Florida Trend articles from July 2006

Florida Trend archives from July 2006

Florida's biotech: on a roll.(Corner Office)
July 1, 2006... There was a real sense of excitement at the first Florida Tech Transfer Conference in May 2004. That conference took place just a few months after Scripps Research Institute announced that it would establish a facility in Florida, and it was...

Emergency point man.(Readers)(Letter to the editor)
July 1, 2006... Thank you for your article on Craig Fugate ["Calmest Guy in the Room," May, FloridaTrend.com]. At no time have I been more proud to be a Floridian than during Gov. Bush's press conference on Oct. 22, 2005, when he and Mr. Fugate explained...

Slots.(Readers)(Letter to the editor)
July 1, 2006... It is important that the readers of your otherwise insightful and valuable cover article on gambling ["House Odds," May, FloridaTrend.com] not be left with a misimpression regarding Florida Lottery funding of education, specifically how Broward...

Title IX.(Readers)(Letter to the editor)
July 1, 2006... Bravo! Maybe "they" will start listening in this century ["Opportunities," May, FloridaTrend.com]. There shouldn't have to be a Title IX, but that's not realistic. If enough journalists, opinion leaders and the public stand up for young female...

Taking gems to the top.(Executive Lifestyles: Women's Fashion)
July 1, 2006... Susan Fixel is no stranger to fashion. Six years ago, the 30-year fashion industry veteran started her own company, LTM International, based on an idea she had when flipping through fashion magazines on a cross-country business flight. "I was...

A style is born--and turns 1.(Executive Lifestyles: Women's Fashion)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... Suzanne Whalen is celebrating her first anniversary as an entrepreneur and fashion maven. A year ago, she opened her specialty boutique, A Style is Born, in an up-and-coming neighborhood in Fort Lauderdale near trendy Las Olas Boulevard. "My...

Designing sisters.(Executive Lifestyles: Women's Fashion)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... Estee and Sharon Elkayam were born and raised in Miami but now live and work in New York, where they design, produce and manufacture under their own fashion label, Secrets of Charm. At the end of the day, they say, Miami is still home, and it's...

Jimmy Choo.(FASHION NEWS)
July 1, 2006... Word is International Plaza in Tampa is wooing shoe designer Jimmy Choo, a favorite of Hollywood's well-heeled, but International Plaza won't say when it will make an announcement.

Chanel.(FASHION NEWS)
July 1, 2006... Chanel is coming to the Tampa Bay area this summer with new boutiques opening in Neiman Marcus at International Plaza and in Saks Fifth Avenue at Westshore Plaza. The boutiques will carry the venerable French fashion house's ready-to-wear lines...

Luxury offerings are also on the rise at Orlando's Mall at Millenia with the opening of Salvatore Ferragamo.(FASHION NEWS)
July 1, 2006... Luxury offerings are also on the rise at Orlando's Mall at Millenia with the opening of Salvatore Ferragamo, an Italian luxury brand, and the trendier, more fashion forward Juicy Couture.

CoutureCandy.com.(FASHION NEWS)
July 1, 2006... Florida fashionistas are surfing the web for fashion finds in increasing numbers. California-based CoutureCancly, com says the number of new visitors to its site from Florida has tripled. Many are looking for hard-to-find designer denim and its...

High-tech teeth.(Executive Lifestyles: Health (Dental Care))
July 1, 2006... A massage chair, paraffin hand wax treatments, New Age music on satellite radio, home-baked cookies, a glass of wine, a DVD. Dentists are going to new lengths today to make their patients more comfortable, with some even calling their offices...

Back in time.(Executive Lifestyles: Travel (Casa Monica Hotel, St. Augustine))(Casa Monica Hotel )(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... Built in 1888 and renovated in 1999, the Casa Monica Hotel in downtown St. Augustine looks like a castle. It has 138 rooms, the award-winning 95 Cordova restaurant, a sidewalk care and a collection of retail boutiques. The Spanish-style...

"Along Florida's Expressways" by Dave Hunter.(Travel Aid)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... "Along Florida's Expressways" by Dave Hunter Price: $23.95 Website: FloridaOnline.info Published in Canada, "Along Florida's Expressways" is the sequel to best seller "Along Interstate 75," which helped Hurricane Charley evacuees...

A pitch for a new pitch.(MARKETING)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... The U.S. travel industry needs to take a new approach to the way it markets the country to foreign visitors, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Chairman Jay Rasulo told an audience at the International Pow Wow at the Orange County Convention Center....

