Florida Trend articles from November 2004

Florida Trend archives from November 2004

The business of recovery.(corner office)
November 1, 2004... In this issue we bring you a series of reports on the aftermath of a hurricane season that we won't soon forget. In these reports on the outlook for our military bases, small-business sector, farms and farmworkers, seaports, the cruise...

Med schools.(readers)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2004... I am a part-time medical social worker and have been an active consumer of managed care for the last 12 years, having been diagnosed with Type II Diabetes in 1992. I found it interesting, but rather ridiculous, that a doctor could cause me to...

Amendment 3.(readers)(Letter to the Editor)
November 1, 2004... Kudos to FLORIDA TREND for bringing Amendment 3 to voters' attention ["Doctors vs. Doctors," September, FloridaTrend.com]. The real issue of Amendment 3 is whether we are ready to abolish freedom of contract--the very foundation of a...

Clarification.(readers)(Correction Notice)
November 1, 2004... Sebastian River High School will randomly drug-test around 100 student-athletes. An October story suggested fewer.

Pinball wizard.(Executive lifestyles: at home: entertaining)(BMI Gaming)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... As a boy, Boca Raton entrepreneur David Young watched his father play the pinball machines on the boardwalk at Seaside Heights in New Jersey. But growing up, moving away from home and starting his own semiconductor business left him little time...

Cocktail connoisseur.(Executive lifestyles: at home: entertaining)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Nick Mautone is new to Fort Lauderdale, but he is no stranger to entertaining at home with flair. The consummate New Yorker and restaurateur, Mautone recently opened Trina at The Atlantic in Fort Lauderdale with partner Don Pintabona, former...

Critical eye: Holmes Hepner & Associates Architects.(Trendsetters[TM]: engineers, architects and planners)(Biography)
November 1, 2004... Unlike many architects, Peter Hepner didn't design his house. His Florida Cracker home, built on stilts and adjacent to a tidal estuary, was designed a quarter-century ago, while Hepner was still in school, by architect Dwight Holmes. Living in...

Tailored for Florida.(Trendsetters[TM]: engineergs, architects and planners)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Sharon Jenkins-Owen, 46, sits on the governor's Affordable Housing Commission, was a Planner of the Year for the state American Planning Association chapter and president-elect of the state planning and zoning association. She advocates a plan...

Categories.(Trendsetters[TM]: engineergs, architects and planners)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... In 1969, the United Nations hired Herbert S. Saffir to study how to help low-cost housing weather hurricanes. Beyond "major" and "minor," there was no way to categorize them. Saffir developed a five-category scale based on property and tree...

Destination: recovery: Miami-Dade's ports will play a huge role in rebuilding Florida and the Caribbean.(Hurricane damage report: ports)
November 1, 2004... Miami-Dade escaped the brunt of Hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne. Few residents lost power, and storm-related damage was minor. Evacuations and other preparations disrupted business for days, but those short-term losses will likely...

Poorest large city.(Miami)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... MIAMI -- The city has lost its distinction as the poorest large city in America. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey, Miami ranks fifth among all U.S. cities with over 250,000 people with 27.9% of its population...

City Commission Chairman Arthur E. Teele Jr.(Miami)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Gov. Jeb Bush has suspended City Commission Chairman Arthur E. Teele Jr. following Teele's arrest on charges that he threatened a police officer and tried to run him off the road.

Set-aside program.(Miami-dade)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... MIAMI-DADE -- A federal judge has struck down as unconstitutional a county set-aside program designed to steer public contracts to women- and minority-owned professional service firms. Previous rulings in recent years helped to dismantle...

Jackson Memorial Hospital.(Miami-dade)(plans to lay off employees)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Jackson Memorial Hospital, one of the county's largest employers, has announced that it may lay off as many as 500 employees, mostly in support and administrative services. Miami-Dade's public hospital has been struggling to contain costs in...

LNR Property Corp.(Miami Beach)(will be acquired by Cerberus Capital Management)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... MIAMI BEACH -- LNR Property Corp. (NYSE-LNR)) has agreed to be acquired by New York-based investment firm Cerberus Capital Management in a $3.8-billion deal that will take the company private. LNR Property Corp., a real estate investment,...

Applica.(Miami Lakes)(David Friedson announces resignation)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... MIAMI LAKES -- David Friedson, chairman of small-appliance manufacturer Applica (NYSE-APN), announced he's resigning for personal reasons. Analysts had been expecting a change at the struggling company.

