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Monday's Afternoon Update
What you need to know about Florida today
Florida cities and towns are worried about the legislative session. Here’s why.
For local government officials watching the state’s continued preemption of city and county autonomy, there’s plenty to worry about in the Florida Legislative session beginning Tuesday. At the Mayor’s Council of Pinellas County meeting Wednesday, Florida League of Cities field advocacy director Scott Dudley flagged about a dozen bills affecting the ability of cities and towns to govern themselves with home rule. More from the Tampa Bay Times.
Subway unveils its new second headquarters location in Florida
As it seeks a buyer, Subway unveiled its new, dual headquarters office in Miami not far from where CEO John Chidsey lives, even as it packs up at its longtime Sub Way campus in Milford for a new Connecticut office in Shelton that will retain a designation as a headquarters address. More from the CT Insider.
Out-of-state firms gobble up homes in Central Florida
Local investor home purchases tanked in Q4, but Marietta, Georgia-based FirstKey Homes LLC is proof some investors remain interested in the area. The nationwide rental home manager bought 19 new construction homes from Stanley Martin Homes LLC in three transactions since November, totaling $8.5 million, according to Osceola County Property Appraiser records.Osceola County homes commonly are targeted by investors who want to offer rental homes or vacation rentals near the region’s theme parks. More from WFTV and the Orlando Business Journal.
Jacksonville issues permit for $20 million Mayo Clinic in Florida utility plant
The city issued a permit March 3 for Auld & White Constructors LLC to build a support building for Mayo Clinic in Florida’s central utility plant at a project cost of $20 million. It comes after a Feb. 1 permit for the $1 million foundation. The two-story, 41,000-square-foot structure will be built on 3.18 acres at 14131 Kendall Hench Circle at the 4500 San Pablo Road campus, north of Butler Boulevard. It is part of the $432 million expansion that Mayo Clinic in Florida announced a year ago. More from the Jacksonville Daily Record.
Sarasota Bay has been losing seagrass. What are local governments and citizens doing about it?
Seagrass acreage in Sarasota Bay dropped by 26% from 2016 to 2022, according to the head of the bay’s estuary preservation program. This new information comes from aerial maps the Southwest Florida Water Management District made of the bay’s seagrass meadows. The Sarasota Bay Estuary Program is able to learn about the health of the bay by tracking these plants. When water quality is poor, seagrasses die. Manatees, which rely on that vegetation for food, will then starve. More from the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
Profile
Combining real estate and jiujitsu, Miami businesswoman sets herself apart
On Tuesday afternoon, Ana Bozovic stood eye-to-eye with a professional boxer at a time when most of her real estate peers would be out for lunch. Tight blue yoga pants hugged her toned legs. She donned an oversized black T-shirt that said in bold white letters MMA Masters, the Hialeah gym where she trains six days a week.
» More from the Miami Herald.
Transportation Trends
‘Stop the train!’ South Beach buses are packed, but county’s rail plan under attack
After a proposed $1.3 billion monorail line fizzled over high costs last fall, Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava’s administration is preparing to solicit bids for extending the county’s Metromover trains four miles over the MacArthur and creating the first mass transit option for Miami Beach.
» Read more from the Miami Herald.
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