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FRIDAY, AUG. 22, 2008
TAMPA BAY:
Home Builders 'Buy Now' Message Rings True
Columnist James Thorner: For people scalped by the real estate market the past couple of years, few promotional campaigns grate more than the Never Been a Better Time to Buy mantra.
But it is harder to scoff at the latest pitch by the Tampa Bay Builders Association. Yes, builders are once again reassuring us it's a good time to mortgage our future on a pile of concrete, shingles and 2 by 4s.
But I think they've got most of the facts on their side this time. Read on for more ... [Source: St. Petersburg Times]
NORTH FLORIDA:
Fay Bedevils Florida for 5th Weary Day (Tracking Map)
Tropical Storm Fay continued its slow, wet trudge across Florida for a fifth day Friday, prompting communities farther inland and on the state's Gulf coast to brace for what could be drenching rains.
The erratic storm has dumped more than two feet of rain along parts of Florida's low-lying central Atlantic coast.
It is the first storm in nearly 50 years to make landfall in Florida three separate times. Before it crosses the Panhandle by the weekend, it will bring buckets of rain and power outages.
Isolated tornadoes were possible in parts of northeastern Florida, the National Hurricane Center said.
In Gainesville, hurricane shelters were open while schools and government buildings were closed. Two people drowned in heavy surf Thursday as the storm came ashore in Flagler Beach.
President Bush issued a federal disaster declaration Thursday for the affected parts of Florida, as residents fled floodwaters that drove alligators and snakes out of their habitats and into streets.
8 a.m. NOAA update: Fay is moving toward the west near 6 mph and this general motion is expected to continue for the next day or two. The center of Fay is expected to continue crossing the Northern Florida peninsula today. Winds remain near 45 mph.
›Latest Tracking Map | 5-Day Forecast
›If your home is flooded, here's what to expect in filing a claim
›Storm watches, warnings issued for the Panhandle
›Big Bend braces for flooding from Fay
›The latest from Associated Press
›PHOTOS: Impact of Fay
ORLANDO:
New Bank in Florida Will Expand Its Reach
A new Clearwater bank, led in part by a team of Orlando bankers, plans to raise $50 million to expand its network into Orlando, Tampa and Jacksonville, officials said Thursday.
Anderen Bank has identified sites for two new branches in Orlando and one each in Tampa and Jacksonville, organizers said. The bank is seeking regulatory approval and hopes to open the offices later this year. Also in the works: a private stock offering to raise capital for the expansion.
Executives said the timing was right for a "fresh face" on the banking scene, despite the economic downturn and crisis in the financial sector triggered by the mortgage meltdown. [Source: Orlando Sentinel]
EVERGLADES:
Judge Urged to Restore Ban on Rock Mining
Since May, when an appeals court overturned a Miami federal judge's injunction, rock miners have been free to blast in thousands of acres surrounding Miami-Dade County's largest supply of drinking water.
On Thursday, environmentalists urged Senior U.S. District Judge William Hoeveler to quickly reimpose the mining ban while he reconsiders the long-running case -- a step the federal government called unnecessary and the industry argued would again overstep his legal authority.
The judge, whose rulings criticized the Army Corps of Engineers for lax oversight in issuing permits to mine 5,700 acres near the Everglades, said he would decide how to proceed in a month.
The hearing was the first since the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals lifted a ban Hoeveler imposed in July 2007, citing ''grave concerns'' about health risks to the Northwest well field.
[Source: Miami Herald]
More on this topic from Florida Trend:
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
›Planned Orlando Surf Park Wipes Out [Orlando Sentinel]
Tourists will not be surfing in Orlando anytime soon.
Festival Bay Mall has given up on the original deal for the Ron Jon Surfpark, a partially built International Drive attraction slowed by repeated delays in the four years since it was announced. Also, Cocoa-based Ron Jon Surf Shop has pulled its name from the project, and the attraction's developers say they need more cash before they can continue.
›Orange County to Drop Lawsuit Against S. Fla. Water Management District
Orange County officials will drop a controversial lawsuit against the water agency that turned down its application to take 7 million gallons of water a day from lakes in the southern end of the county, officials confirmed Thursday.
