Florida Trend articles from July 2004

Florida Trend archives from July 2004

Kudos all around.(corner office)(Column)
July 1, 2004... The feedback that matters most to the FLORIDA TREND staff is the information we get from you, our readers. And I've heard plenty of comments lately from readers who believe that the magazine is covering Florida and Florida's businesses better...

City managers vs. strong mayors.(readers)(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2004... In response to the article "A Strong Mayor?" [May, FloridaTrend.com], those of us who have worked under managers and strong mayors know that a city/county manager is less effective. On any given day, a majority vote of the elected officials can...

Corrections.(readers)(Correction Notice)
July 1, 2004... Sharon Daniels replaced David Bornt as CEO of AchieveGlobal. State Farm is not closing its Winter Haven office. It is phasing out its subrogation operations there.

Banking on dessert.(Bosses Who Cook)
July 1, 2004... In February, Amy Rice planned a cocktail party to celebrate the unveiling of Colonial Bank's new offices in Palm Beach. She wanted the event to tie in with the new art in the gallery-like offices, so she had servers greet guests with mango...

A bonding experience.(Bosses Who Cook)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Litigation attorney David R. Atkinson loves seafood and prefers to dive for his dinners himself, mostly off the Abacos Islands. Atkinson keeps his 57-foot motor yacht and 21-foot dive boat at Green Turtle Cay. During the August lobster season,...

Southern style.(executive lifestyle)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Charlie Palmer used to be a short-order cook, flipping burgers at Smith's Drugstore on Las Olas Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale. His dad owned the place. Palmer was 12 then. Today, the Big City Grill stands where the drugstore used to be, and...

Labor of love.(executive lifestyle)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Lori Nance Parrish has a penchant for baking cakes. A Parrish creation is a much-sought-after item for weddings, baby showers, birthdays and bat and bar mitzvahs. She doesn't charge but only bakes for friends and family. She's made a...

Painting on his own canvas: Bilzin Sumberg Baena Price & Axelrod.(Business And Professional Services)
July 1, 2004... As Scott Baena tells the story, he became a bankruptcy lawyer because Citibank called the firm where he was a young lawyer and needed someone to immediately go to bankruptcy court to argue a case. The lawyer who hired Baena didn't know where...

From law to outsourcing: AlphaStaff.(Business And Professional Services)
July 1, 2004... Jay Starkman at the relatively tender age of 35 went to Washington to argue a whistleblower employment case before the U.S. Supreme Court. It was something. Says Starkman: "It's actually the reason I ultimately left the practice of law." Wait,...

Italy-America Chamber of Commerce.(Notables)(Arthur J. Furia of Gunster Yoakley)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Few bits of advice for building a law practice are as hackneyed as getting involved in the chamber of commerce. Yet that's what ARTHUR J. FURIA, a CPA-turned-lawyer, did in the 1980s--with a slight twist. The Italian-American joined the...

Jones, Foster, Johnston & Stubbs.(Notables)(Scott G. Hawkins)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... SCOTT G. HAWKINS, 46, a corporate litigator and intellectual property lawyer with Jones, Foster, Johnston & Stubbs in West Palm Beach, grew up in Lutz near Tampa, went to UF and then to Scotland on a Rotary scholarship. He's been president of...

Fowler White Boggs Banker in Naples.(Notables)(Jeanne L. Seewald)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Another CPA-turned-lawyer, JEANNE L. SEEWALD, 46, of Fowler White Boggs Banker in Naples, came to Florida from Little Rock, Ark. So naturally she's often asked, "Do you know Bill and do you know Hillary and were you at the Rose Law Firm?" The...

Sykes Enterprises.(Business Services)(appointments)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Tampa-based Sykes Enterprises, a call center operator, has promoted Charles E. "Chuck" Sykes to president. Sykes, also COO, will take over from his father, John H. Sykes, founder of the company, who will remain CEO and chairman.

Rollins College.(Education)(appointments)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Lewis M. Duncan, dean of Dartmouth College's Thayer School of Engineering, has been named president of Rollins College in Winter Park. Duncan replaces Rita Bornstein, who will step down July 31 after 14 years as president.

PGT Industries.(Manufacturing)(appointments)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Venice-based PGT Industries, a window and door manufacturer, has promoted Rod Hershberger, executive vice president and COO, to president and COO. PGT also promoted Todd Waggoner, corporate controller, to CFO. Hershberger replaces Randy White,...

