State surpasses jobs milestone

The North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton region added 1,700 construction jobs in July, an 8% increase over July 2016, according to a new report from the Associated General Contractors of America.

The region had the same 8% increase as Florida, which added 36,700 construction jobs in July over last year, the report adds. With the gain, the state surpassed a half-million construction jobs, and now has 520,200 positions on payrolls. (The data includes 100 mining and logging jobs.)

Punta Gorda, in Charlotte County, led the state in rate of year-over-year job increases, with a 13% gain and 500 new jobs. The Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville region also posted a 13% increase from July 2016 to this past July, with 1,700 jobs.

The Cape Coral-Fort Myers region posted a 3% increase in jobs gained, the organization's survey found, while Lakeland-Winter Haven posted a 4% increase. The Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island area was up 10% and Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater rose 9%.