›Medicare Hid Fraud, Report Says [Miami Herald]
A federal report suggested that Medicare deceived Congress by ordering auditors to ignore the agency's own policies to detect fraud, waste and abuse.
From Trend: Fraud Inc.
›Stumping for Obama, Clinton Calls for Unity [Sun-Sentinel]
Hillary Clinton appealed in person Thursday to hundreds of her staunchest South Florida supporters to end grieving about her lost presidential bid and help send Barack Obama to the White House.
"We may have started on two different paths, but we are on one journey now," Clinton said.
›Is Crist Threat Letter Linked to McCain's? [Miami Herald]
State investigators are trying to find out who sent a threatening letter to Gov. Charlie Crist in an envelope filled with a white powdery substance.
›FPL Fights Fay Across State [Palm Beach Post]
Florida Power & Light Co. crews continued their cat-and-mouse game with Tropical Storm Fay on Thursday, restoring electricity to thousands of customers even as others lost service to Fay's slow slog across the peninsula.
›First Look at Orlando's New Performing-Arts Center [Orlando Sentinel]
A great steel roof, resembling the outstretched wings of a bird in flight, will draw visitors into the new Dr. P. Phillips Orlando Performing Arts Center, scheduled to open in 2012 across Orange Avenue from Orlando City Hall.
›Florida No. 49, Miami 51 in Magazine's Annual University Rankings [Sun-Sentinel]
Florida's universities still aren't getting much respect from U.S. News & World Report. But UF did make the Sierra Club's list of top green schools. Also: Rollins stays No. 1 - UCF makes Up and Coming list in college rankings
›Property Auction Fails to Land Many Bidders [Sun-Sentinel]
The 26-building Villas of Lauderhill had plenty of company at the public auction in Broward. Nearly all the foreclosed homes and condominiums offered during the traditional "courthouse steps" fire sale failed to attract buyers.
›Tech Data Grows in Flat Information Field [Tampa Tribune]
Despite a tough economy, Clearwater technology distributor Tech Data Corp. posted another quarter of growing sales and profits.
Net sales for the company's second quarter ended July 31 were $6.2 billion, a second-quarter record and an increase of 9.8%.
›Worker Fatalities Down in U.S., Up in Florida [St. Petersburg Times]
Of the nation's 5,488 deaths in '07, 362 took place in Florida, up from 360 in 2006.
›Many Disabled Forced to Cope With Reduced State Funds [St. Petersburg Times]
The 31,000 people statewide who now receive an uncapped amount of money each year will be grouped into four categories, each with a different limit. That means some people will get less money.
›NCL Lays Off Shore Workers [Miami Herald]
Norwegian Cruise Line laid off 145 shore employees globally on Thursday as part of a cost-control and reorganization effort as it grapples with higher fuel costs and a downsizing of its fleet over the next two years.
›Lake O Surpasses 12 Feet for First Time Since January '07 [Palm Beach Post]
Lake Okeechobee is three-fourths the size of Rhode Island and contains, at capacity, an astounding 1 trillion gallons of water.
It takes a staggering amount of rain to raise the level by even 6 inches. Tropical Storm Fay did it in two days.
›Tampa General Hospital Faces Medicare Sanctions [St. Petersburg Times]
In the wake of two recent suicides at Tampa General Hospital, federal regulators are threatening to stop Medicare funding to the hospital, citing serious safety problems in its psychiatric unit.
›Miami's Interval Leisure Group Valued at $885 Million [Miami Herald]
Miami-based time-share firm Interval Leisure Group began trading as a stand-alone public company after the split of Barry Diller's IAC/InterActiveCorp.
›Lack of Cash Hurts NASA's Tech Plans [Orlando Sentinel]
In 20 of 22 projects -- ranging from heat shields to fission power -- some form of "corrective action" is needed to meet President Bush's goal of returning astronauts to the moon by 2020, according to a panel of space experts for The National Academies, the country's top scientific-advisory group.
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