The Naples Daily News reports that the county's Productivity Committee said Tuesday that it could not validate the economic viability of the proposed project based on currently-available data. The committee recommended two funding options if county commissioners decide next week to proceed with the project, both of which would require a referendum: Issuance of bonds or a combined increase in both the sales tax and property tax rate.
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An independent report submitted to Collier County shows that the Ave Maria development has had a positive fiscal impact, both in capital and operating costs, to the county during the last five years. The report was required as part of a process that evaluates the impact of a Stewardship Receiving Area every five years until it is mostly built out.
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 The Ave Maria Blvd. entrance to Ave Maria has reopened after being closed for about a month for the widening of Oil Well Rd. Work on the widening project is said to be on schedule, with at least another year before its completion.
 Pulte Homes now is selling a 3,500-square-foot home with six bedrooms which will be built in an area of the Emerson Park neighborhood of Ave Maria. Many current and prospective residents have been asking for a larger floorplan for years.
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Faster speeds are now available in the Ave Maria area for accessing the internet and other data services on the AT&T wireless network. AT&T has enabled 3G technology on the Ave Maria cell tower, as well as on two other sites near Immokalee.
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A Michigan judge has ruled that a lawsuit by a former Ave Maria College employee can include Ave Maria University as a defendant as a "successor" institution. The ruling means that the suit by Kate Ernsting, alleging wrongful dismissal, can move forward.
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Several teens from the Ave Maria community performed in a recent Opera Naples production of HMS Pinafore. Above, from right, Anthony Dittus, Marcello Marsalli, Paul Dittus and James Bean with Alex Bourzutschky.
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The failure Thursday night of a federal bill that would have extended increased Medicaid payments to the states has implications for the effort to build a Jackson Laboratory facility near Ave Maria. The state of Florida was counting on that money for its preliminary $50-million contribution to the project.
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The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools has announced that it has granted full accreditation to Ave Maria University.
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 The Ave Maria Oratory council of the Knights of Columbus is sponsoring a community 4th of July celebration from noon to 4 p.m. at the water park.
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More than 30 young swimmers from the town of Ave Maria are participating in the local Swim Florida program.
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Edison State College is said to be considering building a charter high school next to the Jackson Laboratory facility, if the research institution is constructed near Ave Maria.
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A number of uncertainties hang over the plan to build a genetics research facility near Ave Maria, including how or if Collier County can come up with the $130 million it will need to contribute. Funding from the state of Florida also is questionable.
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Ave Maria University will again be host to a conference for high school students, July 9-11. The conference, which will feature talks, adoration, entertainment and other activities, is open to all high school students from rising freshmen to seniors.
Click here for more information from the organizers
Gov. Charlie Crist, as expected, vetoed a bill sponsored by local state Rep. Matt Hudson that would have banned taxpayer funding for elective abortions and required ultrasounds for women seeking an abortion in the first trimester of pregnancy. "I am very disapponted," Mr. Hudson said in a statement.
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Click here for pdf of statement from Rep. Hudson
The National Catholic Bioethics Center (NCBC) has released a summary of the opinion it provided to Tom Monaghan, saying there would be "no moral obstacle" to selling his half-interest in land that might be donated for construction of the research facility near Ave Maria. The current status of the project is that Collier County officials have to determine whether to contribute $130 million to go ahead with it.
Click here for the text of the NCBC letter
Click here for latest on the project overall from the Naples Daily News
In a meeting so fractious that one of the major topics involved a proposal to review rules for public participation, the board of supervisors also dealt with several safety and administrative matters. Longtime board member Herbert Cambridge also announced his intention to resign from the board due mainly to the illness of his wife.
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The proposed budget for the Ave Maria Stewardship Community District budget for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1 has no major changes from the current year, and there is no increase in residents' assessments. The proposed budget will be discussed at the district meeting June 8, along with a proposal to increase water rates and several other topics, including issues relating to safe operation of golf carts on district roads.
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A competitive swim club for children and teenagers in Ave Maria is being organized. Brian Scanlan, the AMU athletic director, is holding an information meeting for parents at 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 8, at the university Visitor's Center. The club, which will compete against 11 other Swim Florida clubs, is co-ed and open to good swimmers up to age 18.
Click here for a pdf of an informational flyer.
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