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MONDAY, OCTOBER 28, 2024

Good Morning! On this day in 1953, songwriter Desmond Child was born in Gainesville. A member of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, Child wrote Bon Jovi's You Give Love a Bad Name, Aerosmith's Dude (Looks Like a Lady), and Ricky Martin's Livin' la Vida Loca.

Today we're covering the return of the SpaceX Crew-8 mission after spending 235 days in space, with their early Friday splashdown in the Gulf of Mexico.

We're sponsored today by Zirconia, offering a unique investment opportunity you won't want to miss.

Orlando Postman Charged in Election Mail Dump

A Central Florida postal worker was arrested Friday on charges of dumping more than 1,000 pieces of mail in the woods, including election information and at least one ballot, instead of delivering it on his assigned Orlando area route.

A federal charging document says Ottis McCoy delivered mail through a contracting agency. His route included the Alafaya Woods apartment community in Oviedo. See the criminal complaint here.

Another postal worker became suspicious because McCoy finished earlier than expected, and alerted authorities. A tracking device on the mail truck and surveillance footage confirmed he had dumped the mail.

McCoy faces up to five years in prison and $250,000 in fines if convicted on charges of stealing, taking or abstracting mail.

Lightning Sale Means Cash for Employees

Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik has decided to share some of the profits from his sale of a majority stake in the NHL team with his 300 employees.

Working from a bonus pool of $20 million, every full-time employee of Vinik Sports Group will get a bonus of at least $50,000.

Vinik explained to employees in an email that he had added new partners to the ownership group to "ensure lasting success" and that nothing would change in the day-to-day operations of the team.

Vinik will continue running the Lightning for the next three years, and he will remain as a minority partner when Doug Ostrover and Marc Lipschultz assume control in late 2027.

Listeria Risk Prompts Major Waffle Recall

More than 40 brands of frozen waffles and pancakes were recalled by TreeHouse Foods due to potential listeria contamination.

Many of the recalled frozen products are store brands sold by popular Florida retailers, including 365 Organic (Whole Foods), Good & Gather (Target), Great Value (Walmart), and Publix.

The recall also includes brands like Kodiak Cakes, Nature's Path Organic, and Wild Harvest. See the full list here.

Bringing Ancient Roman Secrets to a $3T Opportunity

How is the Pantheon still standing strong in Rome after 2,000+ years while America’s decades-old concrete infrastructure is falling apart? Zirconia has the answer. And now, the $3T concrete infrastructure crisis isn’t just an opportunity for them, but for their early investors too.

Zirconia’s patented coating makes concrete infrastructure like bridges and dams practically immortal to wear from weather, salt, and time. That’s why they’re already working with customers like Amazon, Tyson, and the U.K., approved to begin work in Miami-Dade County, and have trials underway in Saudi Arabia and the U.S. With $1M in sales waiting in their pipeline at this very moment, Zirconia is scaling fast.

To help with its scaling efforts, Zirconia has opened a limited-time, early investment opportunity to the public. Stopping concrete corrosion is a $3T opportunity. Become an early Zirconia investor while you can—and earn up to 25% in bonus stock.

➤ Statewide: Starting Sunday, Floridians affected by Hurricanes Helene and Milton can receive food assistance through the state's Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. (See Details)

➤ Tallahassee: The Check My Contract portal to help storm victims avoid bad contracts launched last week, allowing Floridians to submit contracts for a free independent review from the state. (More)

➤ Tampa: The area apartment complexes have organized to provide vacancy information for Hurricane Milton evacuees. Some complexes offer discounts for displaced residents. (More)

➤ Brevard County: Commissioners will seek the Attorney General's opinion on the use of hotel tourism tax money to pay for lifeguards on Space Coast beaches, following a suggestion from the Tourism Development Council. (More)

➤ Gainesville: The transportation department Friday announced changes to Regional Transit System bus services, citing budget constraints and rising operating costs. (More)

➤ St. Petersburg: A national funeral and cremation services company bought the former Harold Seltzer's Steakhouse building for $3.9 million. The restaurant closed in September after 30 years. (More)

➤ The Jacksonville Jaguars fell to the Green Bay Packers 30-27 in Jacksonville on Sunday. A 51-yard pass to Jayden Reed set up Brandon McManus’s game-winning field goal as time expired. (More)

➤ The Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost 36-30 in overtime to the Atlanta Falcons, as Atlanta’s Kirk Cousins threw for 509 yards and hit KhaDarel Hodge for the winning touchdown. (More)

➤ Miami routed Florida State 36-14 on Saturday, improving to 8-0 and strengthening their ACC title hopes. The Seminoles fell to 1-7, a stark decline from last season's 13-1 record. (Watch Highlights)

➤ USF basketball coach Amir Abdur-Rahim passed away at the age of 43. Abdur-Rahim led the Bulls to a program-record 25 wins last season. (More)

➤ The Miami Dolphins defensive tackle Zach Sieler suffered a fractured orbital bone in practice that may require surgery. Sieler’s timeline for return is unknown. (More)

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➤ The four members of SpaceX Crew-8 splashed down early Friday off Florida's coast in the Crew Dragon Endeavour, ending their record-setting mission. (See Video)

➤ Global aerospace company Ontic will open a maintenance and repair facility in Miramar, employing 88 people in early 2025. (More)

➤ Dania Beach-based Spirit Airlines has revived merger talks with Frontier Airlines, amid Spirit's potential bankruptcy filing. (See Details)

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How Miami-Dade is Preventing Salt Corrosion

Florida knows all too well the damage caused by concrete corrosion. Extreme weather and salt wear away at structures, eventually leaving rubble and tragedy in their wake. It's not just Florida, though. Concrete corrosion is estimated to be a $3 trillion problem.

So when Zirconia revealed their breakthrough coating tech – that actually strengthens with corrosive conditions, making concrete infrastructure practically immortal – they turned heads. That's why Miami-Dade County recently approved their coatings to help protect against corrosion caused by weather and salt. South Florida joins companies like Amazon and Tyson and countries like the U.K., and Saudi Arabia in working with Zirconia.

Stopping concrete corrosion is a $3T opportunity. Become an early Zirconia investor while you can – and earn up to 25% in bonus stock.

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➤ Former President Donald Trump plans to hold his election night party in the Palm Beach area, according to campaign sources. (More)

➤ The new Harbour Club in Miami Beach features two areas: one open to the public and another exclusive to members only. (See Details)

➤ A 15-foot Burmese python was caught swallowing a deer in Southwest Florida, proving the invasive apex predators are ambushing and killing bigger prey. (See Photo)

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