South Florida’s hiring comeback hits a setback

Shrinking government payrolls slammed hiring in South Florida last month, with Broward losing jobs overall and Miami-Dade expanding payrolls at the slowest pace in more than two years.

The anemic job-growth figures are preliminary, and could turn around in a moment if next month’s revisions find more hiring in Florida’s largest regional economy. But they also could signal the start of a new and more dismal chapter in South Florida’s slow recovery on the hiring front.

Statewide, one side of the employment picture looked positive for October. Florida’s unemployment rate dropped from 8.7 percent in September to 8.5 percent in October, even as the pool of job seekers grew. Florida’s labor pool increased by 40,000 people, but the number of people listed as employed in the monthly household survey increased at a faster rate, to 60,000 people. When both numbers are increasing, that’s generally a sign of real improvement in hiring.

The state’s labor agency said businesses and governments added almost 15,000 jobs in Florida, most of them in the private sector.

Florida’s unemployment rate is adjusted for seasonal fluctuations in the economy, so it’s considered more accurate than the raw unemployment rate, which dropped to 8.2 percent. Seasonally adjusted rates were not available for Broward or Miami-Dade. In Broward, the raw unemployment rate fell from 7.6 percent in September to 7.1 percent in October. For Miami-Dade, the raw unemployment rate inched up slightly from 8.8 percent to 8.9 percent.

Payroll counts come from a separate survey — this one of businesses, not households. Locally, those surveys showed overall hiring increased by only 800 positions in Miami-Dade. That’s paltry compared to the 24,000 jobs Miami-Dade employers were adding as recently as March and marked the worst month for hiring in Miami-Dade since June 2010. All of the losses came from the public sector, since private employers added a still-paltry 5,200 jobs from a year ago.

Broward saw a loss of 1,100 jobs over the past 12 months. Broward has not enjoyed the same kind of strong economic rebound that Miami-Dade has, and October is the second month of 2012 to show an overall decline in payroll slots in Broward. Government hiring also accounted for all of the employment losses in Broward, with the county’s private sector eking out a 700-job gain.

Combining both counties’ totals, October was the first month since June 2010 that the region lost jobs in the payroll survey. For both Broward and Miami-Dade, the bulk of the government jobs were lost at the local level. That category includes public hospitals and school systems.

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Miami City Commission slams administration over surprise $45 million budget surplus

Union leaders asked the city of Miami to reopen contract negotiations Thursday, one day after the city’s budget team announced it had discovered a surprise $45 million surplus.

“You told us to dig into our pockets and we did — for four consecutive years,” Fraternal Order of Police Vice President Javier Ortiz told the city commission, noting that the unions had agreed to millions in employee concessions because the city was projecting a $40 million budget shortfall.

“Now that apparently times are good and we have $45 million, direct the manager to meet with us and reopen our contracts,” Ortiz said.

Mayor Tomás Regalado said he wants City Manager Johnny Martinez to sit down with the unions after Thanksgiving.

“Maybe we can use a little of the money to buy new uniforms or police cars or fire trucks,” Regalado said. “But to say that we are going to restore every concession, to me, that would be irresponsible.”

City administrators are recommending that the bulk of the surplus be stashed in reserves, which remain below the $93 million balance required by a city ordinance.

“Most of this [surplus] money is not recurring,” Regalado said. “If we were to use that money for raises and benefit, we will fall into the same downward spiral that the city was in many years ago.”

While commissioners said they were pleased to have more money than was projected, they did not give the administration a pass for dramatically underestimating the final balance for the past fiscal year. Budget Director Danny Alfonso had initially forecast a budget surplus of $8.5 million.

“I feel like I’ve been played,” Commissioner Michelle Spence-Jones said. “How do you all of a sudden find $45 million?”

Spence-Jones said budget and finance officials should have said something over the summer when city leaders were negotiating employee concessions to balance the budget. She stormed off the dais after making her comments.

Alfonso took responsibility for the change in numbers, saying he had been too conservative with his revenue and expense projections.

“In my heart, there was no attempt to deceive anyone,” he told the commission.

Alfonso said the budget surplus was more likely to be around $37 million after several final transactions posted.

Martinez, the city manager, conceded that the administration “could have managed expectations a little better.”

“There was no plot,” he said. “Maybe we were not at our best with our projections, but there was no attempt to defraud or mislead anybody.”

Regalado said he did not expect anyone to be fired for the mistake.

“I stand 100 percent behind Danny Alfonso and the way that he runs his department,” he said. “I stand behind the manager. He is doing the right thing.”

