Wednesday's Top Stories

WEDNESDAY, NOV. 25, 2009

DELAND:
From China, with Dollars?

Volusia County's next tourism boost might not come from familiar sources like bikers, breakers and stock car racing followers. Instead, local business and government officials are looking east -- Far East. A delegation of local leaders assembled by the Daytona Beach Area Chamber of Commerce returned from a recent trip to China and urged the Volusia County Council last week to get in on the "ground floor" of a new relationship that could open up a wealth of partnership opportunities with the Asian country. [Source: Daytona Beach News Journal]

OCALA:
Taylor Bean and Colonial Bank Failures Could Cost Freddie Mac $1B

Federally run home loan guarantor Freddie Mac said the ripple from failures of Ocala-based Taylor, Bean & Whitaker and Colonial Bank exposes it to more than $1 billion in potential losses. In a regulatory filing Monday with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Freddie Mac — the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. — said exposure to Taylor Bean-related losses could keep swelling. Taylor Bean was forced to close its doors and lay off more than 1,000 people in Ocala in August amid an inquiry into its loans warehoused through Alabama-based Colonial Bank, at the time one of the biggest banks operating in Florida. [Source: St. Petersburg Times]

TALLAHASSEE:
State Agency Clears PSC After Ethics Inquiry

State police Tuesday cleared the Public Service Commission of alleged ethics improprieties as consumer advocates and others gathered to push sweeping changes in ethics laws governing the regulatory agency. The state police inquiry and commission ethics workshop come in light of criticism in recent months that agency officials are "cozy" with the utilities they regulate. [Source: Sun Sentinel]

Five companies want to scan the South Atlantic floor for liquid gold. Four plan seismic surveys from Brevard County to Maine. While current debate headed for the Legislature in 2010 centers on the Gulf of Mexico, drilling off Florida’s east coast, though more challenging and costly, could be feasible, industry experts say. But environmentalists see the same risks as drilling off the Gulf Coast, with much lower chance of reward. They point to a less oil-friendly geology and several now-idle exploratory wells drilled a quarter century ago off Jacksonville. [Source: Florida Today]

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Supreme Court Will Hear Beach Renourishment Case [Washington Post]
Homeowners challenged the program because it comes with a catch: The new strips of beach belong to the public, not the property owners. They feared their waterfront view of bleached sand and sea oats would include throngs of strangers toting umbrellas and coolers.

› 8,000 More Panels and It's Done [Fort Myers News-Press]
It's been one delay after another, but Florida Gulf Coast University's solar farm is just weeks from completion. Also: Venice considers solar subsidies

› Jacksonville Civic Leader Schultz Dies [Times Union]
Frederick H. Schultz, prominent Jacksonville civic leader and investment banker who worked tirelessly to reform public education, died Monday. From Trend: Icon Fred Schultz

› Political Heavyweights May Testify Against Sansom [Times/Herald]
Marco Rubio and ex-Senate President Ken Pruitt could be called as witnesses in the House case against Rep. Ray Sansom, according to new documents that foreshadow a high profile, politically charged spectacle.

› Nestle to Buy Tampa Beverage Company [Tampa Tribune]
The company Nestle is acquiring has been re-engineered and now does $230 million a year in custom beverage sales.

› Hedge Fund Was Doing $75M Per Month with Rothstein [Sun Sentinel]
Investors who wanted to get into Fort Lauderdale businessman George Levin's hedge fund, which was buying legal settlements from attorney Scott Rothstein, had to put up a minimum of $1 million. Column: Cars, politicians: Lawyer collected both with fervor

› Developer Snaps Up 115 Condos Near Lake Worth [Post]
The Dizengoff-Trading Group, which is based in Israel and has an office in Boca Raton, closed on the units Nov. 16 at a cost of about $56,650 each. Sarasota/Bradenton: Condo sales soar 120%

› Nelson Says He's Certain Health Woes Linked to Chinese Drywall [Daily News]
Sen. Bill Nelson said it seems self-evident that respiratory ailments and bloody noses can be blamed on gases seeping from bad drywall.

› Shuttle Atlantis Leaves Space Station, Headed Home [AP]
Atlantis is scheduled to land Friday morning at the Cape.

› Highest Jobless Rate in 34 Years Causes Drop in Consumer Confidence [UF News]
Florida’s consumer confidence fell three points to 69 in November amid continued concerns over the state’s high unemployment rate, according to a new University of Florida survey.

commentary
›Mothers Know Best: Pols Are Ruining Education [Orlando Sentinel]
Scott Maxwell: News broke last week that mothers in this state teamed up to sue the state of Florida and its alleged leaders for its shabby funding of the state's education system.