TheTradeShow.(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... TheTradeShow, a Travel Retailing and Destination Expo, debuts Sept. 10-12 in Orlando to connect suppliers and travel agents. The event at the Orange County Convention Center will bring together the American Society of Travel Agents and several...

Promoting trade, commerce, investment and relations.
July 1, 2006... In October, Gov. Jeb Bush and about 700 other government and business leaders from the Southeastern U.S. and Japan will gather at the new Rosen Shingle Creek Resort & Golf Club for the 30th annual joint meeting aimed at promoting trade,...

W Fort Lauderdale Hotel & Residences.
July 1, 2006... W Fort Lauderdale Hotel & Residences, scheduled to open in 2008 with 517 rooms, will be the first W property in Florida and the first condo-hotel for the luxury chain.

The Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex.(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... The Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex announced plans for a $60-million attraction called "The Shuttle Launch Experience," which will simulate the effects of blasting into space aboard the space shuttle and is expected to open in early 2007....

Walt Disney World.
July 1, 2006... Walt Disney World opened Expedition Everest in April at Animal Kingdom.

SeaWorld Orlando.
July 1, 2006... SeaWorld Orlando has opened its new Shamu show, "Believe," which combines the grace of the killer whales' performances with the acting and personality of the trainers.

Fairfield Resorts.
July 1, 2006... Orlando-based Fairfield Resorts has opened the first of eight planned Vacation Therapy spas nationwide--this one at its Ocean Walk Resort in Daytona Beach. Ocean Walk is a vacation ownership resort with 710 condominium-style units.

Large trade shows.
July 1, 2006... Orlando now ranks second nationwide in attracting large trade shows, according to Trades how Week magazine, bumping Chicago to third after it held second place for 11 years, and following Las Vegas, which bumped Chicago from the top spot in the...

Old Key Lime House--with a twist.(Executive Lifestyles: Dining and Spirits)(Old Key Lime House)(Restaurant review)
July 1, 2006... Old Key Lime House 300 E. Ocean Ave., Lantana oldkeglimehouse.com 561/582-1889 One of the most dramatic and certainly the most historic restaurant rebirths, after the ravages of last year's hurricanes, occurred in little ol'...

Stetson Kennedy (writer, human rights crusader, folklorist, 89).(Icon)(Interview)
July 1, 2006... The years in which I infiltrated the Klan was in part during WWWII. The Klan was afraid to operate under its old name... so the Klan adopted all kinds of front names, and in Virginia, for example, it called itself the American Service Patrol...

Brass tax.(Trendsetters: Professions)(career of Mia Thomas )
July 1, 2006... Mia Thomas Chastang, Ferrell, Sims & Eiserman Partner Celebration High school job: Waitress, Liberty Tree Tavern, Magic Kingdom. Vacation spot: Disney's Vero Beach Resort. Late-filing misconception: "A lot of it has...

Emilia Quesada.(Notables)
July 1, 2006... Emilia Quesada, 35, class-action defense litigation counsel for Fortune 500 companies and others, partner, Adorno & Yoss, Miami.

Katherine W. Ezell.(Notables)
July 1, 2006... Katherine W, Ezell, 59, represents guardians and foster care children pro bono, 2006 winner of the Tobias Simon Pro Bono award from the Florida Bar, also a commercial litigator and personal injury plaintiffs lawyer, partner, Podhurst Orseck,...

Marshall Gunn Jr.(Notables)
July 1, 2006... Marshall Gunn Jr., 53, governor-appointed board member, Florida Board of Accountancy, which oversees CPAs and CPA firms in Florida, also named by CPA Magazine as one of the 100 Most Influential CPAs nationally--one of seven CPA financial...

Pro bono pro.(Trendsetters: Professions)(life sketch of Mike Pender)(Brief article)(Biography)
July 1, 2006... Mike Pender Cavanaugh & Co., Partner Sarasota Making time for public service: "I have two great partners, and they allow me to do what I enjoy in life." Memorable vacation: Hiking and canoeing in Scotland. Introduction:...

BDO's salesman.(Trendsetters: Professions)
July 1, 2006... Alfredo Cepero BDO Seidman, Partner, Miami Alfredo Cepero and his two sisters got their insurance sales licenses when they turned 18, something their father, who worked in insurance, thought would be a good idea. Young Cepero, however,...

