Miami

Miami Alerts

Alert

blue

Axios Miami Partners

Miami Members

Membership

A daily look at the most significant and interesting stories affecting Miami.

Axios Miami Thought Bubble

Thought Bubble

Get smarter, faster on what matters in Miami with Sommer Brugal and Martin Vassolo.

Axios Miami

Standard

Miami-Dade is giving away over 2,500 trees next weekend as part of its long-running Adopt-a-Tree program.

Why it matters: Growing Miami's tree canopy is an effective way to cool down neighborhoods during hot summer months, County Commissioner Marleine Bastien said in a statement.

Zoom in: Residents living in single-family and duplex properties in Miami-Dade can receive up to two free trees at FIU Biscayne Bay Campus in North Miami.

Renters must provide written authorization from the owner to plant the trees.

Pre-registration is now open at miamidade.gov/adoptatree. Expedited adoption offered to veterans and active-duty members with ID.

What's next: The final 2026 Adopt-a-Tree giveaway is Sept. 13, from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., at Zoo Miami.

Miami-Dade giving away 2,500 free trees in North Miami

Residents can receive up to two free trees.

an illustration of repeating Axios logos and green trees

Miami-Dade is giving away over 2,500 trees next weekend as part of its long-running Adopt-a-Tree program.Why it matters: Growing Miami&#x27;s tree canopy is an effective way to cool down neighborhoods during hot summer months, County Commissioner Marleine Bastien said in a statement.

News

The next time a hurricane threatens Florida, most residents will either hunker down at home or evacuate by car. 

But a select few will be whisked out of the state on private planes.

Why it matters: A new Florida company is selling premium evacuation flights for people who can afford it.

"Don't evacuate, depart," is the tagline from PriorityEvac, which is selling $1,250-a-year memberships to residents with primary or secondary homes in Florida.

Driving the news: The company, which launched this summer, is marketed to families with elderly relatives, small children or pets who want to avoid packed highways and dynamic airline pricing.

The company's leadership includes a retired U.S. Air Force colonel and a retired senior hurricane specialist with the National Hurricane Center.

How it works: PriorityEvac operates out of six coastal airports in Florida, offering members up to two covered evacuations per hurricane season.

In general, evacuations are triggered by the formation of a Category 1 hurricane, plus a 40% probability of tropical storm winds at a member's local airport.

The service is intended for "storms that present a genuine, near-term threat to the specific coast a member lives on," a spokesperson tells Axios.

Members are flown from their local airport to Atlanta on Airbus A320 planes. 

For a single member, it costs $1,250 per year regardless of whether they take the evacuation flight.

A family of four would pay $4,400 a year, with additional household members paying $1,100. Small pets are $125.

Members must pay for their own lodging and flights back home from Atlanta, along with any other travel expenses.

Reality check: The Florida Division of Emergency Management says "evacuations don't have to be hundreds of miles away."

"If you are ordered to evacuate, your safest and easiest option may be to stay with friends or family who live outside the evacuation zone or in a stronger house."

What they're saying: PriorityEvac says its service is "an option for households who want a different level of distance and certainty when a hurricane hits."

Customers avoid "the storm's broader impact," the spokesperson noted, like power outages and flooding.

The bottom line: PriorityEvac is "not claiming to replace public evacuation or telling people they can't be safe without us."

"We're offering an option for people who've decided to put a plan in place instead of having their family's safe departure depend on whatever seats, fuel, and road capacity happen to be left at the last minute."

Florida company sells premium hurricane evacuation flights

PriorityEvac promises to get its customers out of Florida before the public evacuates.

