Florida tops 100,000 coronavirus cases on the day the world saw its biggest rise

On a global scale, the Monday report brought the largest single-day increase in coronavirus cases since the virus evolved into a pandemic, the World Health Organization said. In Florida, the number of people diagnosed with the respiratory virus topped 100,000. The Florida Department of Health’s daily coronavirus update added 2,926 more coronavirus cases to Sunday’s updated numbers, bringing the state’s running total of positive infections to 100,217. More from the Tampa Bay Times, the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, and the Miami Herald.

Report: Florida ranks among best states for business

Entrepreneurs looking to start a business may want to consider Florida. In a recent report from Chief Executive Magazine, a business-focused magazine, the Sunshine State ranked as the second best state for businesses behind only Texas. Texas and Florida were Nos. 1 and 2 on the 2019 list as well. [Source: Tampa Bay Business Journal]

Commentary: How Florida can attract tech refugees from California

People had already been fleeing high-tax, high-regulation states in droves before the ongoing pandemic and civil unrest added more stresses to many already precarious policy arrangements across the country. Technology companies, in particular, have been feeling the heat, especially in the state fortunate enough to be the birthplace of Silicon Valley: California. [Source: Orlando Sentinel]

Visa restrictions will have impact on South Florida’s multinationals, tech firms

President Donald Trump expanded his crackdown on foreign workers on Monday, freezing green cards issued outside the United States until the end of the year and adding many temporary work visas to the freeze, affecting tech companies, the tourism industry and hundreds of multinationals in South Florida, many staffed with high-paid foreign executives who live and work here. [Source: MIami Herald]

Hundreds of complaints, zero penalties for bars, restaurants violating Florida reopening rules

Since the beginning of Florida's Phase 1 reopening May 4, hundreds of restaurants may have flaunted social distancing regulations and bars, pubs and nightclubs illegally served alcohol in defiance of the executive orders signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis. In the first week alone, based on public records requested by the USA TODAY NETWORK - Florida, members of the public lodged 111 complaints against restaurants and bars not following the rules of the Safe. Smart. Step-by-Step plan. [Source: Tallahassee Democrat]

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Developer unveils $1 billion project on Orlando Rosemont’s old golf course [Orlando Sentinel]
Miami-based Westside Capital Group is rolling out conceptual plans for its $1 billion mixed-use development in Orlando’s Rosemont neighborhood, according to a report in GrowthSpotter. At a community meeting last week, where residents wore masks and sat six feet apart from one another, Westside Capital founder and president Jakub Hejl presented his vision for the neighborhood.

› Walt Disney World park reservation system slammed on opening day [Tampa Bay Times]
The system Walt Disney World has put in place to make a theme park reservation went online for select guests on Monday, and it was slammed by fans trying to secure admission. Disney opened its system for people who already had a hotel reservation at Walt Disney World. It goes live to annual passholders on Friday and to the general public on Sunday, but they may find many days already booked.

› Miami Seaquarium has reopened after a three-month closure due to COVID-19 [Miami Herald]
Joining its land-based competitor Zoo Miami, the Miami Seaquarium has reopened to the public after being closed for more than three months. On Saturday, the Seaquarium, 4400 Rickenbacker Causeway, opened its doors again after closing on March 13 due to the escalating novel coronavirus pandemic.

› Need to use a computer? Sarasota-Manatee public libraries are back to help [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
Harry Reynolds writes books about automobile racing — and he does it without internet access at home. When Sarasota County public libraries closed in March as the coronavirus pandemic set in, Reynolds, 83, would sit in the parking lot of Fruitville Public Library to conduct research and check his email using the public WiFi. But “wrestling with a computer” in the cramped, and often hot, quarters of his car “never works very well,” Reynolds said. So when Fruitville Library reopened this week, along with most other branches across Sarasota County, Reynolds returned to sort through the 300 emails he’d missed since he was last online.

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› Legal services firm lays off 86 workers in Tampa [Tampa Bay Business Journal]
Tampa-based legal support services firm ProVest has laid off 86 workers, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification filed with the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity. According to the WARN notice filed by ProVest's Chief Compliance Officer and In-House Counsel Robert Wilkins, the layoffs are expected to be permanent.

› Sarasota-Bradenton airport adds new flights [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
As tourism begins to trickle back to Sarasota-Manatee, the local airport has added some new routes that reflect where visitors are coming from. Three of the airport’s longtime carriers have added service to destinations that they didn’t offer before COVID-19. JetBlue said it would add nonstop service to Newark, New Jersey, starting Aug. 6, American Airlines will begin service to New York’s LaGuardia Airport July 11 and Frontier Airlines recently announced new nonstop flights to Chicago O’Hare International Airport, the airport said Monday.

› MSC Cruises to sail ships from Port Canaveral for first time [Orlando Sentinel]
Port Canaveral will become home to a new cruise line this fall as MSC Cruises announced plans to sail two ships from the Central Florida port. MSC Seaside and MSC Divina, which had been sailing out of PortMiami, are slated to begin a tandem effort at year-round sailings with Seaside arriving in November and Divina following in spring 2021.

› Orange County emergency chief balances COVID-19 with hurricane threat [Orlando Sentinel]
Orange County’s new emergency management division chief has her work cut out for her. Lauraleigh Avery accepted the position on Monday at a time when COVID-19 cases are on the rise and the 2020 hurricane season is predicted to be an above-average year for tropical activity. “This is going to be a unique year,” said Avery. She’s the first woman to ever assume the role in Orange County and the first certified member to be promoted to the rank.