Metro I-4 News

Tampa Tribune:

• For the start of hurricane season, Grocers are stocking up on generators. Not to sell, but to use - [Publix] is almost finished with a $100 million project to install permanent backup generators that run on diesel at stores considered “hurricane-prone.” That means nearly every Publix store in Florida, coastal Georgia and South Carolina. Other Publix sites have been rewired so portable generators can be plugged in quickly.
• The city of Tampa is renewing its efforts to dump less of its reclaimed water into the Bay and instead get more of the water onto the yards of Tampa residents. Mayor Pam Iorio said Monday she wants to consider building a small wastewater plant in New Tampa to get reclaimed water to the northern reaches of the city.
• Elsewhere, Hundreds of people congregate at the parks during the kickball games. The police department has heard complaints about trash in nearby yards, parking issues, drinking, drug abuse and fights. On April 13, the city made nine drug arrests linked to the kickball games, police spokeswoman Andrea Davis said. Those girls who play kickball say the city is discriminating against them because they are minorities.
• OPINION - The editorial board likes the local baseball team - Watching the Rays shred their losing image recalls those heady days when the Tampa Bay Bucs starting winning consistently. It has taken a long time, but the region’s baseball fans finally have a home team to cheer about.

The Ledger:

• School Board to Vote on School Lunch Price Hike - Facing rising food and gas prices, Polk County School Board members will vote today on increasing lunch prices for elementary and high school students.
• News: Wildfire Danger in Polk Heats Up With Drought - Five weeks without any substantial rain has raised the wildfire danger in Polk County. The drought index, which the Florida Division of Forestry uses to estimate danger, has climbed above the 400 mark, the point at which forestry officials expect to begin having serious problems.
• OPINION - Talk’s Cheap, Price Isn’t - Well, now we know: The estimated cost to build a new headquarters for Polk County School Board personnel to consolidate staff and services is $126 million. The amount is expected to be discussed at a School Board work session scheduled for this morning in Bartow. This poorly timed topic should drop off the radar screen as quickly as it appeared.

Orlando Sentinel:

• News: INFERNO: The Orlando Sentinel is all about the wildfires, and they are keeping track of all the news surrounding them on the Florida fires breaking news blog.
• OPINION - Crist shouldn’t veto some projects that can help stimulate the economy - It’s now up to Gov. Charlie Crist to pore over the budget approved by lawmakers and weed out projects — the boondoggles and monuments to legislative ego — that were tucked into the spending plan.