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Florida citrus finds new momentum - Shannon Shepp, Florida Department of Citrus executive director, recently discussed the renewed sense of optimism being felt in the Florida citrus industry due to recent positive developments. One of the reasons for optimism is the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s final citrus forecast for the 2025–26 season. Despite weathering another challenging season, including damaging freezes, Florida orange production climbed to nearly 13 million boxes, marking the first meaningful increase after years of decline. More from Citrus Industry.
What to cut? Florida schools hold budget public hearings this week - School district officials across Florida have been discussing ways to slash spending for the past several months, as they confront declining enrollment and rising prices. Their plans become more real this week. To meet state requirements and deadlines, school boards begin holding their first of two budget public hearings on Tuesday. After adopting their tentative property tax rates, the boards can reduce them but cannot go any higher. More from the Tampa Bay Times.
Gasworx clears major hurdle to reconnect downtown Tampa and Ybor City -
Gasworx has moved a step closer to reconnecting downtown Tampa and Ybor City after clearing a major infrastructure hurdle. The City of Tampa has finalized the railroad agreements and property transfers needed to construct the East 4th Avenue rail crossing, a long-planned connection that will reconnect streets divided for decades by the CSX rail corridor and pave the way for the next phase of infrastructure supporting the 50-acre mixed-use district south of Ybor City. More from Tampa Bay Business & Wealth.
Miami-based City Labs sends into orbit tiny nuclear batteries that could power space exploration - A Miami-based company is helping power the future of space exploration. City Labs builds small nuclear batteries designed to generate electricity for decades without needing sunlight, making them ideal for satellites and other spacecraft. Earlier this month, the company reached a major milestone when its first commercial nuclear-powered payload launched into orbit aboard a SpaceX rocket. More from Refresh Miami.
Stadiums, theaters, conventions and the arts: Orange TDT board to hear massive proposals - A slate of potentially transformative projects, all seeking a slice of Orange County’s substantial hotel tax revenue, will soon be pitched to the task force that will decide their fates — but the financial reality and political will to advance them remain murky. They range from ideas as expensive as nearly $1 billion toward a professional baseball stadium to as (relatively) cheap as a $20 million plan to convert a greenhouse owned by the City of Apopka into a natural history museum. More from the Orlando Sentinel.
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