March 28, 2024

Tuesday's Afternoon Update

What you need to know about Florida today

| 7/18/2017

Walmart opens massive e-commerce fulfillment center in Polk County, creating 1,500 jobs

Walmart

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has officially opened an e-commerce fulfillment center in Polk County that will eventually employ more than 1,500 people. The fulfillment center in Davenport, Florida, includes two buildings and totals more than 2 million square feet - or the size of 20 football fields. More than 550 people have already been hired, and Walmart said Tuesday that there are plans to hire "least 1,000 more" in the next year. See the news release from Walmart here (includes photo gallery). Also read more at the Tampa Bay Business Journal.

Foreign investment in U.S. homes hits record high

Foreign home buyers in the U.S. have been most active in Florida, California and Texas. Florida alone accounted for 22% of foreign activity, fueled a great deal by an upswing in Canadian buyers. From the National Association of Realtors:

This year’s survey once again revealed that foreign buying activity is mostly confined to three states, as Florida (22 percent), California (12 percent) and Texas (12 percent) maintained their position as the top destinations for foreigners, followed by New Jersey and Arizona (each at 4 percent). Florida was the most popular state for Canadian buyers, Chinese buyers mostly chose California, and Texas was the preferred state for Mexican buyers.

More from CNBC, the Financial Times, and Mansion Global.

Insurance companies challenging Florida "track down" law

A year-old law in Florida requires life insurers to keep track of their customers who die and then track down the beneficiaries if a claim hasn’t been made. When the law passed, sponsors estimated that state residents could be entitled to up to a billion dollars. More from the WCTV.

Computers are back on the list for Florida back-to-school tax holiday

On Aug. 4-6, consumers will pay zero tax on hundreds of items, from clothes and shoes ($60 or less) to school supplies ($15 or less) to computers ($750 or less), according the Florida Department of Revenue. See the full list of all tax-free items here (PDF). Be sure to understand the rules though. According to the FAQ sheet, if a person buys a computer valued at more than $750, the first $750 is NOT tax-exempt. Read the FAQs here. Also read more at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel and the Miami Herald.

Eight properties in Jacksonville sell to Canadian firm for $53 million

A Canadian real estate firm has paid for than $50 million for eight Jacksonville properties. Ivanhoe Cambridge, a global firm with headquarters in Montreal, announced last week that it had purchased a portfolio of more than 150 industrial properties in 18 markets from TPG Real Estate. More from the Florida Times-Union.

Health Care
Nicklaus Children's Hospital opens new Advanced Pediatric Care Pavilion

floridaPatients of Nicklaus Children’s Hospital’s three intensive care units and its hematology-oncology and neurology-neurosurgery units have moved into the hospital’s newly opened Advanced Pediatric Care Pavilion, a six-story 213,000-square-foot tower featuring the latest technical and family-centered advancements.
» Full story here. [Sponsored report]

Economic Backbone
The Universal/Disney battle heats up

florida originalsFor nearly a decade now, Walt Disney World and Universal have been engaged in an increasingly expensive arms race. It began in 2010, when Universal opened the $265-million Wizarding World of Harry Potter, which, almost overnight, transformed a struggling, second-tier resort into a true competitor to Disney.

» Access full story.

Tags: Daily Pulse, Afternoon Pulse

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Bitter-to-swallow cocoa costs force chocolate shops to raise prices
Bitter-to-swallow cocoa costs force chocolate shops to raise prices

Central Floirda chocolate shops are left with a bitter taste as cocoa prices hit an all-time high earlier this week.

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