Fuji Asian Bistro brings taste of Far East to Southeast /C1 THURSDAY TODAY CITRUS COUNTY & next morning HIGH 83 Mostly cloudy. 80 LOW percent chance of thunderstorms 76 PAGE A4 www.chronicleonline.com JUNE 6, 2013 Florida’s Best Community Newspaper Serving Florida’s Best Community 50¢ VOL. 118 ISSUE 303 Tropical storm forms in Gulf morrow,” Eckstein said Wednes- Andrea to bring torrential rains ■ For updates on Tropical day night. “Hope nobody had any Tropical Storm Storm Andrea, check the outdoor plans.” Andrea is the first named Chronicle’s storm of the 2013 Atlantic MIKE WRIGHT casters did not expect it to Facebook page or Eckstein said some flooding the sheriff’s office blog, hurricane season. Staff writer strengthen to a hurricane. could be expected in areas prone 5:30 pm EDT, June 5. Forecasters issued a tropical citruseoc.blogspot.com. for high water, such as Ozello, La. Ga.Ala.Mis. 300 mi The young hurricane season’s storm warning for a swath of parts of Homosassa and Crystal 300 km first named storm formed Florida’s west coast starting at rain, said Capt. Joe Eckstein, who River. Eckstein also said residents Tropical Storm 30° Andrea Fla. Wednesday evening in the Gulf of Boca Grande, an island to the heads the county’s Emergency should keep an eye on the Mexico, promising a wet and northwest of Fort Myers, and end- Operations Center. 3:21 p.m. high tide in King’s Bay. Gulf of BAHAMAS windy Thursday in Citrus County ing in the Big Bend area of the Eckstein said forecasters ex- The county is not opening sand- Mexico CUBA and across the Florida west coast. state. pect to issue a tornado watch this bag locations, though that could 20° Tropical Storm Andrea was ex- Citrus County is under a flood morning that could last much of change if Andrea’s conditions MEXICO Caribbean pected to make landfall sometime watch and tropical storm warning, the day. Sea 80° today in the Big Bend area. Fore- and should expect 2 to 5 inches of “It’s pretty much a bad day to- See STORM/ Page A5 SOURCE: NOAA AP Nuke plant decommissioning under way Complex, costly process ahead PAT FAHERTY Staff writer The lengthy, complex, costly process of closing the Crystal River nuclear plant is under way. While decommissioning will not officially begin until Nuclear Reg- ulatory Commission requirements are met, Duke Energy Florida has a transition organization in place led by director Terry Hobbs. It also has a trust fund to finance the process and redeploy- ment plans for ■ Property some of the af- Appraiser fected workers. Geoff Though the Greene’s decision to re- experts said tire the plant, Duke’s tax known as CR3, value has came Feb. 5, the been fund for financ- understated ing decommis- in the past. sion dates back /Page A3. MATTHEW BECK/Chronicle to 1982 and in- The decommissioning has started at the Crystal River area nuclear plant. It is an expensive, complicated process, which volves the nine includes workforce reduction. minority co-owners. Duke owns 91.8 percent of the plant and the other owners have separate decommis- sioning trust funds relating to their Proposed Levy nuclear plant could have joint owners percentage of ownership. Co-owners include the city utili- PAT FAHERTY carried an obligation to maintain a de- of 2024 for the first unit, with the sec- ties of Alachua, Bushnell, Staff writer commissioning trust fund, according ond unit following 18 months later. Gainesville, Kissimmee, Leesburg, to the participation agreement. Early in planning for the proposed Ocala and New Smyrna Beach, When its retirement came, the Crys- Just as multiple smaller partners Levy plant, Progress Energy Florida along with Orlando Utilities Com- tal River nuclear plant had 10 owners, were included in the ownership of estimated decommissioning costs at mission and Seminole Electric with Duke Energy the majority holder. CR3, as the now-closed nuclear plant $747 million. Cooperative. A similar arrangement could be used for is known, a similar joint ownership In April 2011, Progress Energy pro- According to PSC filings, the planned Levy County nuclear plant. has been considered for the Levy vided an update to entities that had Progress Energy Florida and the Having a share of the Crystal River plant. That project has an estimated expressed continued interest in joint other co-owners certified to NRC nuclear plant, even as small as the .04 cost of between $19 billion and $24 bil- funds would be available to percent owned by the city of Bushnell, lion and has a tentative in-service date See OWNERS/ Page A5 See NUKE/ Page A2 Floral City man has vivid memories of D-Day