A file image of Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips who played the Olympia in Dublin on Monday night Flaming Lips’ sharp-suited front man Wayne Coyne bounds from the wings of the Olympia stage to halt the PA playing Thin Lizzy so he can tell a story He and his siblings used to sing “The Coynes are back in town” during the 1970s and Coyne is already claiming this as “one of the greatest gigs we’re ever gonna play” The Lips – five of them including Mr Wayne – open with Flight Test from 2002’s swirling pop masterwork Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots It’s hardly begun before the Olympia is a blizzard of monster-shaped confetti the hypnotic digital backdrop is in full effect (pleasingly a stagehand has to tap it the odd time to banish gremlins) and two giant pink robots from the album cover are inflated Coyne’s prediction has already proven prescient He's delighted to be here and why wouldn’t he with a band as remarkable as this They finesse sounds out of keyboards and guitars – and gorgeous pedal steel - that seem drawn from another realm but are anchored to this one by Tommy McKenzie’s rubbery bass and the double bass drum heft of Matt Duckworth Kirksey who looks like John Bonham in a pink wig at a kid’s party Flaming Lips at the Olympia.  Massive confetti-filled balloons float over the congregation and the lighting rigs either side of Coyne employ lasers that wouldn’t have shamed The Who in their pomp “Audiences often sound like drunk uncles but you guys can sing,” Wayne marvels after his vocals are eclipsed by the ecstatic throng’s commandeering of Ego Tripping At The Gates Of Hell. An enormous light-refracting mirrorball is wheeled on only to be replaced by a floppy rainbow arch for a deeply moving Do You Realize? Either there was something in the tea that nice man in the wizard outfit gave me or this really is one of the greatest gigs ever The Lips finish with a Race For The Prize which reminds at least one tired hack why he fell so hard for this rock’n’roll stuff in the first place From as little as €1 a week with our digital introductory offer Already a subscriber? Sign in Amanda Batchelor Christian De La Rosa MIAMI-DADE COUNTY – Multiple people were transported to local hospitals Tuesday morning after a gas leak occurred at an apartment complex in southwest Miami-Dade Local 10 News was at the scene in the area of Southwest 94th Avenue and 40th Terrace as first responders were loading patients on stretchers into ambulances One resident said firefighters showed up to the building around 4:30 a.m The resident said firefighters knocked down doors to any units that weren’t answered More than 20 Miami-Dade Fire Rescue units responded to the scene to check the carbon monoxide levels in the apartment building Miami-Dade Fire Rescue officials confirmed that they received a call overnight about people feeling sick inside the apartment building First responders said the cause of the leak was a malfunctioning boiler at the back of the building MDFR officials later confirmed that the property had no working carbon monoxide detectors or alarms Although multiple people were taken to hospitals 22 of which were transported to area hospitals for further care and treatment,” Deputy Fire Chief of Operations Danny Cardeso said Local 10′s Joseph Ojo even saw a baby as young as 3 months old evacuating the building A family member said in an abundance of caution they were taking the baby to the hospital to be checked out I have a 4 -- that means my carbon level is OK,” resident Frank Rodriguez said Ojo also spotted first responders checking the oxygen levels of other residents ventilating units using fans and leaving the doors open Sign up to receive breaking news alerts from Local10.com Copyright 2024 by WPLG Local10.com - All rights reserved Amanda Batchelor is the Digital Executive Producer for Local10.com Christian De La Rosa joined Local 10 News in April 2017 after spending time as a reporter and anchor in Atlanta TV Listings Email Newsletters RSS Feeds Closed Captioning / Audio Description Contact Us Careers at WPLG Terms of Use Privacy Policy Public File FCC Applications EEO Report Do Not Sell My Info 1.0 Host Exhibit Copyright © 2025 Local10.com is published by WPLG INC. Two prominent Atlanta properties in distress were set to be put on the auction block Tuesday New York developer Olympia Heights Management’s aspirations to build the Southeast’s tallest residential tower in the heart of Midtown collapsed on the Fulton County Courthouse steps Tuesday morning when its lender submitted the only bid to acquire the prime parcel Miami-based Benmark Capital foreclosed on 98 14th St. a 4-acre site behind the 1180 Peachtree office tower and across 14th Street from the Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta The plot was where Olympia Heights planned No2 Opus Place a 53-story luxury condominium and office project that never broke ground — despite years of claims that construction was afoot Benmark purchased the $40M loan in a credit bid during the foreclosure process on Tuesday, Benmark's attorney, Morris, Manning & Martin partner Lisa Wolgast, told Bisnow. Benmark was the only bidder for the site, the Atlanta Business Chronicle reported What is next for the site, which remains a hole in the ground, remains a mystery. A call to Benmark wasn't returned as of press time, and Roni Avraham, who spearheaded the project for Olympia Heights and at one time claimed the developer had pre-sold 70 units Olympia Heights first bought the parcel for $22M in 2014 with plans for a three-tower project Olympia Heights is run by Shaya Boymelgreen a New York developer who was at one point banned from selling condos in his home state Even after a groundbreaking ceremony in 2017 the developer revised its plans a handful of times with the final iteration a 1.8M SF tower with 182 condos and more than 200K SF of offices Olympia Heights continued to refinance and increase its debt on the property until it secured a $40M bridge loan from Benmark in August 2022 is delaying the foreclosure of 18 properties — including the 222 Mitchell St office building and Hotel Row — until the start of the new year A lender named Salzufer Holdings put a notice of foreclosure on an additional 18 parcels controlled by Newport tied to two separate loans including 10 Peachtree Street retail buildings connected to a $3.5M loan and seven retail buildings and two parking lots backed by a $4.7M loan according to the notice filed with Fulton County Newport purchased a swath of 50 independently owned properties consolidated the ownership and planned for a redevelopment project dubbed South Dwntn breathing new life into a long-struggling portion of the city The developer moved forward on transforming three buildings on Mitchell Street into 250K SF of offices and 70K SF of new retail space with such tenants as Tyde Tate Kitchen and bowling concept Pins Mechanical Co Despite an opening date for the first phase of Mitchell Street for early next year Newport's investors decided to stop funding the project earlier this year A sale of the properties to Braden Fellman collapsed this fall You are subscribed to the Bisnow Atlanta Newsletter or click here to copy link to clipboard We will email you a link to reset your password Upcoming regulations in the European Union require us to show this pop-up and ask you to agree to keep using Bisnow.com We want to take 15 seconds to tell you what's going on: The Midtown site where one of Atlanta’s grandest and promised ad nauseam appears to be headed for the courthouse steps Six years after its dynamite-induced groundbreaking the long-stalled No2 Opus Place property in the heart of Midtown is scheduled for a Nov 7 auction on the Fulton County Courthouse steps Miami-based real estate debt fund Benmark Capital provided No2 Opus Place developer Olympia Heights Management with a $40-million short-term bridge loan to refinance the project last year Exactly what’s changed since isn’t yet clear; we’ve reached out to Benmark officials for comment and will post any additional information that comes Benmark’s two-year loan was originated for the 98 14th Street property in August 2022 according to foreclosure filings this week Olympia Heights could not be reached for comment today and has not responded to inquiries in recent years the New York-based company that first unveiled Opus Place as a titanic came to Benmark after receiving notice from its previous bridge lender that its loan would not be extended Benmark officials told the publication they visited the Midtown property But confidence in Opus Place ever beginning construction had waned to point Atlanta real estate observers derisively coined the project “Nopus.” The $40 million in financing wasn’t a construction loan it would have covered only a fraction of the cost to build Atlanta’s tallest condo tower Project heads estimated in 2016 (ancient history at this point) the initial 74-story tower alone would require $300 million to build necessitating a substantial number of condo presales The project's ceremonial groundbreaking was held just before Christmas in 2017 followed by years of empty promises and blown construction timelines By 2018, the brokerage attempting to sell the deluxe homes reported more than 50 units had gone under contract priced between $400,000 and $12 million—the latter an unheard-of price for Midtown to this day scaled-back plans for Opus Place called for a 53-story mixed-use tower totaling 1.8-million square feet with commercial and retail space included Building permits show no activity since 2020 and the unsightly property has largely been idle in recent years save for a quick spate of groundwork spotted in early 2022 Olympia Heights later tried to sell off part of the site. The company was also hit with a lawsuit in 2021 from Perkins + Will architecture firm for allegedly not paying invoices for design work totaling roughly $800,000 No2 Opus Place’s bonkers amenities called for two pools and an onsite “Lifestyle Curator” to advise residents on how to live their best Atlanta lives A $3-million sales center for Opus Place condos materialized onsite but little else ever did So the project's tallest component to be realized was the full-scale model in that sales center—a luxurious mock condo with 10-foot ceilings November foreclosure filings involving closely watched intown development properties don’t end there As Bisnow Atlanta reports Miami-based lenders BridgeInvest intend to foreclose on a significant portion of Newport RE’s South Downtown holdings next month including parcels the German firm had begun developing into new uses Filings indicate 18 properties are in play ranging from a parking garage and small commercial buildings to parts of Hotel Row Newport officials early this year said they’d accumulated more than 50 parcels and lots in the district In July the company announced it was cutting bait and offloading all of its holdings to seasoned Atlanta developers Braden Fellman Group How potential foreclosures could impact that sale isn’t yet clear Twitter / Facebook/and now: Instagram   • Midtown news, discussion (Urbanize Atlanta)  (CBS12) — A former physical-needs assistant for the school district is facing a charge of sexual battery The investigation into 73-year-old Alvaro Rodriguez began in May 2021 when school district police interviewed the 22-year-old alleged victim See also: Middle school teacher accused of having sex in closet with former student The man told detectives that Alvaro violated him in a bathroom The victim said Alvaro told him to get on his hands and knees on the floor The victim said Alvaro held his wrists during the sexual battery See also: Courthouse closed after hundreds of cockroaches released during arraignment The school district said Rodriguez worked at Olympic Heights Community High School in Boca until the school first learned of the allegations 13 months ago The district reassigned him to a non-student contact position TrendingResidentialNew YorkAHistoric townhouse Olympia Dumbo crown Brooklyn’s luxury marketBuyers signed contracts for 12 homes asking $2M+ A Brooklyn Heights townhouse with an eight-figure price tag topped Brooklyn’s luxury market last week The 5,100-square-foot home at 48 Garden Place was the priciest property in the borough to find a buyer between Jan wood-burning fireplaces and a renovated chef’s kitchen It was one of 12 homes asking $2 million or more for which buyers signed a contract last week. The total was down from 16 deals inked in the previous period The second most expensive home to enter into contract was a unit at Fortis Property Group’s Olympia Dumbo condo asking $5 million The unit spans 2,200 square feet and has three bedrooms and two bathrooms Unit 19B at 30 Front Street also features a central foyer kitchen with stone slab island and primary bedroom with a walk-in closet and en-suite bathroom headed by Sotheby’s International’s Karen and Casey Heyman and Lindsay Barton Barrett and Maggie Marshall’s Team at Douglas Elliman The Elliman team, which includes Lena Lerner, took over from Eklund-Gomes in October That same month, another condo in the building landed on top of Compass’ weekly contracts report. Unit 22B, asking $5.4 million Of the 12 luxury contracts signed last week two were for townhouses and one was for a co-op the homes spent 188 days on the market and were priced at 5 percent less than their original listing price – Six Miami-Dade Public Schools are topping a list for exceptional student achievements in several categories across the state of Florida Out of 35 East Coast Technical Assistance Center award schools Hialeah and the Goulds area were recognized for exceptional progress in English Language Arts (ELA) and Math Achievement/Proficiency (Florida Standards Assessments data) ELA and Math Learning Gains (compared to 2019 FSA data) ECTAC identifies and recognizes high-poverty schools demonstrating exceptional progress in