Brevard’s tax revenues boosted by new construction.
Nearly $2 billion worth of new construction projects in Brevard County entered the tax rolls this year. That will help boost property tax revenue for the county and its municipalities. Among Brevard's 16 cities and towns, the biggest percentage increase in the taxable property value was in Palm Bay. Data compiled by the Brevard County Property Appraiser's Office shows that the 11 properties with the highest new construction values were apartment and other residential rental projects. Under the preliminary proposed county budget for the 2025-26 fiscal year, property tax revenue will increase by over $17 million. Nearly half of the increase, or over $8 million, will be generated by new construction. New construction is especially critical for the county to help balance the budget. That's because the Brevard County Charter has a voter-approved provision that caps the year-to-year increase in how much money can be raised through property taxes.
Next rocket launch scheduled for Tuesday night.
SpaceX has scheduled a Falcon 9 launch for Tuesday night. The 4 1/2 hour window opens at 11:30PM Tuesday. It’s a Starlink mission.
In other space news, the crew for this week’s flight to the International Space Station arrived over the weekend. The NASA, Japanese and Russian astronauts will launch on a Falcon 9 rocket no earlier than noon this Thursday. They will fly in the Dragon crew capsule Endeavor, marking its sixth flight. NASA recently re-certified Dragon capsules to go beyond the previous limit of five flights.
Port Canaveral fisherman are no friends of space flights.
Commercial fishermen based at Port Canaveral are tired of rocket launches. Every rocket launch from Florida's Space Coast triggers hours of maritime-vessel danger zones offshore of Port Canaveral, with fishermen warned to avoid those areas. That's why the Southeastern Fisheries Association recommends that a compensation program be set up for fishermen, processors, and distributors who suffer economic losses or equipment damage. The damage occurs when fish nets get snagged on underwater rocket debris. Brevard trails only Duval County among Florida's 12 East Coast counties with nearly 4.5 million pounds of seafood landed on the docks.
Boat crashes increasing in Florida.
Boating traffic and accidents have surged in Florida over the past few years. A Tampa Bay Times analysis of data from Florida Fish and Wildlife shows there were 10% more boat incidents in 2024 than before the pandemic. Most crashes come from operator errors, like speeding. Alcohol often plays a role as well. Florida has over one million registered vessels - about 10% of all boats in the US.
Do you play pickleball?
If you play pickleball, a Health First nurse has a suggestion. Don’t jump into the game without preparing your body physically. Evan Cataldo, a Advanced Practice Registered Nurse, says he’s treating an increasing number of patients for pickle-ball related injuries. Especially among adults between the ages of 45 and 70. The problem is acute among players who haven’t been active for years and they try to jump into the sport at full speed. Fractures from falling are common, as well as ankle injuries.