Although 69 years have passed, their blockbusters up the road Allies hit Normandy 69 years ago today the memories of that time are that made a crater 15 feet deep still vivid. and 75 feet wide,” he said. “They were trying to hit a bridge to NANCY KENNEDY Nazi Germany. “We came on the second day,” block our supplies. There was a It was D-Day, and by day’s end Potter said. “The Germans were Staff writer paratrooper hanging in a tree — the Allies got a foothold, but in all in a cliff, and the Navy con- FLORAL CITY — On June 6, the process lost more than 9,000 centrated their fire on that cliff See D-DAY/ Page A5 1944, despite the rough sea and men. However, more than 100,000 until we could get through with terrible weather conditions, soldiers began the march across supplies.” Earl Potter is one of the fortunate 160,000 Allied troops, supported Europe to defeat Hitler. Potter, now 90, said it kept rain- Americans who lived through the by more than 5,000 ships and Floral City resident and Tampa ing and they had to dig foxholes invasion of Normandy, known as 13,000 aircraft, landed along a 50- native Earl Potter was in the sec- deep enough to make a shelf to D-Day, the beginning of the end of mile stretch of the coastline ond wave of troops that came to sleep on. World War II. at Normandy, France, to fight Normandy to help liberate France. “The Germans dropped one of NANCY KENNEDY/Chronicle Classifieds . .C7 Community . .C4 INDEX Lottery Numbers . .B3 Obituaries . .A6 Comics . .C6 Editorial . .A8 Lottery Payouts . .B3 TV Listings . .C5 Crossword . .C5 Entertainment . .A4 Horoscope . .A4 Movies . .C6 PAID ADVERTISEMENT CRYSTAL AUTOMOTIVE GROUP Crystal Automotive Group PAYS CUSTOMERS INTEREST Homosassa, FL Crystal Automotive Group has agreed to This time Crystal decided to pay every Ted Nipper, Director of Finance was the most popular models first. To take pay every customer’s interest for the customer’s total interest for the length of quoted, saying “Our goal is to get everyone advantage of having Crystal pay all of your length of their loan. Every new or used car their loan. If you are currently paying qualified for this program.”* interest for the term of the loan visit any sold in the next three days will qualify to any interest on your car – STOP. Come Regardless of past credit history this is one of their five locations in Homosassa, have the entire interest paid by Crystal to Crystal Automotive Group today. Buy the public’s chance to stop paying interest Inverness, and Brooksville. This offer is so Automotive group for the length of the any new or used vehicle, and we will pay on their car loan. “This deal almost sounds special it can not be combined with any loan. your interest for the term of the loan.” like its too good to be true. So Crystal other offers. “After last month’s record-breaking sales said Mr. Lamb with a big smile on his Automotive has set up a hotline where you “Crystal Automotive Group is still just event, I knew that showing customers just face. can get all the information at 800-584-8755. trying to show people how easy it is to buy how easy it is to buy a car would make a With over 700 new or used vehicles to All interested customers are encouraged a new vehicle today,” stated Mr. Lamb as difference. So I decided to do even better this choose from, there is a vehicle in every to call for all information regarding this he shook the hand of another customer month.” states Justin Lamb, Director of price range. With certified vehicles program. With an amazing event like this leaving in their new car. Operations for Crystal Automotive Group. starting at only $5,888. Crystal Automotive Group is sure to sell *Customer must qualify for 5-year financing at 4.99% APR. 000F4JU A2 THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2013 LOCAL CITRUS COUNTY (FL) CHRONICLE SCORE partnering with mall PAT FAHERTY costs. There is also a stage Staff writer area for entertainment. Bresnahan said SCORE LECANTO — Citrus will vet the applicants who County SCORE is partner- can sign up on the chapter’s ing with the Crystal River website. She said they can Mall to provide opportuni- qualify for extremely at- ties for both new and grow- tractive rent for a maximum ing businesses. of two years. Each business The chapter, which will be a SCORE client and dates back to 1994, had its have a mentor assigned. annual awards luncheon “We want to do some- Wednesday. thing that will create traf- “We feel it’s better to have fic,” said Braatz. “We are someone in a mall than a not going to be a flea mar- mall that’s just empty,” said ket.