Space agency gears up for increased launches in 2024

With Florida rocket launches in 2024 expected to top a record set last year, the state’s aerospace agency is seeking more money from lawmakers and is backing an expansion of spaceport designations. Florida had 72 orbital launches last year. Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nunez, who chairs the Space Florida Board of Directors, said last week that launches from Cape Canaveral and Kennedy Space Center represented 68 percent of the orbital flights from the U.S. in 2023. The state anticipates about 120 launches this year. [Source: News Service of Florida]

Study reveals economic impact of Florida's red tide on tourism

A new study from the University of Central Florida's Rosen College of Hospitality Management has found that the loss to tourism-related businesses due to the 2018 Florida red tide bloom is estimated at approximately $2.7 billion. The research, performed in collaboration with the University of South Florida and Florida. Contrary to expectations, the study reveals that low concentrations of red tide can have disproportionate economic impacts compared to more intense blooms. [Source: Phys.org]

Florida gets an 'F' in protecting residents from tobacco dangers

Florida is failing its citizens in reducing the harms of tobacco products, according to the American Lung Association's 22nd annual State of Tobacco report. Overall, it’s Black Floridians who ultimately are among the most hurt by the use of flavored products, the ALA found. Researchshows that 81% of Black Americans smoke menthol cigarettes. On average, 45,000 Black Americans die each year due to tobacco-related illnesses. [Source: WFSU]

Florida lawmakers may force cities and counties to ban public camping

As battles rage around the country over the growing number of unhoused individuals sleeping on sidewalks and in parks, Florida lawmakers are pondering a hard-nosed approach: Prohibiting cities and counties from allowing public camping, and permitting people and businesses to sue governments that don’t remove encampments. If House Bill 1365 becomes law, this state would become the latest to pursue such policies which have gained traction in places like Texas and Missouri. [Source: Orlando Sentinel]

Online sports betting in Florida got the OK in December but there's only one legal app

Sports betting became legal in Florida, again, in a limited fashion in November last year after the U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling allowing people to place bets on-site at the Seminole Tribe’s casinos is South Florida. On Nov. 7, the tribe quietly launched its mobile sports betting app despite online sports betting being a separate, unsettled lawsuit. The launch of the app came with some caveats, such as limiting which of its customers could get “early access” and requiring users to physically visit their nearest Hard Rock or Seminole Casino to earn one Unity point. [Source: Pensacola News Journal]

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Osceola County’s NeoCity receives $15 million from National Science Foundation [Orlando Sentinel]
Osceola County’s semiconductor manufacturing hub NeoCity received a $15 million award from the National Science Foundation on Monday, bringing its total to more than a half-billion dollars in funding over the last 18 months. The award comes from the NSF’s Regional Innovation Engines program, which was funded by the CHIPS and Science Act and aims to establish technology hubs across the country.

› 'Our history': Crumbling records of Lakeland's founding are preserved [Lakeland Ledger]
The handwritten minutes, resolutions and ordinances from 1885 to 1890 that were the basis of Lakeland’s charter were becoming faded 19th-century memories. However, through the efforts of the Lakeland Public Library, the City of Lakeland and a professional preservation company, the roots of a municipality have been preserved indefinitely.

› Southeastern Grocers finishes sale of Fresco y Más; here's what's next [Jacksonville Business Journal]
Winn-Dixie grocery store and Harveys Supermarket operator Southeastern Grocers Inc. finished transferring its Fresco y Mas stores to the Fresco Retail Group LLC on Thursday. The new owners will continue to operate the 28 Fresco y Mas stores and four pharmacies under the same name. “The successful sale of Fresco y Mqs marks an important milestone on our path forward,” Southeastern Grocers CEO Anthony Hucker said.

› Miami natives team up to build a better, more data-driven restaurant experience for all [Refresh Miami]
When Jake Pelayo and Sebastian Brunet met during middle school at Ransom Everglades, little did they know that they would reunite years later to build a startup, in Miami no less. Their paths diverged after high school, with Pelayo leaving to study at Babson and Brunet at Boulder. But throughout this time, they were haunted by the ghost of an idea that originally came from an AP Econ project. In short: How can consumers and restaurants alike leverage the power of data to optimize their food and entertainment choices and offerings?

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› Sanford looks to solve its parking woes [Orlando Sentinel]
Downtown Sanford has turned into a popular destination for visitors to enjoy a meal or grab a cold one, after the city dedicated millions of dollars toward attracting new restaurants, craft breweries and events. But the vibrant downtown has come with another cost: Frustrated motorists trying to find a parking spot, with some resorting to parking illegally or even creating their own spaces on the sidewalks.

› Andrés Duany shares thoughts on Sarasota development 20 years after downtown master plan [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
While Sarasota's skyline has changed over the two decades since the "Duany plan" became the guiding document for downtown development, its author sure hasn't. Andrés Duany's performance at Art Ovation in downtown Sarasota combined comedy with criticism, and was sure to leave some in the audience of hundreds somewhat ruffled by his dismissive air toward the city's perceived problems.

› Air travel surge: Jacksonville International Airport sees record 7.4 million passengers [Florida Times-Union]
In 2023, a record number of passengers passed through Jacksonville International Airport, which also surpassed its annual pre-pandemic passenger record for the first time. According to figures released this week by the Jacksonville Aviation Authority, 7,446,084 passengers departed from or arrived at JAX in 2023, a 13% increase over the previous year and surpassing the previous record of 7,186,639 from 2019.

› 20 little details on the world’s largest cruise ship Icon of the Seas [Orlando Sentinel]
Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas has no shortage of massive, in-your-face features that shout its status as the world’s largest cruise ship. They include the three-deck-tall artistic globe made up of 2 million parts called The Pearl as the first thing people see when they step on board, the six-slide waterpark called Category 6, and the 363-ton steel-and-glass AquaDome sitting atop the 20-deck, 250,800-gross-ton cruise ship.