Spreading the word.(Trendsetters: Professions)(intellectual property lawyer John Christopher )(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... Fort Lauderdale intellectual property lawyer John Christopher was part of an American Intellectual Property Law Association delegation to Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing, Taiwan and Seoul this year. Background: "I was born in Coral Gables. I...

The mini-jet era dawns.(TRAVEL)
July 1, 2006... If Delray Beach-based DayJet makes good on its plans to begin service among five Florida cities by the end of the year, the company will usher in an era of very light jet travel in the state, offering "on-demand" service with more convenience...

Second-home boost.(REAL ESTATE)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... Vacation- and investment-home sales accounted for 40% of all residential sales in Florida last year. A record 3.34 million second homes were sold in 2005, up 16% from 2004. The median price of a vacation home in 2005 was $204,100, up 7.4% from...

Florida Department of Law Enforcements.(Players)
July 1, 2006... Gov. Jeb Bush named Gerald Bailey interim commissioner of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Most recently, Bailey was inspector general of the Florida Department of Lottery. Before that, he served as FDLE's deputy executive director,...

Trickle down.(SPORTS)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... TRICKLE DOWN -- Sports and recreation will contribute $32 billion to the state's economy this year, according to the "Economic Impact of Sports and Recreation Activities in Florida Survey," prepared by the Washington Economics Group and...

Minority businesses.(BUSINESS BRIEFS)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... NO. 3 -- Florida ranks third nationally in the number of businesses owned by African-Americans, with 102,079, according to the Census Bureau. New York has the highest number, with 129,324, followed by California, 112,873. The Florida companies...

High-tech workforce.(BUSINESS BRIEFS)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... NO. 4 -- With 265,484 high-tech workers in 2004, Florida ranks fourth in high-tech employment nationally, according to the American Electronics Association Cyberstates 2006 report. Florida jumped from 40th to second in high-tech employment...

Fast facts.(Around the State: Statewide News)
July 1, 2006... 86% Dual enrollment students who passed exams to earn college credit for high school courses 73% International Baccalaureate students who passed exams to earn college credit 54% Advanced Placement students who passed...

Hope at the Herald.(PUBLISHING)
July 1, 2006... Once the flagship of the Knight Ridder newspaper chain, the Miami Herald in recent years has struggled with both the same challenges as other big daily newspapers and also the internal dynamics of Knight Ridder, including the relocation of the...

Left back.(EDUCATION)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... Miami lags many other large U.S. cities in a ranking based on percentage of residents over age 25 with a bachelor's degree. College-educated Rank City 1 Seattle 48.8% 2 Raleigh, N.C. ...

Tenet Healthcare.(Players)
July 1, 2006... Ralph A. Aleman has been named market vice president in charge of Tenet Healthcare's hospital network in Miami-Dade and Broward counties.

Congressional Black Caucus Foundation.(Players)
July 1, 2006... U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek (D-Miami) has been named chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, a non-partisan, non-profit public policy, research and educational institute.

Roger Carlton.(Players)
July 1, 2006... Former Miami Beach City Manager Roger Carlton has been hired as a Miami-Dade assistant county manager.

Charles Towsley.(Players)
July 1, 2006... Port of Miami Director Charles Towsley has stepped down after eight years to work as a consultant in the marine industry.

MasTec.(CORAL GABLES)
July 1, 2006... CORAL GABLES -- Telecommunications contractor MasTec (NYSE-MTZ) has settled a series of class-action lawsuits by shareholders who claimed the Coral Gables-based company overstated financial results in 2003-04.

University of Miami.(CORAL GABLES)
July 1, 2006... * A two-month labor dispute between the University of Miami and janitorial contract employees has ended with workers receiving raises of up to 25%, healthcare coverage and an agreement on a union election process.

Former Homestead Air Force Base.(HOMESTEAD)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... HOMESTEAD -- A federal judge in Washington has dismissed a longstanding lawsuit filed by developers whose plans to build a commercial airport at the former Homestead Air Force Base were rejected over environmental concerns. The action clears...

SFBC International.(MIAMI)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... MIAMI -- SFBC International, a Princeton, N.J.-based drug-testing company already facing a congressional probe over allegations of unsafe practices, has announced its will shut down its Miami operation after the county's Unsafe Structures Board...

Top manufacturing center.(MIAMI-DADE)
July 1, 2006... MIAMI-DADE -- Despite losing 25 plants in 2005, Miami remains the state's top manufacturing center, edging out Tampa and Jacksonville, with 49,645 jobs, according to a survey by Illinois-based Manufacturers' News.

Miami-Dade School District.(MIAMI-DADE)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... * Miami-Dade School District has been named one of five finalists for an annual award given by the Los Angeles-based Broad Foundation to the most improved urban school district. Other finalists are Boston, New York City, Bridgeport, Conn., and...

Miami's drivers.(MIAMI-DADE)
July 1, 2006... * Miami's drivers are the nation's least courteous, according to a survey sponsored by auto club AutoVantage. Rounding out the rude top five: Phoenix, New York, Los Angeles and Boston. The most courteous: Minneapolis, Minn., Nashville, Tenn.,...

Commissioners' annual pay.(MIAMI-DADE)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... * Miami-Dade County voters will decide Sept. 5 whether the county's 13 commissioners' annual pay should jump from $6,000 to $89,000. The current salary was set in 1957. Similar proposals have been rejected more than half a dozen times, most...

Area of Critical State Concern.(MONROE COUNTY)
July 1, 2006... MONROE COUNTY -- Legislative review of a proposal to lift the Area of Critical State Concern designation from the Florida Keys has been pushed back to 2009--a compromise between Monroe County officials, who are lobbying for more control over...

Hot pursuit.(BIOTECH)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... In the wake of the Scripps Research Institute's decision to open a Florida branch in Palm Beach County, the three-county region of Indian River, St. Lucie and Martin took stock of its assets and figured out it was better positioned to piggyback...

High-tech heydays.(JOBS)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... After a long downturn that saw topnotch tech workers hunting for jobs, the trend has reversed. The name of the game in high tech today is retention--and money may not be the magic bullet, according to recruiters. * 9.5%--Average percentage...

Intensive care.(BY THE NUMBERS)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... South Florida hospitals may suffer financial headaches if demographic trends pan out as expected over the next 25 years. University of Florida studies suggest the number of uninsured residents could pressure the region's hospitals to provide...

BankUnited Financial Corp.(Players)
July 1, 2006... Former Colonial Bank executive Joe Cardenas joined BankUnited Financial Corp. as senior vice president/market president of Palm Beach County and the Treasure Coast.

John Bell.(Players)
July 1, 2006... In his second promotion in the last six months, John Bell assumes the newly created position of executive vice president at Trammell Crow's Miami office.

Lynn University.(Players)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... After a 35-year tenure, Donald Ross has retired as president of Lynn University in Boca Raton. Ross transformed the financially troubled women's junior college, which used to be called Marymount College, into a four-year university with 25...

Disc Motion Technologies.(BOCA RATON)
July 1, 2006... BOCA RATON -- Medical device company Disc Motion Technologies plans to set up its headquarters in Boca Raton. The company, which specializes in motion preservation devices to treat degenerative conditions of the spine, will create seven jobs...

Tyco International.(BOCA RATON)
July 1, 2006... * Tyco International has agreed to pay $50 million to settle allegations that it inflated financial results by more than $1 billion. Former CEO Dennis Kozlowski is currently in prison after being found guilty of embezzling.

BrightStar Healthcare.(BROWARD)
July 1, 2006... BROWARD -- Healthcare staffing agency BrightStar Healthcare plans to open four locations in Broward County by the end of the year. Chicago-based BrightStar is also looking to enter Orlando and Miami. The company specializes in home care and...

City Streets.(COCONUT CREEK)
July 1, 2006... COCONUT CREEK -- City Streets, an air-conditioned entertainment center, has opened. Launched by entertainment veteran Jason Kravetz, the venture features a nationally competitive indoor park for skateboarding, inline skating and BMX biking.

Rems Group.(DAVIE)
July 1, 2006... DAVIE -- Rems Group plans to develop an office/warehouse condominium. Dubbed 595 Corporate Park of Commerce, the development will sit on 42 acres facing 1-595 just west of Nob Hill Road. The $150-million, 523,000-sq.-ft. complex will be...

Ryan Beck Holdings.(FORT LAUDERDALE)
July 1, 2006... FORT LAUDERDALE -- Ryan Beck Holdings, a financial services firm that's a wholly owned subsidiary of BankAtlantic Bancorp, is planning to go public.

