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City of Austin celebrates old Home Depot site demolition, prepares for more affordable housing

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:28:59 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The City of Austin hosted a celebration Saturday morning to mark the redevelopment of the former site of the Home Depot store in north Austin.The site, located at 7211 N. Interstate 35, is officially called the St. John Site. That location held significant historical importance for the Black community, according to an announcement from a group representing that modern community. The site’s roots trace back to the 1890s when the St. John Regular Missionary Baptist Association obtained 350 acres north of Austin to establish a freedman community with the St. John Industrial Institute and Orphanage as its anchor, according to the city.The city acquired the site in 2008 and worked with the St. John community to create a plan, which was adopted in 2020.According to a City of Austin release announcing the demolition, the city planned a free, family-friendly event for Saturday that featured live music, local performances, children’s activities and breakfast tacos.P...

Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell talks running back Kareem Hunt’s visit

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:28:59 GMT

Less than 24 hours after a source confirmed to the Pioneer Press that veteran running back Kareem Hunt indeed visited the Vikings, head coach Kevin O’Connell talked openly on Saturday about the possibility of him being on the roster.“Just trying to build the relationship and gain a little bit more information,” O’Connell said. “Maybe a potential fit on our football team.”Though general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has a previous relationship with Hunt dating back to their shared time with the Cleveland Browns, he did not sign the 28-year-old, who has also visited the New Orleans Saints and the Indianapolis Colts over the past week.It’s pretty clear what Hunt would bring to the mix as a primary backup to starter Alexander Mattison. He was the NFL’s leading rusher as a rookie in 2017, finishing with 1,327 rushing yards while playing for the Kansas City Chiefs. He was cut in 2018 after a video surfaced of Hunt kicking a woman in a hotel.Aft...

'It's a monster!' Teen catches 108-pound catfish near Spanish Lake

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:28:59 GMT

SPANISH LAKE, Mo. - Joshua Jones Jr. is taking it all in after a recent midnight miracle on the Missouri River. Just a few nights ago, Joshua reeled in a 108-pound catfish from the river near Spanish Lake. Inspired by a contest, and with support from his father, Joshua made new memories behind a once-in-a-lifetime catch. The waters of the Missouri River near the Spanish Lake community sounded peaceful on Saturday afternoon. Around midnight on Wednesday, that wasn't the case. ‘Time of use’ rates could mean higher electricity bills for millions in Missouri Joshua had dozed off after a big night of fishing out on the river. Suddenly, he felt something unique. “I was sleeping when the fish got on, so it kind of woke me up," said Joshua. "And then I felt the pull and drag, which really woke me up." It took about 20 minutes of fighting the line, but backed by two others, Joshua was able to reel in a monster-sized catfish and get it on the boat. (Photo provided by: Joshua Jones Sr.)...

St. Louis festival goers brave the heat at Francis Park

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:28:59 GMT

ST. LOUIS - Saturday was a hot and humid day, but that did not stop families from gathering at the 13th Annual Grub and Groove Festival in Francis Park.  With temperatures peaking in the 90s, FOX 2 asked people at St. Francis Park how they tried to stay cool.“Lots of breaks in the shade, and there’s a bubble bus that helps a little bit. Lots of water and definitely a cold beer helps too,” said Monica Shripka.  16 hurt in Lake of the Ozarks boat explosion For families with young ones, like for Carrie Heaney and her baby, there are a few extra steps needed to stay cool.  “We’ve got her little stroller fan, we’ve got her little baby thermos, and mom’s got a little beverage as well," said Heaney. "We're staying in the shade, lots of shade at Francis Park." Many visitors had similar ideas to beat the heat. “This park has a lot of trees, so as long as you’re sitting still in the shade, you’re pretty comfortable. But once you get that sun, it does get hot,” said Shripka. “We’ve got the c...

Redbird Rookies get new backpacks, supplies to prepare for new school year

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:28:59 GMT

ST. LOUIS - In preparation of the new school year, Cardinals Care handed out backpacks full of school supplies Saturday to children involved with the Redbird Rookies program. Cardinals Care gave out the backpacks as part of a distribution and health fair. Those involved with the Redbird Rookies programs also received various baseball-themed prizes. The fair also offered free health screenings, nutritional information, and family-friendly activities. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Cardinals (Seasonal) SIGN UP NOW The Redbird Rookies program offers free non-competitive baseball and softball programs for children between the ages of 5 to 13 years old. Kids in the program came out to celebrate this year's accomplishments. For more information on Redbird Rookies, ...

