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FRIDAY, JAN. 11, 2008
FLORIDA TREND EXCLUSIVE:
Another Local Government Investment Fund Collapses by Neil Skene
Another investment pool holding funds from Florida cities has collapsed, but the result for the communities is different this time because of a bailout from the Florida League of Cities.
The latest troubled fund involved some $187 million that more than a dozen smaller Florida cities, ranging from Flagler Beach to New Port Richey to Auburndale, pooled with the League. The cities were hoping to get a higher return on idle funds than they could get on their own. The League invested the money in the Columbia Strategic Cash Portfolio, a fund for institutional investors managed by Columbia Management, a subsidiary of Bank of America.
The Columbia fund, known as the Strat-Cash fund, consisted of supposedly safe securities with slightly longer maturities than a typical money-market fund. But that fund shut down on Dec. 10 and distributed its assets after it was unable to sell mortgage-backed securities in its portfolio to meet a $20-billion withdrawal demand by its largest investor, who hasn’t been identified.
To guarantee the cities wouldn’t lose their investments, the League assumed all the risk of loss from the troubled investments and took out a $156-million loan to create a new investment pool for the cities. The League is the major statewide organization of city governments and lobbies on their behalf.
Meanwhile, some Florida cities, including the city of St. Petersburg, invested in the Strat Cash fund directly and aren’t protected by the League’s bailout. [Click for more]
TALLAHASSEE:
State to Take on Top Insurers Over Costs
Top insurance executives are being summoned -- and may be subpoenaed -- to testify under oath next month before a newly formed Senate select committee examining why last year's legislative overhaul of homeowners' insurance has not caused rates to plummet.
Requiring an oath before testifying is rare in Florida legislative committees and was last employed during another insurance battle almost five years ago over medical malpractice rates. Senators also made clear they want the top brass from America's insurance industry to appear before the panel. [Source: Orlando Sentinel]
FORT LAUDERDALE:
Levitt and Sons Customers May Be Out Deposits
If you put down money to buy a home from Levitt and Sons before the company went into bankruptcy, you won't be forced to wait around for the home to get built. But here's the catch: You may lose some -- or even all -- of your deposit.
Buyers who asked a judge to let them out of their contracts were rewarded Thursday, as U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Raymond B. Ray agreed to cancel about two dozen deals. Levitt and Sons collected about $18 million in deposits on homes it failed to finish building.
[Source: Miami Herald]
TAMPA:
Ban on Travel to Cuba Faces Challenge
Civil rights activists and university officials argue that the law is unconstitutional.
[Source: St. Petersburg Times]
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
›Gary Files 500 Lawsuits Seeking Payment in State Tobacco Case [Palm Beach Post]
Stuart-based attorney Willie Gary beat the deadline. Plaintiffs claiming they or their loved ones were injured or killed by the effects of tobacco under the conditions of a 2000 class-action verdict have until the close of business today to file lawsuits.
›Tampa Port Wins in Panama Canal Expansion [Tampa Tribune]
A wider canal should help double the volume of cargo to East Coast and Gulf Coast seaports from the Far East, including China, and spur economic growth in Panama, which Tampa economic development officials seek as a major trade partner.
Related from Trend: Leaving the Real Estate Slump Behind in Panama
›Stamping Out Ugly S. Fla. Homes on TV [Miami Herald]
The interventions are part of the Ugliest House on the Block -- the latest TV show to join the home makeover craze. Airing on cable's WE channel, its entire first season is set in South Florida.
›State's Role in I-4 Pileup Questioned [St. Petersburg Times]
A drop in humidity caused a controlled burn near I-4 to turn into a wildfire. Interstate 4 reopens but fog may halt it again.
›Cuts Put Colleges' Summer in Doubt [St. Petersburg Times]
Schools may not offer any summer sessions or may reduce offerings.
›Orlando-Area Home Prices Drop 10.4% in a Year [Orlando Sentinel]
Orlando's existing-home market ended 2007 with a nine-year low in annual sales and a record decline in December's median price compared with a year earlier.
