Residents
Can Learn the Benefits of Solar Energy at SOLAR Fest
Be part of
bringing solar to South Florida by attending Broward
County’s
Go SOLAR Fest, on Friday, January 25, from 8 a.m. to
4:30 p.m., and Saturday, January 26, from 9 a.m. to noon, at
the Broward County Convention Center, 1950 Eisenhower Blvd.,
Fort Lauderdale. Local, state and federal government
officials, licensed solar and electrical contractors,
financial institutions, solar installers, legal experts and
residents are invited to attend.
Early registration is encouraged.
More...
New
Courthouse is on Schedule
The Courthouse projects, which include
the New Broward County Courthouse, the new 1,000-car garage
and reconfiguration of the Midrise facility, are progressing
as scheduled. Recent activity includes the installation of
building piles and pile caps that is scheduled to be
completed in March. The project team continues to monitor
and respond to traffic, pedestrian and noise impacts. For
more information, visit
broward.org/newCourthouse or follow us on
Twitter.com/CourtNewsFlash.
More...
January is Cultural Diversity Month
Broward County Libraries Division celebrates art, music,
theater, dance and literature from around the world during
Cultural Diversity Month in January. See, listen and
experience sounds and sights from other cultures at fun
events for all ages. Also during Cultural Diversity Month,
visit your
Broward County Library location and pick up books, CDs
and DVDs from artists and writers from around the world
including great foreign films, global music and books,
publications and more.
More...
Kresge Foundation Supports Regional
Climate Change Compact
Florida’s southeast coast has much to lose
in a changing climate: beach erosion, saltwater
infiltration, increasingly extreme weather and a host of
other challenges face this densely settled region. Recently,
the Kresge Foundation announced a major grant to the
Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC) to support the
work of the Southeast Florida Regional Climate Change
Compact, which was founded in 2009 by Broward, Miami-Dade,
Monroe and Palm Beach counties. The grant, $975,000 over
three years, was announced at the Fourth Annual Regional
Climate Action Summit hosted recently by Palm Beach County
in Jupiter.
More...
Help with Homeless Count
The Broward County Homeless Initiative
Partnership, in collaboration with the Broward Regional
Health Planning Council, Inc., is seeking volunteers to
assist with the collection of data for the 2013 Homeless
Point in Time Count and Survey from 12 p.m. on January 24 to
11:59 a.m. on January 25, 2013. Broward County is charged
with counting every homeless person in the County and asking
them to complete a survey. The count is used to substantiate
need for all federal and state grants. An accurate count
helps Broward County get needed resources to help persons
experiencing homelessness.
More...
Low-Income Families Get Assistance in
Meeting the Digital Divide
Through a cooperative venture with Comcast,
Broward County Public Schools and the Urban League, Broward
County Libraries is helping close the digital divide for
low-income families by providing Internet access and
computer training. The national Comcast program, Internet
Essentials, has entered its second year, but this is the
first year that Broward County is participating in the
program.
More...
Black Tourism Yields
Strong Economic Impact for the County
Greater Fort Lauderdale
has become the destination of choice for the country’s
largest and most influential black professional
organizations that are making a major economic and social
impact on the community. The National Urban League is
expected to bring its annual conference to the Greater Fort
Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center for the first
time in 2015. The National Association of Black Accountants,
which first visited in 2006, has booked its annual
conference again for 2016 and more than 5,000 rooms are
already contracted. In addition, the 100 Black Men of
America and the National Urban League Senior Team are also
hosting meetings.
More...
Port Everglades
Celebrates Growth
Broward County’s Port
Everglades is celebrating its third consecutive year of
growth in cargo and the number of multiday cruise
passengers, according to preliminary reports for the fiscal
year ending September 30, 2012. Port Everglades is
undergoing three major capital improvement projects totaling
more than $500 million to increase cargo business by adding
five new berths, deepening its navigational channels to 50
feet and bringing intermodal freight rail on to Port
property with its partner Florida East Coast Railway.
More...
Broward County
Transit Reports an Increase in Ridership
Broward County Transit (BCT) is reporting a 10 percent
increase in ridership for the month of October 2012, with
3.8 million passenger trips compared to 3.4 million October
2011. These passenger trips include fixed-route, community
bus and Paratransit (TOPS) services. Fixed-route ridership
had an increase of 9.5 percent with 3.4 million passenger
trips compared to 3.1 million in October 2011, the second
highest ridership month in BCT history. The all-time
ridership record month was set in March 2006 with 3.5
million fixed-route passenger trips.
More...
TSA PreCheck Begins
at the Airport
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has
announced the expansion of TSA PreCheck operations to Fort
Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. Under TSA
PreCheck, U.S. citizens traveling domestically who are select
Delta Air Lines frequent travelers or members of U.S.
Customs and Border Protection Trusted Traveler programs, are
now eligible to participate and may receive expedited
screening benefits. The TSA PreCheck lane is located in
Terminal 2 at the East Checkpoint.
More...
Kick Off 2013 with a
Contribution to the County’s “365 Food Drive”
Residents are encouraged to make donations to Broward
County’s 365 Food Drive, an ongoing effort to help keep
local food banks stocked with enough supplies to meet the
needs of the community. Collection points include government
centers, main and regional courthouses and Broward County
libraries. All non-perishable food items, such as canned
meat, vegetables and fruit, peanut butter, jelly or jam,
soups, pasta and toiletries, are welcome at any time.
Residents and employees have contributed nearly 27,000
pounds since the program was launched in January 2010. For
more information, visit
broward.org/fooddrive.
Broward B-Cycle
Program Celebrates One Year Anniversary
Broward B-Cycle, Broward County’s newest mode of public
transportation and the first countywide bike-sharing system
in the nation, observed its one-year anniversary on December
14, with riders taking more than 24,000 trips, burning more
than 3 million calories and offsetting nearly 88,000 pounds
of carbon. The 275-bike system now has 26 stations in six
Broward County cities (Dania Beach, Fort Lauderdale,
Hallandale Beach, Hollywood, Lauderdale-by-the-Sea and
Pompano Beach).
More...
Registration Open for
Florida Master Naturalist Training
Broward County Parks and Recreation’s Natural Areas Program
and Extension Education Section are offering the Florida
Master Naturalist Coastal Systems and Freshwater Wetlands
program for professionals and volunteers to receive national
and state certification as part of the University of Florida
Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Master
Naturalist Program. The course consists of 40 contact hours
and fieldwork involving hiking, observing and recording of
data. For more information, email Dr. John Pipoly, Broward
County Extension Education, at
jpipoly@broward.org.
More...
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