FYI Miami: May 15, 2025

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.

BANKING ON MIAMI: Pittsburgh-based PNC Bank last week opened a branch in Doral as part of a commitment to open 40 new branches in Miami-Dade County by 2029. The newest branch at 7901 NW 36th St. in unit 119 is the bank’s 10th branch in the county and the fifth to open since PNC announced last year the addition of 40 branches. Other new branches are in Midtown, Uptown Seventh Avenue, Little Havana and Kendall Place. In addition to the new branches in Miami-Dade, the bank announced plans for more than 10 new branches in Orlando and 20 in Tampa Bay. 

MIAMI ADVANCES HOUSING, PARK: Miami city commissioners last week addressed housing challenges and community spaces. First, they allocated an additional $7 million to the delayed Essence Miami project, raising the city’s total investment to $12 million. This development is to add 88 affordable and workforce housing units in Little Havana. They also moved forward with plans to revitalize a city-owned property at 1371 NW 61st St. Transferred to the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust, the site will be transformed into six affordable units for homeless families, supported by $600,000 in Community Development Block Grant funds. Lastly, a new city park near LoanDepot Park will soon take shape.

FEEDING FARMED FISH: County job incentives totaling more than $1.5 million are awaiting Skretting, the world’s largest producer of farmed fish, when it builds and staffs a feed mill near Homestead. County commissioners approved the incentive last week without discussion. Skretting three years ago signed an agreement to be the main feed provider for Atlantic Sapphire, an indoor salmon farming operation in South Dade, and since then has been supplying feed to the company from Canada. The planned $80 million Skretting plant and its 50 local workers await a targeted expansion of Atlantic Sapphire to begin construction, which is expected to be in 2027. The 50 jobs are to pay an average of $70,000 a year plus an estimated $21,000 in benefits.

GREEN FOR GREENS: Legislation before a county committee would order Mayor Daniella Levine Cava to develop strategies to buy more fresh locally-grown produce countywide and to report her progress within 60 days. The legislation from Commissioner René García says locally grown produce will increase nutritional value, taste better and reduce the environmental impact of shipping in produce from elsewhere. “A healthy diet rich in fruits and vegetables can help reduce the risk of developing certain chronic diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes, and cancer, according to the National Institutes of Health,” the legislation says.