Thursday's Afternoon Update

What you need to know about Florida today

| 10/6/2016

Hurricane Matthew could make parts of Florida “uninhabitable for weeks or months”

Amid warnings from the National Weather Service that Hurricane Matthew could render Florida, "uninhabitable for weeks," thousands of coastal residents boarded up, packed up and hit the road for what could be a historic Category 4 blow to the state. More from the Weather Channel, WHNT, the National Weather Service.

Green beans packer Florida Specialties gets new owner

A southwest Florida grower of green beans has purchased Florida Specialties Inc., a longtime green bean growing and packing operation. Principals with Clewiston-based Hilliard Bros. of Florida Ltd., a citrus, cattle and sugarcane operator, completed their purchase of Florida Specialties on Oct. 5. More from the Packer.

Merger of Beacon Council, Greater Miami Chamber pushed

A merger would benefit the Beacon Council and Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce as a shared CEO and resources streamlined and strengthened economic development efforts, some leaders are saying. More from Miami Today.

Not easy being green: Florida's battle to save citrus

When the bacterial disease known as greening collided with Florida’s huge citrus industry in 2005, nobody imagined that 11 years later the state’s annual production, now worth almost $11 billion, would have dropped from a once-high 240 million boxes of fruit to 80 million, a reduction of two-thirds. More from Florida Weekly.

Lionfish Challenge ends with 16,609 invasive fish caught

This past summer's Lionfish Challenge has come to a close with 16,609 of the invasive creatures removed from Florida waters. Volusia County resident David Garrett was credited with catching 3,324 lionfish himself. More from the AP.

Tallahassee Trend
A bad -- but bulletproof -- Florida tax

Florida’s communications services tax is, by just about any measure, a flawed tax. The tax — which applies to services such as telecommunications, video and direct-to-home satellite — is complicated: Nearly 500 jurisdictions around the state levy the tax at more than 100 different rates.

» Access full story.

Business Profile
Arrowmail

Doral-based Arrowmail Corporate Services, a bulk-mail processor, handles large volumes of outgoing mail for businesses, governments, universities, nonprofits and other clients. “We handle 8 to 9 million pieces of mail per month, or roughly 100 million pieces of mail per year,” said Cristina Fernandez, one of the four co-founders of the family-owned and operated company.