As rents skyrocket, startup companies are touting what they consider to be a helpful solution to hefty security deposits pricing Floridians out of apartments.
Instead of forking over an upfront security deposit, tenants can agree to pay a monthly fee — typically about $25.
But there’s a catch: The money isn’t refundable at the end of the lease like a traditional security deposit, and renters are still on the hook for damage beyond ordinary wear and tear.
State lawmakers are considering legislation that would create regulations for such agreements that offer security deposit insurance instead of a traditional lump-sum deposit.
But advocates for Florida tenants have concerns. They say the proposed regulations lack important safeguards to protect renters from predatory practices.
Ordered two subs from Jimmy Johns last night at Red Bug and Tuskawilla in Winter Springs. Here is the response I sent to Corp after they contacted me…..
My online order was placed at 5:17pm. Because this location is usually so fast, I got in the car and drove up and picked up my sandwiches straight away.
As usual, my order was sitting on the table near the front door, I waved at the employees and said thank you. I was greeted with a very freindly thank you back and I left. I did notice that there were 3 or 4 guys standing around and nothing was really going on, i.e. not very busy at all.
Once home, I discovered our names were not written on each sandwich (as usual), so I tore open each only to find that my wife’s Tuna sandwich had no meat.
I called the store and spoke to an employee that gave me an ugly answer – something along ther lines of “thats not how it works”, upon getting upset he decided to pass me over to the manager who I later discovered was Ethan.
I described the situation to Ethan in a very hostile tone and most certainly with a few curse words and he proceeded to tell me that he would “make it up to me next time”. I explained that the solution given was unacceptable and wanted to speak to his boss and asked for his name. Ethan then proceeded to explain to me that it was against company policy to give out his boss’s name.
Very angry now, I explained that everybody is accountable and that the cover up is always worse than the crime. He hung up on me at this point. With my anger at such I high level, I decided to not go to the store and speak to Ethan because I most certainly would be sitting in jail right now.
A Few facts and some concerns:
1) I have all conversations with Ethan recorded. His disdain for customers and his indifference for my dilemma comes through with his tone from almost the very beginning.
2) I wanted my problem solved last night, not in a blizzard of complaint forms the next day.
3) I am involved in the restaurant industry on a daily basis. I understand the struggles with staffing. The ability for a team member to simply show up for work qualifies a person for management these days.
4) I think at a minimum your manager Ethan must understand that basic respect and a little customer service goes a long way when solving a problem. Telling an angry customer who just spent $32 on two sandwich’s that “we will make it up next time” is not and never will be an acceptable solution.
5) Young people today that work in the restaurant business seem to have developed a condition of apathy when it comes to job performance.
6) Don’t tell me that you are going to make it up to me. That time was last night when my sick wife needed some food. The fact is, I had a terrible meal, my wife ate fridge leftovers and Jimmy John’s is in posession of my hard earned $32.
7) I don’t want any gift cards, because I am sure you will understand that I will never put an order in at any Jimmy John’s location ever again. There is so much competition in my area, I have several choices for subs just on that one corner alone.
Feel free to call me at 407-***-**** or email me at either mike@mikelilley.net. I have posted pictures on my website and on twitter of the sandwich that I am speaking about. It is clear that the sandwich was assembled with great care and wrapped well. Leaving the meat out is curious, how does such a thing happen. It was ordered as a Tuna Sub, not a cheese sandwich.
My complaint, in the end, you have my money and your manager Ethan continues to have disdain for the customer and an unpararelled apathy for his job duties.
Links:
I had a terrible experience at JJ in Winter Springs, FL tonight. Called the Mgr when I discovered there was no meat on my sub that I picked up. Mgr, who sounds like he is 15, says I can't speak to his boss. Where does one go to get some satisfaction from these massive companies?
When I have the time I will post and update on every social media platform I can think of. I curious if your manager will change his mind about his reaction.
A long fight to end the practice of retail puppy sales in Orange County might be moot if the state legislature passes a new law.
A “pet protection” act under consideration in Tallahassee would overturn local bans on the sale of puppies and kittens while putting in place a framework for inspections and regulation of the sellers. The ban was passed in Orange County last year after the horrible conditions at several local Petland stores were made public. The Humane Society points toward the chain as the push behind the bill.
“Petland has 15 locations in Florida, a state with over 80 puppy-selling pet stores, and the company has almost certainly concluded that stripping local governments of their ability to regulate puppy sales will prove unpopular, especially at a time when many locally funded shelters across Florida are at capacity,” they wrote. “That’s why this legislation is crafted to appear to regulate the very industry it is designed to protect. It includes 20 pages of weak and unenforceable language that would do little but maintain the status quo for stores like Petland while harming shelters by pumping more puppy mill puppies into Florida communities.”
“The puppy mill to pet store pipeline would flourish under this Trojan horse proposal, and so would the practices we’ve exposed and campaigned against—the sale of sick puppies, the deception of consumers and exorbitant financing rates and hidden fees,” Humane Society CEO Kitty Block shared in a statement.
