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Monday's Daily Pulse
What you need to know about Florida today
Venezuela crisis resonates loudly in battleground Florida
As Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro clings to power, many of the loudest American voices urging on the Trump administration in its campaign to push Maduro out are concentrated in one place: Florida. Florida has a large number of anti-Maduro Venezuelans and Cubans and is also likely to be a critical battleground state in the 2020 race for the White House. As a result, the crisis in the South American country is reverberating politically thousands of miles away in the U.S. [Source: AP]
Web-based business provides Florida a big boost
Buying and selling stuff and services over the internet is obviously a behemoth industry — but just how big is it in Florida? Pretty big. That’s a key takeaway from a new report from the Internet Association, a trade group that speaks for many web-based leaders, from Amazon to Zillow. [Source: Business Observer]
In Florida's suburbs, the coyote next door is here to stay
Humans likely brought the first coyotes to Florida to train hunting dogs in the 1920s, but many scientists believe they now fill the role in Florida’s ecosystem that red wolves left behind. The animals help keep Florida’s rodent, raccoon and fox populations in check, but are known to prey on cattle, turkeys, chickens or unsuspecting house pets. [Source: WJXT]
Study: Puerto Ricans had tougher time in Florida after storm
The study by researchers at the University of Miami and Boston University says the post-hurricane adjustment appears to have been more psychologically taxing for Puerto Ricans who moved to Florida instead of staying, and for people in rural and suburban areas compared to urban dwellers. [Source: News & Observer]
‘Alligator Ron’ Bergeron is the Florida man of Florida politicians
Gov. Ron DeSantis picked Ronald "Alligator Ron" Bergeron — former rodeo champ, python hunter, gator wrestler and wildlife commissioner — to replace pro-sugar water agency officials. He's the most colorful public servant in Florida. [Source: Tampa Bay Times]
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» ‘Alligator' Ron Bergeron is a Florida Icon
Adaptive reuse of parking structures
As anticipation of widespread use of the driverless automobile nears, many industry analysts predict a decrease in parking needs for the near future. The projected decline in future parking requirements and demand has many developers and municipalities exploring options for adaptive reuse or designing for future conversions of parking structures. [Sponsored report]
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
› Former Visit Orlando executive Cranis selected as Brevard tourism chief
Brevard County Manager Frank Abbate has selected former Visit Orlando executive Peter Cranis as the new executive director of the Space Coast Office of Tourism. If Cranis is confirmed by the County Commission at its Feb. 12 meeting, he will start in his new job on March 4. Cranis will earn a salary of $115,000 a year.
› Ticket resellers can make shows an expensive night out in Southwest Florida
Southwest Florida, as a leisure mecca, has great demand for entertainment, and first-time ticket buyers who want to see a show or a sports event here are vulnerable. When you're buying $57 "Sound of Music" tickets at $425 "Hamilton" prices, there's something drastically wrong. That happened at Artis—Naples in December.
› Florida political experts talk 2018, 2020 elections
Florida is one of the most competitive battleground states in the nation, forcing candidates to create a formula that resonates with 21.6 million residents, some of whom migrated here from other regions around the country — or across the globe.
› Small biz guru Steve Case has $100k prize for Orlando's most promising startup
Orlando’s startup community received a boost Friday in its effort to shift the city’s business image from one that highlights tourism into one known more for technology. Former America Online CEO and Chairman Steve Case announced that he had chosen Orlando as the kickoff location for the latest version of his Rise of the Rest five-city tour.
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