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Thursday's Afternoon Update
What you need to know about Florida today
Florida jobless claims see post-holiday bump
First-time unemployment claims in Florida ticked up after the holidays, while the national total dipped slightly. The U.S. Department of Labor on Thursday said an estimated 7,110 jobless claims were filed in Florida during the week that ended Jan. 7, up from 4,238 during the week that ended Dec. 31 and from 4,579 during the week that ended Dec. 24. Last week’s total was the highest since the week that ended Nov. 5, when 7,412 claims were filed. More from the News Service of Florida.
Jacksonville adds clawback for Four Seasons hotel tax incentives
Jaguars owner Shad Khan will get a six-month extension for building a planned Four Seasons Hotel and Residences on the downtown riverfront as part of an amended contract that would claw back millions of dollars in future taxpayer incentives if the hotel switched from the Four Seasons to another brand during its first five years in business. More from the Florida Times-Union.
Obamacare is everywhere in the unlikeliest of places: Miami
On its face, the program’s outsize popularity in South Florida remains one of its most intriguing data points. The evidence is visible in every Obamacare logo deployed — not just on storefronts but on trucks, flags and billboards — to sell health insurance, as agents in the crowded local market jockey to enroll people. This year’s open enrollment period ends on Sunday. More from the New York Times.
Fringe ArtSpace opens in downtown Orlando
With acrobats, living statues and a particularly nerve-racking ribbon-cutting for anyone afraid of heights, Fringe ArtSpace opened to the public in downtown Orlando on Wednesday evening. “We’re happy to be here and happy to bring the space to what it needs to be,” said Orlando Fringe board president Doug Davis. Best known for its annual Loch Haven Park theater festival each May, Orlando Fringe will manage the space at 54 W. Church St., which is leased from the city. More from the Orlando Sentinel.
Tampa’s Florida Aquarium just had its best attendance since it opened in 1995
The Florida Aquarium just saw its best attendance since it opened at the edge of downtown Tampa 27 years ago. In 2022, nearly 925,000 people poured into the conservation-based facility along Tampa’s port, according to a news release this week. That’s closing in on the 992,000 visitors that came through the doors in the first 12 months after the facility made its debut back in 1995. Aquarium officials pointed to new exhibits and big plans for the future. More from the Tampa Bay Times.
Health Care Trends
A First in the Southeast for UF Health
UF Health is the first system in the Southeast to acquire a linear accelerator (or “linac” machine) that enables personalized cancer treatment by combining a detailed MRI with precision radiotherapy. With the Elekta Unity MR-Linac — which features a magnet 30,000 times stronger than Earth’s magnetic field — physicians can see and track changes in tumors smaller than a staple in real time, as well assess a patient’s response to treatment and adapt it if necessary.
» More from Florida Trend.
Business Profile
Common Dialect Beerworks opening in Tampa’s Seminole Heights
A new brewery hoping to connect people over beer is opening this week in Seminole Heights. Common Dialect Beerworks will open Friday on Florida Avenue, complete with a taproom and brewery that makes India pale ales, lagers, stouts, sours and seltzers. The owners hope the brewery can help introduce people to the art of craft beer. They’ll also serve non-alcoholic beverages and wines.
» Read more from the Tampa Bay Times.
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