By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO and ELAINE KURTENBACH, Associated Press The owner of Saks Fifth Avenue is seeking bankruptcy protection, buffeted by rising competition and the massive debt it took on to buy its rival in the luxury sector, Neiman Marcus, just over a year ago. Saks Global has secured roughly $1.75 billion in financing, the New York company said as filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Wednesday in the Southern District of Texas. The private company said that stores will remain open as it... Read More
Brightline parent hires European rail veteran to lead company’s growth, quest for profits
In what appears to be its biggest management shakeup in years, the parent of Brightline, the South Florida-based high-speed passenger railroad, has reached across the Atlantic to hire a past CEO of the iconic Eurostar rail line to spearhead the company’s expansion and quest for profitability. Nicolas Petrovic, 56, has been retained as CEO of Brightline Holdings LLC and will be based in Miami, according to an announcement released by Brightline Trains early Wednesday morning. Petrovic will... Read More
Florida voters’ approval of DeSantis declines at start of his final year
Gov. Ron DeSantis’ approval rating is at one of the lowest points since he took office seven years ago. A poll from Mason-Dixon Polling & Strategy released Wednesday shows 50% of Florida voters approve of his performance and 46% disapprove — a net positive of four percentage points. That’s not the lowest point of DeSantis’ time as governor — it was worse during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic — but it’s lower than six other Mason-Dixon surveys of Florida voters’ views... Read More
Winderman’s view: Merit payoff again limited for Heat’s Ware on Adebayo’s big night
MIAMI — Observations and other notes of interest from Tuesday night’s 127-121 victory over the Phoenix Suns: – We appear to have reached the crossroads again where Erik Spoelstra does not believe Kel’el Ware and Bam Adebayo can play together. – At least not on a highly productive basis. – Which many metrics confirm. – But with Adebayo back with his offense in this one, it again appears to be nothing more going forward than Short Minutes Theater for Ware. – Which is fine if... Read More
Marlins trade pitcher Ryan Weathers to Yankees for 4 prospects
NEW YORK — Left-hander Ryan Weathers was acquired by the New York Yankees from the Miami Marlins on Tuesday for four prospects, a move to bolster a rotation that will be missing Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodón when the season starts. Miami received outfielders Brendan Jones and Dillon Lewis and infielders Dylan Jasso and Juan Matheus. Weathers, 26, was 2-2 with a 3.99 ERA in eight starts last year in his second straight injury-shortened season. He missed time with a strained left flexor,... Read More
South Florida restaurateur Louie Bossi arrested on misdemeanor domestic battery charge
Louie Bossi, the chef, partner and namesake of Louie Bossi’s Ristorante in Fort Lauderdale and Boca Raton, was arrested Monday on a misdemeanor domestic battery charge, court records show. Bossi’s wife called police after an argument with Bossi, 58, in which she said her husband pushed her and threatened her at their Palm Beach County home, according to a probable cause affidavit for his arrest. As the two were arguing in their bedroom, Bossi allegedly threw a water bottle at his wife and... Read More
Tri-Rail posts ridership records as commuter line seeks restoration of funding cuts
When Tri-Rail Executive Director David Dech arrived in Tallahassee this week for the annual state legislative session, he took along what is probably the South Florida rail line’s most important sales aid: a report of record ridership for 2025. He’ll need it as he spearheads Tri-Rail’s lobbying drive to restore millions in funding cuts announced last year by the Florida Department of Transportation. Without the money, Dech has said Tri-Rail has enough cash to run through July 2027.... Read More
A suspect in the vandalism of JD Vance’s Ohio home must stay in jail until trial
By JULIE CARR SMYTH COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A federal judge ruled Tuesday that a suspect in the vandalism of Vice President JD Vance’s home in Ohio must remain behind bars while awaiting trial. The decision by Chief Magistrate Judge Stephanie Bowman means that William D. DeFoor, 26, of Cincinnati, will remain in the Hamilton County jail for now. A preliminary hearing in the case was set for Jan. 20 in the federal district court in Cincinnati. DeFoor faces federal charges of damaging... Read More
Broward School Board members call for state DOGE audit after DeSantis rebuke
A day after Gov. Ron DeSantis described the Broward School District as a “disaster,” School Board members held a pair of news conferences Tuesday, inviting the district to be subjected to a state DOGE audit. School Board member Adam Cervera, a DeSantis appointee who has become increasingly vocal about recent district management missteps, held a solo news conference late in the morning to request the state’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, to conduct “a whole-scale review... Read More
Review: See what makes Island City Stage’s ‘The Little Foxes’ so outstanding
The trifecta of toxicity — greed, extreme ambition and pure hatred — combines in a sophisticated plot in Lillian Hellman’s classic drama, “The Little Foxes,” which receives a stunning production through Sunday, Feb. 8, at Island City Stage in Wilton Manors. With Michael Leeds’ assured direction, and his stellar cast, the company finds fresh ways to explore these themes, which seep through the nasty Hubbard family. Their obsession with money and power overrides any relationships or... Read More