Florida fires back on union restrictions
With a federal judge poised to hear arguments next week, the state is fighting an attempt to block key parts of a new law that places additional restrictions on public-employee unions. Attorneys for the state filed a 66-page document Friday urging Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker to reject a request by teachers unions to issue a preliminary injunction against parts of the law that include preventing dues from being deducted from workers’ paychecks. [Source: News Service of Florida]
Florida Trend Exclusive
Florida Icon: Mike Boylan
The weather blogger, storm chaser, and creator of Mike's Weather Page tells us: "Floridians are resilient, and that can be a problem. They think they can handle anything. They’ve been through storms before and they remember when a forecast was wrong, so they don’t always evacuate when they should. I call it the cry-wolf syndrome. Another thing is people focus too much on where the center is projected to make landfall. The effects can be well outside the center line — and the effects well inland can also be devastating." [Source: Florida Trend]
Gas prices rising in Florida — just as vacationers hit the road. Here’s what to know
Just as school is out and South Florida families are hitting the road for summer vacation, gas prices are up this week. Gas has increased nearly 6 cents a gallon in the Miami area over last week, and even more across Florida. The average price for a gallon of gas in Florida on Tuesday, according to AAA, was $3.47, up 9 cents a gallon from last week. [Source: Miami Herald]
Florida SBA lending market readies itself for more competition
The SBA lending sector, which for some banks has been a profitable and prolific source of activity, is poised to get a bit more crowded. In Florida, for starters, two new SBA lending entities have recently entered the market. One is Sanibel Captiva Community Bank, which recently announced it’s expanding to SBA loans, including SBA 7(a) and 504 loans and SBA express lines of credit. The other is Fort Lauderdale-based OptimumBank, which, in a statement, says it seeks to “fund the production of $25 million in SBA loans” in fiscal 2023. [Source: Business Observer]
Florida's rural land protection program touted
The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services is encouraging farmers and ranchers to apply for a state-funded program designed to keep swaths of rural property from commercial and residential development. The department will accept applications through July 27 for its Rural and Family Lands Protection Program. Created in 2001, the program involves purchasing conservation easements, which allow landowners to continue farming and cattle operations in exchange for not developing the property. [Source: News Service of Florida]
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
› Lower fuel costs to trim FPL bills
Florida Power & Light customers will get a break starting in July. State regulators Tuesday approved a plan that will trim FPL customers’ bills because of lower-than-expected costs of natural gas used to fuel power plants. The approval by the Florida Public Service Commission came after more than a year of volatility in fuel prices that helped drive up bills for customers of FPL and other utilities — but in recent months has allowed FPL to begin passing along savings.
› Jacksonville City Council pulls incentives bill for JinkoSolar expansion
The Jacksonville City Council has withdrawn a bill that would have awarded JinkoSolar U.S. $2.6 million in tax incentives in the wake of reports that federal officials served a search warrant May 8 at the company’s West Jacksonville facility. The Council voted 18-0 on June 13 without discussion to pull the bill from consideration. The legislation had been postponed the day after the reported federal activity.
› Miami Beach canal’s poop pollution is off the charts. It’s been that way for years
University of Miami engineering professor Helena Solo-Gabriele spent part of 2022 assessing the persistently foul water that flows in Miami Beach’s Park View Island Canal, site of a once popular and long-closed kayak launch. Her findings? Well, they only confirmed what residents have complained about for years— the canal has a severe and pervasive poop problem.
› The Florida Orchestra announces a new CEO. Here’s what to know about him.
The Florida Orchestra announced today that Ignacio Barrón Viela is its new president and CEO. He starts in August. Former CEO and president Mark Cantrell announced in February that he would be leaving to become the CEO of the Colorado Symphony in Denver. He departed in April.
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› North Port to consider budget without tax rate rollback, despite big property value rise
Despite a 16.9% increase in property values, the North Port City Commission is considering a proposed 2023-24 budget that would keep the current property tax rate, which would produce $30.75 million in revenue. That would be roughly $4.2 million more in property tax revenue than collected this year.
› USF approves $340 million plan for Bulls’ on-campus football stadium
The school’s board of trustees voted Tuesday to authorize $200 million in debt to build a 35,000-seat stadium north of the practice facilities. The other $140 million will come from various sources: $50 million in donations through the school’s private fundraising arm, the USF Foundation; $31 million from the capital improvement trust fund (which generally pays for facilities through student fees); and $59 million from other funds, including the sale of broadband equipment and licenses.
› Jacksonville issues permit for almost century-old Ford plant demolition
The historic Ford Motor Co. plant is cleared for demolition. The city issued a permit June 12 for ELEV8 Demolition to raze the 98-year-old former factory in the riverfront Talleyrand area near Downtown. Duval County property records show the plant is about 170,000 square feet built in 1925, although some reports say it opened in 1924.
› Details unknown about developer's plan for 235-apartment building in downtown Melbourne
Last June, an national real estate investment firm issued a press release announcing The Vues, a future 235-apartment complex rising from the triangle of vacant land at New Haven and Strawbridge avenues near the foot of the Melbourne Causeway. But one year later, Melbourne City Hall officials say they haven't heard word from the Orlando landowner, Real Estate Inverlad Development, on any future plans for the high-profile property.