Thursday's Daily Pulse
Florida's Military HQ
By the end of this month, the 2,300 military, civilian and contractor employees who make up the U.S. Southern Command will move into the military's newest Florida installation, a $402-million headquarters campus in Doral. Previously scattered over several sites in northwest Miami-Dade, the new facility brings together all the components of the joint command that oversees U.S. military missions in the Southern Hemisphere and Caribbean. The new 55-acre site has a Conference Center of the Americas for hosting representatives from 31 countries in the hemisphere, a child care center, clinic, fitness center and an operations center. There, as many as 80 people with dual computer monitors sit in rows facing a giant wall of 24 screens to run military operations, drug interdiction, relief missions such as the Haiti earthquake response this year or perhaps handle a mass migration. Keep reading Military HQ.
Health Care Companies Work Together to Draw Job Seekers
Nurse Erin Bradley’s career got a quick boost Wednesday as she added her name to the work rosters of a handful of local home health care companies in just minutes.
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New Hotel Set for Darden Restaurants Property
Darden Restaurants' headquarters has a gym, wireless Internet access and a cafeteria with take-home meals. Soon, it will have another amenity: Its own hotel. The Legacy Cos. said Wednesday it's developing a 129-room Courtyard by Marriott at Darden's 64-acre campus in south Orange County. The hotel, along John Young Parkway near Taft Vineland Road, will provide lodging for Darden's employee-training programs, but will also be open to the public. "We think it's a good little market for us to be in," said Jay Berlinsky, chief executive officer of Orlando-based Legacy Hotel Advisors. "They have a history of bringing their people from around the country." Construction on the five-story project is expected to start next year, and developers hope to have the property open by mid-2012. Orlando's only Fortune 500 company, which owns Red Lobster, Olive Garden and other brands, won't be involved in financing but has pledged to fill a minimum number of rooms each month. [Source: Orlando Sentinel]
Urban Meyer Steps Down as University of Florida Coach
For the second time in less than a year, Urban Meyer has shocked the Gator Nation with a stunning announcement that he is resigning.
The Pen is Mightier... |
Related:
» Meyer Decision Has Immediate Effect on Recruiting
Juvenile Justice Sec. Peterman Accused of Misuse of State Funds
The state Commission on Ethics has found that juvenile justice secretary Frank Peterman Jr. may have "corruptly" misused his position or state resources to pay for frequent taxpayer-funded trips between the state capital and his home in St. Petersburg.
The watchdog agency found probable cause that Peterman violated the code of ethics, which could subject him to a fine. With a new governor set to take office next month, Peterman has resigned his position as chief of the Department of Juvenile Justice and is likely to be replaced.
Peterman, 48, is a former Democratic state representative from St. Petersburg and a minister who preaches at the Rock of Jesus Missionary Baptist Church in his hometown. Gov. Charlie Crist appointed him to run DJJ in February of 2008.
[Source: St. Petersburg Times]
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
› Beware of Counterfeit Bills During the Holidays [St. Petersburg Times]
Everyone loves to collect the "Benjamins." But are those $100 bills real? Sharpie, the maker of the popular markers, wants consumers to check the bills out for themselves. So the maker of Counterfeit Detector Markers that store clerks use to check your money has made the pens available for consumers to check the bills themselves.
It seems timely, because during the holiday season counterfeiting typically rises. Counterfeit currency passed on the streets throughout the Tampa Bay area increases from an average $10,000 to $12,000 a week to as much as $17,000 a week at Christmas time, according to the U.S. Secret Service.
And anyone who unknowingly accepts a counterfeit bill but does not check it before leaving a store (or a bank, though that is less likely), is stuck with it.
› SunRail Back on Track after Amtrak Stalemate Ends [Orlando Sentinel]
The stalemate between Amtrak and the SunRail was broken Wednesday, clearing the way for the Central Florida commuter train to move ahead toward a 2013 start date.
Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, fresh from a meeting with federal, state and Amtrak officials in Washington, D.C., said by phone that Amtrak had dropped its opposition to the $1.2 billion project.
"I'm pretty happy today," Dyer said.
Calls into Amtrak for comment were not immediately returned.
Amtrak had been holding up SunRail for nearly a year over insurance concerns, putting the start of operations at risk and possibly driving up costs.
› GreenPointe Holdings Ramping up Business Strategy [Florida Times-Union]
The past few years have seen so many housing developments announced, platted and permitted only to fall victim to a housing market where few are buying.
