Florida Trend | Florida's Business Authority

Monday's Daily Pulse

Florida lawmakers struggle with how to respond to shooting

Lawmakers have just three weeks left in their annual 60-day session and normally are trying to wrap up work on a new state budget in the final days. But the shooting Wednesday at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland has revived an ongoing legislative debate about how to respond to gun violence. Democrats want take up gun control bills, while Republicans are talking about more mental health programs in schools, improving safety on campus. More from the AP and Today.

See also:
» Shooting survivors on potential collision course with Trump
» Rubio faces pressure after Parkland: “It’s not our job to tell you, Senator Rubio, how to protect us’
» Rick Scott’s A-plus NRA rating, and what it means now
» Parkland students to march on the Capitol this week to demand change to gun laws

It’s a (Canadian) snowbird’s market in South Florida

South Florida realtors are rolling out the welcome mat to Canadian snowbirds. Brokers who are pushing new, upscale condos north of Miami—from Hallandale Beach to Fort Lauderdale to Boca Raton—say they’re betting on a convergence of promising circumstances to attract Canadians. More from Mansion Global and the Real Deal.

Florida is afraid of its prison system. Here’s what lawmakers want to do about it.

Some lawmakers say the state is overdue for reforms to sentencing policies that have created an expensive revolving door for non-violent criminals. Lawmakers are considering a package of reforms aimed at shrinking prisons. Some reforms would divert non-violent drug felons from prison to local jails. Other reforms would treat those with mental illness and addiction while they are locked up. But politicians don't want to appear soft on crime during an election year. [Source: Times/Herald]

Mark Howard
Mark Howard

Florida Trend Column
Words, chosen carefully

Journalists have trouble sticking to the simple and direct. We lapse into clichés and stumble into bad habits as readily as anyone. Of concern in Florida Trend’s sphere of business reporting is a cohort of adjectives that mask imprecision and sloppy thinking. Read Executive Editor Mark Howard's full column.

Florida restaurants, groceries try harder to identify food sources

Darden Restaurants, Publix, Winn-Dixie and other grocers have launched their own "sustainable seafood campaigns," and other companies are rallying around commitments to animal welfare and curbing overuse of antibiotics. It comes in response to a growing consumer desire for cleaner foods such as organic and locally grown products. [Source: Miami Herald]

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› After Irma, new energy for Interstate 75 relief
In mid-2016, a regional task force that spent almost two years exploring ways to improve safety on a crowded Interstate 75 decided to take a conservative approach: make changes to the highway rather than build or expand other roads. Then Hurricane Irma blew into Florida.

› Federal government moves to seize Florida storage properties
Three storage properties in various stages of development by Wheat Capital Management will likely be seized by the federal government as the company founder awaits trial.

› Spring training great for fans, tourism industry
Orioles, Pirates, Rays — and soon, Braves, too — make Grapefruit League a lucrative industry in Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte counties.

› Inexpensive Tampa Bay homes gain the most value of any in U.S.
Owners of affordable homes in the Tampa Bay region are seeing the biggest gains in equity among the nation’s top 20 housing markets. A bay area home now worth $110,000 rose 20 percent in value over the past year while a house now worth $337,400 increased only 1.4 percent.

Go to page 2 for more stories ...

› Central Florida women candidates and voters at the forefront for Democrats in 2018
One year after the Women’s March displayed their growing political power, women Democrats in Central Florida are banding together as they attempt to ride a potential Democratic wave in November — one that could be largely fueled by women themselves.

› Bill Johnson Jr. is helping build Cape Coral's future
Bill Johnson, Jr. is excited about Cape Coral’s future. And he has a personal and professional stake in that future. Professionally, as the executive director of the Cape Coral Construction Industry Association, he is a key stakeholder when it comes to Cape Coral’s growth.

› Record-setting crowd keeps dealers busy at Jacksonville RV MegaShow
According to the Florida RV Trade Association, just over 9,900 folks came through the Jacksonville Equestrian Center gates during the four-day show that ended Sunday.

› Meet some of the new movers and shakers around Manatee and Sarasota counties
Barry Grooms, a realtor and co-owner of Sarabay Real Estate in Bradenton, was named the 2018 vice president of Florida Realtors, the state’s largest professional association with 180,000 members.