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Monday's Daily Pulse
What you need to know about Florida today
Florida breaks nationwide record with 15,300 coronavirus cases
In the last 24 hours, Florida’s Department of Health says 15,300 testing kits have come back positive for the novel coronavirus — shattering the previous record for cases reported by any state in a single day. It was the highest daily total reported since the start of pandemic, surpassing previous highs — in California July 8 and in New York during mid-April — by more than 3,600 cases, according to data collected by the collaborative Covid Tracking Project. More from the Tampa Bay Times, the Miami Herald, and the Orlando Sentinel.
Florida's orange production down as season ends
Florida’s citrus growing season ended on a sour note, with production of the state’s signature orange crop down about 6 percent from the prior season. The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Friday released final numbers for the 2019-2020 season, with growers filling 67.65 million 90-pound boxes, the industry standard measurement. That number was below the 71.85 million boxes filled during the 2018-2019 season. [Source: News Service of Florida]
Disney World open again, with crowds starkly different from what most imagined
Walt Disney World has again reopened to the public after nearly four months of being closed due to the novel coronavirus. While Disney was the most anticipated park to reopen, it was the last to finally let in guests. When an internationally renowned theme park reopens to the public, many assumed it would be swamped with guests not adhering to social distancing or mask policies, but social media posts and pictures tell a story closer to what other Florida theme parks have been experiencing. More from the Miami Herald and the Orlando Sentinel.
Key West could ban big cruise ships
Megaships could be a distant memory in Key West, Florida, come 2021 as a referendum has been added to the November ballot that would limit the size of ships calling. Three proposed amendments on the ballot would restrict the size of ship, limit the number of guests disembarking on a daily basis, and prioritize ships with “better” environmental and public health records. [Source: Cruise Industry News]
Florida to install charging stations for electric vehicles
More than two dozen charging stations will be installed along Florida’s busiest roads, paid for by the state’s share of a U.S. government settlement with Volkswagen after the German automaker violated the country’s car emissions standards. During a Friday news conference at a service plaza along the Florida Turnpike in Orlando, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the state will spend $8.6 million of Florida's $166 million settlement on the charging stations. [Source: South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
› Indialantic couple turns vacation time in France into wine import business
For Lori Halbert and Jason Steele of Indialantic spending time in France started off as relaxation, a break from daily life in Florida. Now the couple's vacation retreat has become a business center. In November, they began importing Cahor wines made by Chateau de Chambert, a project that was two years in the making and kicked off with a 50-person party that the couple threw at the winery.
› Fewer donations create challenges for St. Johns County nonprofits
For organizations that fall under the nonprofit umbrella, demand for services is rising while resources, in some cases, are decreasing as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to stretch on. Joe Petrone, coordinator of Dining with Dignity, which feeds the needy in the community through the nonprofit Home Again St. Johns, said donations are not coming in as often as they had in the past.
› Sarasota-Manatee tourism will continue to shift
High-dollar foreign tourists aren’t allowed in. New Yorkers have been told not to come, and if they must, to self-quarantine when they return. The U.S./Canada border remains sealed, closing off a crucial foreign market for Sarasota-Manatee tourism as the world heads into the second half of 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic has created a different picture of tourism than what Sarasota-Manatee is used to seeing. Travel restrictions forbid tourists from crucial out-of-state markets from crossing into Florida unless their travel is considered “essential.”
› Tampa creates economic advisory committee
A citizen panel will be formed to advise the city on how to reduce economic disparities after council member Bill Carlson and Mayor Jane Castor’s administration reached a political compromise. Carlson had originally called for a City Council advisory committee made up of 23 residents, who would recommend solutions to council members for the city’s income inequality, poverty and other economic development hurdles.
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