Florida Trend | Florida's Business Authority

Thursday's Afternoon Update

Florida to launch state-run health insurance exchange

Florida has famously spurned the Affordable Care Act, including its option to create a customized insurance-buying website connecting the state’s residents to federally subsidized policies. But, somewhat under the radar, the state has been readying an insurance exchange separate from Obamacare’s healthcare.gov. More at the Fort Myers News-Press.


JaxPort plan: Deepen harbor, diversify business

The upshot of a newly released $600,000 strategic plan for the Jacksonville Port Authority should sound familiar by now: Deepening the shipping channel to 47 feet is a critical goal for officials hoping to keep the port a competitive player. More at the Florida Times-Union.


Tim Franklin is Poynter’s new president

Must Know Floridian

Lynetta Usher Griner

griner

Third-generation Chiefland logger Lynetta Usher Griner was named the 2013 Woman of the Year in Agriculture for outstanding contributions to Florida agriculture.

The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Florida State Fair Authority will hold a luncheon in her honor Feb. 10 during the state fair in Tampa.

» Full story from the Gainesville Sun

The Poynter Institute announced Thursday that Tim Franklin would become its new president. Its previous president, Karen Dunlap, announced last October that she planned to retire. Franklin is currently the Washington managing editor for Bloomberg News. More at Poynter.

The Poynter Institute, a journalism school and media strategy center, owns the Times Publishing Co., which publishes Florida Trend magazine. Franklin will become a director of Times Publishing.


AutoNation beats estimates as Mercedes drives demand

AutoNation Inc., the largest U.S. retailer of new cars and trucks, reported quarterly profit that topped estimates on rising demand for luxury vehicles led by the Mercedes-Benz brand. Fourth-quarter net income increased 31 percent to $109.4 million, or 89 cents a share, from $83.2 million, or 67 cents, a year earlier, the Fort Lauderdale, Florida-based company said today. More at Bloomberg News and the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.


Wind turbines now spinning at Hilton hotel

The Hilton Fort Lauderdale Beach Resort has officially powered up six wind turbines that are expected to help reduce its energy consumption and costs. The wind turbines were installed on the rooftop of the 25-story hotel in September and have been undergoing final inspections and tests to get them ready. More at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

Out of the Box
Rescued dog gets prosthetic leg from Orlando company

prosthetic dog leg"Lucky" might not be the first word you'd use to describe a dog left abandoned, starving and abused in a rough neighborhood near Miami — a dog whose front paw had been cut off. But on Wednesday, the year-old pooch trotted happily on her new plastic and carbon-fiber limb, seeming quite pleased with the odd path her life has taken.

» Read more and see a video at the Orlando Sentinel