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Tuesday's Afternoon Update
What you need to know about Florida today
Florida consumers are optimistic and ready to shop
Floridians are feeling pretty darn good about the economy and are ready to shop, according to a monthly study released Tuesday by the University of Florida. The university’s consumer index for May was at a high level it has reached only twice in the last 16 years, the first being in January. See the report from UF here. Also read more at the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
Jacksonville shops for $12.6 million toy factory
A $12.6 million toy factory for northwest Jacksonville and an office expansion for 79 high-paying jobs at another Jacksonville location could each receive several hundred thousand dollars in taxpayer incentives. More from the Florida Times-Union.
Medical pot dispensary opens in Apollo Beach, first of 25 planned by Sarasota firm
AltMed chose the Apollo Beach site to serve the many potential customers in fast-growing south Hillsborough County and beyond. So far, it’s the only dispensary between Bradenton and South Tampa. It’s one of four dispensaries in Hillsborough County and the only one outside the Tampa area. More from the Tampa Bay Times.
A famous Italian family is opening its first Florida hotel in Coconut Grove — and soon
Suspended on stilts over the transforming Coconut Grove will soon be a new hotel addition to the neighborhood — with a familiar name. The Ciprianis are coming to the Grove. The prominent Italian hospitality family plans to open its newest property, Mr. C Coconut Grove, this winter. More from the Miami Herald.
Water farms helping South Florida go with the flow
A public-private partnership between the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) and Caulkins Citrus Co. has been working at full capacity to store local stormwater runoff and help reduce U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ discharges from Lake Okeechobee to the St. Lucie Estuary. More from Growing Produce.
Florida Trend Regional Report
Pet protection
Led by founder Gustav Ray, Tallahassee-based Baycom Diagnostics has developed a kit for monitoring and testing for diabetes in dogs and cats via mailedin blood samples. Ray, Baycom’s sole proprietor, says the company is profitable. Plus, a business news roundup for Northwest Florida.
» More from Florida Trend.
Out of the Box
Eternal reefs
Families and friends gathered at Haulover Park Marina in Miami-Dade County this weekend to memorialize concrete balls made of their loved one's remains that were lowered into the ocean about two miles offshore. Eternal Reef personnel take a person’s ashes and mixes it into environmentally-friendly balls that look like boulders with holes punched throughout to help create the reef.
» Read more from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
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