SHARE:
Monday's Afternoon Update
What you need to know about Florida today
More than 6 million Floridians have already voted
About 42 percent of Florida’s registered voters have already cast ballots in the 2020 general election following the first weekend of early in-person voting. With eight days to go until Nov. 3, more ballots have already been cast — 6,018,430 — than the total number of mail and early in-person ballots cast in the 2018 general election. The total so far includes Florida’s most high-profile resident; President Donald Trump voted in person Saturday in Palm Beach County. More from the Tampa Bay Times.
Kennel Club plans layoffs as dog racing ends
The St. Petersburg Kennel Club, which operates as Derby Lane, will begin laying off employees Dec. 27 after Florida voters in 2018 overwhelmingly approved a proposal to halt greyhound racing by the end of this year, according to a notice filed with the state Department of Economic Opportunity. Kennel Club Chairman and President Richard Winning advised the state the layoffs would start Dec. 27 and continue through April. More from the News Service of Florida.
St. Johns River deepening on track to cost $100 million less than original estimate
The biggest dredge in the history of the St. Johns River won't dig as deeply into taxpayer pockets as originally expected because the tab is shaping up to be about $100 million less than the original estimate when dredging started in early 2018. Aimed at enabling Jacksonville's port to handle massive cargo ships from Asia, the dredge is headed toward an anticipated price of $380 million for deepening 11 miles of the river between the ocean and the Blount Island terminal, compared to the initial estimate of $484 million, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. More from the Florida Times-Union.
Brightline woos SunRail to share an east-west rail route
The high-speed, upscale Brightline Trains wants to partner with Central Florida’s SunRail commuter train to open an east-west corridor through the region for both rail services. Brightline is building a $2.7 billion extension from South Florida to Orlando’s airport and is in the planning stage of extending rail from the airport to Tampa. Some of the Tampa corridor, according to Brightline, might also serve as a significant segment of a SunRail corridor that would cross east and west across Central Florida. More from the Orlando Sentinel.
Stein Mart: The end is here for a store that began more than a century ago
The family legacy in retail that would lead to Stein Mart took root in 1908 when Sam Stein, a Russian immigrant, opened a general merchandise store in Greenville, Mississippi, a small town in the state’s delta region. It died Aug. 12 when the Jacksonville-based discount fashion retailer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and began liquidation sales at its nearly 300 stores in 30 states. Changing shopping patterns, sales declines and COVID-19 all contributed to the death. More from the Jacksonville Daily Record.
Entertainment
Starved for entertainment in Doral? There’s a new drive-in movie theater for only $5
Doral is so much more than staid strip malls, hellacious traffic and President Trump’s golf course. It’s now also home to a drive-in movie theater. The Drive-In Movie Series at Doral Central Park kicks off next Friday with a showing of a spooky holiday favorite, “The Nightmare Before Christmas.”
» More from the Miami Herald.
Business Profile
OriginClear
Is water set to become a hot new commodity for investors? Can the infrastructure model that delivers clean water to people — traditionally the domain of large, government-subsidized utilities — be privatized and decentralized? OriginClear, a Clearwater-based company that specializes in modular water-treatment systems, is at the forefront of answering such questions and, in the process, not only disrupting an industry but creating a new entrepreneurial ecosystem around it.
» Read more from the Business Observer.
In case you missed it:
