Tesla Ventures Into Solar Power Storage for Home and Business

The Gigafactory, a $5 billion plant being built near Reno, Nev., by Tesla, the maker of electric vehicles, will produce lithium-ion battery systems designed to be used by utilities and homeowners. 

Well we all know that Tesla is the most recognized solar powered car company out there, and that their cars are very high quality. In fact, they have been the highest rated cars ever tested, despite their only having limited range. Other than that, we only think about solar as some panels on top of people’s homes. Sadly these homes are outside of Florida, given the restrictions in place from Florida Power & Light, our monopoly of a utility company. All that is about to change thanks to Tesla. They have developed a technology that can store solar energy in a battery format to provide power without sunlight. This application will be used for both home and business usage, but the possibilities are endless. It will lessen the power on the grid, and in turn will lower energy costs. And the energy used will be cleaner than from other sources like gasoline and natural gas. This energy battery storage is not theoretical at this point, it is being utilized now by companies like Walmart in California now on a relatively small scale. But it works and when this huge factory Tesla is building in Nevada is complete they will be able to roll this out on a much larger scale. This is the future and it is happening right now. It is very exciting since there is really no downside or risk. I predict that this will be widely used in homes and businesses within 5 years. I can’t wait to use it and will do so as quickly as possible. As always thanks for reading and have a great day.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/01/business/energy-environment/with-new-factory-tesla-ventures-into-solar-power-storage-for-home-and-business.html?_r=0

REDEVELOPMENT IN THE WORKS FOR 20TH STREET IN BOCA RATON

With the sudden rise of FAU to respectability and prominence, there is a new push to upgrade the area around the school. Riding off the success of building the new football stadium, both the school and City are turning their attention to 20^th Street. Formerly the location of the main entrance to the school back in 1964, the street is now a secondary entry. The current tenant mix there includes lots of industrial and retail, all of which is outdated and in poor condition. The new plan would replace all of that with pedestrian walkways, improved landscaping, stores, restaurants, apartments and maybe even a movie theater. Right now the school has commissioned a planning study which should be completed next year. The goal is to create something of a college town where the students have a place of their own. They are hoping to hang school banners there and hold football game day parades. Part of the reason for this redevelopment is to make the school more appealing for full time students. Former FAU coach Schnellenberger is doing his part, and hopes to open Coach Schnellenberger’s Steakhouse & Sports Theater this fall. It will be a sports themed restaurant much like the restaurants he had in the past. I think this is going to happen, and it is part of the natural evolution of FAU. As the school becomes more popular and grows it needs the infrastructure around it to grow with it to remain competitive. I think within 5 years FAU and 20^th Street will be things that everyone can be proud of and I can’t wait to see it happen. As always thanks for reading and have a great day.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/realestate/fl-boca-20th-street-redevelopment-20150717-story.html

TECH CONFERENCE PROMOTES SOUTH FLORIDA AS TECH HUB

After the 2^nd annual eMerge Americas conference in Miami there are some notable differences from last year. First is the increased attendance, up to 10,000 people from 6,000, an incredible jump of 66% in just one year. The second is the increased international reach, with this year seeing new visitors from China and the Middle East. South Florida has been trying to diversify its economy forever and making it into a place known for technology has always been one of the goals. We are making strides and this conference is really helping to promote and accelerate these efforts. Like the biotech industry, there is hope that these technology companies who located here will attract others. This is happening, and not just in South Florida but across the state. While I know California is cool and New York has everything, Florida has great weather and no income tax. Plus, compared with those state our housing is extremely affordable. Additionally, tech related projects are sprouting up and thriving all across Florida now, so there are even more choices for companies that are considering relocating here. I think we have a good tech foundation here and hopefully we can continue to build on it. It would be great to eventually become known for it, like a Silicon Valley, etc. What a great way to diversify the economy! Perhaps soon we will be known more for tech and our ports than tourism. As always thanks for reading and have a great day.  

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/careers/fl-emerge-americas-2015-advance-20150426-story.html

ROSENFELD RESTAURANT REVIEW: JET’S PIZZA BOCA RATON

Did you think I only went to fine dining restaurants?? Hardly and you should know that one of my favorite foods is pizza. So I was very intrigued when I read that this chain, Jet’s Pizza, was aggressively moving into South Florida. After further investigation, I was surprised to find that their Boca Raton location was on Glades Rd. in West Boca Raton, just a few miles from my house. After quickly checking out their web site, and liking what I saw, I was thrilled to discover that they deliver to my house! It is really hard to find a good pizza delivery restaurant in West Boca so I was going to have to try it out. I had heard good things about it from others, and they have something that is very hard to find from a real restaurant, deep dish pizza. They have lots of options of deep dish pies, and traditional thin crust as well. They do have something that I have never seen before at  any pizza place: the ability to customize your crust with things like flavors and sesame seeds, poppy seeds, etc. I went with a small deep dish and small thin pizza, both with mushrooms. I got both pies with a sesame crust, which was very good. Clearly it was the first time they visitied my community since they called and needed some directions. But they eventually made it and I was really happy they did! The deep dish was great, and the thin pizza was pretty good. I am fairly sure that they have opened 4 locations in South Florida and are looking for more. I would strongly recommend this place and look forward to having deep dish pizza on a regular basis now. I would love to hear about your favorite restaurant or one you have just been to recently and enjoyed. Don’t be shy! Sharing is caring. As always thanks for reading and have a great day.

