SHARE:
Monday's Daily Pulse
What you need to know about Florida today
What Hurricane Dorian’s miss cost Florida utilities
When forecasts for Hurricane Dorian first put the storm’s bullseye on Central Florida, the roar of its winds were still far offshore, but electric utilities spent heavily on out-of-state crews and other preparations. Dorian doglegged north along the state’s Atlantic coast and barely tousled Floridians, but the storm’s costs for electric utilities were still significant as the price of living in the nation’s most hurricane-prone state. [Source: Orlando Sentinel]
Jeanette Nuñez to lead delegation to Colombia Monday
Jeanette Nuñez will lead envoys from 19 Florida businesses Monday on a four-day trade mission to Colombia’s capital. The Lieutenant Governor’s group of 51 includes small and mid-sized manufacturing and exporting business leaders and Secretary of Commerce Jamal Sowell. Delegates will meet one-on-one with Colombian importers and pursue long-term trade opportunities. [Source: Florida Politics]
Don’t travel to the Florida Keys, tourism website says
Fodor’s Travel has just said no to the Florida Keys. The travel website, which releases a “Go” and a “No” list each year, has put the Keys are on the “No” list for 2020. Now what have the Keys done to earn the ire of Fodor’s? In the case of the Keys, the decline of its coral reefs are the cause for concern (a legitimate one — they’re struggling). Fodor’s wants to give them a break and let them heal. [Source: Tampa Bay Times]
Florida marijuana measures drawing attention from wary lawmakers
Three ballot proposals that would legalize recreational marijuana in Florida are still looking iffy as far as making it before voters next year. But state lawmakers aren’t taking any chances. House health committees have been hearing testimony in recent weeks about states that have approved adult-use marijuana and now face a host of unexpected issues. [Source: Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
Florida city has the most gun violence in the country
Some mixed news for Florida from a new survey on gun violence across the United States. Ocala, a city in the central part of the state, notched the highest volume of firearm-related incidents in the country, overall, at 28.9 incidents per 10,000 people, according to Gun Violence Archive data comparing a four year period of 2014 to 2018, and studied by researchers at Security.Org. [Source: Miami Herald]
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
› DeSantis picks Orlando airport board member Randall Hunt to run Florida Lottery
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday picked one of his Orlando airport board appointees to run the state lottery. The Republican governor named Randall Hunt, a fitness-club owner from Lake Mary who has been a member of the Orlando airport board since February, the new secretary of the Florida Lottery.
› Hurricane season isn’t over yet as tropical system appears
With 12 days remaining in the 2019 hurricane season, meteorologists are keeping their eyes on a new tropical system, according to the National Hurricane Center’s 5 a.m. Monday update. The system is 350 miles east-northeast of the northern Leeward Islands and is producing disorganized showers and thunderstorms with winds blowing up to 30 mph on its northeast side, said NHC hurricane specialist Andrew Latto.
› Officials concerned about businesses being run from homes in The Villages
One of the worst-kept secrets in Florida’s Friendliest Hometown is that businesses are being run out of homes in The Villages. The businesses can run the gamut, from a low-key tax preparation service to pet sitting in a residence. Running a business in a home in The Villages – which is forbidden – falls under an internal deed restriction. That means it is the responsibility of the Developer to enforce the rule.
› Cafes may be a trend in Tampa parks, but not everyone has an appetite
When is a park a park? And what should take place there? In recent weeks, downtown residents, homeless advocates and urban boosters have all weighed in on these questions and their underlying premise: When is it okay to turn over public space for private use?
Go to page 2 for more stories ...
In case you missed it:
