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Monday's Afternoon Update
What you need to know about Florida today
Florida lawmakers take up plan to shield businesses from lawsuits
In a high-stakes debate, the Florida House on Friday began moving forward with a controversial plan designed to shield businesses and insurance companies from costly lawsuits. The plan (HB 837) comes after years of business groups calling Florida a “judicial hellhole” because of the frequency and costs of lawsuits. But opponents, including plaintiffs’ attorneys and about 50 bikers who converged on the Capitol, said the bill is tilted too far toward insurers and would make it hard for injured people to pursue lawsuits. More from the News Service of Florida.
Pensacola SBDC, ECPS staff join small and minority business council
Pensacola now has three members on a Florida council dedicated to researching, supporting and uplifting small and minority-owned businesses. Allison Watson, Escambia County Public Schools director of purchasing and business services, was appointed to serve a two-year term on the Florida Advisory Council for Small and Minority Business Development, the school district announced last week. She is joined on the council by two local members of the Florida Small Business Development Center, Gregory Britton, CEO of the SBDC Network, and Jane Dowgwillo, SBDC executive director of strategic initiatives. More from the Pensacola News Journal.
NeoCity faces challenges, long wait times to fulfill large job creation plan
NeoCity, a $1 billion high-tech community and technology hub in Osceola County, faces workforce challenges due to a skill gap and supply chain issues in the semiconductor industry that some feel could challenge its ability to meet agreed-upon hiring benchmarks. The same industry-wide issue could also mean the U.S. remains dependent on devices coming from countries such as Taiwan, said Kevin Carr, CEO of the manufacturing consulting business FloridaMakes. More from the Orlando Sentinel.
Almost three centuries of Jacksonville business closes Feb. 28
As of Feb. 28, more than 275 years of entrepreneurship ends in Jacksonville, although one operator expects a few more days and another hopes to reopen elsewhere. Three businesses are slated to close this week: Jacobs Jewelers, tracing back its roots 156 years; Beach Road Fish House & Chicken Dinners, which began as Beach Road Chicken Dinners 84 years ago; and Cotten’s Bar-B-Que, 36 years in business in Arlington. Two – Jacobs and Cotten’s – are closing as their owners retire. More from the Jacksonville Daily Record.
JetBlue CEO promises to retain Spirit’s South Florida staff, if airline deal gets U.S. clearance
Last year, JetBlue’s unsolicited takeover bid for Spirit Airlines rocked financial markets and the aviation industry, after the Broward County airline already had said it would merge with ultra-low-fare rival Frontier Airlines. The New York-based airline’s cash offer to acquire Spirit sparked a contentious, monthslong bidding war and culminated with Spirit’s shareholders agreeing in October to sell the company to JetBlue for $3.8 billion. Closing the deal awaits federal regulatory approval. More from the Miami Herald.
Business Profile
For antenna-maker Micro-Ant, a realistic approach to growth
The antennas produced by Micro-Ant have evolved since the company’s founding 20 years ago. The products aren’t antennas in the typical sense of a wire extended from the body of a car. Some are like satellite dishes and others fall in the size range of plastic food protectors.
» More from the Jacksonville Daily Record.
Out of the Box
Dancing pirates and smoking guns win big at South Beach cocktail competition
Miami’s best tiki cocktails were served with a side of smoke and poured by pirates dancing to reggae music. At Art of Tiki Cocktail Showdown, the South Beach Wine & Food Festival’s annual tiki cocktail competition, it was a battle of Instagram-worthy, complicated cocktails and each bar was in it to win it. In the end, a South Beach hotel bar and a trendy Brickell spot in the back of a thrift store won bragging rights and a fancy bottle of Appleton Estate rum.
» Read more from the Miami Herald.
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