The surplus will likely come up again later in the meeting, when the commission discusses a proposed $45 million bond issue. The money is needed to pay off a short-term loan that financed Miami’s share of the PortMiami tunnel dig.

Commissioner Frank Carollo said he wants to know how the surplus will affect the bond offering.

In other business, the commission extended the agreement that allows Scotty’s Landing restaurant and Grove Key Marina to operate on city-owned property in Coconut Grove.

The 35-year lease for the eatery and marina expired earlier this year, and the city sought proposals from businesses interested in taking over. But administrators halted the bid process in July, citing procedural irregularities.

“The reason why we’re here is because there was a disastrous process that ensued,” Commission Chairman Francis Suarez said.

Director of Public Facilities Henry Torre said he plans to get started on a new bid process later this month. Because the property sits on the waterfront, any new contract must be approved by public referendum.

Until then, Scotty’s Landing and Grove Key Marina will be able to operate under an agreement that can be revoked for any reason with 30 days notice.

The commission approved the agreement 4-1, with Carollo voting in opposition.

Vice Chairman Marc Sarnoff, whose district includes the Grove, urged city administrators to move forward with the new bid process as quickly as possible.

“I can foresee no set of circumstances, unless it is Hurricane Sandy reemerging, for me to kick this can down the road, and I am going to hold this administration responsible,” Sarnoff said. “Now it’s time to get this done.”

The deal has been particularly controversial because $2.5 million in back property taxes are owed on the site. Both Scotty’s Landing and the city of Miami have refused to pay. The business owner says his lease exempts him from property taxes.

The Miami-Dade tax collector had initially planned to go after the restaurant and marina. But the collector is now asking a judge to decide if the city or the restaurant is responsible.

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Justin Bieber & Channing Tatum Lead People's Choice Nominees

Nominations for the 2013 People's Choice Awards were announced on Thursday, with Justin Bieber, Adam Levine and Channing Tatum leading the pack with multiple nods.

Maroon 5 frontman Levine received four music nominations -- for Favorite Band, Favorite Song, Favorite Album, Favorite Music Video -- as well as two in the TV category for his work on The Voice, Favorite Celebrity Judge and Favorite Competition TV Show.

PICS: Fierce Fashions at the 2012 People's Choice Awards

Teen pop idol Bieber picked up five nods -- Favorite Male Artist, Favorite Pop Artist, Favorite Album, Favorite Music Video and Favorite Music Fan Following.

Newly crowned Sexiest Man Alive Tatum led the men in acting categories with four -- for Favorite Male Actor, Favorite Comedic Actor, Favorite Dramatic Actor and Favorite On-Screen Chemistry -- while actresses Emma Stone and Jennifer Lawrence were nominated in the same three categories, Favorite Movie Actress, Favorite Face of Heroism and Favorite On-Screen Chemistry.

VIDEO: Kaley Cuoco on Hosting People's Choice & Upcoming Wedding

The nominees for Favorite Movie are The Amazing Spider-Man, The Avengers, The Dark Knight Rises, The Hunger Games and Snow White and the Huntsman.

The nominations were announced at the Paley Center for Media in Beverly Hills by country star Jason Aldean, Anthony
Anderson (Guys with Kids), Sophia Bush (Partners), Jason O'Mara
(Vegas), Monica Potter (Parenthood) and Casey Wilson (Happy
Endings).

RELATED: Channing Tatum Crowned as 'Sexiest Man Alive'

This year's People's Choice Awards -- hosted by The Big Bang Theory's Kaley Cuoco -- will air live from L.A. Live's Nokia Theater on Wednesday, January 9 on CBS from 9-11 p.m. EST.

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Parks workers in Queens find body buried in sand

Parks Department workers cleaning debris off a Queens beach today discovered a man’s body buried in the sand, police sources said.

The decomposed corpse was found in dunes along the shoreline by Beach 13th Street in Far Rockaway at around 8:30 a.m., sources added.

A garbage bag was near the body, sources said and investigators do not believe the death is storm related.

Workers were cleaning trash and seaweed that had washed ashore during Hurricane Sandy when they made the grisly find.

The medical examiner will determine the cause of death.

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Builders trade groups merge in South Florida

The Florida Atlantic Building Association was created recently through a merger of the Builders Association of South Florida, which was active in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties, and the Gold Coast Builders Association, which focused on Palm Beach County.

The new regional trade group, focused on government affairs issues that affect builders in South Florida, from Palm Beach to the Florida Keys, will hold an installation meeting for officers and directors Nov. 30 at the Fort Lauderdale Museum of Art.

Florida Atlantic Building Association is affiliated with the Florida Home Builders Association and National Home Builders Association.

Ben Solomon, vice president and general counsel of the new trade group, which has more than 300 members, said the merger, coming on the heels of hard times in construction, provides economies of scale and a larger coverage area for builders and related professionals. “It’s an opportunity as the market rebuilds to associate with a strong association,’’ he said.

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Service dogs help military veterans with injuries seen and unseen

As Diego Hurtado gently toyed with his dog’s ear, he recalled jumping out of a plane at 2,000 feet, then freefalling when his parachute failed to open.

He tightly held the dog’s ear in his palm as he recalled the mid-air collision of two aircraft at Pope Air Force Base, North Carolina, that spilled fuel and debris on the base, killing 24 fellow paratroopers and injuring countless others.

Hurtado’s dog Rex, a nearly 80-pound yellow Labrador-golden retriever mix, may seem like any other four-legged canine.

But Rex, 3, is also a service dog trained to help Hurtado cope with post-traumatic stress disorder as well as with the service-related physical injuries.

“With Rex I have been able to reduce my anti-depressants by more than half,” said Hurtado, 51, a sergeant first class who served in the Army for 20 years. “I am able to go to a lot of places I was not able to go to at all.”

Like many other veterans who struggle with PTSD and physical injuries, Hurtado turned to man’s best friend for help. Nonprofit organizations across the country provide dogs to veterans to help servicemen and servicewomen cope with their injuries, both physical and emotional.

Kendall resident Jose Moran received his German shepherd, Jana, from the same organization as Hurtado: New York-based America’s VetDogs.

Coral Springs resident and Iraq war veteran Moises Castro turned to Florida-based Dogs 4 Disabled Veterans for his pit-boxer mix, Salsa.

Both organizations train the dogs to match the personality and needs of each veteran and provide the dogs for free.

Castro, 47, served in Kuwait during the Iraq War as a U.S. Navy petty officer second-class. Once he came back, his anxiety, due to PTSD, was high, especially when he would go into crowds. To add to that, in 2010 he had a brain tumor removed, leaving him with sporadic seizures.

For two years, he barely left his home.

Then along came 2-year-old Salsa with white paws.

She has been trained to sense when Castro is about to get a seizure.

“She just knows it before I do,” he said, adding that during a seizure she licks his face to comfort him.

And when the two enter a big crowd that may induce anxiety, she veers him away.

“Then she keeps looking at me to make sure everything is OK,” said Castro. “She has given my freedom back to me.”

During Moran’s service in the U.S. Army as a sergeant first class, his vehicle ran over an explosive device in Sadr City, Iraq, a suburb of Baghdad The impact crushed one of the disks in his spine and his left knee.

“I don’t really remember too much,” said Moran, 45. “I heard a pop and I was out.”

After returning to South Florida, it was not easy to return to civilian life. Sometimes he did not eat for a week because his PTSD caused him so much anxiety in crowds that he avoided going to the grocery store.

“It got pretty bad there for awhile,” he said. “As bad as you can get without crossing the line.”

Three years ago he got Jana, who has been trained to sense Moran’s anxiety levels and knows when the two are about to walk into an uncomfortable situation.

“She can tell if someone is going to annoy me,” said Moran.

On a recent visit to the Miami VA, a man got in the elevator with the two. He “was just loud” and asked a lot of question about Jana, Moran said.

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Snooki Witnesses Hurricane Sandy's Devastation Firsthand

Seaside Heights, New Jersey was recently devastated by Hurricane Sandy, and in this brand-new preview from MTV's star-studded fundraising special Restore the Shore --  a one-hour program featuring the likes of Taylor Swift, Nicki Minaj, the entire Jersey Shore cast, Britney Spears and more which will go towards rebuilding Seaside Heights -- Jersey Shore breakout star Snooki witnesses the devastation of the iconic Seaside boardwalk firsthand.

"This really sucks, the whole pier is just gone. It's really sad. The rollercoaster that I always go on is in the water," she says, getting emotional. "There's like, no boardwalk. We have so many memories here and everything's just destroyed."

Video: Ty Pennington Sees Sandy's Aftermath Firsthand

Instead of traditional telethons where donators call hoping to talk to a celebrity, Restore the Shore will feature stars personally calling individuals who donate via Indiegogo at RestoretheShore.MTV.com or make a $10 donation by texting SHORE to 85944. All funds raised will go to Architecture for Humanity, a non-profit that led rebuilding efforts in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and in Haiti after the 2010 earthquake, which will now aim to restore the famed boardwalk as well as local businesses and homes destroyed by the hurricane.