Riverside Hotel.(FORT LAUDERDALE)
July 1, 2006... * The Riverside Hotel in downtown Fort Lauderdale has bought Brio Mediterranean Bistro. The Riverside Hotel also runs the Grill Room on Las Olas and Indigo.

Altman Cos.(FORT LAUDERDALE)
July 1, 2006... * Altman Cos. has demolished buildings once owned by the Cleveland Clinic to make way for a luxury condominium with twin 12-story towers dubbed Sapphire. The 3.58-acre site, between the Atlantic Ocean and the Intracoastal Waterway on A1A, is...

Alexandria Real Estate Equities.(JUPITER)
July 1, 2006... JUPITER -- Alexandria Real Estate Equities, one of the nation's largest biotechnology lab developers, is retrofitting 40,000 to 60,000 square feet of a yet-to-be-identified building. The Pasadena, Calif.-based company plans to convert the...

The Downtown Development Authority and the Community Redevelopment Agency are hosting free quarterly business-development seminars aimed at helping local entrepreneurs.(WEST PALM BEACH)
July 1, 2006... WEST PALM BEACH -- The Downtown Development Authority and the Community Redevelopment Agency are hosting free quarterly business-development seminars aimed at helping local entrepreneurs.

AirLance.(WEST PALM BEACH)
July 1, 2006... * AirLance, a Chicago-based aircraft products and services distributor, is leasing about 7,000 square feet at Reynolds Plaza in Jupiter. The space will house up to 27 employees with salaries from $50,000 to six figures.

Ranch roundup.(DEVELOPMENT)
July 1, 2006... After years of negotiations among state and local officials, environmentalists and a host of developers who sought to buy the 91,356-acre Babcock Ranch in Lee and Charlotte counties, the future of the property is taking shape: * West Palm...

U.S. Chamber of Commerce.(Players)
July 1, 2006... Beth Coleman, president and CEO of the Clearwater Regional Chamber of Commerce, was named to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Committee of 100, which advises the group's board of directors.

American Planning Association.(Players)
July 1, 2006... Robert B. Hunter, executive director of the Hillsborough County City-County Planning Commission, was elected president of the American Planning Association, a national organization of 40,000 planners and public officials.

Tech Data.(Players)
July 1, 2006... Tech Data appointed Joseph Quaglia vice president of its Eastern region and government sales. Quaglia had been a senior vice president at StorageNetworks Inc.

Lee County Port Authority.(Players)
July 1, 2006... The Lee County Port Authority promoted William B. Homer to manager of planning, making him responsible for planning activities for both Southwest Florida International Airport and Page Field General Aviation Airport.

Carnegie designation.(EDUCATION)(Brief article)
July 1, 2006... Under the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching's new classification system, the University of South Florida is listed as a research university of very high research activity. USF is one of 62 public universities in the...

Water's Edge.(CLEARWATER)
July 1, 2006... CLEARWATER -- Opus South Development has broken ground on Water's Edge, a 153-unit residential condominium in downtown Clearwater. * JMC Communities is planning a condo development at the site of the old Holiday Inn SunSpree hotel. JMC is...

The Home of Fine Decorators.(FORT MYERS)
July 1, 2006... FORT MYERS -- Home furnishing retailer Robb & Stucky has acquired The Home of Fine Decorators, a luxury design firm with locations on Florida's east coast and Las Vegas, for an undisclosed price.

Lee County Port Authority.(FORT MYERS)
July 1, 2006... * The Lee County Port Authority was awarded $18.3 million from the Florida Department of Transportation to design and build terminal expansions at Southwest Florida International Airport, including additional aircraft gates and ramp areas.

Throgmartin Co..(FORT MYERS)
July 1, 2006... * As part of its Annaly Bay project, the Throgmartin Co. announced it will develop a major golf club community called Solitude Valley on 1,100 acres in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands.

New IQ.(NAPLES)
July 1, 2006... NAPLES -- The founders of InfiNetwork, an information technology firm specializing in computer security, have launched a company called New IQ to oversee the construction of so-called "intelligent" buildings. The company will create systems...

Clockwork Homes Services.(SARASOTA)
July 1, 2006... SARASOTA -- Clockwork Homes Services has added Indianapolis-based Dial One to its portfolio of nationally branded home repair franchises.

Cox Lumber Co.(ST. PETERSBURG)
July 1, 2006... ST. PETERSBURG -- Home Depot has purchased Cox Lumber Co., the largest independent lumber supplier in Florida, for an undisclosed amount.