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WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 17, 2008
TALLAHASSEE:
Florida Can Weather Wall Street Fall
Florida Cabinet members on Tuesday said they felt confident that state investments are diversified enough that they can weather the downfall of Lehman Brothers.
"Our investments in Florida are very well diversified," said Gov. Charlie Crist, who oversees the State Board of Administration along with Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink and Attorney General Bill McCollum. The board is charged with investing money for government entities, from the pensions for state and local government workers to the holdings of the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund.
[Source: St. Petersburg Times].
FEATURED:
10 of Florida's Biggest Crooks
As part of our 50th Anniversary, we look back at 50 years of white-collar crime in Florida. This article is our selection of the top 10 characters and white-collar criminals (and it wasn't easy to get the list down to 10.) |
More on Florida's Exposure to Trouble on Wall Street:
MANATEE
Leaders Reject Phosphate Mining Plan
The county could face a multimillion-dollar lawsuit after commissioners Tuesday rejected a proposal by Mosaic Phosphate to expand mining on land teeming with pristine wetlands. Mosaic is expected to take legal action to reverse Tuesday's rejection and grant the company access to the 1,521-acre "Altman Tract" in the northeast corner of the county near Duette.
The stakes are high. Nearly $400 million worth of phosphate, which is used as a component of farm fertilizer, is on the property, county officials say.
But to get at it, the company would have to destroy about 400 acres of high-quality wetlands in an area that feeds into one of the region's primary water supplies.
[Source: Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
More on this topic from Florida Trend:
STATEWIDE:
Bad Mortgage Brokers Ran Wild, Florida Admits
In a stinging critique of the state's oversight of the mortgage industry, top Florida investigators found that state regulators failed to alert police agencies to crooked mortgage brokerages, ignored citizen complaints and allowed hundreds of people with criminal histories to peddle loans.
[Source: Miami Herald]
TAMPA:
McCain Says the Economy is Broken
Only in a topsy-turvy presidential election like this one would thousands of ardent Republicans cheer for more government regulation.
But that was precisely the scene Tuesday at the Tampa Convention Center as Republican presidential candidate John McCain campaigned as a populist crusader against greed and lax government oversight. [Source: St. Petersburg Times]
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
›Builders Bet Big on Huge Downtown Miami Project [Miami Herald]
At a time when banks and builders are struggling for survival, two developers are seeking government approval for Miami Worldcenter -- a nine-block, 25-acre mixed-use project that would be Miami's biggest urban development in years.
›Economy's Downward Spiral Not Done Yet [AP / Fort Myers News-Press]
It started as a panic attack, soothed by assurances that the problem was limited to a relatively small number of reckless home loans. Now it’s clear the crisis was anything but contained — and that the nation’s financial system is dangerously close to the edge.
›Florida Elections Officials Criticize GOP Mailing [St. Petersburg Times]
The piece, paid for by the Republican National Committee and authorized by McCain, tells voters it is seeking to double-check their "unconfirmed" party affiliations while asking for money. A letter signed by McCain tells the Democrats: "We have you registered as a Republican."
›Fed to Rescue AIG [St. Petersburg Times]
Another day, another bailout. The U.S. government stepped in Tuesday to rescue American International Group Inc., one of the world's largest insurers, with an $85 billion injection of taxpayer money. Also: Florida banks slipping, says Bauer Financial
›Sarasota Leaders Get Taste of Red Sox Luxury Box [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
The Red Sox's chief operating officer, Mike Dee, invited Sarasota officials to come and meet the team's top brass, who will ultimately decide whether the team moves its spring training operations to Sarasota or remains in the Fort Myers area.
›Credit Crisis Could Mean Job Losses for First Coast [Florida Times-Union]
Fallout from the nation's credit crisis could have a big impact on Jacksonville. According to the Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation, about 60,000 people in the Jacksonville area work in "financial activities," representing nearly 10 percent of all nonfarm jobs.