NEW BASEBALL STADIUM DETAILS RELEASED

Well now that we finally got the spring training baseball stadium and saved East Coast spring training baseball, what is the new stadium going to look like? Details were released yesterday and include some interesting design features. How about underground parking for players and team executives? How about grass berm seating around most of the outfield? They will even have a giant net along Military Trail to protect passing motorists from practice field home runs. The stadium will have 6,500 seats and with the berm seating (2,000) the total capacity will be 8,500. The teams will have 2 story buildings behind home plate and left field that will function as clubhouses, offices and locker rooms. Bullpens will be behind the outfield walls, unlike Roger Dean where they have the bullpens in foul territory. There will be 6 entrances, with the main entrance off of Haverhill Road. The entire stadium will be surrounded by a 10 foot wide exercise trail. Even details on landscaping were released. At the end of the day this project might even be better than initially envisioned. I really think it will lift the entire area and spur new development there. The area now is terrible and this site where the stadium will be built is a landfill. I am very excited about this project, if you couldn’t tell already, and cannot wait to go see games there in 2017. I also can’t wait to see this area change for the better. As always thanks for reading and have a great day.

How new baseball stadium will use grassy berms, underground parking

http://www.mypalmbeachpost.com/news/news/how-new-baseball-stadium-will-use-grassy-berms-und/nkwd7/?icmp=pbp_internallink_invitationbox_apr2013_pbpstubtomypbp_launch#c718bf2f.3711057.735705

SOUTH FLORIDA FINALLY EMBRACING MIXED USE PROPERTIES

It has taken a long time to get here but it has finally happened. South Floridians are moving back to downtowns and moving into apartments. They are doing this in part because they want the ability to walk to work, restaurants, etc. Right now there is only one model for this new urban living in South Florida, a high rise residential apartment building with retail and or office space on the ground floor. While this is a relatively new concept for Florida, larger cities like New York and Chicago have been using this product type for hundreds of years successfully. It does create more density, which is what Florida cities are trying to accomplish, while cutting down on traffic by allowing people to do more walking. In theory this makes perfect sense and has many health benefits to boot. But there is one factor that must be accounted for, which is the heat that we have here for 6 months out of the year. It is the same reason that lifestyle centers have largely struggled here, because people don’t want to walk around in extreme heat and rain. But people are speaking with their wallets on this issue, and the result is almost overwhelming. They want this type of lifestyle and will make sacrifices to get it, and are buying these types of apartments quickly. So get used to seeing people crossing the street on foot when you are stopped at a traffic light, and walking on the streets in general. A mixed use property is coming to your neighborhood soon. As always thanks for reading and have a great day.

That village vibe: S. Floridians embracing developments with residential, retail units

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/features/fl-village-urban-architecture-20150410-story.html

BAHIA CABANA READY TO UNDERGO REDEVELOPMENT

This one had me at the rendering! Especially if you are familiar with the Bahia Cabana property and how it looks today. If so you know this rendering is maybe a twenty time improvement over the current design. I think the developer, Randolph Equity Partners, had to really go above and beyond since they were looking to expand the density so much. The property currently is a 70 room hotel. What is proposed is a 196 room hotel and 112 condominiums. They are also going to build restaurants and retail along with a marina and pedestrian pathways. This not a done deal and in fact is conditioned now on a land swap. The owner would receive 2 parcels at 1001 & 1015 Seabreeze Blvd. in exchange for a .38 acre lot where the owner would build a new $4.5 million dollar fire station. Sounds like a fair deal to me considering there is an estimated $100 million dollar economic impact to go along with hundreds of permanent jobs. The redevelopment is expected to cost $160 million dollars. It has the potential to really impact and transform this southern portion of Ft, Lauderdale beach, which is badly needed and overdue. Looks like a win win deal to me and takes a good part of Ft. Lauderdale Beach into the future. I am rooting for it and promise to let you know how it turns out, one way or the other. As always thanks for reading and have a great day.

Bahia Cabana owner plans major redevelopment along Fort Lauderdale beach

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/tourism/fl-bahia-cabana-hotel-redevelopment-20150408-story.html