FYI Miami: September 22, 2022

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.

MAS CANOSA AND FREEDOM: 58 acres that will remain park after 131-acre Melreese golf course is developed into offices, soccer stadium, hotel and retail on Northwest 37th Avenue adjacent to Miami International Airport are to be named Jorge Mas Canosa Park in a city commission vote today (9/22). The legislation by Commissioner Joe Carollo notes that Mr. Mas Canosa founded the Cuban American National Foundation and Mas Tech Inc., a Coral Gables multinational engineering and construction firm that is “currently the largest Hispanic-owned company” in the US. The resolution states that he was “viewed by many as the leader of the Cuban people’s opposition to the Castro community regime” and that “the city commission wishes to honor Mas Canosa because of his significant efforts to combat communism in Cuba.” His sons, who now head Mas Tech, hold the 99-year lease of the city land for Freedom Park. 

GAS KEEPS FALLING: Average gas prices in Miami fell 6.1 cents per gallon in the past week to $3.43, according to GasBuddy. Prices in Miami are 18.7 cents lower than a month ago but remain 34.2 cents higher than a year ago. The national average has fallen 3.9 cents in the past week to $3.64, down 25.7 cents from a month ago but 45.9 cents higher than a year ago. “With a 14th consecutive weekly decline, the national average price of gasoline has now surpassed 2018’s record decline, seeing its longest downward streak since 2015,” said Patrick De Haan of GasBuddy. 

CHARGED UP: The White House has approved plans that will make available about $71.5 million for electric-vehicle charging stations in Florida during this fiscal year and next. Florida’s plan outlines a network of 6,772 public charging ports along 6,244 miles of highway. 

BAR PASSAGE DROPS, FIU TOPS: People who took the Florida Bar exam for the first time in July posted the lowest passage rate for July test-takers in a decade, a review by The News Service of Florida shows. This was the first in-person July exam since 2019 because of the coronavirus pandemic. Florida International University had the highest passage rate among Florida schools this year, 81.2% of the 133 who took the exam. “This year’s graduates overcame many unusual challenges during their law school experience, and they should all be commended for their resilience,” FIU Law Dean Antony Page said in a statement. The University of Florida law school had the next-highest passage rate, 78.7% of 150 test-takers. Barry University School of Law posted the lowest passage rate, 49.2%, among currently operating schools.