Rockledge Hospital to close.
Orlando Health recently acquired Rockledge Hospital. Now the health care company wants to shut it down, citing the facility’s poor condition and high repair costs. The health care company plans to build a new hospital in Brevard County, but hasn’t announced a timeline or location. Orlando Health acquired Rockledge Hospital, along with two other hospitals, from Steward Health Care in October. Employees of the closing hospital will be offered positions at other Orlando Health locations.
Cocoa Beach considering 300% fee hikes for short term rentals.
If you own a short-term rental in Cocoa Beach, be prepared for steep fee hikes. Initial registration fees my increase from $525 to $2,500 and annual fees may rise from $325 to $1,500. The money generated will go towards stricter enforcement of short-term rentals in Cocoa Beach. The city commission will vote on the proposal at a meeting tonight at 7 p.m. There are more than 1,500 vacation rental properties in Cocoa Beach.
Florida Attorney General sues Target over Gay Pride products
Three days into his job, the new Florida Attorney General launched an attack about gay Pride. James Uthmeier announced Thursday he filed a class action lawsuit against retail giant Target for promoting “radical LBGTQ activism.”
“While Target told its investors it would keep the company out of controversy to protect the stock price, the retailer engaged in a marketing campaign targeting and sexualizing children. We are not afraid of a fight in Florida, and you can bet we won’t back down to corporate bullies who who are willing to sacrifice returns in order to indoctrinate children.”
The Attorney General alleged Target defrauded investors in the process of promoting Pride Month, a collection of products for the LBGTQ community. Florida’s class-action lawsuit claims the Pride campaign caused Target shareholders to lose $25 billion in six months.
Rehabbed loggerhead released in Brevard.
After 16 months of rehabilitation by the Sea Turtle Healing Center at the Brevard Zoo, a 140-pound loggerhead turtle was released yesterday into the ocean at Howard Futch Park in Melbourne. The turtle was found in 2023, wrapped up in a crab pot. One of the lines of the crab pot had cut off circulation to a limb. The zoo removed the limb and rehabilitated the turtle for over a year until it could be released back into the ocean.
Musk wants to trash the space station.
In a tweet yesterday, Elon Musk posted that the International Space Station should be de-orbited as soon as possible. Musk believes that the orbiting laboratory has served its purpose, and funds should be shifted to Mars exploration. NASA has planned to operate the ISS through 2030. Musk wants it shut down in early 2027. SpaceX has contracts to both send supplies and astronauts to the Space Station, and a contract to build a de-orbit vehicle that will crash the ISS into the Pacific Ocean.
HGTV features Brevard homes.
A couple using an inheritance to purchase a Brevard County home will be featured on an upcoming episode of the HGTV show “My Lottery Dream House.” The show’s host, David Bromstad, shows the couple several Brevard beachside homes. The episode airs tonight at 9PM on HGTV.