Codina Group.(Real Estate)(appointments)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Lourdes Reyes has been promoted to vice president of operations, a new position, at Miami-based Codina Group, a real estate investment and development firm. Reyes had been vice president of administration at Codina.

Darden Restaurants.(Restaurants)(appointments)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Orlando-based Darden Restaurants promoted Kim Lopdrup to president of its Red Lobster subsidiary. Lopdrup had been executive vice president of marketing at the seafood chain. He succeeds Dick Rivera, who resigned in January.

Jack M. Eckerd.(Obituary)(Brief Article)(Obituary)
July 1, 2004... Jack M. Eckerd, philanthropist and founder of the drugstore chain that bears his name, died May 19 at age 91. Eckerd started Jack Eckerd Corp. in Clearwater in 1952 with just three stores. By 1959, he had expanded to five stores and formed...

Playing hardball: city and county officials approve funding for a Marlins stadium--with strings attached.(Sports Business)
July 1, 2004... After months of negotiations and a string of setbacks, the city of Miami and Miami-Dade County have given preliminary approval to fund a $367-million stadium for the Florida Marlins next to the Orange Bowl near downtown Miami. Construction...

Atlantic Development Corp.(Coral Gables)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Black Enterprise Magazine has named Coral Gables-based Atlantic Development Corp. "Company of the Year"--the magazine's highest honor. The company is run by Don Peebles, developer of South Beach's Royal Palm Crowne Plaza Resort, billed as the...

Miami Arena.(Miami)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The city has signed a deal to sell downtown's Miami Arena to parking lot magnate Hank Sopher for $25 million. Sopher has not announced his plans for the building, which has lost many of its tenants--including the NBA's Miami Heat--to the nearby...

Commercial real estate market.(Miami-Dade)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Miami-Dade has the seventh-strongest commercial real estate market in the nation, according to a recent study by Moody's Investors Service. Honolulu is ranked first. Meanwhile, Forbes magazine ranked Miami-Dade 139th out of the top 150...

Advanced Systems Technologies.(Miami-Dade)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Advanced Systems Technologies, a unit of Pratt & Whitney's Specialty Materials and Services division, has opened a coating removal service center in Miami-Dade. It is the first of its kind in Florida.

KeyBank Real Estate Capital.(Miami-Dade)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... KeyBank Real Estate Capital, the nation's fifth-largest commercial real estate lender, claiming about $10 billion in annual financing, will open an office in Miami. KeyBank also will open offices in Boca Raton, Orlando and Jacksonville as part...

Human-borne viruses.(Monroe County)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Mirroring other data, an 18-month water-quality survey sponsored by The Nature Conservancy has detected human sewage in canals throughout the Florida Keys, According to the survey, human-borne viruses were found in six of 10 recording stations...

Scandal-ridden municipality.(North Bay Village)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... With a population of 7,000, this tiny waterfront enclave of homes and high-rises is laying claim to the title of Miami-Dade's most scandal-ridden municipality. Over the past year, the mayor and three of four commissioners have been arrested on...

Miami gets new schools chief.(Education)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... MIAMI-DADE -- The Miami-Dade School Board has selected Rudy Crew as its next superintendent. Crew, who led the New York City school system in the late 1990s, replaces former Miami-Dade county manager and municipal trouble-shooter Merrett...

The big picture: a new study makes the case for a more united south Florida.(Growth)
July 1, 2004... Twenty-five years from now, 8.5 million people will live in a region stretching from Indian River County through the Florida Keys. Most will be Hispanic or African-American. Many of them will be very young or very old. Buildable land will be...

Sea turtles.(Boca Raton)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The city's newest stretch of rebuilt beach is getting the cold shoulder from sea turtles, conservationists say. By late spring, the beach should have had 15 to 20 nests but instead had only two. One ecological consultant has speculated that the...

Developer Ric Newman.(Boca Raton)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Real estate developer Ric Newman has proposed redeveloping a 21.5-acre retail tract along north Federal Highway with a mix of shopping, business, restaurants and residential units.

Promenade.(Boynton Beach)(Panther Real Estate Partners)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Miami developer Panther Real Estate Partners announced plans for a condo/hotel project in downtown Boynton Beach. The Promenade, which will have 317 condominiums and waterfront townhouses and 38 hotel suites, would be part of a larger...

Organization of American States.(Broward County)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Broward County will host the general assembly of the Organization of American States next summer. The assembly is expected to attract up to 2,000 dignitaries from 34 nations.