›Crist Halts Plan for Orlando Beltway [Orlando Sentinel]
Gov. Charlie Crist and the Florida Cabinet on Tuesday nixed a deal to buy land crucial to construction of a beltway around Orlando, arguing the price is high.
Now, road builders must figure out how to salvage the $2 billion plan.
›Herald to Trims its Staff [Miami Herald]
Three months after announcing plans to trim 250 jobs, the Miami Herald Media Co. said it is cutting another 119 positions, or about 10 percent of the remaining workforce.
›Opinion: Protect Florida Beaches From Political Spillover [Palm Beach Post]
The price of oil is almost back down to where it was in December. Unfortunately for Florida, the politics of oil remains about where it's been since June.
That's when Republicans -- they of the "drill, baby, drill!" convention -- decided to link limits on offshore oil and gas exploration to rising gas prices.
›Palin May Visit The Villages [Gainesville Sun]
It appears that Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin will visit The Villages on Sunday as part of a campaign swing through Florida.
Sumter County Sheriff’s Office officials said they have been asked to assist the Secret Service in providing security for the event.
›Residents Critical of Alligator Alley Lease Proposal [Fort Myers News-Press]
Gov. Charlie Crist's plan to lease Alligator Alley to private investors has little public support, if Tuesday's public meetings in Naples are an indication.
Residents voiced their concerns about where the revenue from a 50- to 75-year lease would go and whether the company leasing the road would raise tolls.
›State Continues Probe Into Gas Price Gouging [Tallahassee Democrat]
Attorney General Bill McCollum and Agriculture Commissioner Charles Bronson have each sent subpoenas to fuel suppliers and retailers that are the subject of thousands of complaints since last Friday.
›Fort Lauderdale OKs Negotiations for Return of Air and Sea Show [Sun-Sentinel]
A year after the death knell tolled for the annual Air & Sea Show, there is hope of reincarnation.
City commissioners gave a tentative thumbs-up Tuesday to allow two businessmen to start negotiating with Fort Lauderdale officials and others to launch a replacement show in 2010.
›Nelson Seeks FTC Help on Warranties [Tallahassee Democrat]
U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., has requested that the Federal Trade Commission take action on warranty complaints consumers have against manufacturers for failing to stand behind their products.
›Economy's No Picnic for Exotic Pets Either [South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
They are among the new homeless of South Florida: Parrots, potbellied pigs, horses, snakes and tarantulas.
As the economy sags, animal abandonment cases are on the rise and exotic pets are no exception.
›Fishing Captain Runs on Biodiesel at $1.35 a Gallon [Fort Myers News-Press]
Fishing guide Ramsey Drummond didn't want high fuel prices to sink his young business.
That's why for the past six months he's run his 43-foot sportfishing boat on biodiesel fuel made from waste vegetable oil.
After an initial $2,000 investment, Drummond said it costs him about $1.35 a gallon to produce the fuel.
›Bankruptcy Court OKs Sale of Land [Orlando Sentinel]
A federal bankruptcy court approved the sale of 122 acres that were once planned for vacation villas marketed primarily to British investors. The development, called Elliot's Landing, was marketed as a vacation haven in the booming Four Corners area, where signs for vacation homes dot U.S. Highway 27 near ChampionsGate.
›Building Departments to Cross Lines and Share Work [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
Charlotte County, North Port and Venice have agreed to share their building department crews after several rounds of layoffs gutted their departments following the construction industry's decline.
›Harris Corp. Replaces Lehman on S&P 500 [Florida Today]
Standard & Poor's said it is booting Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and replacing it with Melbourne-based Harris Corp. on its flagship S&P 500 stock index.
›Public Auction Set for Condos in Delray Beach [South Florida Business Journal]
The unsold condos in Pineapple Grove Village will be sold at public auction after a loan formerly held by Lehman Bros. led to a foreclosure lawsuit against the developer.
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