Things To Do In SW Florida

Nine Central Florida restaurants shut down in the week of May 14-20, according to data from the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation.

Orange County

N Y Giant Pizza & Pasta Inc. at 5643 E. Colonial Dr. in  Orlando shut down on May 11. Inspectors found 25 violations, nine of which were a high priority. Those violations included moldy food, flying insects, roaches and operating with an expired business license.

Officials made a second trip on May 12 and a third trip on May 15. They found 14 violations for the former and five violations for the latter. They found no high-priority violations on the May 15 inspection but stated the restaurant needed a follow-up inspection.

No 1 Chinese Restaurant at 38 E. Main St. in Apopka shut down on May 16. Officials found 18 violations, seven of which were a high priority. Those violations included dented food cans, flying insects, rodent activity, and a repeat violation of food held at the wrong temperatures.

Inspectors conducted a second inspection on May 17. They found eight violations and issued a time extension for raw food stored within the ready-to-eat food freezer. ‘ read more

The heyday of marijuana sales in Colorado — back in 2020 when recreational and medical sales topped out at a combined $226 million — is a distant memory, as the state’s dispensaries struggle through an economic downturn, with sales plummeting and small businesses foundering.

“The market’s just bad. It’s bad right now,” said 29-year-old Val Tonazzi, who works in cannabis sales. “There’s businesses closing, left and right.”

In March, Colorado’s total medical marijuana sales were about $17 million — around $5 million less than last March. Retail marijuana sales racked up to $122 million, but that’s still a $17 million drop from March 2022.

It’s an improved outlook from February when medical marijuana sales dipped to their lowest point since retail sales began — around $15 million. And sales for both recreational and medical weed totaled to over $139 million, which is the highest it’s climbed to since last October.

But times have changed since the COVID-19 pandemic — now officially over — which gave the cannabis industry a boost as customers stocked up on edibles and joints to enjoy under lockdown. read more

College will cost more for students borrowing during the 2023-24 academic year as federal student loan interest rates climb to heights not seen in a decade or longer.

As of July 1, undergraduates who take out new direct federal student loans will see interest rates rise to 5.50%, the Education Department’s Federal Student Aid office said Tuesday — up from 4.99% in the 2022-23 academic year and 3.73% in 2021-22.

Interest rates on graduate direct loans, available to graduate and professional students, will rise to 7.05% from 6.54% the year prior. PLUS loans, which parents and grad students can use to fill in education funding gaps, will jump to 8.05% from 7.54%. Here are the higher 2023-24 rates for each type of federal student loan, compared with the 2022-23 academic year:

• Undergraduate direct loans: 5.50%, up from 4.99%.
• Graduate direct loans: 7.05%, up from 6.54%.
• PLUS loans: 8.05%, up from 7.54%.

Undergraduate direct student loan interest rates haven’t been this high since 2013. Interest rates on direct graduate loans and PLUS loans, introduced with fixed rates in 2006, have never been this high.

Rising rates makes college pricier

Higher interest rates mean paying off loans will cost more. Each year, usually in mid- to late May, the government sets fresh federal student loan interest rates for the academic year ahead by adding the U.S. Treasury’s May 10-year note auction yield with an additional “add-on” percentage, which varies depending on loan type. The final rates apply to new loans doled out starting July 1. read more

The population of the International Space Station grew from seven to 11 on Monday morning with the arrival of the private Axiom Space crew that launched from Kennedy Space Center.

The Ax-2 crew commanded by former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson docked with the ISS on board the SpaceX Crew Dragon Freedom at 9:12 a.m. after a 15-hour flight since lifting off from KSC’s Launch Pad 39-A atop a Falcon 9 rocket on Sunday evening.

“That’s the fastest docking I’ve ever had,” Whitson said during the automated maneuver.

Whitson, who is now Axiom Space’s Director of Human Spaceflight, had previously flown three times to space on both space shuttles and Russian Soyuz spacecraft. She already held the record for an American in space with 665 days logged and is now adding on at least 10 more for the Ax-2 mission.

The Ax-2 crew will remain on board for what’s planned to be eight days before climbing back on board the Crew Dragon for a splashdown return off the coast of Florida.

The rest of the four-person Ax-2 crew are space rookies. They include private customer and aviator John Shoffner and Saudi Space Commission astronauts Rayyanah Barnawi and Ali AlQarni. read more

TALLAHASSEE — Retailers are awaiting action by Gov. Ron DeSantis as two of the six sales tax “holiday” periods included in a nearly $1 billion proposed tax-relief package are scheduled to begin this holiday weekend.

Key components of the tax package (HB 7063) include a 14-day period in which sales taxes would be lifted on hurricane supplies, common household items and pet supplies, along with a separate three-month effort encouraging people to be more physically active, dubbed “Freedom Summer.”

The proposal accompanies the state budget (SB 2500), which also is pending action by DeSantis.

The two upcoming sales-tax holidays, strongly supported by the Florida Retail Federation, are vastly expanded from previous years’ tax breaks. According to state economists, the holidays are expected to account for nearly 40% of the $965.6 million in sales tax and limited tax credits in the tax package.

But Scott Shalley, president and CEO of the Tallahassee-based lobbying group, said it’s uncertain how shoppers will respond to the breaks. read more