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Wednesday's Afternoon Update

Owners of Florida homes, businesses set for jolt from higher electric bills starting in January

State regulators Tuesday approved utility costs that will translate to higher electric bills in January for homeowners and businesses — and the pain won’t end there. Bills will go up in January for many customers of Florida Power & Light, along with customers of Duke Energy Florida, Tampa Electric Co. and Florida Public Utilities Co. They likely will increase again in the spring because of high costs of natural gas used to fuel power plants. More from the News Service of Florida.

Frost Science hunts nationally for CEO

The Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science is set to immediately start searching for its new CEO and president after Frank Steslow announced he will step down in the first quarter of 2023. The Frost Science Board of Trustees plans to launch a national search, which will be led by the museum’s Board Executive Committee. Mr. Steslow will remain active as CEO throughout the search to ensure a smooth transition. More from Miami Today.

SpaceX Florida launches and booster landings delayed

Two SpaceX missions that were set to fly with less than 12 hours between them have been delayed to later this week and possibly beyond, scrubbing the likelihood of back-to-back launches – and booster landings – for the time being. The Space Coast does often see back-to-back launches, but not back-to-back landing attempts. Not all missions are eligible for return to landing site, or RTLS, since enough fuel needs to be left over after launching spacecraft. More from Florida Today.

Pinellas transit agency: Where’s our $600,000?

Every day, hundreds rely on Pinellas County’s on-demand transportation service for the elderly and people with disabilities to get around town. The Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority works with the Washington-based software company GOIN’ to coordinate those rides, including collecting co-pays and working with providers like Uber and Lyft. But for over a year, the company has held onto passengers’ fares instead of remitting them to the county transportation agency, leaving the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority owed more than $600,000, agency officials said. More from the Tampa Bay Times.

Project Opioid sends double-strength naloxone to downtown Orlando amid rising overdoses

As powerful synthetic opioids like fentanyl continue to drive overdose deaths in Central Florida, traditional overdose-reversal methods aren’t working anymore. Naloxone, sold under the brand name Narcan, has been used for years to temporarily reduce the effects of opioid overdoses, restoring breathing and consciousness to an unconscious person within minutes. It can be injected or used as a nasal spray. More from the Orlando Sentinel.

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End of an Era
Tampa’s oldest bike business, Joe Haskins Bicycle Shop, to close this month

Joe Haskins wanted to retire. “He was months into trying,” wife Michelle Calonge-Haskins said. “I wish he would have so we could have spent more time together.” Before they could, he died at 79 on March 21, 2021. That’s why she knows Haskins would approve of the family’s decision to shutter Joe Haskins Bicycle Shop, which he had owned since 1960.

» More from the Tampa Bay Times.

 

Profile
Christine Duffy was rejected as a flight attendant. Now, she runs Carnival Cruise Line

When she was a teenager, Christine Duffy dreamed of being a flight attendant. But that career goal was squashed when Pan American Airways rejected her for being too short. “This was in the ‘80s, that was a very glamorous job at an international airline,” she said. “But you had to be 5’4’’ to be a Pan Am flight attendant. And I was not!” Duffy went on to wear many hats in the travel industry — from receptionist to CEO of a business travel company and from lobbyist in Washington to her current position as president of Carnival Cruise Line, one of South Florida’s most iconic brands.

» Read more from the Miami Herald.