The bill is part of a continued push by the supposed party of small government to supercede local authority. Florida Republicans have consistently trounced on their commitment to “small government” throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, undoing local emergency orders and pushing for legislation that would allow business owners to overturn the votes of local authorities.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has changed its mask guidelines to recommend that people “wear the most protective mask you can that fits well and that you will wear consistently.” The agency describes well-fitting respirators approved by the National Institute of Occupational Safety & Health (NIOSH) — such as N95 masks — as offering “the highest level of protection.”
3M Co. 8210Plus N95 particulate respirator
The updated guidelines come after many public health experts have been recommending for months that people wear more effective masks — particularly N95s — and that the CDC change its guidelines on mask-wearing.
“Cloth masks are little more than facial decorations. There’s no place for them in light of Omicron, Dr. Leana Wen, an emergency physician and visiting professor of health policy and management at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, recently said.”
In crowded places, “you should be wearing a KN95 or N95 mask,” which can cost a few dollars each, Wen added. Due to certain materials — such as polypropylene fibers — acting as both mechanical and electrostatic barriers, these masks better prevent tiny particles from getting into your nose or mouth and must be fitted to your face to function properly.
Here’s what you need to know about masks like N95s, where to get them and how to use them safely.
This satellite image taken by Himawari-8, a Japanese weather satellite, and released by the Japan Meteorology Agency, shows an undersea volcano eruption at the Pacific nation of Tonga Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022. An undersea volcano erupted in spectacular fashion near the Pacific nation of Tonga on Saturday, sending large waves crashing across the shore and people rushing to higher ground.
A tsunami advisory is in effect for the California West Coast Saturday morning after an undersea volcano erupted near the island nation of Tonga in the South Pacific, according to the National Weather Service.
The NWS expects peak tsunami wave heights of 1 to 2 feet, saying that the main impacts are expected to be strong rip currents, coastal flooding, and possible inundation of low lying areas. The agency advises people to move to higher ground but says widespread inundation is not expected.
The waves were expected to hit the Monterey area at 7:35, corresponding with its high tide at 8:05, and San Francisco around 8:10, corresponding with high tide at 9:09.
Inflation jumped at its fastest pace in nearly 40 years last month, a 7% spike from a year earlier that is increasing household expenses, eating into wage gains and heaping pressure on President Joe Biden and the Federal Reserve to address what has become the biggest threat to the U.S. economy.
Prices have risen sharply for cars, gas, food and furniture as part of a rapid recovery from the pandemic recession that was fueled by vast infusions of government aid and emergency intervention by the Fed, which slashed interest rates. As Americans have ramped up spending, supply chains have been squeezed by shortages of workers and raw materials.
“Inflation ended 2021 very hot,” said Ben Ayers, senior economist at Nationwide. Ayers and other economists say prices may cool off some as snags in the supply chain ease, but inflation will remain elevated throughout 2022.
A new variant has a similar genetic background to the Delta variant, together with 10 mutations from Omicron.
People wait outside a vaccination centre, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in Limassol, Cyprus May 4, 2021
A new coronavirus variant nicknamed “Deltacron” has been discovered in Cyprus, local media reported on Saturday.
The variant has a similar genetic background to the Delta variant, as well as some of the mutations from Omicron, explained Dr. Leondios Kostrikis, the head of the laboratory of biotechnology and molecular virology at the University of Cyprus, according to the Cyprus Mail.
In total, 10 of the mutations from Omicron were found in the 25 samples taken in Cyprus. 11 of the samples came from people who were hospitalized due to the virus, while 14 came from the general population.
Kostrikis theorized that the fact that the frequency of the mutation among hospitalized patients was higher could point to a correlation between the new variant and hospitalizations.
The US recorded 900,832 new COVID cases on Friday, the second highest day ever after record set Monday
Deaths jumped to 2,615 for the day, a 22% increase from a week ago on a rolling average basis
One expert estimates 5 million people in the US may be calling out sick next week, some 3% of the workforce
Disruptions are forcing some businesses into de facto lockdown because they lack the staff to operate
Most forecasts suggest that the Omicron surge will not peak in the US until late in January
Dr. Fauci said on Friday that the US could soon be regularly recording 1 million new cases of COVID each day
Explosion of Omicron-fueled infections in the US is already causing a breakdown in basic services
The United States has posted its second-highest daily total for new COVID-19 cases, as one expert predicts some 5 million Americans could call in sick in the coming week in a major disruption to the economy and essential services.
On Friday, the US recorded 900,832 new COVID cases, second only to the more than 1 million cases recorded on Monday. The nation’s four highest caseload days since the start of the pandemic were all recorded in the past week.
As omicron surges statewide, Florida reported 76,887 new COVID-19 cases on Friday, the highest daily number of the pandemic, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.
This surpasses the previous record of 75,732 infections set Dec. 30. The Florida Department of Health reported 397,114 new coronavirus cases this week among Florida residents to bring the cumulative total to 4,562,954. With 184 more fatalities on record, 62,688 Florida residents have died.
This week’s 184 deaths reflect an increase from the 162 reported last week, but deaths can take several days or weeks to be reported. The majority of the newly reported deaths are people who died before this week.The death count has not reached anywhere near September levels, where nearly 2,500 new deaths were reported multiple weeks in a row.