Miami Beach, Hurricane Irma Evacuation highway signs. (Photo by: Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)



In 2017, millions of Floridians evacuated before Hurricane Irma. Photo: Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

The next time a <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="hurricane" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/tampa-bay/2026/05/21/atlantic-hurricane-season-forecast-2026-noaa-preparation-el-nino" data-vars-content-id="1b99ff57-0a9d-42ed-b8c7-435333889016" data-vars-headline="Florida company sells premium hurricane evacuation flights" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/tampa-bay/2026/05/21/atlantic-hurricane-season-forecast-2026-noaa-preparation-el-nino" target="_self">hurricane</a> threatens Florida, most residents will either hunker down at home or evacuate by car. <ul><li>But a select few will be whisked out of the state on private planes.</li></ul>Why it matters: A new Florida company is selling premium evacuation flights for people who can afford it.<ul><li>&quot;Don&#x27;t evacuate, depart,&quot; is the tagline from <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="PriorityEvac" data-vars-click-url="https://www.priorityevac.com/" data-vars-content-id="1b99ff57-0a9d-42ed-b8c7-435333889016" data-vars-headline="Florida company sells premium hurricane evacuation flights" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.priorityevac.com/" target="_blank">PriorityEvac</a>, which is selling $1,250-a-year memberships to residents with primary or secondary homes in Florida.</li></ul>

Latest news on Wall Street, Corporate America and financial regulation.

Business

Environment

Public Safety

The World Cup semifinals kick off Tuesday as Spain takes on France.

What's happening: The Miami host committee, which put together the FIFA Fan Festival, is setting up free community watch parties across South Florida ahead of the July 19 Final. 

Bronze Final: July 18, 5pm at Miami Stadium (Hard Rock Stadium). Tickets

🇪🇸 The Miami Beach Bandshell is organizing watch parties for the France-Spain and Argentina-England semifinals at the North Beach venue. Free with RSVP.

There are also free watch parties in South Beach at 14 Street and Ocean Drive for both matches, along with the Bronze Final and Final. 

🇦🇷 Marlins Park: The FIFA host committee and loanDepot park announced three World Cup watch parties: Argentina-England, the Bronze Final and the Final. 

Get your tickets here, first-come, first-served.

🥉 Little Haiti Soccer Park will televise the Bronze Final.

🥉 🥇 North Beach Bandshell Sand Bowl: The Bandshell is also hosting the Bronze Final and the Final.

Free World Cup watch parties around Miami

There are four teams left in the World Cup.

Illustration of a calendar with a soccer ball pattern as the front page. 

The World Cup semifinals kick off Tuesday as Spain takes on France.<ul><li>On Wednesday, Argentina plays England.</li></ul>

Denver

Axios Denver

Florida fell five spots to No. 8 in CNBC's annual Top States for Business rankings, released last week.

The big picture: Florida lost ground in areas like business friendliness, infrastructure, economy and quality of life — slipping from No. 3 last year.

CNBC scores all 50 states across 10 weighted categories worth 2,500 points total. Colorado earned 1,459 points.

Zoom in: Florida fell the furthest in the infrastructure category, from 16th to 32nd, after CNBC made it the most heavily weighted measure for 2026.

CNBC said it elevated infrastructure to reflect companies' interest in being close to transit hubs, utilities and data centers.

Florida's brightest spots were workforce and access to capital, where it earned an A-plus and A, respectively.

The state's worst score was a D-minus for cost of living, ranking 48th out of 50 states.

Zoom out: Ohio claimed CNBC's top spot this year, followed by North Carolina, Virginia, Texas and Minnesota.

Florida falls slightly in CNBC business rankings

The Denver skyline. Photo: AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post via Getty Images

Florida fell five spots to No. 8 in CNBC&#x27;s annual <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Top States for Business" data-vars-click-url="https://www.cnbc.com/2026/07/09/americas-top-states-for-business-full-rankings.html" data-vars-content-id="aee5c7aa-53d8-4266-ae8c-d580cc6aa312" data-vars-headline="Florida falls slightly in CNBC business rankings" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.cnbc.com/2026/07/09/americas-top-states-for-business-full-rankings.html" target="_blank">Top States for Business</a> rankings, released last week.The big picture: Florida lost ground in areas like business friendliness, infrastructure, economy and quality of life — slipping from <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="No. 3" data-vars-click-url="https://www.cnbc.com/2025/07/10/florida-top-states-for-business-ranking.html" data-vars-content-id="aee5c7aa-53d8-4266-ae8c-d580cc6aa312" data-vars-headline="Florida falls slightly in CNBC business rankings" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.cnbc.com/2025/07/10/florida-top-states-for-business-ranking.html" target="_blank">No. 3</a> last year.<ul><li>CNBC scores all 50 states across 10 weighted categories worth 2,500 points total. Colorado earned 1,459 points.</li></ul>

