Episode 304: WSLR News Wed., Dec. 4: PGT layoffs; FPL storm rate hike; John Nichols; Sarasota abandons downtown street

The week before Thanksgiving, amid what still looks like a boom for window and door makers, local manufacturer PGT Innovations laid off 225 workers in Tampa, and then another 150 in Venice. The layoffs came after PGT was taken over by Miter Brands, a Pennsylvania-based company. Johannes Werner talked to one Venice worker who says he and his wife lost their jobs the same day.The newly constituted Sarasota City Commission went through a test on Monday. That test came about when Commissioner Jen Ahearn-Koch made a motion to take back a vote the outgoing commission made a month earlier. At issue was a downtown street the city handed over to a developer, before even seeing the developer's site plan. Ahearn-Koch wanted more discussion on how the developer's yet-to-be-known project would benefit the public.On Tuesday, a state panel unanimously approved a $1.2 billion dollar storm recovery package for Florida Power & Light. This allows FP&L, come January, to hike the average monthly electricity bill by 12 dollars. This is pretty much routine, and it will keep the corporation in the black and its investors happy. But one public advocate spoke against approval at the Public Service Commission meeting in Tallahassee. Johannes Werner spoke to Jordan Luebkemann, an attorney representing Florida Rising and Earthjustice.As the national affairs correspondent for the Nation magazine, John Nichols views national politics through a progressive lens. He will put the election in perspective during a presentation and discussion at the Fogartyville Community Center this Saturday, 7 pm. WSLR's Peace and Justice Report host Tom Walker interviewed Nichols this morning.