WATERCOOLER
Stuff you didn’t know you wanted to know
7,000+
Miles of reach of two Cape Canaveral weather stations, which picked up a distinct rise in air pressure on the Space Coast moments after the massive volcanic eruption January 15, 2022, near the Pacific island of Tonga. The largest recorded in the last 30 years, the eruption wielded the power of 600 Hiroshima bombs. Source: City of Cape Canaveral
“WHEN COMPLETED, THIS PROJECT WILL BECOME A MILESTONE IN RAILROAD HISTORY.” — Al Aponas, president of The Middlesex Corporation, based in Orlando, which is serving as general contractor on the Brightline train project connecting Miami to Orlando. Source: Brightline
#3
ORLANDO’S RANKING AMONG 50 U.S. CITIES FOR BEST PLACE TO START A BUSINESS. LAS VEGAS RANKED HIGHEST, WITH SALT LAKE CITY COMING IN SECOND. MIAMI AND ATLANTA WERE FOURTH AND FIFTH, TAMPA WAS SIXTH AND JACKSONVILLE WAS EIGHTH.
9,265
Average number of business applications per 100,000 residents in the past five years in Orlando, compared with the national average of 5,931. Source: Real Estate Witch, Best Startup Cities 2022
$52 billion Increase in the total value of homes in the metro Orlando region during 2021, compared with $6.9 trillion nationwide. Orlando’s total is now $283 billion. Source: Zillow
#1
Kissimmee-St. Cloud’s ranking among top growth cities in America based on U-Haul truck moves throughout 2021. Palm Bay-Melbourne was ranked #3 among doit-yourself movers. Other cities in the top five: RaleighDurham, North Carolina; North Port, Florida; and Madison, Wisconsin. Sources: CBRE Group, Orlando Business Journal
80 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2022 | i4Biz.com
$25 million Hotel taxes collected in Orange County in November 2021 — the second-highest November on record, surpassed only by prepandemic 2019. Source: Orlando Sentinel and Orange County Comptroller’s Office
“Give Kids The World is a slice of heaven on Earth. I’ve never seen so many genuinely happy and caring volunteers pour their hearts into making our family feel special. It renewed my faith in humanity.” — Kristina Harshman, who brought her son, Eli, to Give Kids the World Village in Kissimmee after he was diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumor.
115,000
Number of guests who visited Give Kids The World Village in December for its second annual Night of a Million Lights festivities, implemented during the pandemic to help raise funds for the charity.
