FYI Miami: November 30, 2023

Below are some of the FYIs in this week’s edition. The entire content of this week’s FYIs and Insider sections is available by subscription only. To subscribe click here.

COUNTY WAGES GAIN: Average weekly wages in Miami-Dade County rose 4.1% as total employment rose by 3.5% in the second quarter of this year from the second quarter of 2022, data released last week by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics show. The bureau recorded the average weekly wage in the county at $1,357, the 83rd highest among the nation’s 361 largest counties. Total employment at the end of the second quarter was 1,214,600 by the county’s 124,600 businesses, the bureau reported.

NOTEWORTHY LESSONS: Miami-Dade County would be one of three in the state eligible for a pilot program to supplement middle-school science, technology, engineering and math education with “music-based” learning materials under a bill filed Tuesday. The bill by Sen. Danny Burgess of Zephyrhills would create the “Music-based Supplemental Content to Accelerate Learner Engagement and Success Pilot Program,” or mSCALES, and would require that the music-based materials be used at participating schools by educators who are certified to teach math. Participating districts would receive $6 per student. The College of Education at the University of Florida would evaluate the program’s effectiveness and report to the state education department and the Legislature.

TRY TALKING FIRST: The Transportation Planning Council is being asked this week to delete from its approved transportation improvement program a project in which the county Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTPW) and the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) were to split equally the $11,472,000 cost of land for the county’s South Dade Bus Depot. The reason for not buying the land? It seems the county owned it all along. A note to the planning council said, “After coordination between FDOT and DTPW, it was determined that Miami-Dade County already owned the property.” Since the $11,472,000 was already approved, it’s being poured into a contingency fund for other projects.

LIGHTING UP THE ZOO: Zoo Miami has begun its annual winter holiday celebration, Zoo Lights, with 1 million bright animal-shaped lights, a 26-foot-tall holiday LED trees and a new high-energy show featuring rescue dogs. The Zoo Lights celebrations are held from 6:30 to 10 p.m. on selected nights. Dec. 1 and 2 are animated nights, where guests are encouraged to dress as a character from an animated holiday movie. Dec. 8 and 9 are galactic nights, where guests can dress as a favorite character from a space movie. Attractions include appearances by ambassador animals, Snowman’s River boat rides, hot chocolate, cookies and letters to Santa.