Tuesday's Afternoon Update

What you need to know about Florida today

| 12/26/2017

2017: A year of uncertainty and record-breaking real estate deals

In 2017, luxury global real estate markets had to jump a lot of hurdles, maybe none more than South Florida's, which had to grapple with mother nature in addition to market forces. Hurricane Irma struck Florida in September, causing between $32 billion and $50 billion in insured losses across the U.S. and the Caribbean. More from Mansion Global.

Don Hahnfeldt, Republican lawmaker, dies

Central Florida Republican Don Hahnfeldt, elected to the state House last year after a Navy career that included commanding nuclear submarines, has died. After a 32-year military career, Hahnfeldt moved to The Villages. In 2016, he was elected to the Florida House. More from Florida Politics and the Tampa Bay Times.

Weighing in on Miami’s entrepreneurial ecosystem

Two years ago, Cambridge Innovation Center announced it would be expanding to Miami, taking most of the space in the University of Miami Life Science & Technology Park, which is now called Converge Miami. And at that time it made a bold prediction: that it would quickly become a hub for entrepreneurship in Miami. More from the Miami Herald.

Investment group buys trio of Orlando skyline buildings

A San Diego group instantly became downtown Orlando’s second-largest property owner with the purchase of three landmark buildings, including the 28-story Bank of America Center on Orange Avenue. More from the Orlando Sentinel.

Popular One Spark fizzles in fall

The love affair between Jacksonville and the One Spark entrepreneurial festival has taken a long break, leaving many to wonder if there’s any life remaining in the relationship. For the first time in five years, 2017 was the first without a One Spark festival in downtown Jacksonville. More from the Florida Times-Union.

Out of the Box
Tibet the courthouse dog

Tibet the courthouse dog came to Hillsborough County with a mission — sit alongside abused, neglected and abandoned children during court proceedings to provide emotional comfort. But in the four years the golden retriever-Labrador mix has been on the job, she has expanded the description.

» More from the Tampa Bay Times.

Around the State
Pay roads

Nearly 30 years after the last Jacksonville tollbooths were demolished, tolls are returning to northeast Florida. The first leg of the First Coast Expressway (SR 23), a 46-mile tollway connecting the west side of Jacksonville to Clay and St. Johns counties, is scheduled to open by the spring.