A Jacksonville company is taking advantage by buying up some of those distressed communities, often from banks. Not only that, they're planning to buck the trend by jumping into building homes themselves.
GreenPointe Holdings LLC formed in 2008 to be the umbrella to several development companies: GreenPointe Communities has been acquiring distressed communities; GreenPointe Pathways will focus on building infrastructure; and, now GreenPointe Homes, the third arm of the company, has launched is and planning to start building on some of that land.
› Florida Board to Pardon Jim Morrison [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
The Doors' Jim Morrison will get a posthumous pardon Thursday for an indecent exposure conviction in Florida that resulted when the late singer pulled what a bandmate called "a mind trip on the audience, and they totally fell for it." Gov. Charlie Crist on Wednesday got a commitment for the second of two votes needed from other members of the state's Board of Executive Clemency to approve the pardon.
Morrison was appealing the conviction when he was found dead in a Paris bathtub in 1971. The meeting Thursday comes a day after the singer would have turned 67.
Crist can't issue a pardon on his own. He and the three-member Cabinet serve as the Clemency Board. Approval is required by the governor and at least two other members.
Related:
» Clemency Board Hears Appeal to Clear Civil Rights Arrest Records
[St. Petersburg Times]
› New York-based Benihana of Tokyo Sues Benihana Inc. of Miami
[Miami Herald]
Benihana of Tokyo, based in New York, has filed suit against Miami-based Benihana Inc., the Japanese steakhouse chain, accusing management of breaking a contract by registering restaurants outside of its allotted territory.
Benihana of Tokyo gave Miami's Benihana Inc. the rights to the Benihana trademark to open restaurants in the United States, Central and South America and the Caribbean. Anywhere outside that area is reserved for Benihana of Tokyo, says the suit, which was filed in federal court in Delaware.
But Benihana of Tokyo is saying that in April, Miami's Benihana applied to register locations in Iceland, Iran, Monaco, Singapore, Ukraine, Vietnam and Zambia -- and all the while "asserted to be acting on behalf of Benihana of Tokyo," the lawsuit reads.
"The Miami guys are now busy registering it all over the place and claiming they're doing it from authorization," said Richard Feldman, a New York attorney who represents Benihana of Tokyo.
› St. Pete Man Steals Salvation Army Kettle [St. Petersburg Times]
An already tough year for the Salvation Army's largest fundraising campaign in the city got a little worse Tuesday evening when someone made off with one of its iconic red kettles. Bart Bartie was arrested and charged with retail theft.
"This is our biggest fundraising time of the year," said Tim Gilliam, the Salvation Army's area commander. "Every penny counts."
Kettle thefts are rare. In the past 12 years, only three have been stolen locally, said Michael Rojas, the church's Red Kettle coordinator for the area.
Clearwater Salvation Army Capt. Zach Bell said the theft is a sign of the times.
"People tend to get desperate," he said.
Go to page 2 for more stories ...
› Ikea Employees Get Bonus -- Assembly Required [Tampa Tribune]
Ikea this week gave all 12,400 American employees a holiday gift, a free mountain bike, partly to say thank you, and partly to encourage bike commuting.
And in true Ikea fashion, the bike comes in a big cardboard box and employees have to put it together themselves from black-and-white instructions — celebrating the same do-it-yourself ethos that customers encounter with most Ikea furniture.
"This year, Ikea wanted to do something a bit more special to say thank you to coworkers for their hard work, while supporting each coworker in living a healthy, sustainable life," said Ikea spokeswoman Debra Faulk. "And talk about sustainable transport!"
Last year, Ikea gave Tampa workers $50 gift card to Darden-brand restaurants like Olive Garden and Red Lobster.
Ikea had these bikes custom made and decorated with the company colors of blue and yellow. As of Wednesday, several hundred Tampa Ikea workers had picked up their bikes, though about 40 unassembled bikes lay stacked in boxes in a storage area at the store.
› Orange-Juice Futures Jump to Three-Year High on Florida Freeze [Bloomberg]
Orange-juice futures rose to a three- year high in New York as freezing weather increased the prospect of crop damage in Florida, the world’s biggest citrus grower after Brazil.
