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Bithlo, Florida

Census-designated places in FloridaCensus-designated places in Orange County, FloridaFormer municipalities in FloridaGreater OrlandoPages with plain IPA
Populated places disestablished in 1977Unincorporated communities in FloridaUnincorporated communities in Orange County, FloridaUse mdy dates from July 2023
Orange County Florida Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Bithlo Highlighted
Orange County Florida Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Bithlo Highlighted

Bithlo is a census-designated place and an unincorporated community in Orange County, Florida, United States. The population was 8,268 at the 2010 census, up from 4,626 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee Metropolitan Statistical Area. The Bithlo Post Office opened in 1922. For 20 years in the early 20th century, Bithlo was an incorporated town, but in 1929 ceased to function as a town due to economic hardship. By 1941, the town council meetings had ended and in 1944 the Okeechobee Railroad Branch was abandoned. After the end of World War II, the town became known as a waste dump and pollution site. It was in 1970 when the residents of Bithlo petitioned the state legislature to revoke the town's charter. The city was finally unincorporated in 1977, an act which was not finalized until 1982 due to outstanding bonds and legal problems.Bithlo is the location of several of the broadcasting towers for the digital television stations in the Orlando-Daytona Beach-Melbourne market. It is also home to Bithlo Park and the East Orange Babe Ruth youth baseball and softball program, one of the premier youth baseball and softball programs in Central Florida.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Bithlo, Florida (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Bithlo, Florida
12th Avenue,

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Wikipedia: Bithlo, FloridaContinue reading on Wikipedia

Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 28.55 ° E -81.1 °
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Address

12th Avenue 18746
32833
Florida, United States
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Orange County Florida Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Bithlo Highlighted
Orange County Florida Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Bithlo Highlighted
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WFTV

WFTV (channel 9) is a television station affiliated with ABC in Orlando, Florida, United States. It is owned by Cox Media Group alongside independent station WRDQ (channel 27). Both stations share studios on East South Street (SR 15) in downtown Orlando, while WFTV's primary transmitter is located near Christmas, Florida. Channel 9 began broadcasting as WLOF-TV on February 1, 1958, after a four-year application process; it brought full three-network broadcasting to Central Florida. The call sign changed to WFTV in 1963. It was originally granted to the Mid-Florida Television Corporation, owned by the Brechner family and other investors. However, the same year the station went on the air, it was discovered as part of investigations into corruption at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that an Orlando attorney had made unethical ex parte contact on behalf of Mid-Florida to FCC commissioner Richard A. Mack. The resulting investigation triggered more than two decades of proceedings that swung between the FCC, a federal court of appeals, and the Supreme Court. A wide range of issues came under discussion, including what Mid-Florida knew about the ex parte contact; what preference should be given to minority ownership of broadcast stations; and the character of a lawyer who was partially paralyzed in a murder-suicide and indicted on gambling charges in the same week. Under a court order, Mid-Florida ceded operational control of WFTV in 1969 to Channel Nine of Orlando, Inc., a consortium of the five companies vying for the full-time broadcast license. After enduring a fatal collapse of its tower in 1973 and returning to full power in 1975, WFTV rode the rising fortunes of the ABC network in the late 1970s to become the top-rated station in Central Florida. The five companies agreed to a settlement, approved in 1981, that gave all of them varying shares of the station and ended what was then the longest proceeding in FCC history, filling 55 volumes. Many of their 67 shareholders became millionaires when SFN Companies purchased WFTV in 1984 as part of its expansion into the broadcasting industry. SFN made a $60 million profit within a year by selling the station to Cox in 1985. Cox moved the station to newer, larger studios at its present site in 1990. Although it has faced renewed ratings competition since 2000, WFTV continues to lead ratings in the Orlando–Daytona Beach market.