Florida ranks first in nation for clinical trial economic impact
Clinical trials are essential to bringing new medicines to patients, and new research shows they are also a powerful economic engine for Florida. Across the state, there were 2,198 active trials involving 102,016 participants. Biopharmaceutical companies invested $3.7 billion directly in trial sites, supporting thousands of jobs, strengthening local vendors and fueling a total economic impact of $8.3 billion. Florida’s top ranking places it ahead of Texas ($7.7 billion) and California ($7.1 billion). [Source: Florida Politics]
Business Beat - Week of September 19th
Get top news-to-know with Florida Trend's headline-focused video newsbrief, hosted by digital content specialist Aimée Alexander.
Column: Tech companies are coming to Florida — and can't hire enough Floridians
Behind every artificial intelligence tool, data dashboard and sensor-enabled device is a core skill that too often gets overlooked: math. In Florida’s pursuit of becoming a global leader in technology and innovation, it’s time we recognized an essential truth: math education and proficiency are not just academic preparation; they are economic preparation. Improving math outcomes is part of the mission of the Florida Chamber Foundation’s Florida 2030 Blueprint, which identifies a framework for securing Florida’s future as tech jobs and these skillsets are on the rise. [Source: Tampa Bay Business Journal]
2 Florida real estate markets are among top 25 most expensive in the U.S.
It’s no secret that Florida isn’t the cheapest place to live, with the cost of living and buying a home varying significantly throughout the state. A massive influx of new residents made Florida one of the most popular U.S. states to move to from 2021 through 2023. In 2022, it became the country’s fastest-growing state for the first time since 1957, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. But the pandemic-fueled mass migration to Florida has slowed dramatically since last year. [Source: Naples Daily News]
Conservationists sue to stop Florida’s first black bear hunt in a decade
Conservationists have filed a lawsuit to halt Florida’s first black bear hunt in a decade, arguing that the hunt scheduled for December is unconstitutional and contradicts the state’s own policy protecting native species. State officials approved the hunt in August despite strong opposition. Bear Warriors United filed the complaint against the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission in circuit court in Tallahassee on Wednesday. [Source: AP News]
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
› Miami company partners with Starcloud to bring data centers to space
Miami-based Mission Space is bringing its space weather intelligence platform to Starcloud, the Washington company that wants to build data centers in orbit. The collaboration will provide high-resolution space weather data and predictive analytics for Starcloud's space-based data centers. That will optimize power and thermal management to keep those centers operational during events such as solar storms.
› Jaguars issue ‘final and largest’ construction bid package
The Jacksonville Jaguars are closing out the bids on the total $1.4 billion plan to renovate the 30-year-old EverBank Stadium into the “Stadium of the Future.” “Our final and largest construction bid package is now open for the Stadium of the Future,” the NFL team said.
› Disease experts team up with Florida Museum of Natural History to create a forecast for West Nile virus
State and local officials in Florida maintain hundreds of coops with what are referred to as sentinel chickens, which act as an early alarm system for the presence of mosquito-borne illnesses in an area. This alarm system just got an upgrade. An interdisciplinary team of experts have combined their skills and created a statistical model that accurately predicts the activity of West Nile virus in an area up to six months in advance.
› Collier tourism sees visitor boost, international travel still lags
After months of disappointing tourism reports marked by fewer international visitors and lower direct spending, the Collier County Tourist Development Council heard slightly better news at its September meeting. Tourist Development Tax revenue from overnight stays in hotels and other lodgings totaled $2.73 million in July, bringing the year-to-date total to more than $42.8 million, said Jay Tusa, tourism director for the Naples, Marco Island, Everglades Convention & Visitors Bureau.
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› SeaWorld planning underseas-themed dark ride for 2026
SeaWorld Orlando has plans to open a new suspended dark ride in 2026. It will be called SEAQuest: Legends of the Deep, a “submersible adventure through dazzling undersea ecosystems,” according to a post on the theme park’s website. A specific opening date and location within the park are not indicated. Earlier this year, SeaWorld debuted Expedition Odyssey, an Arctic-themed flying theater attraction.
› Icons that tower over Treasure Coast could soon be overshadowed by newer, taller buildings
The Treasure Coast has noticeably fewer tall buildings than counties to its south, making the tallest structures here longtime icons, recognizable to year-around locals and seasonal visitors alike. Developers, however, increasingly are using a new state law to reshape those well-known skylines across Martin, St. Lucie and Indian River counties, and it's being done in the name of increasing Florida's affordable-housing stock.
› Tampa’s Racial Reconciliation Committee work should end, city attorney says
Tampa should stop facilitating the work of its Racial Reconciliation Committee, a city attorney said in a memo to the City Council Thursday. “Continuing to facilitate the committee’s activities... puts the City at risk of becoming subject to a federal enforcement action and/or losing access to federal funds,” the attorney, Andrea E. Zelman, wrote.
› Downtown Miami residents seek state probe into local agency's use of taxpayer funds
The Downtown Neighbors Alliance, which represents residents of some high-rise apartments in downtown Miami and Brickell, is asking a top state official to investigate the Miami Downtown Development Authority for alleged “wasteful spending.” The Alliance said it wants Florida Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia to examine the DDA “for years of wasteful spending and misuse of tax dollars derived from a discriminatory ‘hostage tax’ levied exclusively on downtown residents.”