enhancing student achievement for all students The schools will be formally recognized for their achievements during a conference in Orlando in June Veronica Crespo writes for Local10.com and also oversees the Español section of the website she graduated from the University of Miami where she studied broadcast journalism and Spanish The site once slated for the tallest residential tower in the Southeast is on the path to new ownership with a prominent developer The potential sale comes five months after Miami-based Benmark Capital foreclosed on a $40M loan held by Olympia Heights an amount nearly twice what the New York-based developer paid in 2014 for the land across 14th Street from the Four Seasons Hotel Atlanta Benmark was a minority partner on the loan, and Atlanta-based Peachtree Group took back the loan in foreclosure last year Peachtree Group CEO Greg Friedman confirmed to Bisnow that his firm holds title to the property and is under contract to sell it Instead, Olympia Heights continued to refinance and increase its debt on the property until it secured a $40M bridge loan from Benmark in August 2022 Olympia Heights is run by Shaya Boymelgreen MIAMI BEACH – A duo “ransacked” a high-end store at a five-star Miami Beach hotel and stuffed nearly $2 million worth of Hermès handbags into garbage cans before driving off early Wednesday morning but officers were able to arrest at least one of the suspects before the day was over The daring heist happened just after 2:45 a.m located at The Setai hotel at 2001 Collins Ave Police said surveillance video showed a man wearing black pants and a yellow reflective raincoat getting out of a stolen work van An arrest report states that Eduardo Travieso Garcia was then seen getting out of the van and bringing a “large gray garbage bin” to the front door The other man brought another garbage bin to the front and placed it outside brought both garbage bins into the store and went to town running out of the store with the bins filled to the brim with at least 60 Hermès Birkin bags The bags typically retail for at least five figures a piece then one of the men got in the van and Garcia got into an orange Hyundai Santa Fe parked in a nearby lot and the pair took off Authorities were able to use license plate reader data to identify both vehicles Authorities in Hillsborough County had been looking for the Santa Fe in connection with a March 9 2023 Hillsborough County jewelry store heist “with almost the exact (same) modus operandi,” the arrest report states Garcia was the registered owner of the Santa Fe and detectives went to his house in the Olympia Heights area to bring him to police headquarters Wednesday evening Police said Garcia gave a “full confession” during an interview with detectives burglary and unlawful use of a communications device was being held in the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on a $100,000 bond A judge ordered he be held on house arrest if he posts bond The arrest report doesn’t state whether authorities identified his alleged accomplice or whether police recovered any of the bags Chris Gothner joined the Local 10 News team in 2022 as a Digital Journalist Rosh Lowe Samiar Nefzi Andrea Torres Saira Anwer – Miami-Dade County Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz said three people were shot on Thursday afternoon in the Glenvar Heights neighborhood’s warehouse area Leer en español the relatives of the victims at HCA Florida Kendall Hospital said a troubled man -- who had made threats before -- shot and killed his maternal brother Cordero-Stutz later confirmed the victim was the half-brother of the shooter was in stable condition while the gunman was in critical condition the shooter was identified as 49-year-old Roberto Leyva Deputies said at one point there was an exchange of gunfire and that a long rifle and a pistol were recovered at the scene A witness shared a video showing a man who was bleeding in the back of a pickup truck and later sitting outside with fire rescue personnel who wearing bullet-proof vests Related story: What we know about the shooter Lidia Amoretti-Morgado said she was driving her daughter to IDOL Cheer a gymnastics center for kids at 7310 SW 45th St. Children could be seen frantically searching for shelter on a business surveillance video as sirens blared and gunshots rang out in the latest outbreak of violence in what family members say is a long-standing dispute There’s a shooter over there,” one child is heard asking in patio surveillance footage provided by All About the Wow Florida Highway Patrol troopers also responded MDFR active call records show fire rescue dispatched 29 units including a helicopter that landed at the nearby Tropical Park Stadium The shooting and the massive law enforcement response that followed frightened parents with their children during Take Your Child to Work Day Related story: Mother describes fear during Miami-Dade active shooting on Take Your Child to Work Day: ‘I just ran’ a batting cage center; and All Purpose Training Alec Hyde said he was working nearby when he heard the gunshots and ran into a bathroom to hide with his coworkers who were in fear “We didn’t really have any control of the situation,” Hyde said “We locked the doors and just kind of sat there.” “It’s a lockdown situation,” said Gil Machado “I get a phone call from a former police officer — he says ‘You’ve got a live shooter in your neighborhood.’” the Glenvar Heights warehouse district remained on lockdown as deputies carrying long rifles moved cautiously between units a man was seen being dragged away by law enforcement SWAT came and busted down the door and got us out,” said Alec Hyed Witnesses said the terror unfolded quickly and felt dangerously close Related story: Deputies set up reunification center To help children meet with their parents after the shooting and during the investigation deputies set up a temporary reunification center at 7391 SW 44 St Deputies temporarily closed a neighboring area of Bird Road and Miller Drive near the Palmetto Expressway Local 10 News Assignment Desk Managing Editor Alissa Gross and Assignment Desk Editors Mercedes Cevallos and Joyce Ortega contributed to this report Breaking news coverage on Facebook Live after deputies report active shooter situation ended Copyright 2025 by WPLG Local10.com - All rights reserved Liane Morejon is an Emmy-winning reporter who joined the Local 10 News family in January 2010 Liane has a unique perspective on covering news in her own backyard Reporter Rosh Lowe has been covering news for nearly two decades in South Florida – Prosecutors have released surveillance video from what police said was a heist at a high-end store at a five-star Miami Beach hotel in March They said the perps stuffed nearly $2 million worth of Hermès handbags into garbage cans and took off and an accomplice are accused of breaking in swiping the bags and leaving in separate vehicles Police quickly tracked down Garcia by the license plate on