Stet News💡 A yearlong hurricane restoration charge kicks in this month for FPL’s 6 million customer accounts, the company said in a message to ratepayers. The Juno Beach-based utility is tacking on an additional $12.02 to the typical 1,000 kilowatt hour residential bill each month through December. The charge will cover costs from 2024 Hurricanes Debby, Helene and Milton and replenish money spent on Hurricane Idalia in 2023.
– Meanwhile, residential power rates would rise about 2.5% from 2026 through 2029 under a new rate plan FPL said it intends to file with the Florida Public Service Commission. (News Service of Florida via WUSF)
🔌 A company founded by a CityPlace co-founder, the late Jeremiah O’Connor, has bought the 3.4-acre Salvation Army site at 655 N. Military Trail to build an electric-vehicle repair facility, potentially for Tesla. The buyer, OC WPB Volt LLC, part of New York-based O’Connor Capital Partners, paid $6.5 million. It submitted plans in July to the county for a 36,926-square-foot advanced EV repair facility that would staff 50 employees per shift and focus on collision repair. (South Florida Business Journal $$$)
Artissua Paulk, 44, the former bridge tender who pleaded guilty to raising the Royal Park Bridge while a woman crossed it on her bike leading to the February 2022 death of West Palm Beach resident Carol Wright, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for violating probation. (Sun-Sentinel $$$) (For a detailed account of Wright’s life and death, see ByJoeCapozzi.com)
💵 The year-old Silver Beach Road warehouse complex in Lake Park sold for $91.2 million. The buyer of the four warehouses with a combined 371,834 square feet is an entity linked to Boston-based Cabot Properties. The seller was part of Los Angeles-based American Realty Advisors. (South Florida Business Journal $$$)
🔎 A report containing findings by the Office of Congressional Ethics provides details of multiple campaign transactions and official government office activities by U.S. Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick that investigators said may have violated House rules and federal law. “The fact that the allegations were referred for further review does not indicate any violation has occurred,” Cherfilus-McCormick said in a statement. (Sun-Sentinel $$$)