Miami Beach Police have debunked an Instagram video posted by a popular "citizens journalism" account claiming that a Waymo hit a bicyclist on Tuesday in South Beach.

Why it matters: As self-driving taxis expand across Miami, videos questioning their driving abilities have gone viral on social media, though Waymo's data suggests its cars are safer than human drivers.

Driving the news: Only In Dade, a Miami-based news and entertainment page with 2 million followers, posted a user-submitted video Tuesday night showing a cyclist lying on the road in front of a white Waymo SUV.

The video was captioned, "Waymo strikes bike rider in Miami Beach." It has been liked over 5,000 times.

Reality check: The autonomous car never hit the cyclist, Waymo and Miami Beach Police tell Axios.

What happened: The Waymo was stopped on Collins Avenue waiting to pick up a passenger when another vehicle "collided with the cyclist," a Waymo spokesperson says.

"There was no contact at any point between the cyclist and the Waymo vehicle."

Miami Beach Police spokesperson Officer Christopher Bess says the driver of a Mercury Grand Marquis was parked on the side of the road and hit the cyclist when trying to make a U-turn.

The cyclist, who was lawfully riding in the travel lane, was taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital's Ryder Trauma Center with non-life-threatening injuries.

The driver "was determined to be at fault and was cited accordingly," Bess said.

Only In Dade did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

No, a Waymo did not hit a bicyclist in Miami. It was a human driver, police say

Police debunk Instagram video claiming self-driving car hit a cyclist.

Photo illustration of a Waymo car with a shruggie text icon on the license plate. 

Photo illustration: Aïda Amer. Photo: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Miami Beach Police have debunked an Instagram video posted by a popular &quot;citizens journalism&quot; account claiming that a Waymo hit a bicyclist on Tuesday in South Beach.Why it matters: As self-driving taxis expand across Miami, <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="videos" data-vars-click-url="https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/video-waymo-robotaxi-causes-traffic-jam-in-miami-beach-40515279/" data-vars-content-id="cbe9dbaf-3473-475f-8c0e-1f9069941b7c" data-vars-headline="No, a Waymo did not hit a bicyclist in Miami. It was a human driver, police say" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.miaminewtimes.com/news/video-waymo-robotaxi-causes-traffic-jam-in-miami-beach-40515279/" target="_blank">videos</a> questioning their driving <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="abilities" data-vars-click-url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0B2AhTzJj0w" data-vars-content-id="cbe9dbaf-3473-475f-8c0e-1f9069941b7c" data-vars-headline="No, a Waymo did not hit a bicyclist in Miami. It was a human driver, police say" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0B2AhTzJj0w" target="_blank">abilities</a> have gone viral on social media, though Waymo&#x27;s data suggests its cars are <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="safer" data-vars-click-url="https://waymo.com/safety/impact/" data-vars-content-id="cbe9dbaf-3473-475f-8c0e-1f9069941b7c" data-vars-headline="No, a Waymo did not hit a bicyclist in Miami. It was a human driver, police say" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://waymo.com/safety/impact/" target="_blank">safer</a> than human drivers.

Martin Vassolo

Featured stories

No, a Waymo did not hit a bicyclist in Miami. It was a human driver, police say

Florida company sells premium hurricane evacuation flights

Florida falls slightly in CNBC business rankings

Miami-Dade giving away 2,500 free trees in North Miami

Free World Cup watch parties around Miami