his orange Hyundai Santa Fe That vehicle was also linked to a jewelry store heist in Hillsborough County that happened 10 days earlier with the same modus operandi — garbage bins and all When they tracked down the vehicle to Garcia’s home in the Olympia Heights area of southwest Miami-Dade police said he confessed to the crime and was arrested and charged with first-degree grand theft Police said the investigation remained open as of Monday Saira Anwer joined the Local 10 News team in July 2018 Saira is two-time Emmy-nominated reporter and comes to South Florida from Madison where she was working as a reporter and anchor Site activity at one of the most closely watched canker sores of vacant land in Atlanta sent the tip-line into a tizzy last week.  the cleared acreage at 98 14th Street has been pitched as the stage for a titanic high-rise development that changed shape enough times to make Tyler Perry seem like a static character According to developers—the last time they were speaking to Atlanta media—No2 Opus Place was scheduled to top out with 53 stories of glass-encased And there’s no indication that recent work at the site is the harbinger of No2 Opus-y things to come New York-based developer Olympia Heights Management switched the proposal from three towers to a single residential-hotel structure standing 730 feet and finally to the scaled-back condos that still would have marked Atlanta tallest residential building A ceremonial “groundbreaking” for the project was held just before Christmas in 2017 OHM couldn’t be reached for this story; a phone number listed for the Brooklyn-based company has been disconnected Our last viable contact for the No2 Opus Place project is unfortunately deceased Midtown Alliance officials had heard of nothing to indicate the project has a heartbeat—or what recent site activity might pertain to The last permit issued at No2 Opus Place’s property dates back to January 2020 The No2 Opus Place website has been dismantled Individual condo listings have long vanished from the market without notching any closings Price points bounced around over the years the building’s 182 condos were expected to start in the $600,000s Mammoth penthouses that attracted headlines as the most luxurious priciest condos proposed in Atlanta history dangled $12-million price tags at one point The building’s bonkers amenities called for two pools Those aspects helped attract dozens of pre-construction buyers who'd inked contacts OHM bought the four-acre 14th Street property for an even $22 million in 2014—the last transaction on file with the City of Atlanta OHM was still attempting to sell off a little more than half of that land to other developers; Cushman & Wakefield’s website no longer lists the parcels for sale Despite Midtown’s frenetic pace of development, buzz over No2 Opus Place has all but died in recent years. The project did attract headlines in March, when Bisnow Atlanta reported that architecture firm Perkins + Will was suing OHM for allegedly unpaid work invoices totaling about $800,000 $3-million sales center for No2 Opus Place materialized onsite but little else ever did Which means the project's tallest component to be realized was the full-scale model in that sales center—a luxurious mock condo with 10-foot ceilings • Recent Midtown news, discussion (Urbanize Atlanta)  Florida’s 27th Congressional District is home to the costliest and most competitive U.S pitting a Republican with two years of federal lawmaking experience against a Democratic state Senator with five years of legislating under her belt U.S. Rep. María Elvira Salazar, a decorated former TV journalist, is defending against state Sen. Annette Taddeo, a small business owner who made history in 2017 as the first Latina Democrat to win a seat in the chamber Both have roots in Latin American countries overrun by Marxist oppressors West Miami and a slew of unincorporated neighborhoods compose CD 27 The district has alternated blue and red since longtime Republican Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen retired in January 2019 It remains the most closely divided congressional district in South Florida the highest percentage for the voting age population anywhere in the state Both candidates performed strongly in the Aug Salazar took 81% of the vote against a lone opponent while Taddeo knocked off two adversaries with 68% of ballots cast in her favor Salazar was born in Miami to Cuban expatriates who escaped Fidel Castro’s communist regime while Taddeo fled Colombia as a teenager to escape communist terrorism produced an ad painting Taddeo in a similar light for participating in an April 2018 panel discussion on expanding health care access alongside several other local politicians and groups including the Miami chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America entered politics in 2018 to succeed Ros-Lehtinen but lost that year to Democrat Donna Shalala a former cabinet member in President Bill Clinton’s administration Fighting “leaders in Congress on the left (who) want to implement socialism in this country” is the top platform issue listed on her website establishing term limits for federally elected officials environmental protection and broadening access to education Taddeo, 55, leaned into her personal story this election cycle she underwent 19 surgeries to correct a cleft lip she fled to America — first to Alabama — after the Marxist guerilla group FARC kidnapped her father For nearly 30 years, she’s run LanguageSpeak a Miami-based translation services company when she unsuccessfully tried to unseat Ros-Lehtinen a moderate Republican with some liberal leanings She also ran as former Gov. Charlie Crist’s running mate during the 2014 gubernatorial race. She ran this year against Crist and Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried in the Democratic Primary for the Governor until June, when she switched to the CD 27 contest Her platform this election prioritizes access to affordable education and health care supporting measures to improve Florida’s water cleanliness protecting the environment and strengthening American democracy After reports arose of a voter registration scam in which Spanish-speaking Miami residents were tricked into switching their party affiliation from Democratic to Republican Taddeo led an effort to determine who was responsible She later convinced her Republican colleagues in Tallahassee to include language raising financial penalties for organizations whose employees alter voting registration forms without a person’s knowledge in legislation that will go into effect next year Taddeo has also been unafraid to criticize her own party at the local and federal levels. In February, she and Republican Miami Sen. Ileana Garcia teamed up to lead the Senate in opposing Biden’s removal of FARC from the U.S The vote cost her with the National Rifle Association, which gave her a “D” rating in September the lowest ranking the organization gave any member of the