“The early part of next week is what we need to focus on,” when temperatures may dip below freezing after frigid weather this week, said Donald Keeney, a senior agricultural meteorologist at MDA Information Systems Inc. in Rockville, Maryland. Futures have risen 29 percent this year, partly on concern that dry conditions and frost may harm U.S. crops.
“You’re still seeing continued weather concerns,” said Jodi Timmons, a vice president at Global Commodity Futures LLC in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Next week’s forecast is “right on the border line where it could be a problem,” she said.
› Port Authority Board Selects Engineering Firm for Hanjin Terminal [Florida Times-Union]
The year-long freeze on designing a cargo terminal for Hanjin thawed today when the Jacksonville Port Authority board picked an engineering firm and said the terminal could be completed by the end of 2014.
The board selected Halcrow Inc. to design the terminal, which will be built just west of the Dames Point bridge on land used now for the cruise ship terminal.
A year ago, JaxPort put selection of an engineering firm on hold after Hanjin said it would not continue to invest time and money in the planned terminal because Hanjin wasn't making progress toward a labor agreement with the International Longshoremen's Association.
But Hanjin and the union have since reached agreement.
› State Licensing Agency Fires 3 over Barbershop Raids [Orlando Sentinel]
A state licensing agency confirmed that three members of its staff, including regional and statewide program administrators, have been fired based on the agency's internal review of a series of unorthodox inspections of Orange County barbershops with sheriff's deputies.
A spokeswoman for the Department of Business and Professional Regulation confirmed that Regional Program Administrator Dan Hogan, Statewide Unlicensed Activity Program Administrator Michael Green and Investigation Specialist Derick Fontanez were let go on Friday.
Spokeswoman Alexis Antonacci Lambert said the firings were "based on the findings of the [DBPR] Inspector General's report" on a series of sweeps of Orange County barbers conducted by the state licensing agency with sheriff's deputies this summer and fall.
The sweeps of the minority-run Orange County barbershops, including major operations Aug. 21 and Sept. 17 and a smaller operation Oct. 8, resulted in 35 arrests on "barbering without an active license" charge — which is nearly unheard of in Florida.
› Fundraiser Site Helps Troubled Charities, Deal Hunters [Miami Herald]
Care to donate to a charity and get a good deal from a local restaurant or dance studio at the same time?
GoodTwo, which allows individuals and non-profits to raise money by offering deals from local and national brands, is launching this week in South Florida and other select cities.
It's geared to be a fundraising tool for charities facing tough economic times, while taking advantage of the popularity of group buying sites like Groupon, said Bill Yucatonis, chief executive of GoodTwo's parent, Needham, Mass.-based CoupMe Worldwide. `It's really taking the craze of group buying and putting it in the hands of fundraisers,'' Yucatonis said. "Everyone wins -- the merchant gets customers, the fundraiser gets incremental fundraising dollars without fatiguing the donors, and the donors get a great deal while supporting a cause they really care about."
› New TV Show Set in '50s Miami Beach
[Miami Herald]
Atlantic City has HBO's Prohibition-era Boardwalk Empire. 1960's Manhattan has Mad Men on AMC. Now Miami Beach will have its own starring role in a period drama.
Magic City, a series set in a fictional Miami Beach hotel in the late 1950s -- when the Rat Pack played and Fidel Castro took power in Cuba -- got the green light this week for 10 episodes from Starz Entertainment.
Casting is set to start soon, and production will begin in 2011, though it's still unclear how much, if any, of the series will be filmed in Miami. The show is set to air on the Starz cable channel in 2012.
Writer and producer Mitch Glazer is intimately familiar with the subject matter: Growing up in Miami Beach in the 1950s and 60s, he accompanied his engineer father to work at the area's most glamorous hotels, including the Fontainebleau, Eden Roc, Deauville and Carillon.
› Fewer British Travelers Coming to Pinellas County [St. Petersburg Times]
Amid signs that Pinellas tourism is pulling out of a two-year slump, one important part of the business remains in decline.
The British aren't coming. Or at least not in the numbers they did before.
An estimated 50,000 fewer Europeans stayed overnight in Pinellas for the first 10 months of 2010, a drop of 6.4 percent from a year earlier, according to Research Data Services in Tampa. Tourists from the United Kingdom traditionally make up about 70 percent of European visitors to Pinellas, with Germans accounting for most of the rest.
"Europe will come back (next year)," said Walter Klages, president of Research Data, which conducts visitor surveys for the county's tourism agency. "The British market, no. The German market very definitely will."