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Letter to the editor

Talk of the bay: They're flocking to Florida, not fleeing from it

By Times Staff
Published November 8, 2007

You've heard the myth: Everyone's packing up and leaving Florida. It's not true. Population estimates released this week by the University of Florida showed the Sunshine State growing by 331,000 people between 2006 and 2007. True, that's fewer than the 431,000 who arrived between 2005 and 2006, but the state continues to attract hordes of job seekers, retirees and immigrants, UF said. The housing slump is slowing population growth, but maybe not in the way you'd think. UF said the inability of people to sell their homes up North is stunting Florida growth. As of April 1, the state's population stood at about 18.7-million.

Predators make play for Lou's share

The Orlando Predators want to buy back music promoter Lou Pearlman's stake in the arena football team for $79,662. The team says it will pay $1.64 for each of the 48,574 "membership units" owned by Louis J. Pearlman Enterprises, which invested $59,500 in the team in 2003. Pearlman bankruptcy trustee Soneet Kapila said he has had no other offers for the units and the team disputed his right to sell them to a third party. The court still must approve the deal. Pearlman is in jail awaiting trial on bank fraud charges.

Tomato growers to deny pickers' raise

Florida's largest association of tomato growers said it will no longer honor a penny-per-pound raise for pickers, potentially squelching deals hammered out with Taco Bell and McDonald's since 2005. The Florida Tomato Growers Exchange said the agreements were legally suspect since the fast-food companies and the Coalition of Immokalee Farmworkers dictated terms to the growers. The deals raised wages about 75 percent from 1.3 cents to 2.3 cents per pound, but only on tomatoes used by McDonald's and Taco Bell parent company Yum Brands. The growers association said workers already make an average of $12.46 per hour, double the national minimum wage. Farm workers said they hope to cut separate deals with independent growers to maintain the pay raise during a season that starts this fall.

[Last modified November 7, 2007, 23:16:05]