GOP The following month, she was among six Florida Republican members of Congress to vote for the Respect for Marriage Act to preserve national marriage equality She also earned praise for supporting a bipartisan resolution reinstating federal limits on methane emissions from oil and gas producers Her signature bill is the Dignity Act a 532-page package that would create a pathway to citizenship for migrants living in the country illegally The measure would create multiple programs through which undocumented residents can stay and work in the U.S The money collected would fund retraining programs for U.S workers and strengthen the southern border The bill has yet to gain any traction in the House which included a $12 million set-aside for DeSantis’ migrant-relocation program the authorizing language specified the funds were for moving migrants out of Florida Salazar also has perpetuated Trump’s false narrative there was systemic voter fraud in the 2020 election. Speaking on Miami station Radio Mambi on Jan. 11, 2021, she referenced a widely discredited conspiracy theory involving voter discrepancies in Pennsylvania Two years after Americans elected Biden as President, there is still no evidence of voter fraud widespread or systemic enough to have swayed the outcome of the election Taddeo raised $1.6 million and spent all but $45,000 of it by the beginning of November. Outside PACs provided assists, including actress Eva Longoria’s progressive PAC, Latino Victory Fund a PAC targeting vulnerable Republicans across the country Salazar carries into Election Day endorsements from most of her Republican peers in Congress, as well as nods from DeSantis the South Florida Council of Firefighters and National Association of Police Organizations Taddeo, meanwhile, has the backing of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Majority Leader Leader Steny Hoyer Eric Swalwell and Debbie Wasserman Schultz Her most newsworthy endorsement came from former Florida GOP Chair Al Cárdenas on Oct He said it was the first time in four decades he was backing a Democrat for Congress that’s now a precondition for supporting anyone running for office: Is your country more important than your particular career Jesse Scheckner has covered South Florida with a focus on Miami-Dade County since 2012. His work has been recognized by the Hearst Foundation, Society of Professional Journalists, Florida Society of News Editors, Florida MMA Awards and Miami New Times. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter @JesseScheckner This platform and all of its content are owned by Extensive Enterprises Media Publisher: Peter Schorsch @PeterSchorschFL © Copyright by Extensive-Enterprises 2025. All rights reserved. STAFF LOGIN 2023 at 3:34 pm CT.css-79elbk{position:relative;}Chicago Heights native Diego Origel was the recipient of the Evans Scholarship which is the primary beneficiary of the BMW Championship which will be held in August at Olympia Fields Country Club (Charles Cherney/BMW Championship)CHICAGO HEIGHTS IL — Diego Origel always planned on attending college and hoped that one day his dreams of a future in architecture which started as a boy designing and building structures with Legos would one day begin to take shape But that all changed when his father was in a serious car accident that left him with life-threatening injuries Origel — the youngest of two children who graduated from Bloom High School in Chicago Heights — was suddenly one of the men of the house he figured changed everything in terms of what his future looked like who started working as a caddy at Olympia Fields County Club eight years ago life changed again when the Evans Scholars Foundation which provides full-ride scholarships to caddies got the news that changed everything again Origel is now preparing to enter his third year at the University of Illinois Chicago where he is studying Urban Planning — just as he always hoped he knows none of that would be possible without caddying and the Western Golf Association's Evans Scholars Foundation to which all of the proceeds from next month’s BMW Championship at Olympia Fields Country Club will go the BMW Championship has raised more than $44 million for Evans Scholars which has helped to send more than 3,300 caddies to college 1,024 caddies will be enrolled at 24 colleges and universities around the country after the foundation awarded 325 new scholarships to students across the country who credits the program for helping him achieve his dreams of going to college even after his father’s accident put that all in jeopardy I knew college was not going to be an option for me,” Origel said Tuesday during the BMW Championship media day at Olympia Fields Although Origel’s parents —who came to the United States from Mexico ­— could not afford college themselves growing up they had always hoped for more for their two sons But with his father working in a steel mill and his mother working to help provide financial assistance Origel said that he had to rely on his work ethic to make a difference and to help provide for his family He said after starting as a caddy at age 12 at Olympia Fields he hustled every day to make a name for himself Origel said that caddying for club members quickly became his passion finding acceptance at the private club while finding meaningful work along the way Origel says everything changed when he found out that he had been accepted and that the foundation would cover all of his college tuition and housing costs The letter arrived just before Thanksgiving during his senior year at Bloom He delivered the news in front of his family at Thanksgiving informing his parents that their dreams of Origel and his brother attending college could actually happen “It affected my family as much as it affected me,” Origel told Patch on Tuesday “My parents would have done anything they needed to to get me and my brother to college I got the (Evans Scholarship) and wiped out that concern out for my parents ‘Our kids are going to college – this is amazing.’ “So that scholarship definitely helped out will draw the top PGA players to in an event that will help determine which 30 players advance on to the Players’ Championship tournament organizers said the event is bigger than bringing top-notch golf to the region the fact that the proceeds from the championship event go toward helping youngsters like Origel makes all the difference in the world “At the end of the day,” Bruni said Tuesday “we are in the business of changing lives.” That has certainly been the case for the long-time Olympia Fields caddy who began his 8th season at the country club in late April after finishing his sophomore year at UIC “It was never a summer job — it was more of me pursuing my dreams of college,” Origel said on Tuesday do what you love to do and you’re going to get rewarded for it." He added: “Caddying will always be in my DNA Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts. After months of mutual name-calling and accusations of impropriety María Elvira Salazar has won the right to serve for another two years in Florida’s 27th Congressional District With all ballots tallied by early Wednesday morning Salazar had 57.3% of the 237,345 votes cast compared to 42.7% for Democratic state Sen The outcome caps the costliest and what many predicted to be the most closely contested congressional race in South Florida this election cycle It also marks the first time in eight years a political party retained control of CD 27 which encompasses all or part of the Miami-Dade County municipalities of Miami The district also contains the unincorporated neighborhoods of Coral Terrace The General Election race for CD 27 pitted Salazar, a decorated former TV journalist with two years of lawmaking experience, against Taddeo, a small business owner who made history in 2017 as the first Latina Democrat to win a seat in the chamber Both candidates have long lived in Miami-Dade County Taddeo fled Colombia as a teenager to escape communist terrorism The move was an attempt to flip the script on the incumbent, who since her first run at public office has applied the “socialist” label to Democrats this year produced an ad painting Taddeo in a similar light for participating in an April 2018 panel discussion on expanding health care access alongside several other local politicians and groups entered politics in 2018 by running to succeed longtime Republican Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen She lost that year to Democrat Donna Shalala But she won their rematch two years later. As she continued to do this election cycle, Salazar targeted the district’s Spanish-speaking population frequently by radio, likening her opponent’s policy proposals to those of the Cuban oppressors and tying her to U.S Fighting “leaders in Congress on the left (who) want to implement socialism in this country” was the top platform issue listed on Salazar’s website this cycle She was also former Gov. Charlie Crist’s running mate during the 2014 gubernatorial race. Before switching to the CD 27 contest in June she ran this year against Crist and Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried in the Democratic Primary for Governor Taddeo’s platform this election prioritized access to affordable education and health care After reports surfaced of a voter registration scam in which Spanish-speaking Miami residents were tricked into switching their party affiliation from Democratic to Republican Taddeo spearheaded an effort to determine who was responsible Taddeo was also unafraid to criticize her own party. In February, she and Republican Miami Sen. Ileana Garcia teamed up to lead the Senate in opposing Biden’s removal of FARC from the U.S Her signature legislation is the Dignity Act Salazar also perpetuated Trump’s false narrative that there was systemic voter fraud in the 2020 election. Speaking on Spanish-language Miami station Radio Mambi on Jan. 11, 2021, she referenced a widely discredited conspiracy theory involving voter discrepancies in Pennsylvania Taddeo raised $1.6 million and spent all but $45,000 of it by early November. Outside PACs provided assists, including actress Eva Longoria’s progressive PAC, Latino Victory Fund Taddeo, meanwhile, had backing from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Majority Leader Leader Steny Hoyer The website FiveThirtyEight offered a less sunny forecast for the challenger it gave Taddeo an 8% chance of winning based on 40,000 simulations of the election Early voting in Miami-Dade didn’t help to brighten matters for Taddeo as more Republicans than Democrats casted ballots ahead of Election Day Jesse Scheckner has covered South Florida with a focus on Miami-Dade County since 2012. His work has been recognized by the Hearst Foundation, Society of Professional Journalists, Florida Society of News Editors, Florida MMA Awards and Miami New Times. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter @JesseScheckner Fate of the tallest skyscraper slated to rise in Atlanta has been mired in uncertainty for years New details have emerged for what many consider Atlanta's most anticipated—and perhaps most elusive—tower development For years, the multi-tower Opus Place project has been shrouded in uncertainty, leading some observers to wonder if it will ever happen New York-based developer Olympia Heights bought the Midtown project site some five years ago and has teased—and postponed—a number of construction timelines Most of the hubbub surrounding the ambitious project has centered around plans for No a proposed 55-story building that would house 195 luxury condos—many of which have already sold per developers—above seven floors of office space at 98 14th Street Olympia Heights’s director of developments Roni Avraham shared yet another new timeline for No noting that trees on the property have been felled Construction is scheduled to begin in earnest in November The tower would top out in January 2022 and be finished in October 2022 Yates Construction was recently tapped to perform site work—as well as some design assist work, according to Bisnow But Olympia Heights still needs to enlist a general contractor something officials told Curbed in December would be happening in early 2019 2 Opus Place would be the centerpiece of what’s been billed as a massive project it could also share the site with another tower or two the developer definitely wants at Opus Place: “We want to have a WeWork-style community office space restaurants—expensive ones and cheap ones,” he tells Curbed the site could house around 600 or 700 residences But with the way things have gone for eagerly awaited No New York developer has changed plans around what could be Atlanta’s tallest residential sky-rise New York-based developer Olympia Heights Management is bringing a substantial portion of Midtown’s No. 2 Opus Place project site back to the market, according to an Atlanta Business Chronicle report 2 Opus Place would be Atlanta’s tallest residential building the firm has launched efforts to find developers for the remaining 2.2 acres around the focal-point tower project That piece of the four-acre site is sizable enough to house more than a million square feet of additional office space—not including the seven floors of office space planned for the 55-story condo tower—plus apartments and retail Cushman & Wakefield is heading marketing efforts for the 2.2-acre portion of the site (A Cushman & Wakefield representative told Curbed Atlanta the firm was unable to comment further at this time.) What this news means for the feasibility of the lone tower project isn’t clear Observers have been skeptical of the ambitious plans along 14th Street since Olympia Heights purchased the property more than five years ago Previous plans have called for a 74-story main skyscraper and an elaborate art gallery on the site The developer secured a land disturbance permit and launched preliminary site work in late 2017 but few signs