Things To Do In SW Florida

TITUSVILLE — Hurricanes Michael, Dorian, Ian, Nicole and Idalia have all been stared down by one of the NOAA’s most powerful satellites since it took its place in geostationary orbit in late 2017. Its replacement is gearing up for launch on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy later this month.

The GOES-U satellite is the 19th Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite in the NOAA and NASA partnership since the first one launched in 1975. It’s the fourth and final of the latest version of the satellites. The first three are already parked at more than 22,000 miles altitude and have their wide-view sites set to track tropical weather, fires, lightning and other dangerous weather on Earth.

The final satellite sits in a stark, white clean room at Astrotech Space Operations’ payload processing facility just across the river from Kennedy Space Center. It’s already fueled and awaits encapsulation in a SpaceX fairing before heading to KSC for launch. Liftoff is slated for June 25 at 5:16 p.m. during a two-hour window atop what will be the first Falcon Heavy launch of the year. read more

By Sam Kemmis | NerdWallet

Aviation safety is constantly under public scrutiny. When the door flew off a Boeing 737 in January, it made headlines for months. The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed a bill giving the Federal Aviation Administration $105 billion to hire more air traffic controllers, improve runway safety and even train flight attendants in self-defense.

Yet the safety of short-term rentals, available on platforms like Airbnb and Vrbo, receives far less attention.

When a fire at an illegal Airbnb rental in Montreal killed seven people last year, it was primarily local news. Social media is filled with tips for improving the safety of a rental — such as checking for hidden cameras — yet it’s difficult to know whether these address real or imagined threats. That’s partly because no regulatory agency oversees the safety of short-term rentals.

A safety Wild West

“Imagine if Delta Air Lines said you have to bring your own oxygen tank — you’d say, ‘No way, I’m not getting on there,’” says Justin Ford, the director of short-term rental safety and certification programs at Breezeway, a property operations platform for short-term rental property managers. “Yet people are saying you should bring your own carbon monoxide alarm to a rental. We, as an industry, should be embarrassed by that.” read more

Florida’s Disney World oversight district is paying Orange County Elections Supervisor Glen Gilzean $20,000 a month through December as part of a consulting agreement quietly inked when he stepped down as administrator.

Gilzean left his $400,000-a-year job leading the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District in March after less than a year of service. Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed Gilzean, one of his political allies, to serve as Orange County’s supervisor of elections. That position has an annual salary of $205,000.

What wasn’t publicly known during the transition nor submitted to the district’s board for approval or discussion was that Gilzean signed a consulting agreement from April 1 through the end of the year.

Stephanie Kopelousos, another DeSantis political ally who replaced Gilzean, authorized the agreement. The district’s board approved her hiring on March 27.

The Orlando Sentinel made numerous inquiries into Gilzean’s status with the district since he stepped down, but the district never provided answers until now. read more

Construction

Bonny Block has joined Barton Malow as a senior manager of business strategy. She will be based in Florida.

Real estate

Nicholas O’Shea has joined Hold-Thyssen Inc. as a broker in the firm’s Winter Park office.

Zach Kulics has joined Hold-Thyssen Inc. as a broker in the firm’s Winter Park office.

Other

John Powell has re-joined UCP of Central Florida as director of IT.

Raquel Perez has joined UCP of Central Florida as the project director for the Charter School Expansion Grant.

Submit professional appointments, management-level promotions and significant awards for individuals, along with photos as .jpg attachments, to peopleonmove@orlandosentinel.com.

Chapter 11

Central Florida individuals and businesses that have filed for reorganization and protection from creditors under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code include:

VRP Equity LLC, 201 E. Pine St., Suite 500, Orlando. Filed: May 28. Assets: $0-$50,000. Liabilities: $0-$50,000. Major creditors: Not available. Creditors meeting: June 24.

Sod Express Nursery Inc., 3775 N. U.S. Highway 17-92, Sanford. Filed: May 29. Assets: $0-$50,000. Liabilities: $1,000,001-$10 million. Major creditors: U.S. Small Business Administration, Atlanta, $1,542,266; Department of Revenue, Tallahassee, $196,968; CNH Industrial Capital, Philadelphia, unknown. Creditors meeting: June 24.

A Sun State Trees Inc., 3775 N. U.S. Highway 17-92, Sanford. Filed: May 30. Assets: $0-$50,000. Liabilities: $1,000,001-$10 million. Major creditors: U.S. Small Business Administration, Miami, $1,993,046; Continental, Salt Lake City, $1,338; CNH, New Holland, Pa., unknown. Creditors meeting: June 24.

600 Group Inc., 4420 Metric Drive, Suite A, Winter Park. Filed: May 30. Assets: $1,000,001-$10 million. Liabilities: $1,000,001-$10 million. Major creditors: RSM US LLC, Orlando, $114,500; BDO USA LLP, $44,315; Cigna Healthcare, $32,791. Creditors meeting: June 27. read more