The special will feature live performances from Gym Class Heroes and American Idol winner Phillip Phillips.

Video: Dr. Phil's Advice to Victims of Hurricane Sandy

Restore the Shore will air live at 11 p.m. ET on MTV, MTV.com, MTV mobile and MTV radio on Thursday, November 15.

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Pedro Hernandez indicted in 1979 death of Etan Patz

AP

Pedro Hernandez

A Manhattan grand jury today indicted a former SoHo bodega clerk for allegedly luring 6-year-old Etan Patz into a basement and killing him 33 years ago, according to court papers.

The panel found there was sufficient evidence to charge 51-year-old Maple Shade, NJ, resident Pedro Hernandez with second-degree murder and first-degree kidnapping, according to court papers.

“This indictment is the outcome of a lengthy and deliberative process, involving months of factual investigation and legal analysis," said Manhattan DA spokeswoman Erin Duggan.

"We believe the evidence that Mr. Hernandez killed Etan Patz to be credible and persuasive, and that his statements are not the product of any mental illness. The grand jury has found sufficient evidence to charge the defendant and this is a case that we believe should be presented to a jury at trial.”

Hernandez was arrested in May and he allegedly confessed to strangling Patz.

Cops have struggled to build a case against Hernandez beyond his confession, law enforcement sources have said.

Defense lawyers have said Hernandez struggled with psychological problems and his confession could be tainted.

Little Etan's disappearance prompted an international search and spawned a movement to publicize missing children cases.

The missing SoHo boy is widely considered to be the first “milk carton kid.”

Additional reporting by David K. Li

Stanley Patz

Etan Patz

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Job fair Thursday in Miami Lakes

One of the region’s most popular job fairs returns to Miami-Dade County on Thursday, Nov. 15, with more than 1,000 openings available.

Job News, which sells employment ads and rents out space at job fairs to companies, will hold its last fair of 2012 at the Don Shula Hotel in Miami Lakes. The hours are 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and both admission and parking are free. Job News says more than 35 companies will be on hand looking for workers, including the Loews Miami Beach hotel, Flightstar Aviation, Okey Dokey grocery stores, and Borden Dairy.

More information is available at jobnewsmiami.com, where participants are encouraged to register ahead of time in order to avoid check-in lines. Job News recommends bringing 30 copies of a resume to the event.

DOUGLAS HANKS

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Florida man describes being shot by police Taser as he sprayed fire with garden hose

PINELLAS PARK --
The fire was all around Dan Jensen.

He could see it. He could smell it. He could hear it.

It was close enough to touch. It was burning down his neighbor's house. It was creeping toward Jensen's own fence 10 feet away, and he started spraying the fire with his hose.

Police ordered Jensen to get back, and he complied.

But after a few minutes passed without firefighters arriving, a frustrated Jensen stepped forward and leaned down to grab the skinny gray garden hose once again.

That's when he heard the order.

"Hit 'em! Take him down! Tase him!"

Within moments, Jensen was on the ground. He felt electric.

"It was all over me," Jensen said. "Crawling all over me."

The 42-year-old commercial fisherman is still struggling to comprehend exactly how things deteriorated so quickly Thursday. He said he doesn't understand why police shot him with a Taser that night as he tried to battle a house fire at 3420 Beechwood Ter. N.

Jensen's family, friends and neighbors have been quick to defend him and accuse police of crossing a line.

"It was wrong," he said. "There's no way around it. … I was fighting a fire. I wasn't fighting police. I thought they were here to help me. Instead, they hurt me."

Police said they can sympathize with the stress Jensen was under. But they said he put himself and officers in danger when he refused to back down from fighting the fire.

Pinellas Park Capt. Sanfield Forseth told the Tampa Bay Times authorities could have even charged Jensen with obstruction, but decided against it.

Jensen's attorney, Heidi Imhof, said she believes authorities are trying to deflect attention from their actions that night. She called the Taser use "excessive force."

"They can't just Taser anyone," she said. "He's an unarmed person on his private property trying to fight a fire."

Imhof said the officers had other options. They could have yanked Jensen away, she said, or just turned off the water.

The agency's policy says officers must issue a warning before using a Taser, "except when such warning could provide a tactical advantage to the subject."

Imhof said her client was never warned.

Jensen said he's "disappointed" in police.

He said that when they arrived on the scene, they told him to back off and let insurance take care of it. He did for a few minutes but grew impatient and irate. He picked up the hose again because he thought firefighters weren't getting there soon enough.

Officials told the Times it took six minutes for fire fighters to respond.

"That's my home," Jensen said Monday, his voice breaking. "That's my family."

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