Florida's new immigration law creates 'panic' in agriculture community

Supporters believe a new Florida law recently signed by Gov. DeSantis will crack down on illegal immigration. However, from farming to construction, the law is expected to have a wide-ranging impact on a number of industries vital to Florida's economy. Some farm workers are already too scared to go to work and are considering leaving the state, which could cause a huge staffing crisis for Florida agriculture. More from WPTV, Newsweek, and the Tallahassee Democrat.

These are the Florida areas with the largest Amazon subsidies

Florida cities and counties administered over $43 million combined in subsidies to Amazon over the last 10 years. GoodJobsFirst’ Amazon tracker tallies state and local economic development subsidy deals given to Amazon.com Inc. for its warehouses, data centers, and film productions and to its subsidiaries such as Whole Foods Market, Zappos and Audible. For each subsidized project, they include the year awarded, state and city or county, estimated subsidy cost and the type of facility. [Source: Tampa Bay Business Journal]

Florida gas prices keep dropping, but will it last through Memorial Day?

Mark Jenkins, a spokesman, AAA - The Auto Club Group, attributes the cheaper prices to weakness in the oil market, which is being driven by domestic economic concerns. "With continued volatility in the fuel market, it's unclear whether this downward trend will continue in the lead-up to the busy Memorial Day travel weekend," Jenkins said. The U.S. price of crude has fallen 15% in the past month, and Friday's closing cost per barrel was $70.04, the lowest price in the past seven weeks. [Source: Tallahassee Democrat]

It’s turtle time: Sign up now for beach walks to see the giant reptiles lay their eggs this summer

It’s an exceptional thrill and a privilege of living on our coast: watching a huge sea turtle lumber in from the ocean, lay her eggs on the beach and head back to the water. Green sea turtle season begins in June and lasts through September in Southeast Florida, while the loggerhead turtle nest season began in March and continues into the fall. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reported more than 7,700 green turtle nests in Palm Beach County last year, up from 6,788 in 2021; Broward had 409 nests, down from 463 the previous year. [Source: South Florida Sun-Sentinel]

Blood banks in Florida prepare to roll out FDA's expanded blood donation policy

The new FDA policy does away with a three-month waiting period before men who have sex with men can donate blood. Moving forward, all donors will be screened using the same questionnaire that determines a person’s individual risk for HIV regardless of sexuality or gender identity. Susan Forbes of OneBlood said they’re currently training workers to roll out the new policy in a couple of months throughout Florida. [Source: WUSF]

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Water Street Tampa economic impact totals $520 million, report says [Tampa Bay Times]
With about half of the total construction completed, Water Street Tampa is already drawing an impact on Tampa Bay. The completed first phase of Water Street Tampa contributes to a $520 million annual economic impact, according to a report released Monday by PFM Group Consulting. It’s also created nearly 6,000 permanent jobs to the area.

› Fanatics acquiring U.S.operations of PointsBet [Jacksonville Daily Record]
Fanatics Inc. is expanding its fledgling sports gambling business by acquiring the U.S. operations of an Australian gaming company. PointsBet Holdings Ltd., which is publicly traded in Australia, announced May 15 it agreed to sell its U.S. business to Fanatics Betting and Gaming for $150 million.

› A Cuban bar in Miami and a Miami Beach hot spot named among best bars in North America [Miami Herald]
Bars come and bars go, but the best bars in Miami tend to stay the same. For the second year in a row, a bar on Calle Ocho in Little Havana and another on Miami Beach were named among North America’s 50 Best Bars. Also making the top 50 list is the Sweet Liberty in Miami Beach, which was ranked at No. 34.

› From poop to power, TECO Peoples Gas leads the way in renewable natural gas production [Florida Politics]
Expected to be online in just a few weeks, the new RNG facility will produce 105,000 MMBtu of RNG, or enough clean, reliable energy to serve 4,400 homes per year. RNG, which can be used just like natural gas, comes from organic waste in landfills, at wastewater treatment plants or on farms.

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› Sarasota County reinstates full EDC funding — for now [Business Observer]
The Sarasota County Commission has fully restored the county’s portion of funding to the Economic Development Corp. of Sarasota County for the next fiscal year, with conditions. Among them: Show measurable, tangible results in one year or lose a large chunk of the county’s approximately $1 million contribution to the EDC’s annual budget.

› Melbourne chamber building up for sale. Will a hotel or apartment developer buy it? [Florida Today]
The Melbourne Regional Chamber is listing its 0.6-acre property for sale for $2 million in downtown Melbourne, a relatively large site that developers are already eying as a possible hotel or multi-story apartment complex. The chamber's 9,358-square-foot, single-story office building at 1005 E. Strawbridge Ave. has served as the organization's headquarters since 1973.

› Searstown redevelopment updated: But does it have the gravitas to be a city gateway? [South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
There’s a new plan on the table for the idled retail wasteland that is the former Searstown in Fort Lauderdale. The project, called 901 North and submitted by Aimco, a real estate investment firm in Denver, is a replacement for one submitted by RK Centers of Miami, which originally planned to break ground this year but sold the site instead.

› Tampa Bay Times launches fundraiser to raise money for local news [Tampa Bay Times]
The journalists who make up the Tampa Bay Times newsroom are determined to hold the powerful to account and give voice to the voiceless. And, increasingly, they've relied on philanthropy and grants to fulfill these core missions. In 2019, they created the Tampa Bay Times Investigative Fund and, soon after, the Tampa Bay Times Journalism Fund.