Ocala FL

Promises are apparently falling apart at a fire-damaged home in The Villages. Brigette Brown Fleetwood died as a result of the house fire which broke out Dec. 23 at 2328 Due West Drive in the Village of Lynnhaven. Fleetwood’s romantic partner and roommate Lloyd Rohlig, who was the beneficiary of...

A former Big Lots store in Leesburg that closed its doors earlier this year is being converted into a Marshalls. The new store been under construction at 923 N 14th Street, within Gateway Plaza, for multiple months. Although there are over 1,200 Marshalls locations across the United States, the new...

A Leesburg pair were arrested after the driver was caught with a suspended license and the passenger with methamphetamine. A deputy stopped 45-year-old Kevin Koontz and 54-year-old Tammy Colleen Kelley in a white pickup truck traveling east on Northern Avenue in Leesburg around 9:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 7, according...

The Ocala Police Department is inviting residents to get a behind-the-scenes look at its operations during a six-week Citizen Police Academy that begins next month. The program runs from Sept. 8 to Oct. 13, with sessions held Monday evenings from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at police headquarters. Participants will learn about...

A Marion County man has claimed over $27,000 in winnings from a lottery ticket that he purchased at a local gas station. Donnell Cox has claimed approximately $27,124.21 from his winning Fantasy 5 ticket from the July 24, evening drawing of the game. The ticket, which originally went unclaimed, was...

Two people were hospitalized following a collision in southwest Ocala on Thursday night, just 14 hours after a pedestrian was struck and killed on State Road 200 less than two miles away. Ocala Fire Rescue’s Engine 4 and Rescue 4 responded to reports of a crash at SW 44th Avenue...

A woman claims she was infected with E. coli and became “violently ill” after eating a steak, egg, and cheese bagel at a McDonald’s in The Villages. Attorneys representing Rachel Harkins filed the lawsuit against Prado Enterprises, Inc., in the Fifth Judicial Circuit Court of Sumter County on July 25.

A property owner is hoping to redevelopment a southeast Ocala site that was previously used for batting cages with a new “drive-through restaurant.”. A rezoning request from Irvin Homes, LLC, on behalf of property owner Sumner Real Estate Investments, LLC, will come before the Ocala City Council during its regular...

A neighbor from hell has escaped serious punishment after a chaotic night in The Villages. Lori Ann Colagrande, 62, who lives at 7189 Denver Ave. in the Village of Lake Denham, pleaded no contest this past week in Lake County Court to a reduced charge of disorderly conduct. She had originally faced charges of misuse...

I gave a proposal to every CDD that outlined how Community Standards could, with just one full-time employee, take on the task of identification of Deed Restriction violations in The Villages. It takes just 160 hours for Community Watch patrol drivers to drive every street in The Villages. If a Community Standards...