Below the surface: damage from this summer's hurricanes goes beyond the physical.(Hurricance damage report: small businesses)
November 1, 2004... Two hurricanes in three weeks left James Crocker's Stuart-based hyroblasting business with all the usual scars--downed trees, a damaged roof and water in the office of Waterblasting.com headquarters. But for Crocker and lots of other...

U.S. Sugar Corp. signed a lease with Fort Pierce-based Stewart Mining Industries to allow the company to mine lime rock.(Palm Beach County)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... PALM BEACH COUNTY -- U.S. Sugar Corp. signed a lease with Fort Pierce-based Stewart Mining Industries to allow the company to mine lime rock on its property in western Palm Beach County. The deal must be approved by county and state...

An $854,000 grant from the Department of Homeland Security will be used to complete construction.(Port Everglades)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... PORT EVERGLADES -- An $854,000 grant from the Department of Homeland Security will be used to complete construction of access control gates at the port, Director Ken Krauter says.

Damage reports are continuing to roll in: early estimates submitted by Broward County and city governments seek approximately $43 million in reimbursement for hurricane-associated costs.(Southeast Florida)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... SOUTHEAST FLORIDA -- Damage reports are continuing to roll in: Early estimates submitted by Broward County and city governments seek approximately $43 million in reimbursement for hurricane-associated costs....

Palm Beach County.(Southeast Florida)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... As of early October, the Federal Emergency Management Agency had approved more than $35 million in assistance to Palm Beach County residents. More than 61,000 people applied for such assistance following Hurricane Frances....

Breakers.(Southeast Florida)(The Breakers resort)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... The Breakers resort in Palm Beach was expected to reopen for the second time in early October after Hurricane Jeanne left 200 rooms rain soaked. The resort had re-opened just three days before the second storm hit, following 20 days of repairs...

St. Lucie County.(Southeast Florida)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... St. Lucie County was still reeling from an estimated $2.5 billion in damage from Hurricane Frances when Jeanne hit. The price tag for Jeanne is expected to be 40% to 50% higher. On Hutchinson Island, the severely damaged 179-room Holiday Inn...

Martin County.(Southeast Florida)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Hurricane Frances damage left Martin County with an estimated $40 million in residential damages. Figures for Hurricane Jeanne are expected to be substantially higher.

BEM Systems.(West Palm Beach)(opens office)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... WEST PALM BEACH -- New Jersey-based environmental consulting firm BEM Systems has opened an office in West Palm Beach.

Slim pickin's: Florida farmers will feel the impact for years.(Hurrican damage report: agriculture)
November 1, 2004... The thousands of farmworkers who arrive in southwest Florida to begin plucking oranges and grapefruits off trees this month may find they have no place to stay: Most of the farmworker housing in Hardee and DeSoto counties was destroyed by...

Tampa Electric Co.(Tampa)(must absorb more than $15 million it planned to pass on to its customers)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... TAMPA -- The Florida Public Service Commission ordered Tampa Electric Co. to absorb more than $15 million the company had planned to pass on to its customers. The commission said the utility did not try hard enough to find a company that would...

Apartment-to-condo conversions.(Tampa Bay)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... TAMPA BAY -- A wave of apartment-to-condo conversions is sweeping southwest Florida. Most recently: Clearwater's Grand Venezia at Bay Watch, a 366-unit apartment community, and the 86-unit Grand Bellagio at Bay Watch. Other conversions: Homes...

Boating speed zones.(Tampa Bay)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... The Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission has imposed new boating speed zones on many unregulated stretches of Tampa Bay to protect manatees. The new zones will help free up dock-building permits that had been on hold in Pinellas and...

Obituary.(In The News)(Charles Rutenberg)(Brief Article)(Obituary)
November 1, 2004... Charles Rutenberg moved to Clearwater in 1955 and began a career in development, eventually building 10,000 homes in the Tampa Bay area. In 1969, he sold his two companies, Imperial Home Corp. and Rutenberg Construction Co., to U.S. Home Corp.,...

Change of plans: this summer's storms will have a lasting effect.(Hurrican damage report: tourism)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... The parade of hurricanes that swept the state--starting with Charley--put a crimp in the plans of tourists who had planned one last hurrah over the summer and Florida residents who might otherwise have made Labor Day weekend trips. But...

Humphrey Florida Corp.(Daytona Beach)(wants to build high-rise condo on Ocean Dunes Road)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... DAYTONA BEACH -- Humphrey Florida Corp, has proposed moving and expanding a beachfront walkway--the first step toward allowing the company to build a 21-story, $100-million condo on Ocean Dunes Road. Nearby residents object to the plan, saying...