lately suggest the Perkins + Will-designed tower is set to ascend soon Olympia Heights’s director of developments Roni Avraham told Curbed that onsite trees had been removed and that construction was supposed to begin in earnest this past November That timeline would have put the centerpiece tower’s topping-out in January 2022 Avraham was not immediately available for comment 2021 at 9:12 am CT.css-79elbk{position:relative;}The store will be closed from 2 p.m officials of a Walmart in Olympia Fields told Patch the store will be closed from Tuesday afternoon until Thursday morning for a deep cleaning According to a spokeswoman for the company Walmart has been temporarily closing stores across the country to allow for increased sanitizing in between busy days officials said the pharmacy will be open for drive-thru pickup only All pickup customers were told ahead of time and urged to use the drive-thru or reschedule their pickups until Thursday "Everything we're doing is for the well-being of our associates and the thousands of customers we serve daily and in consideration of guidance by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and health experts," a spokeswoman for the company said in a statement which includes fully vaccinated people wearing masks in public indoor settings in counties with substantial or high transmission." A third-party company will be in charge of cleaning the store and few select staff members will restock empty shelves and take inventory during the break While Walmart does not have a mask mandate for customers the company said stores located in areas where masks are required will have to abide by local rules All unvaccinated staff members are required to wear face coverings while at work workers are offered a $150 bonus once they become fully vaccinated Walk-in vaccine appointments are also available to customers "We will continue working closely with elected and local health officials adjusting how we serve the community while also keeping the health and safety of our customers and associates in mind," officials said Sign up below to receive our newest workout routines With the right plan and the right discipline you can get seriously shredded in just 28 days "Big Bill" shares his wisdom to dominate one of the ultimate strength marks Follow these fit women we're crushing on for inspiration I guess expectations are pretty low,” said Gibson “You just go to see where you fit in or where you rank Being under the bright lights and facing the pressure that comes with competing doesn’t bother Gibson, though. She’s been in serious situations far beyond the stage as a member of the United States Air Force She was inspired to join by her then boyfriend’s mom and dad A post shared by Stephanie Gibson (@s.gibson03) “My now husband’s parents were in the military. His dad was in the Army, and his mom had just retired from the Navy. That made interested in going that route because I was just tired of trying to make ends meet. I needed more stability, guidance, and structure.” Staff Sargeant (soon to be Technical Sargent) Gibson has also been under the hot sun of the Middle East having taken part in two deployments overseas since joining the Air Force in 2015 While the location she was deployed to was considered more Westernized than other parts of that region there was still times that weren’t exactly comfortable for her I was definitely not put at ease because I knew other groups that didn’t necessarily like Americans were around,” she admitted she pointed out that there were positives to that part of the world as well “I saw and learned more about their culture and I actually enjoyed being immersed in their way of living.” Aside from her future promotion to Technical Sargeant Gibson had also received the Air Force Achievement Medal for Outstanding Achievement and for Meritorious Service She is now in her eighth year of serving her country She credits her background in fitness for helping her be in the best position possible to fulfill her commitments I’m not falling out and I’m not having to go to the hospital all the time I’m able to go on temporary assignments or deploy While she may have been looking for structure and stability in the beginning learned that there was more to joining the Armed Forces than making a career choice you’re here to do a job greater than me and greater than an ordinary job,” she explained “This is to protect my country and protect my family.” A post shared by Latinos in Uniform ™ (@latinosinuniform) While fitness may help her excel in her current role her connection to that went back far beyond her decision to join “My dad was a bodybuilder and started taking me to the gym at 13 years old She also ran track and danced in high school but competing in a bodybuilding show was a matter of “when,” not if That when came in 2019 when she and her husband both entered the Dennis James Classic in 2019 Gibson won both Figure Novice and FIgure Class A at that contest Asante won the Classic Physique Overall as well it was very motivating to do another show.” “It was really hard to do that prep because I had never done a long prep like that before It ended up being 20 weeks of prepping,” she recalled “I was so used to feeding my body after a show Gibson made the first callout at the Olympia and placed in the top three at the end of the weekend in Orlando That automatically qualified her for the 2022 Olympia which is set to take place in Las Vegas on Dec Gillon is the heavy favorite to win her sixth title but Gibson expressed no doubt that she will eventually receive the gold medal herself someday or showing support for her followers who face challenges Gibson goes back to what has helped her reach the point she is at today which she said helped her throughout her journey “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” As one of America’s finest and an elite Olympia competitor including fans that hope to follow in footsteps similar to hers as well as those she works with “I get to be an example for the airmen underneath me and even those above me,” she said proudly I get to be an example that this lifestyle is possible Follow Stephanie on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and on LinkedIn @s.gibson03. His latest mission is to help people work on achieving physical and mental fitness Lance Brauman has helped sprinters like Noah Lyles become world champions Hyperbaric chambers are just part of this super-middleweight’s high-level regimen Mayor Lacey Beaty recently ran in the Shamrock Half Run Fest This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page 2 Opus Place is (still) slated to be the city’s tallest residential high-rise 2 Opus Place have news to share about the 53-story condo tower that’s been slated for years to punctuate Midtown’s skyline the skyscraper would be the tallest residential high-rise in Atlanta development officials told Curbed Atlanta above-ground construction should start in earnest by September or October Requests