Florida bank loan defaults rise amid tariff anxieties
Global trade anxieties have quickly unraveled post-election optimism for the banking industry with another layer of uncertainty around loan defaults, which have already begun to rise in Florida. Banks’ past-due and nonaccrual loans rose .18% to .70% between the last quarter of 2024 and the first quarter of 2025 in Florida, according to data from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The share of troubled loans rose from .46% to .70% in total last year from 2023. [Source: South Florida Business Journal]
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NextGen | Blood, sweat and innovation
Adam El-Hosseiny helped transform a laboratory started by his family into a leader in the specialty-diagnostic space. Over the past four years, the company has expanded from 25,000 to more than 40,000 square feet across three facilities, with plans to exceed 50,000 square feet this year. Notably, though Access Medical Laboratories services patients all over the country, all their lab tests are done in Palm Beach County, where their workforce has grown by 50% in the last year.[Source: Florida Trend]
Florida claims No. 6 spot in U.S. News Best States ranking, leads in economy
For the third consecutive year, Florida ranks as one of the best states in the nation, according to U.S. News & World Report’s 2025 Best States ranking. Florida climbed to No. 6 in the 2025 U.S. News & World Report Best States rankings, with top honors in economy and a second-place ranking in education — two categories that continue to drive growth and investment across the state. [Source: Tampa Bay Business Journal]
Florida will spend millions on new SpaceX launch site
Approved by Space Florida in December, what has been known as Project Hinton was announced this week as the new Starship operations headquarters for SpaceX. Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office said billionaire Elon Musk’s company will build launch and landing facilities for the Starship launch vehicle — designed to eventually provide millions of tons of payload to Mars — at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. SpaceX said testing and design of the vehicle will continue in Texas. [Source: News Servicce of Florida]
Florida has a big concern for wildfire risks heading into the first part of the summer
Despite the much-needed moisture from recent rains, wildfires are still in the forecast for some parts of the country. One expert says that Florida is a big concern. According to National Interagency Fire Center Meteorologist, Jim Wallman, “At least for May, our primary concern is going to be probably in the southeast along the coast and in Florida." [Source: RFD TV]
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
› Sprawling Jacksonville Mayo Clinic just got bigger, more high-tech
Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville has opened its latest expansion, a $378 million project that added five floors to the main patient tower. The "vertical growth" brings 166 patient beds in medical and surgical nursing units, as well as new automation and patient care technology, according to Mayo.
› Report: New police station on rise in Fort Lauderdale has 8 critical safety issues
A blistering report calls into question the safety of Fort Lauderdale’s new police headquarters currently under construction. The draft report, an 80-page peer review obtained this week by the South Florida Sun Sentinel, finds eight critical safety concerns with the three-story building. A major design flaw was already discovered last year. In March 2024, hairline cracks began forming along the entire length of a support beam on the top floor.
› New leader of UCF Business Incubation Program plans busy 2025
Rafael Caamaño is uniquely positioned to step in as interim director of operations at the UCF Business Incubation Program. Caamaño, who took over for long-time director Carol Ann Dykes Logue on May 1, has been helping incubator startups scale up for more than 17 years. The UCF Business Incubation Program houses 115 startups across five counties.
› Housing boom east of I-75 looming in Sarasota County as Lakewood Ranch Southeast proceeds
Confident that revised plans meet all legal obligations, Lakewood Ranch developer Rex Jensen is ready to break ground on major expansion plans into Sarasota County — and there is little that elected officials can do to stop the major housing boom that will follow east of Interstate 75 in Sarasota and Manatee counties. Sarasota County commissioners are scheduled to vote on a zoning change request that, if approved, will give Lakewood Ranch the green light to kick residential development of about 5,000 homes.
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› Globally recognized filmmaker from Gainesville to be honored at 5th Avenue Arts Festival
A local playwright and filmmaker who has been recognized globally for his productions will be honored at this year’s 5th Avenue Arts Festival in Gainesville Barry McLeod, founder of The Write Side of Me Productions Inc., will be recognized by festival organizers with the Outstanding Creative Award for his more than 40 years of dedication to the entertainment industry.
› Blumberg Capital is bullish on #MiamiTech: Q&A with founder David Blumberg
David Blumberg has been a fixture in venture capital for decades. As founder and managing partner of Blumberg Capital, he’s invested across continents, sectors, and cycles. Now, he’s doubling down on Miami. Blumberg’s firm recently opened a new office in Sunny Isles and has already backed several South Florida startups including FirmPilot, Prescient AI, and Imagene.
› Sand Key condo evacuated for ‘potential structural issues,’ officials say
Residents of a Sand Key condominium tower were evacuated Tuesday evening after “potential structural issues” were found, officials say. Clearwater Fire Division Chief Jevon Graham said that construction work was being done Tuesday afternoon on the first-floor parking garage at the South Beach III Condos, 1460 Gulf Blvd., when engineers noticed a crack in a support column. The building was deemed unsafe, and residents were evacuated as a precaution.
› Fort Lauderdale says land at center of turf war belongs to city, not residents next door
Fort Lauderdale has fired back a legal response in the turf war over a tiny piece of land south of the New River, saying the tree-dotted parcel is not a park but a public thoroughfare. Just one-third of an acre, the land is at the heart of a contentious legal battle between Fort Lauderdale and the property owners who live on either side. The homeowners filed a lawsuit in late March claiming they are the rightful owners of the land now known as Francis L. Abreu Place.