Kiszla: When the madness in college football ends, will Colorado and CSU have seats at the big-boy table?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:28:59 GMT

All the madness in college football foretells a hard truth: The NCAA must die.The NCAA was born way back in 1905 with the laudatory goal of preventing college football from killing its participants.Well, more than a century later, college football is fixing to kill the NCAA.The ideals of amateurism on which the NCAA was founded are dead. For better or worse, college football is a professional sport. What’s education of the student-athlete have to do with it? Nothing.So let’s stop the charade and quit pretending it’s anything more high-flalutin’ than everyone chasing the bag, as CU coach Deion Sanders so astutely observed.There might be a place for NCAA bureaucrats to play playground monitor in overseeing swim meets or field hockey tournaments, but it’s time for college football to grow up, treat its players like employees, sign them to three-year contracts and end the transfer portal nonsense.This madness, with the Colorado football program testing free agency in the same mann...

Colorado nature photographer and environmentalist John Fielder dies

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:28:59 GMT

Renowned Colorado nature photographer and longtime environmentalist John Fielder died Friday after a long battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 73.In January, Fielder donated some 6,000 photos — edited down from more than about 200,000 negatives and digital scans — he had taken since 1973 to History Colorado. His personally selected life works are archived at the state’s official historical society and part of the public domain.“I have decided to donate my life’s work of photography to you, the people of Colorado,” Fielder said in a bylined opinion-piece published in The Denver Post on Jan. 20.“Humanity will not survive without the preservation of biodiversity on Earth, and I have been honored to use my photography to influence people and legislation to protect our natural and rural environments,” Fielder said in the editorial. “I am humbled that these photos have spurred the passage of the 1992 Great Outdoors Colorado Trust Fund Initiative ...

Bright orange X's on buildings signal search for bodies after deadly Maui fire. HR for human remains

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:28:59 GMT

LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — The grim work of tallying the dead after a ferocious wildfire on the Hawaiian island of Maui came into sharp focus Saturday as crews picked through the devastation, marking homes with a bright orange X to signal they had searched for bodies and HR when they found human remains. At least 80 people perished in the inferno that swept through the centuries-old town of Lahaina on Maui’s west coast. As the homes that remained standing got their marks, residents who barely made it out alive returned to take an inventory of their loss.“Most of our focus will be on humans today,” Gov. Josh Green said Saturday as he and representatives of the Federal Emergency Management Agency stood under the scorched branches of an old, treasured banyan tree on historic Front Street. Green said operations were now centered on “the loss of life.” The fire reduced hundreds of homes to ash, sending emergency workers scrambling Saturday to find temporary housing for those lucky enough to ...

SF Giants’ latest bid to fix offensive woes: Sage, Palo Santo, incense

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:28:59 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — Mark Mathias had a headache.Set to start his first game at Oracle Park, where he grew up attending games, the Fremont native took a seat in the dugout Saturday a few hours before first pitch. He needed some fresh air — a break from the overpowering scent wafting from the batting cages behind the dugout.That aroma, Mathias learned, was that of incense, sage and Palo Santo wood, courtesy of hitting coach Justin Viele.More than a month in to the majors’ worst team-wide slump, the Giants have gone from the analytical to the spiritual. From tee work to chi work.“JV, he’s into that sort of thing,” said manager Gabe Kapler, who let out a hearty chuckle at the idea. “Sage is funny. It smells good.”Hey, maybe he’s onto something.“Yaz was out there taking a live batting practice session today. JV had the sage out, and Yaz was taking some good swings,” Kapler said of outfielder Mike Yastrzemski. “So, who knows?”Now, it...

Maui fires: Bay Area residents hold moment of silence at Aloha Fest, as others recall harrowing escapes

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:28:59 GMT

For two agonizing days, Sean Pasin’s desperate attempts to reach his two young children and their grandfather, separated from the rest of the family during the mayhem of the deadly Maui wildfires, went nowhere.The Mountain View family’s Hawaiian vacation turned into a nightmare last week after Pasin, his wife Xenia and two other family members left the others back at the hotel to stop by a grocery store in Lahaina, the historic tourist town now decimated by the blaze.As Pasin and the rest arrived at the store, the fire appeared contained. But without warning, thick plumes of smoke suddenly blacked out the sky as roaring flames blocked the route back to the Marriott. Cell service went dead — and just like that they were stranded overnight inside their rental car at a Walmart parking lot, Passin recalled Saturday.“We were totally worried,” said Pasin, 49, of his two sons, 15-month-old Luke and 7-year-old Matthew, and their grandfather. “What are they goin...