for updates in recent weeks haven’t been fulfilled However, this week the Atlanta Business Chronicle learned the ever-changing Perkins+Will-designed building is now primed to include 214,000 square feet of office space The lower 17 floors would house No. 2 Opus Place’s office space, per the revised plans. (The Sovereign tower in Buckhead has a similar composition Above the offices would be 182 condos; 30 percent of which are already under contract according to sellers associated with developer Olympia Heights Prospective buyers expecting to have lower-level units would actually end up higher and Olympia Heights officials were still in talks with a general contractor about beginning the ascent Vertical construction is now slated to kick off in early 2019 with a possible 2021 completion date Since the development plans have been so spotty—the developer said in May the project could be delivered in 2020 for instance—skyline-watchers of Atlanta should take that projection with a grain of salt It’s been five years since news of a massive project planned for the site emerged and two years since the “Opus” branding was revealed 2 Opus Place called for a 74-story hotel-condo hybrid but 20 stories were lopped off the plans in early 2017 when the hotel component was nixed Catering Insight Nisbets says it has ambitious growth and development strategies to take its Olympia brand to “greater heights” – with a new product launch regarded as the start of that campaign The company has just rolled out a new Olympia Fondant tableware range a mix and match porcelain collection designed to suit both stylish and more relaxed settings The range features four pastel colours and uses a reactive glaze to ensure that no two items are the same giving the collection a hand-crafted look to enhance food presentation said: “The Olympia brand has experienced impressive growth in recent years and is well above pre-Covid levels.  “This is due to several initiatives by the team at Nisbets with customer-focused new product innovations continued commitment to delivering high-quality products as well as a focus on product availability – these have all driven Olympia’s success in the marketplace “But what’s perhaps even more exciting is that Nisbets has big plans for Olympia’s future Ambitious growth and development strategies are sure to take the brand to even greater heights and introducing the Fondant collection marks the beginning of these efforts.” The Fondant range is covered by a lifetime edge-chip warranty while plates and bowls are stackable thanks to their lipped rim The innovative design of the range means that the saucers are slightly bigger than average This feature allows for more creative plating options and the ability to customise table settings Link Copied!The way Serena Williams has reached immense heights in tennis and business her daughter Olympia is following rightfully in her footsteps as well Just recently it was announced that the tennis sensation’s elder daughter Alexis Olympia Ohanian Junior has signed a massive deal with an entertainment studio It’s awe-inducing how early in her age she has risen to fame it all comes down to a doll that was made after being inspired by Olympia and now an entertainment studio wants to begin a partnership with the junior Williams to take it to the next level Featuring Grammy-nominated Johnny Goldstein on the track Qai Qai is voiced by none other than Sydn.ey Elise Russell A post shared by Qai Qai (@realqaiqai) The young sensation performed impeccably in Frozen and The Lion King on Broadway and among her many fans is Olympia Williams “Olympia loved seeing Sydney Russell perform on Broadway in The Lion King and is so excited to listen to her sing as Qai Qai on the upcoming album Watching Invisible Universe and Republic Records: Kids & Family make this first song a reality has been amazing This album is truly one of the milestone achievements for her daughter and we are nothing short of certain that there will be more of them to come This is not the first big deal though that Qai Qai has collected with Olympia’s backing They have also previously partnered with Adobe and Invisible Universe as well as to create art that resonates with the dreams they have about their future Also read: ‘He Is Not Loved’ – Fans Take Vicious Swipe At Novak Djokovic As He Fails To Claim ATP ‘Favorite’ Award In Roger Federer And Rafael Nadal’s Absence The digital coloring book highlights five primary careers and they are small business owner Olympia’s father Alexis Ohanian also stated “I know one thing four years ago that was really important to us was to make sure that Olympia had a Black baby doll.” Who knew a doll would lead to something so massive and meaningful Watch This Story: Distressing Serena Williams Reality Leaves Gaping Void That’s Nearly Impossible to Fill for Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek EssentiallySports is a digital-first sports media house that surfaces the best stories on America's favorite sports celebrities with a fan's perspective to 30+ M average monthly readers. Full Spectrum Services LLP © 2025 | All Rights Reserved and a successful two-term Governorship of California the Austrian Oak hasn’t been able to evade criticism in his life One such aspect that has been the subject of debate is his height In a recent picture that he took with another 7x Mr his height sparked an intense discussion once again posed with Phil Heath after a drilling workout session together at Gold’s Gym and fans started noticing the peculiarity of Schwarzenegger’s height as compared to Phil Heath’s While there could be a myriad of reasons for that including a forced perspective of the camera it didn’t stop fans to start a debate under the comments section Heath was particularly praiseworthy of the Terminator star in his caption READ MORE – “Definitely Needed This Interaction”: 7X Mr. Olympia Pens a Heartfelt Note to His Hero Arnold Schwarzenegger While Training Together at the “Mecca” carrying the high standards of health and wellness being a top priority so that he can thrive in all areas of his life To train beside him was awesome…” But putting all those credits aside some people couldn’t ignore the discrepancy in their heights as opposed to the common notion Fans flooded the comments section after seeing the two bodybuilding legends posing together Most commented on the height difference between the two Many still claim the Austrian has been telling a tall tale Since common knowledge says Schwarzenegger is 6’2″ there was bound to start a back-and-forth in comments wrote another fan replying to the above-mentioned fan A post shared by Phil Heath (@philheath) not that hardly anyone in America counts barefoot heights anymore” wrote another fan down in the comments section with the same observation as many others before him irrespective of the debate on just his height Watch this story | From Arnold Schwarzenegger to Ronnie Coleman, Here Are the Top Bodybuilders With the Best Nicknames