Florida's hurricane lessons could help tornado-prone areas
Scientists combing through the destruction left behind by the massive twister that swept through Tuscaloosa, Ala., last month say beefing up building codes and retrofitting existing homes with building techniques honed in hurricane-battered Florida could save property and lives in tornado-prone areas throughout the country. "Since Hurricane Andrew struck Florida back in 1992, Florida's building construction professionals and building officials have continually improved their structural load paths, which means that connections between the roof and wall framing and between wall to foundations have been strengthened," said David O. Prevatt, an assistant professor of civil and coastal engineering at the University of Florida and principal investigator of the project. "In contrast, older homes in Tuscaloosa had mainly toe-nailed rafter connections, and almost none had adequate foundation anchors." The project is being funded by a National Science Foundation RAPID Response Grant for Exploratory Research to investigate and gather data about wind damage to, and performance of, wood-frame structures in the affected areas. Prevatt acknowledged that there is no defense against the most devastating tornado winds, which can top 200 mph, but he said he believes improvements in home construction can make houses and apartment buildings safer in less-severe tornado conditions. "There is no magic bullet here. An EF4 or EF5 level wind will still level even the best-constructed homes in its path," Prevatt said. "The challenge facing us is to somehow improve performance of our existing homes so that more of them can survive the less intense EF0 to EF2 tornado and by so doing better protect its occupants." The NSF recognized the urgency with the grant request because this type of data on structural failures is perishable; once debris removal begins, there is no way to analyze the performance of the wood structures.[Source: UF News]MUST-KNOW FLORIDIAN
Meet Rick Ferrin. The former Jacksonville Port Authority CEO is now working for TranSystems as a vice president in the Jacksonville office. Read more about Ferrin and other Northeast Florida Players.
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Time-share fraud ringleader hit with tough sentence
A ringleader in a national scam run from Palm Beach County has been handed what federal prosecutors believe is the toughest penalty in a time-share telemarketing case since it became Florida's top fraud complaint: 10 years in prison and $1.1 million in restitution.
Darnell Disroe, 39, and associates at Real Timeshare Marketing of Boynton Beach told "blatant lies" on the phone to scam $1.3 million in fees out of more than 600 people around the country, including Illinois, prosecutors said. Disroe, who pleaded guilty to the charges, was sentenced Monday in U.S. District Court in East St. Louis, Ill.
Victims hoping to unload their condo time-share units paid thousands in bogus closing fees after they said the company assured them that there was a waiting buyer. The company was not instrumental in selling a single condo, prosecutors said.
"This is serious fraudulent misconduct and it deserved a serious sentence," Stephen Wigginton, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, said. [Source: Palm Beach Post]
Off-the-job conduct may put your unemployment benefits at risk
A just-passed overhaul of Florida's unemployment laws gives employers the ability to challenge jobless benefits to former employees for behavior that has little to do with how they conduct themselves at work.
The provision permits businesses to fight a worker's benefits claim based on "misconduct, irrespective of whether the misconduct occurs at the workplace or during working hours."
In essence, it allows the business to cite a worker's private behavior as a reason to deny benefits.
For example, owners of a delivery company, who can now fire a driver cited for reckless driving, could also challenge his right to benefits even if the offense occurred while he was driving his own car on his own time. The ruling on unemployment eligibility would be made by a state referee hearing the employer's challenge.
"The Legislature has just given license for your employer to be Big Brother over your life," said Howard Simon, executive director of the Florida American Civil Liberties Union. "Now they can monitor what you do off-hours and try to deny you unemployment for that behavior."
[Source: Orlando Sentinel]
Central Florida
boating remains unsinkable
While boat sales still lag and many production plants remain idle, central Florida boat builders such as Boston Whaler in Volusia County and Correct Craft in Orange County are seeing signs of stability in the market and launching new products.
One indicator: Publicly traded Brunswick Corp., based in Illinois, said in its annual report in February that net sales for its boat group rose 23% to $913 million in 2010. The company posted a net loss but had an operating profit of $16.3 million — a huge improvement over 2009's operating loss of $570.5 million. Brunswick has 17 brands in its portfolio, including Boston Whaler, the leading builder of center-console "unsinkable boats." A number of Whaler veterans have gone on to launch their own successful boat businesses, including EdgeWater Powerboats, a center- console manufacturer in Edgewater that employs 100.
Continue reading Boating: Unsinkable.
Nose-diving home equity means slower Florida recovery
If anything can tell the story of Florida's housing boom and bust it's this: In early 2007, Floridians were drawing nearly 20 percent of their total incomes from home equity loans and credit lines.
Property values rose so high, so fast, people couldn't resist treating their homes like piggybanks.
In Tampa, these "home equity extractions" made up 14 percent of people's total incomes — nearly double the national average. And that's nothing compared with Miami, where it made up 26 percent of their incomes, according to Moody's Analytics.
Then, the bottom fell out of the housing market, and scores of patio and pool builders and home remodelers who were paid out of home equity loans nosedived. Lately, the volume of new reverse mortgages has fallen by more than half in the Tampa Bay area, partly because of the decline in people's equity.
Some people see a silver lining to the equity collapse.
People are feverishly paying off home equity loans and other debt, which should leave them better off in the long run. But the lack of an easy source of cash means Florida will recover from the recession very slowly, said Sean Snaith, an economist with the University of Central Florida.
"Now, no longer is (the home) this little honey pot; it's now a liability," Snaith said.
[Source: Tampa Tribune]
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