Religious message.(Broward County)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Taxpayers will pay $29,536 to settle a lawsuit brought by a Fort Lauderdale church that sued for the right to include a religious message as part of the county's annual holiday display. A federal court overturned the decision by county parks...

Hurricane standards.(Broward County)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The American Institute of Architects is raising objections to newly approved county hurricane standards that require most homes to have structural plans prepared by an engineer. Many architects do the structural design plans for their own...

Andrx.(expansion that would bring 175 jobs to its Davie site)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Drug maker Andrx (Nasdaq-ADRX) reportedly is considering an expansion that would bring 175 jobs to its Davie site.

Regency House Natural Health Spa.(Hallandale Beach)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Commissioners are considering the Regency House Natural Health Spa's proposal to replace its two-story, oceanfront building with a 14-story luxury facility.

Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino.(Hollywood)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The $279-million Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino opened in May.

Sheriff Ed Bieluch.(Palm Beach County)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Sheriff Ed Bieluch, who was leading in a crowded field of candidates challenging his reelection bid, has dropped out of the race, citing health concerns.

48-acre tract.(Palm Beach Gardens)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Stalled plans to develop a 48-acre tract across from the city's shopping mall may be revived. St. Petersburg-based Sembler Co. has a contract to buy the property for an undisclosed price. Its plan calls for 399,000 square feet of commercial...

Core shopping district.(Plantation)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... City planners and economic development coordinators are moving forward on a plan to transform the city's core shopping district into a mixed urban development to include residential units and cafes along tree-lined paths.

Georges Valentine.(Stuart)(ship nominated for preservation)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The 100-year-old Italian shipwreck Georges Valentine off South Hutchinson Island has been nominated for preservation as a state archaeological preserve.

Security Identification Systems Corp.(West Palm Beach)(contracts)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Security contractor Security Identification Systems Corp. is competing for a share of a lucrative government contract--possibly worth $10 billion over 10 years--for a system to check and identify visitors at border crossings.

Florida Institute for Girls.(West Palm Beach)(Premier Behavioral Solutions )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The American Civil Liberties Union has sued Premier Behavioral Solutions of Coral Gables, which runs the Florida Institute for Girls, alleging the company is illegally holding up the release of public records requested in March. The records are...

Backup plan.(Elections)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... BROWARD COUNTY--An auditing glitch in the touch-screen voting machines used in Broward and Miami-Dade County cannot be corrected in time for the November elections, executives with the company that makes the machines say. County officials,...

A common vision: Palmetto and Bradenton collaborate to develop the Manatee River waterfront.(Development)
July 1, 2004... Palmetto and Bradenton sit astride the Manatee River about six miles inland from where it flows into the Gulf just south of Tampa Bay. Palmetto, with just 13,000 residents, more than a quarter of them farmworkers, is on the north bank....

Recreational scallop season.(Citrus County)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The recreational scallop season is back in Citrus County's Crystal and Homosassa bays after a seven-year hiatus thanks to local marine biologists who helped restore the severely depleted population. The scallop season, which runs from July 1 to...

The Economic Development Council of Collier County, along with Enterprise Florida, the state's economic development arm, has formed an economic development partnership with Poland.(Skytruck Co.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The Economic Development Council of Collier County, along with Enterprise Florida, the state's economic development arm, has formed an economic development partnership with Poland. Also, Naples-based Skytruck Co., a distributor for Polish...

Pasco Beverage.(production management)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Pasco Beverage's juice processing operations, which have been in Dade City for more than 60 years, will close by the end of the year, eliminating almost 300 jobs. Frozen juice processing will likely move to a plant in Winter Garden, while...

Economic Development Corporation of Sarasota County.(organisation formation)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Sarasota business leaders have created the Economic Development Corporation of Sarasota County, a new non-profit, private organization that will work with county officials to attract businesses and higher-wage jobs. The group will take over...

Lazy Days RV.(Lazy Days RV Center Inc. acquired by Bruckmann, Rosser, Sherrill & Company Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... New York equity firm Bruckmann, Rosser, Sherrill & Co. bought Lazy Days RV for $206 million. Lazy Days listed revenue at the end of 2003 of $750 million and debt of $59 million.

Lifestyle Family Fitness.(acquisition of Euro Fitness Center )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Lifestyle Family Fitness bought Euro Fitness Center in Lake Mary for an undisclosed amount. Lifestyle has opened 12 new centers in the past five years and plans to open three more in Orlando this year.

Three Oaks Commerce Center.(CSI/Construction Specialties' shopping center project)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... CSI/Construction Specialties has broken ground on the $1-million Three Oaks Commerce Center in Midtown, one of the first major developments in the area in decades. The new shopping center will include a Subway restaurant, Dollar Store, seafood...

H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute.(finance for cancer research from Don and Erika Wallace)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The Comprehensive Breast Cancer program at the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research institute announced it received a $5-million gift from Don and Erika Wallace--the largest single gift to a clinical or research program at the center.

Tampa International Airport and Southwest Florida International Airport.(airports to test fingerprint recognition technology )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The Transportation Security Administration chose Tampa International Airport and Southwest Florida International Airport to test new security technology. TIA will test fingerprint recognition technology in employee access areas, and SFIA will...

Imperial Yacht Basin.(Grady Pridgen Inc.'s investments)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... St. Petersburg developer Grady Pridgen paid $25 million for the Imperial Yacht Basin on Gandy Boulevard in Tampa. Pridgen is planning a $350-million residential development and marina, which will include a mix of town homes and condominiums.

Depository Trust & Clearing Corp.(buildings and facilities)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... New York-based Depository Trust & Clearing Corp., one of the largest financial services companies in the country, will locate an operations center in Tampa. DTCC will employ 500 high-tech workers by 2007 with an annual average salary of more...

Everglades work.(Environment management)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... NAPLES -- Engineers are ahead of schedule in replenishing the natural flow of water through Southern Golden Gate Estates, an undeveloped subdivision east of Naples. The project is part of the 30-year, $8-billion state-federal partnership the...

Water's reflection: Sanford's new downtown Riverwalk is a sign of things to come.(Downtown Development)
July 1, 2004... For many residents, the May opening of the Sanford Riverwalk is much more than a dedication of a 1.2-mile stretch of landscaped walkway; it is a reflection of confidence in the future of downtown Sanford. The city spent $11 million on the...

Christopher Bean Coffee has signed a deal with Kroger that will have the grocer selling Christopher Bean Coffee at 350 stores in the Southeast.(Christopher Bean Coffee Co., Kroger Co.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Christopher Bean Coffee has signed a deal with Kroger that will have the grocer selling Christopher Bean Coffee at 350 stores in the Southeast. The expansion brings the coffee company's retail network to more than 1,200 stores in 14 states.

International Speedway Corp.(Daytona Beach)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... International Speedway Corp. (Nasdaq-ISCA) plans to buy Martinsville Speedway in Virginia for $192 million and stop racing at Nazareth Speedway in Pennsylvania. The company says the two moves will offset profits lost when it was forced to sell...

Daytona Beach News-Journal.(Daytona Beach)(Cox Enterprises cases)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Cox Enterprises, which owns 47% of the Daytona Beach News-Journal, sued the newspaper, challenging its decision to pay $13 million for naming rights of a planned performing arts center that would be controlled by the Davidson family, which...

Harris Corp.(Melbourne)(Danaher Corp. contract)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Harris Corp. (NYSE-HRS) has signed an agreement to sell its telecom tools, test equipment and test systems product lines to Danaher Corp. for about $50 million. The division, based in Camarillo, Calif., has about 100 employees and annual...

Malibu Condominiums.(New Smyrna Beach)(Volusia Properties constructions)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Volusia Properties will begin construction of Malibu Condominiums on South Atlantic Avenue in October. All 29 units--ranging from $600,000 to $1.7 million--have been sold.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE-DRI) closed six Bahama Breeze restaurants.(Orlando)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Darden Restaurants (NYSE-DRI) closed six Bahama Breeze restaurants. The company plans to focus on a less-expensive prototype of the Bahama Breeze concept. The closed restaurants were in Austin, Dallas, Denver, Phoenix and Rochester, N.Y.

CFO Strategic Partners.(Orlando)(concept management)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... CFO Strategic Partners, which supplies financial executives on a consulting basis to other companies, says it will launch its concept nationally this fall.

Trauma center.(Orlando)(services)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Orlando Regional Medical Center's Level 1 trauma center will stay open until at least early 2005 despite Gov. Jeb Bush's veto of the Legislature's plan to pump $1 million into each of the state's 21 top-tier trauma centers. However, ORMC parent...

