Taking issue with ‘tech overlords’
After vetoing a bill about studying the effects of artificial intelligence on Florida workers, Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state will develop a plan to prevent “tech overlords” from taking over. While offering few details, DeSantis warned of “very dangerous” impacts of rapidly changing AI. “It’s one thing to use technology to enhance the human experience, but it’s another thing to have technology supplant the human experience,” DeSantis said. He added that Florida will “develop a coherent approach to this.” More from the News Service of Florida.
Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary office in Key Largo escapes cuts
The Upper Keys office for the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary will remain open after the federal Department of Government Efficiency threatened to terminate its lease this year. DOGE slated the Key Largo office for the chopping block when it published a list of hundreds of offices it planned to shutter as part of cost-cutting measures. Nearly half of the sanctuary staff works out of the office. The only other sanctuary office is nearly 100 miles away in Key West, which could force staff to endure hours-long commutes. More from WUSF.
St. Pete-Clearwater International has busiest month ever
For the first time in the airport’s history, it had more than 300,000 passengers in a single month. In June, PIE had 300,278 passengers travel through the airport, which offers nonstop service to more than 60 cities and is a hub for Las Vegas-based Allegiant Air. Passenger traffic is up 9.84% year-over-year at PIE; it had 273,376 passengers in June 2024. So far this year, officials say, there have been 1,444,128 total passengers at PIE. Airport officials expect the traffic to increase this month. More from the Business Observer.
Sarasota County Commission on board with paying $20 million for new Benderson Park complex
The Sarasota County Commission showed enthusiasm for the latest update regarding the expansive new athletic facility and boathouse at Nathan Benderson Park that would cost taxpayers $20 million. The commission first agreed in 2022 to partially fund the project, which officials think will be a key driver of sports tourism and a prestige marker for the area. More from the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
Jacksonville stocks mostly left behind in market rebound
In a roller coaster first half of 2025, the stock market rebounded strongly in the last two months of the second quarter, leaving the major indexes with net gains for the year so far. However, Jacksonville companies were largely left behind. Only four of the 19 publicly traded companies headquartered in Northeast Florida registered gains in the first six months of the year. More from the Florida Times-Union.
Event
Bok Tower Gardens’ Fruit Fest returns this weekend
There is plenty to eat at Bok Tower Gardens outside of its on-site Blue Palmetto Cafe: citrus trees amid its Olmstead Gardens and trails, orchards with nectarines and papaya, grape vines and blackberry brambles and blueberry bushes. Director of Business Development Erica Smith says they discourage guests from sampling as they explore this vast sanctuary. On July 12, however, sampling won’t just be tolerated, but celebrated, as Bok Tower Gardens’ second annual Fruit Fest gets underway.
» More from the Orlando Sentinel.
Profile
Concrete vision
As a teen, Oscar Morejon wanted a car to get to baseball practice. Instead, he was handed a pressure cleaner. His Cuban-born father, who had built his own business from sweeping the floors of a Miami jewelry shop to becoming a full-fledged jeweler, instilled that same immigrant spirit and hustle in his son. Once he started pressure cleaning after school, that led to fencing and house painting gigs too — enough business to hire an assistant — and that marked the start of his entrepreneurial journey.
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