›Nelson: National Energy Plan Must Address Alternatives Before Drilling [TCPalm]
But Sen. Bill Nelson said he might consider allowing oil companies to drill off Florida’s coast.
›Column: State Sinks to New Low with Law on Saggy Pants [Palm Beach Post]
The Florida Senate's Pre-K-12 Committee voted unanimously this week to create a law that would require schoolkids to pull up their droopy pants.
›A Disappointing December Hits Stein Mart [Florida Times-Union]
Following a disappointing year, Jacksonville-based Stein Mart Inc. reported steep losses in its December and fourth-quarter sales results, both released Thursday. The retailer also anticipated an overall loss for the fourth quarter.
Related: Retailers report slow holiday season
›Arts Center in St. Petersburg, Condos Split [St. Petersburg Times]
The Arts Center could have been a victim of the real estate crisis. Instead, it's looking like a survivor.
The 90-year-old organization's leaders announced Thursday they have severed ties with the Arts, a planned two-tower condominium high-rise that touted as its centerpiece the grand 62,000-square foot Arts Center and museum devoted to the works of glass sculptor Dale Chihuly.
›Miami Agrees to Slots Deal [Miami Herald]
Miami commissioners approved a revenue-sharing deal with two parimutuels that would get slot machines, if Miami-Dade County voters approve them on Jan. 29.
›NASA Sets Another Atlantis Date [Florida Today]
NASA is targeting Feb. 7 for shuttle Atlantis' launch to the International Space Station to deliver the European Columbus module.
›Green Rules Get Warm Reception [Tampa Tribune]
To date, Tampa has lagged behind a national and regional trend to offer incentives to developers who build environmentally sensitive buildings. Nearby Sarasota has been at the forefront of the movement. Hillsborough County also has been getting onboard.
›Opinion: USF Can't Achieve Greatness if Branch Campuses Run Amok [Tribune]
The state Legislature made a mess of the University of South Florida's governance when it granted virtual independence to the St. Petersburg campus. Now USF leaders are about to make the same mistake with Sarasota-Manatee and Lakeland campuses.
›Venice Finally Approves Tra Ponti Project [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
Work will begin immediately on the first hotel built on the island in 40 years.
›Free Trade Deals Critical to Foreign Ties, Envoy Says [Palm Beach Post]
Free trade agreements with Latin America aren't just about business.
"Free trade in Latin America is critical to our relations with our hemispheric partners," said P. Michael McKinley, U.S. ambassador to Peru. "It's also critical to the economic and security interests of the United States."
›Ruling Nets Spain Shipwreck Details [St. Petersburg Times]
The Spanish government will receive detailed information about a shipwreck site where Tampa's Odyssey Marine Exploration found $500-million worth of coins and artifacts last year, a federal judge ruled Thursday.
›Report: Insurers Fleece Public [St. Petersburg Times]
The property insurance industry not only racked up near-record profits in 2007 - about $65-billion after taxes - but overcharged American homeowners an average of $870 per household over the last four years, says a new report from major consumer groups.
›UM Team Plays Role in Medical Discovery [Miami Herald]
UM researcher's team identified the defective gene that causes a rare disease that kills boys.
›Publix to Settle Benzene Suit, Will Reformulate Soda [Lakeland Ledger]
The lawsuit alleged that two ingredients of the Lakeland-based grocer's diet lemon lime soda, when combined and exposed to heat over a period of time, may form a small amount of benzene measured in single digits of parts per billion.
›Sen. Mel Martinez Earned $25k for 10 Months of Work as RNC Chief [Sentinel]
A party official said the payment was the maximum Martinez is allowed to accept under congressional rules, which limit sources and amounts of outside income.
›Lennar Sells 11,000 Homes for 40 Cents on Dollar [Bloomberg News]
"If you're a vulture, Florida has more carrion. This stuff is lying on the ground. It's lost life. Some of the stuff in Phoenix is still breathing. Perhaps not for long," said Marcel Arsenault.
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