Naples, Florida, ranks #2 on the list of ‘America’s Happiest Seaside Towns,’ as ranked byCoastal Living Magazine. Jupiter, Florida, ranks #9…..The ranking was based on a formula that includes editors’ picks, the Gallup Healthways Well-Being Index, sunny days, beach quality, low crime, commute time, education of residents and other factors.
“Florida’s recovery from the Great Recession picked up steam last year and “all indications” point to even stronger gains this year, according to a statewide economic outlook released Thursday by Wells Fargo Securities.
Among positive signs: In-migration to Florida and hiring have both accelerated; the shadow inventory of homes is gradually being whittled away; and more businesses are expanding. Perhaps the most surprising outperformer stoking a recovery is professional and business services, which account for 40 percent of the jobs that have been added statewide since December 2009.
“While Florida will still need a few more years to fully recover all of the jobs lost during the 2007-2009 recession, a change in direction is clearly evident across much of the state,” Wells Fargo senior economist Mark Vitner and economic analyst Joe Seydle wrote in a 21-page dissection.”
Click HERE to read the full article on Tampa Bay Times.
A Michigan-based information technology company expected to hire 190 over the next four years is on its way to Florida’s Space Coast, the governor’s office announced Friday.
BlueWare Inc., a software company, is relocating to Melbourne, where it will be developing and writing software, document scanning and developing in the areas of robotics, nanotechnology and genomics, as they apply to a patient’s medical records.
“BlueWare’s choice to move to Florida is a testament to the strength of our business climate and the result of a common vision for economic growth by local, regional, business and government partners,” Scott said in a written statement. “Today’s announcement is a great win for the Space Coast, as well as for the entire state.”
BlueWare has said it expects to hire 190, with an average wage of $69,000, over four years, while investing more than $1 million for property and equipment.
The company was awarded $760,000 through a State of Florida Qualified Target Industry Tax Refund and $550,000 in a Quick Action Closing Fund incentive to offset the costs of location, employee training, and infrastructure.
“In Chief Executive’s eighth annual survey of CEO opinion of Best and Worst States in which to do business… 650 business leaders responded to our annual survey, up from 550 in 2011. CEOs were asked to grade states in which they do business among a variety of areas, including tax and regulation, quality of workforce and living environment. …
Florida moved up from number three last year to number two. Last year, Florida Gov. Rick Scott penned a tongue-in-cheek letter to Texas Gov. Rick Perry, warning him that Florida is coming after the Lone Star State’s top ranking. Since Scott took office, his administration has enacted business tax and regulatory reforms that have contributed to the creation of more than 140,000 private sector jobs and an unemployment drop of 2.1 percentage points last year—one of the biggest decreases in the nation.”
Orlando ranked No. 5 among the top 10 most visited cities for business travel in the U.S. in 2011, according to a new report compiled by travel and expense management provider Concur.
Concur found that business travelers visiting Orlando spent the following average amounts in five key categories:
Click HERE to read the full article on Orlando Business Journal
Gov. Rick Scott stopped by the Tampa Bay Business Journal newsroom Thursday to discuss his newly signed budget, and the topics ranged from immigration and state health care funding, to other more politically charged topics.
During the next two weeks, the governor will be reviewing 40 to 50 bills, as he reads through approximately 280 to 300 each year, he said.
Scott talked about his phone calls to out of state businesses, including in Canada, in an effort to attract them to relocate to Florida.
“I tell them, ‘I don’t know if I can solve your problems, but this is what we bring to the table,’” Scott said. What Florida brings to the table, he said, includes a better cost of living.
The governor also discussed the use of tolls to help fund transit projects.
The state has a five-year work plan, to try to get the best projects done first.
“We have a transportation trust fund that’s tied to gas tax revenue, so we have that amount of money to spend every year,” said Scott. “If we want to do more than that, there’s no additional money, unless we do toll roads.”
Click HERE to read the full article on Tampa Bay Business Journal.
“Between an oil spill, a worldwide recession and now a federal budget deficit threatening military bases, the Panhandle has been through the economic ringer, but Gov. Rick Scott said he has a plan.
“This area’s really been built on tourism and the military. Now, what doesn’t make sense to me is why should a company pick Alabama, or Mississippi or Tennessee, rather than the Panhandle,” he said during an editorial board meeting Monday at The News Herald.
While the state is working hard to protect its military installations by enhanced communication and cooperation with base commanders on a variety of issues from schooling for military children to base encroachment, the federal budget cuts have the potential to cause economic trouble. Military installations alone account for 8 percent to 10 percent of the state’s economy, and more in the Panhandle, Scott said.”
Student performers, scientists and mathematicians at Carwise Middle School on Monday gave Gov. Rick Scott a firsthand look at how an additional $1 billion in education funding could help them achieve their dreams.
Carwise was the last stop on Scott’s daylong tour of three Florida schools, which doubled as a celebration of the Florida Legislature’s recent decision to answer his call for the funding.
“Every family has their dream, their version of what they want for their family, but it always comes down to an education for their child,” Scott said. “Everybody wants a job, they want to be able to build their families and everybody wants the cost of living as low as possible.”
The governor said the visit was a continuation of visits in which he listened to parents, teachers and students who prompted him to push lawmakers to approve injecting the additional K-12 education dollars into the 2012-13 budget.
As early as this week, Scott is expected to sign the final state budget, which would steer an additional $47.3 million toward enhanced reading programs, $405 million toward per-student funding and $663 million to plug budget gaps and pay for new students expected to enroll next school year.
Click HERE to read the full story on TampaBayTimes.com
An important win for business and job seekers in the recent legislative session was the passage of Governor Rick Scott’s Job Creation and Economic Growth Agenda, which includes provisions that enhance transparency, accountability and accessibility of the state’s publicly funded workforce system.
The Regional Workforce Boards Accountability Act (House Bill 7023), signed by Governor Scott on March 28, ensures Florida’s 24 regional workforce boards maintain their focus on providing employment and training services that support job creation and retention for job seekers, workers and businesses.
Among key provisions: the boards’ budgets and expenditures will receive additional state review and requirements; and it gives the governor a clearer path for demanding accountability from volunteer and professional leaders — including the option to remove them for cause. Additionally, the new law tasks Workforce Florida with developing a statewide brand for the entire workforce development system to ensure job seekers and businesses can most efficiently access services and resources available through nearly 100 One-Stop Career Centers.
“People of all ages can cast their lines into 3 million acres of lakes, ponds and reservoirs and 12,000 miles of fishable rivers, streams and canals in Florida this weekend for License-Free Fishing Day.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission scheduled the first of four license-free recreational fishing days on this holiday weekend so more people will have the chance to get out and try their luck, a Conservation Commission news release said.
This weekend coincides with a productive freshwater fishing period, when the weather is usually pleasant. Many of Florida’s recreational sport fishes, such as black bass, bluegill and redear sunfish, move into the shallows to spawn during spring, making them more available for anglers to catch.”
