Good Morning, Sunland
It's Tuesday! And thank you all for being here! Pretty packed newsletter ahead, so I'll be brief. And the kids are back to school today! Maybe leave a bit earlier, because the buses are back on the road!
Alright… Let’s JUMP in!
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Ja'Min Devon
Founder, Sunland News
Indiantown residents pack town hall
on proposed data centers
More than 100 people filled a Saturday town hall to hear expert warnings about up to four data centers planned for the small Martin County village.
Why it matters: The facilities would be built on 200 acres of wetlands and affect protected species. One proposed center spans 2 million square feet.
The big picture: Talk About Martin organized the event after village officials, county commissioners, and Florida Power & Light all declined invitations to participate. Vice Mayor Phyllis Waters Brown attended to listen.
Water consumption: Meta's Kansas City data center uses 9.5 million gallons daily. For comparison:
City of Stuart uses 3.5 million gallons per day
All of Martin County uses 9 million gallons per day
The noise factor: Jennifer Goehring, who lives near a data center in Spencer, Arizona, described constant noise affecting daily life.
Low frequency hum can be heard or felt up to 2.5 miles away
Safe sound levels are 70 decibels; data center equipment often exceeds 85
Rising costs: Electricity prices jumped 6.9% in 2025, more than double the inflation rate.
Utilities requested $31 billion in rate increases in 2025
Data centers will drive 40% of electricity demand growth through 2030
Environmental impact: Studies show data centers raise local air temperatures by 2 to 4 degrees in adjacent neighborhoods.
What's next: Residents requested village officials slow approval and create a resident task force rather than rely on developer funded consultants.
🥳 Out-of-Towner: Mar 25 - Mar 31
Wednesday, March 25
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Thursday, March 26
🎵 Throwback Thursdays: Vinyl Listening Lounge – 7–11 PM at Culture Shift Elixery, 2196 SE Ocean Blvd, Stuart. Live vinyl spinning featuring disco, R&B, jazz, funk, soul, and more. 21+. Free. Info
Friday, March 27
🚒 Touch-A-Truck Spring Fling – 4:30–7:30 PM at Jupiter Community Park, 1201 Island Way, Jupiter. Free family event with treat-filled eggs, bounce houses, face painting, live DJ, and food vendors. Horn-free hour 4:30–5:30 PM. Info
Saturday, March 28
🎶 Magic of Motown – 2:30 PM at Riverwalk Stage, Downtown Stuart. Free outdoor concert featuring Motown classics from The Temptations, Diana Ross, Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin, and more. Info
🎉 CentenFest: A Free Community Event – 10 AM in Downtown Stuart. Full day of performances including Magic of Motown, Dancing Through the Decades, Albert Castiglia, and Pure Zeppelin Experience. Free admission. Info
🥚 6th Annual Family Fun Exploration Day & Spring Egg Stroll – 10 AM–1 PM at Memorial Park, 301 SE Stypmann Blvd, Stuart. Free event with games, karaoke, food, egg hunts with Golden Tickets, and vendor booths. Info
🌸 Spring Easter Festival at Schacht Groves – 11 AM–2 PM at 6100 12th St, Vero Beach. Photos with the Easter Bunny, food trucks, local vendors, bounce house, u-pick grove, and hayride. Free admission. Info
🎨 Melbourne, FL Spring Art & Craft Expo – Sat 10 AM–5 PM & Sun 10 AM–4 PM at Wickham Park, 2500 Parkway Dr, Melbourne. 250+ booths, live music, food, kids zone. Free admission and parking. Info
💧 The Last Drop:
🏠 Martin County median home price drops $100k – February median $544,500, down 16% from $649,950 last year. Lowest since Oct 2021. St. Lucie flat at $390k, Indian River up to $427,500. All three counties trending toward seller's market. Home prices
🚁 Florida air taxi testing starts this summer – FAA pilot program testing cargo, passenger, medical flights statewide. Archer, Joby, Beta, Electra participating. Commercial service 2027-2028, priced like Uber Black. FDOT envisions "highways in the sky." Flying taxis
🎓 Florida universities research spending up 43% since 2019 – State system collected $3.24B in 2024-2025, ranks 5th nationally. UF 15th in nation, USF 47th, FSU 55th. Nearly half federal funding, $82M from business/industry. Research funds
🎰 Florida gambling hotline funds flow to for-profit company – Kindbridge Research Institute nonprofit subcontracts with for-profit Kindbridge Behavioral Health. Invoices show $131k for services, state pays similar amounts. Former hotline operator warns of self-referral incentive. Gambling hotline
🌿 Big Cypress led Florida parks with 2.3M visitors in 2025 – South Florida parks up 1.7% despite federal shutdown. Outdoor recreation contributed $65B to state GDP, 508k jobs. Everglades had 778k visitors. Park visitors
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