Nemours Children's Clinic.(Orlando)(plans new building)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Nemours Children's Clinic plans to build a $35-million, 120,000-sq.-ft. facility near the Mall at Millenia in south Orlando. Construction is expected to start this summer and be completed by 2006. The clinic currently has 58 physicians and 350...

The Florida Home Builders Association and the Home Builders Association of Metro Orlando are suing Osceola County, challenging the county's decision to more than triple the school impact fee.(Osceola County)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The Florida Home Builders Association and the Home Builders Association of Metro Orlando are suing Osceola County, challenging the county's decision to more than triple the school impact fee. The fee rose from $2,828 per single-family residence...

Convention center.(purchasing)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The long-promised county-owned convention center may cost the county far more than the $98.5 million officials have previously called its maximum contribution. The latest financial blueprint shows Osceola may be obligated for $356 million of...

Marketplace at Towne Center.(Sanford)(North American Properties Inc.)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Cincinnati-based North American Properties will build a 550,000-sq.-ft. retail center adjacent to Seminole Towne Center. The Marketplace at Towne Center will house 10 national chain stores, including SuperTarget and Circuit City, as well as a...

Gunning for sheriff: three northeast counties face heated battles from candidates vying to be the next sheriff.(Politics)
July 1, 2004... Sheriff Taylor Douglas sees the irony in his 16-year career. Though conflict is part of his daily routine, the self-described "most controversial" politician in Putnam County is also its most popular. The same can be said for most...

Alarion Bank.(Alachua County)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... A group from Alachua and Marion counties has applied for a state banking license for Alarion Bank. If approved, $10 shares will be sold to investors in hopes of raising $9 million.

Elkins Constructors.(Clay County)(contract)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Despite concerns about a possible conflict of interest, commissioners hired Elkins Constructors to manage the expansion of the county courthouse. Commissioners delayed awarding the contract after learning that Elkins owner Barry Allred and...

"Fair-share" program.(Clay County)(Commissioners approved )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Commissioners approved a "fair-share" program that will allow developers to build in traffic-congested areas as long as they help pay for new roads.

American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.(Gainesville)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Custodians, mechanics and electricians at the University of Florida voted to rejoin the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. The union's former contract was dissolved in January 2003 when the state changed the way it...

HQM of Gainesville.(Gainesville)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... HQM of Gainesville, a subsidiary of Home Quality Management, has purchased University Place Care and Rehabilitation Center, a 120-bed nursing home.

Rulon Co.(Gainesville)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Brunswick, Ga.-based Rulon Co., a manufacturer of custom wood and PVC ceiling and wall systems, will move its equipment and 60 employees to a 75,000-sq.-ft. headquarters, plant and showroom in the World Commerce Center.

Independence Air.(Jacksonville)(new flight services )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Independence Air began six daily non-stop flights from Jacksonville International Airport to Washington Dulles International Airport. From Dulles, the low-fare carrier offers connections to 25 cities, including Chicago and Pittsburgh.

Major John Peyton.(Jacksonville)(new convention center )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Despite steady pressure from tourism industry representatives, Mayor John Peyton says building a convention center or expanding the aging Prime Osborn Convention Center is not among his spending priorities.

ICS Logistics.(Jacksonville)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... ICS Logistics is building a $24-million, 553,000-sq.-ft. warehouse and office building at the Talleyrand Marine Terminal to store and distribute high-gloss paper for UPM-Kymmene of Finland.

Washington Mutual.(Jacksonville Economic Development Commission)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The Jacksonville Economic Development Commission approved a $2.1-million incentives package for Washington Mutual. The money will subsidize an expansion of the Seattle-based financial services company's local office to make room for 700...

Duval County Courthouse.(Jacksonville)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Mayor John Peyton's plans to radically downsize the Duval County Courthouse to fit a $232-miliion budget drew the ire of Chief Circuit Judge Donald Moran, who questioned whether the building will be secure and functional for judges.

First Coast Metropolitan Planning Organization.(Nassau County)(memberships)(Dural, Clay and St. Johns counties)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... The county became a member of the First Coast Metropolitan Planning Organization, joining Dural, Clay and St. Johns counties. The state Department of Transportation relies on the organization to help plan long-range projects worth hundreds of...

City Commissioner Joe Gerrity.(Nassau County)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2004... Former Fernandina Beach city employee Ken Walker defeated incumbent City Commissioner Joe Gerrity in a runoff election.