New ownership: The Advocate has purchased the News Orleans-based weekly newspaper Gambit and its website www.bestofneworleans.com. The financial terms of the deal—announced today in a story published jointly by The Advocate and Gambit—were not disclosed. Owners John and Dathel Georges bought the weekly from Margo and Clancy DuBos, who’ve owned the paper since 1991. Gambit will continuing publishing. The Advocate says the weekly paper will relocate from its current New Orleans office to a building near The New Orleans Advocate headquarters on Lee Circle this summer. Gambit will be printed at The Advocate’s print facility in Baton Rouge. Read more.
Nuts and bolts: The Capital Region Builders Association’s annual Building and Remodeling Show is from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday at the Lamar Dixon Expo Center in Gonzales. The event, open to the public, includes seminars on kitchen and bath design, home building challenges and other related topics, as well as more than 125 vendors from across the state. Tickets cost $10 at the door and $10.50 when paying online in advance. However, attendees can use a $2 off promo code to purchase tickets at a discount in advance of this weekend’s event. Children under 12 can attend for free when accompanied by their parents. Get more information.
A new record: The U.S. consumer watchdog is seeking a record fine against Wells Fargo & Co for auto insurance and mortgage lending abuses, three sources with knowledge of the plans tell Reuters. Mick Mulvaney, head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, is pushing to levy a fine as high as $1 billion against Wells Fargo. The figure dwarfs the $100 million the CFPB fined Wells Fargo in September 2016 to settle its phony accounts scandal. Read more.
