Things To Do In SW Florida

The next set of Walt Disney World ambassadors has been selected, and both members of the duo can trace their journey to the Disney College Program.

Phelicia Blake, who currently is a guest-experience manager at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort, and Kylee Withers, who works in merchandise finance, will be the 2026-2027 ambassadors. They will represent the resort’s 80,000 employees in a range of settings from attraction openings to in-house celebrations.

Withers, who is from Fort Worth, and Blake, a Connecticut native, both had stints with the Disney College Program before becoming full-time cast members at Disney World. Their appointments were announced at a ceremony at Epcot.

Ambassador candidates wade through multiple rounds of interviews.

“It was several rounds over a span of a couple weeks, but we had one final interview – and then, and then the ceremony happened,” Blake said.

“I’ve gone through a number of job interviews before, but the ambassador interview process is hands down the most fun process,” Withers said. read more

By Megan Ulu-Lani Boyanton, The Seattle Times

SEATTLE — How much does that morning cup of joe cost? The price may give you a jolt.

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  Compass to buy rival brokerage operator Anywhere Real Estate for about $1.5 billion

The price of a coffee is no longer under, like, $5,” said Emma Ueda, 27, who lives in Seattle. “It could be a $12 day, just going to a cafe.”

As the hometown of Starbucks and countless coffee shops, Seattle lives up to its reputation as a city that holds java in high regard. But, recently, coffee prices have been on the rise, brewing trouble for businesses, which are already struggling with bitter conditions and cost-sensitive customers. read more

TALLAHASSEE — A more than decadelong push by business groups will pay off next week with the end of a state sales tax on commercial leases.

The tax, widely known as the business rent tax, will go away Oct. 1 after 57 years as part of a wide-ranging tax package that lawmakers passed in June.

The change will come as nearly 30 new laws hit the books Oct. 1.

“By Florida eliminating the business rent tax, it’s going to lower the cost of doing business in Florida, which will help lower the cost of living here,” Florida Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Mark Wilson said.

The business rent tax began in 1968, when the state sales-tax rate stood at 4%. The rent tax rate increased as the overall sales-tax rate went up in 1984 and 1988, reaching 6%.

Over the past decade, with business groups clamoring against the tax, legislators slowly chipped away at the rent tax rate. It has been 2% since June 2024, according to a House staff analysis.

The elimination is projected to collectively save businesses nearly $1.15 billion during the current fiscal year, which will run through June 30. That amount is projected to increase to $1.53 billion next fiscal year. read more

By RIO YAMAT

Spirit Airlines plans to furlough 1,800 flight attendants before the end of the year, the cash-strapped budget carrier said Monday.

The company said it made the “difficult decision” to put cabin crew members on temporary leave to match staffing needs with expected flight demand during Spirit’s second bankruptcy in a year.

“We recognize the impact of this decision on affected team members, and we are committed to treating them with care and respect during this process,” the airline said in a statement.

Spirit filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last month and subsequently announced that it planned to suspend operations in about a dozen U.S. cities beginning in October.

The union that represents the airline’s flight attendants said Monday that Spirit would seek candidates willing to take six month or one year voluntary furloughs starting Nov. 1 before moving forward with involuntary furloughs based on seniority effective Dec. 1.

The Association of Flight Attendants said it was working to secure “preferential interviews” with other airlines for furloughed flight attendants. read more

By ALEX VEIGA, Associated Press

Two of the nation’s biggest real estate services companies are combining in a deal that will bring Century 21, Compass and several other major brokerage brands under the same umbrella.

New York-based Compass has agreed to acquire rival Anywhere Real Estate in an all-stock transaction that will create a combined company with a total value of roughly $10 billion, including debt, the companies said Monday.

Shares in Anywhere Real Estate soared more than 48% in afternoon trading Monday. Compass shares slid about 16%.

Compass runs a platform for use by real estate agents in customer relationship management, marketing and other tasks. It also operates its namesake real estate brokerage and Christie’s International Real Estate.

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Seattle, a coffee haven, is watching java prices spike. Why? read more