 

And brand new this year, select fans will be paired with each crew chief for a random drawing to determine starting and pit road positions. The drawings will take place 3:30 p.m. Friday at the FDOT Main Stage inside the Sprint FanZone.

DAYTONA BEACH SHORES, Fla. -- The discovery of a beached whale in October was a story with a sad ending, but certainly a part of nature.

The discovery of a 10-foot sperm whale in the 2600 block of South Atlantic Avenue on the shore around noon on Saturday Oct. 11, drew dozens of onlookers, said Beach Safety spokeswoman Tamra Marris. The whale was not euthanized as some media outlets reported, but died on its own just before rescuers arrived.