Florida moves toward regaining lost jobs

As Florida posted its fourth consecutive week of slowing unemployment claims, Department of Economic Opportunity Secretary Dane Eagle said Thursday the state is “a few months” away from regaining the number of jobs lost in the initial hit of the coronavirus pandemic. Unemployment figures released last month showed the state had regained 92.1 percent of the 1.27 million jobs lost in the early stages of the pandemic from February 2020 through April 2020. The recapture rate stood at 91.2 percent in November and 86.6 percent in October. [Source: News Service of Florida]

Business Beat - Week of February 11th

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Florida high court refuses DeSantis request on redistricting

In a 5-0 ruling with two justices recused, the Florida Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a request by Gov. Ron DeSantis to provide advice on the legality of changing the configuration of a North Florida congressional district held by U.S. Rep. Al Lawson, a Black Democrat. The decision now puts the pressure on the Florida House, which has delayed completion of its congressional map awaiting the court’s decision. [Source: Tampa Bay Times]

In COVID’s wake, Central Florida actors look elsewhere for work

There’s no precise data on how many performers have moved away from Central Florida since the spring of 2020, but theater directors and producers have plenty of anecdotal evidence. Even now that theaters and theme parks have reopened, some artistic directors are still feeling the repercussions. “The effect for me has been that when I’m thinking ahead for future casting, I can no longer say, ‘Oh, so-and-so will be great for that role, let’s call them in for a callback audition,’” said Roy Alan, artistic director of the Winter Park Playhouse. “I remember, ‘Oops, they’re not available anymore.’” [Source: Orlando Sentinel]

DeSantis blasts Florida Senate’s attack on Everglades funding

Gov. Ron DeSantis issued a strong statement Thursday against a bill in the state Senate that would give priority to farms in the use of water from Lake Okeechobee, saying it “derails progress” toward restoring the Everglades and reducing polluted discharges to the coasts. The bill, which has the support of Senate President Wilton Simpson, would require the South Florida Water Management District to advocate on behalf of farms, primarily sugar cane, that depend on the lake for water. More from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel and the Miami Herald.

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Tampa Bay’s 9.6 percent inflation still tops other cities [TTampa Bay Times]
It’s no secret costs are still soaring in Tampa Bay. Prices across the region rose an average of 9.6 percent last month compared to January 2021, according to data released Thursday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — the highest hike of any major market in the study. That rate is even higher than the 8 percent annual inflation Tampa Bay saw in November, when it again topped all other cities.

› Palm Beach County students meet business leaders, learn about future careers [WPTV]
Hundreds of Palm Beach County high schoolers met face-to-face with business leaders on Thursday, learning what it takes to be successful. The "Claim Your Future Showcase" was designed to create the business leaders of tomorrow. There were a variety of businesses at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach on Thursday, everything from the U.S. Army to local hospital systems.

› Orlando’s first-time homebuyers to be most affected by rising interest rates [Orlando Business Journal]
Forecasted upticks in interest rates this year may mean higher mortgage rates and less incentive to buy a home, but one particular buyer group may be most affected. First-time homebuyers stand to be affected more than the typical buyer in 2022, Coldwell Banker Realty Regional Vice President of East Central Florida Gregg Hade told Orlando Business Journal. “It affects first-time homebuyers a lot more.”

› Time to expand the suburbs? Miami-Dade rule would speed up turning farmland to houses [Miami Herald]
About five blocks separate Angel Garcia’s four-bedroom West Kendall townhouse from farmland, placing him on the western edge of Miami-Dade County’s suburbs. But for how long? A proposed change in how the county measures long-term housing demand could clear the way for hundreds of townhomes on nearby farms facing Southwest 167th Avenue.  

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› Florida contractors didn’t report 230,000 COVID tests on time during omicron wave [Tampa Bay Times]
The Florida Department of Health on Monday reprimanded two companies for failing to report more than 230,000 COVID-19 tests taken in December and January. The missing tests could mean that the number of positive COVID-19 cases in Florida was even higher than reported during the state’s omicron wave — the most widespread outbreak to date — which peaked at over 65,000 average daily cases on Jan. 11, according to federal health data.

› 'Moderating' homes market trims median Jacksonville-area house price to $345,000 in January [Florida Times-Union]
Jacksonville-area house prices dipped in January despite rising prices for other types of homes, the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors reported. The 1.4 percent drop in median price for single-family homes — to $345,0000 from $350,000 in December — added to signs that the area’s real estate market is cooling after a year of hefty price hikes.

› Why Medicare penalizes some South Florida hospitals that it also gives high ratings [Miami Herald]
Many of South Florida’s largest hospitals are among the more than 750 medical centers nationwide penalized this year by the federal government for having the highest number of patient infections and potentially avoidable complications. The penalties — a 1% reduction in Medicare payments over 12 months — are based on the experiences of patients discharged from the hospital between July 2018 and the end of 2019, according to data analyzed by Kaiser Health News.

› ‘Daughter of the Regiment’ marches back to Sarasota Opera after 35 years [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
It has been about 35 years since the Sarasota Opera last presented Gaetano Donizetti’s “The Daughter of the Regiment,” a rare romantic romp amid a season of the more expected dark romantic tragedies, like “Tosca” and “Attila.” “It usually seems to be presented as a vehicle for a star, like a Joan Sutherland or a Beverly Sills,” said director Mark Freiman, who is staging the new production that begins Saturday. “This was a big showpiece for them, and also for tenors. But I think it holds its own.”