Racism is barrier to homeownership in Florida.
Florida’s growing cost of living and rapid development have made this state unaffordable for many, especially Black Floridians. A multimedia project from the Florida Policy Institute is shedding light on how barriers to homeownership for Floridians are rooted in racism. It’s a timeline that dives into how systemic racism in the past 160 years has led to the displacement of Black Floridians.
The project includes various milestones, such as the 1956 Federal Aid Highway Act, in which highways were constructed right through Black neighborhoods. And more recent laws, like SB 154, which increased fees for condo owners after the Surfside Tower Collapse in 2021.
Cicely Hodges is a policy analyst focused on housing at the Florida Policy Institute. She says she cried while making the timeline.
“It was also just sad to read back, see some of the stuff that, yes, was worse, but you can also see some of the parallels with today. And that’s frustrating. More than frustrating. It’s a bit disheartening.”
She hopes lawmakers and the public will recognize how racist laws of the past still affect Black Floridians today.
It’s not a Starlink mission.
A Falcon 9 rocket is slated to lift off this evening from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. The European Space Agency has contracted with SpaceX to launch a pair of SpainSat satellites. The launch window opens at 9:30 this evening.
Palisades fire suspect extradited to California.
The Brevard man accused of starting the deadly Palisades Fire in Los Angeles earlier this year, has been transferred from Florida to California. Prosecutors allege Jonathan Rinderknecht of Melbourne ignited a small fire on Jan. 1 that later exploded into a blaze, killing 12. Officials continue to investigate Rinderknecht’s mental health and potential motive.
Port Canaveral boards more passengers.
The cruise business at Port Canaveral is booming. WFIT’s Terri Wright shares the details.
Port Canaveral is reporting a 14% rise in passengers over last year, with 8.6 million travelers sailing from the Space Coast in fiscal 2025. AAA projects U.S. cruise travel to grow another 4.5% in 2026, driven by strong demand, expanded itineraries, and greater cruise line capacity. This winter, Celebrity and Princess will homeport ships at Port Canaveral for the first time. The port remains the world’s second-busiest cruise hub, behind only Miami.
Trader Joe’s
We know it’s coming, but we don’t know when. Trader Joe’s is building out a storefront in Viera. There’s been rumblings that the store may open before Christmas, but a spokesperson for Trader Joe’s told Florida Today, there is no opening date set yet. The company has not started hiring yet, but you can go to Trade Joe’s website and sign up to receive an job alert.
Winn-Dixie to focus on Florida.
The Winn-Dixie Company will closing 40 stores in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi and focusing its efforts on Florida. Winn-Dixie has been selling groceries in Florida for over 100 years, and will be modernizing its store with the proceeds from the sale of non-Florida outlets. There are nine Winn-Dixie grocery stores in Brevard County.
Python shoes anyone?
Florida has partnered with a leather company to turn pythons into shoes, wallets, belts and dresses. State officials say they have tripled the number of Burmese pythons removed in a year since letting a leather company turns the invasive species into fashion. Inversa Leathers, a Miami company, claims to have harvested over 1,000 pythons in May and June of this year.
