Tuesday's Afternoon Update
Florida job growth continues to outperform the nation
Florida now has experienced 20 consecutive months of job growth and 14 consecutive months of labor force increases, the state’s Department of Economic Opportunity reports. The state continues to outperform national figures. In December 2021, the labor force was up 29,000 from the previous month, bringing the total number of people employed in the month to 10.6 million. Florida businesses gained 11,900 private-sector jobs in December 2021 compared to the previous month. More from the Center Square.
New CEO named at NextEra Energy
NextEra Energy, the parent company of Florida Power & Light, named John Ketchum on Tuesday as its president and chief executive officer. Ketchum, who has held a number of executive positions during 19 years with the company and its affiliates, will replace Jim Robo. An announcement said Robo will serve as executive chairman during a transition period, with Ketchum joining the company’s board of directors on March 1. More from the News Service of Florida.
Commentary: Florida can save its climate future
Florida lawmakers in the next 60 days have three big opportunities to ease impacts of climate change in our state. Floridians know climate change is real – 94% of Floridians agree. That’s because we are already paying higher electric bills from record heat waves and skyrocketing insurance from stronger hurricanes and increased flooding. More from the Palm Beach Post.
Former Pasco music venue the Cow Palace gets historic recognition
Several area residents who know the site’s history and had been working for the last several years were finally successful in getting the location noticed. Officials with the Florida Historical Marker Program of the Bureau of Historic Preservation approved a historical designation for the site last month. Their action officially puts the Cow Palace on the historical map. More from the Tampa Bay Times.
'Steady growth' in jobs trims unemployment in Jacksonville area, state to 3.2 percent
Modest job increases in December edged the Jacksonville area’s already-low unemployment rate down further last month, to 3.2 percent, data from the state's economic developmentjobs agency shows. The gains — an employer survey said 300 jobs, a broader count said 427 workers with paychecks — looked small in a year when employers reported adding about 29,000 private-sector jobs in Jacksonville's five-county metro area. More from the Florida Times-Union.
Out of the Box
A St. Petersburg artist turned lost Florida tourist attractions into coloring books
When Summer Kluytman was a teenager, she got a summer job working at Miracle Strip Amusement Park in Panama City Beach. She’d strap kids into the swinging Viking ship and push the button that started the Abominable Snowman ride, a swirl of flashing lights and heavy metal music inside a chilly igloo. By 2004, Miracle Strip shuttered, like many other hokey Florida tourist attractions of the past. But Kluytman found a way to remember them. The St. Petersburg artist has been documenting lost attractions and beloved landmarks in a new series of hyper-local coloring books.
» More from the Tampa Bay Times.
Business Profile
Chomps
Natural meat snack brand Chomps has received an $80 million minority investment from a Boston-area private equity firm. The investment is the first outside private equity capital Naples-based Chomps has raised since it was founded in 2012. Stride’s involvement will help Chomps to accelerate innovation, brand building and distribution, according to a statement.
» Read more from the Business Observer.