FDN Communications.(Maitland)(will be purchased by ITCDeltaCom)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... MAITLAND -- ITCDeltaCom of West Point, Ga., plans to buy FDN Communications as part of a $187-million stock deal that also includes Network Telephone Corp. of Pensacola. FDN, with about 600 employees, provides telephone and internet service to...

Harris Corp.(Melbourne)(wins contract with National Reconnaissance Office)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... MELBOURNE -- Harris Corp. (NYSE-HR$) has won a contract potentially worth $1 billion over the next decade to support the National Reconnaissance Office. The company will provide operations and maintenance support to the NRO, which operates spy...

Agere Systems.(Orlando)(will begin producing a new microchip)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... ORLANDO -- Agere Systems will begin producing a new microchip for hard drives at its Orlando plant. Full production will begin early next year.

Northrop Grumman has pledged $25 million to the University of Central Florida to enhance the school's research in extreme ultraviolet lithography.(Orlando)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Northrop Grumman has pledged $25 million to the University of Central Florida to enhance the school's research in extreme ultraviolet lithography, a process that could allow computer chips to become smaller and more powerful.

Scotty.(Winter Haven)(files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... WINTER HAVEN -- Scotty's has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, blaming Hurricane Charley. "The company was surviving against the big-box competitors, Home Depot and Lowe's, until Hurricane Charley destroyed the company's largest store...

Rock bottom: the stormy summer created '50 years of erosion overnight.'.(Hurrican damage report: beaches)
November 1, 2004... The rocks have returned to St. Augustine Beach. Just two years after the Army Corps of Engineers spread 1.34 million cubic yards of sand along this 2.5-mile stretch of northeast Florida coastline, Hurricane Frances washed much of it away....

Property taxes.(Clay County)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... CLAY COUNTY -- County commissioners voted to give homeowners who care for aging parents or grandparents in their homes a break on property taxes.

Former university landfills.(Gainesville)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... GAINESVILLE -- A state-sponsored investigation into two former university landfills concluded the dumps did not pollute drinking water wells.

Former airport authority chairman Ronald Townsend withdrew his company's bid to sell advertising inside Jacksonville International Airport after competing firms claimed Townsend received favorable treatment.(Jacksonville)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... JACKSONVILLE -- Former Airport Authority Chairman Ronald Townsend withdrew his company's bid to sell advertising inside Jacksonville International Airport after competing firms claimed Townsend received favorable treatment. Departure Media of...

MDC Holdings.(Jacksonville)(purchased lots from Watson Home Builders)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Colorado-based MDC Holdings purchased more than 2,000 residential building lots throughout northeast Florida from Watson Home Builders, making MDC one of the region's three largest builders.

A. Dano Davis.(Jacksonville)(chair of WinnDixie Stores will retire)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... A. Dano Davis, chairman of WinnDixie Stores (NYSE-WIN), announced he is retiring.

Sporting News.(Jacksonville)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... The Sporting News named Peter Bragan St., owner and president of the Jacksonville Suns minor league baseball team, and his son, General Manager Peter Bragan Jr., 2004 Minor League Executives of the Year.

Real estate attorney Dale A. Beardsley and investor Russell Lee Parker Jr. were indicted by a federal grand jury.(Jacksonville)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Real estate attorney Dale A. Beardsley and investor Russell Lee Parker Jr. were indicted by a federal grand jury on charges that they built a $22-million mortgage fraud scheme.

American Beach.(Nassau County)(8.5 acres added to Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... NASSAU COUNTY -- The U.S. Senate passed a resolution adding 8.5 acres of American Beach--a historically African-American portion of Amelia Island--to the Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve, thus protecting it from development.

Economic Development Board.(Nassau County)(Melanie Ferreira named executive director)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Melanie Ferreira, director of business development for the Council for Economic Outreach in Gainesville, was named executive director of the county's Economic Development Board.

Military hit: base repairs will run into the hundreds of millions of dollars.(Hurricane damage report: military)
November 1, 2004... Northwest Florida twice dodged a bullet in this year's record-breaking Florida storm season, but its luck ran out with Ivan. The hurricane slammed the Panhandle, devastating its westernmost counties, Escambia and Santa Rosa. The region's...

Half-cent sales tax.(Bay County)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... BAY COUNTY -- Voters, who turned down a proposed half-cent sales tax by a nearly 2-to-1 margin, now face some budget-balancing options, among them hikes in tipping fees or property taxes or cuts in county services, a city commissioner warns....

Single time zone.(Gulf County)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... GULF COUNTY -- Commissioners stopped the clock on a proposed vote this month on a single time zone for the county, the only one in Florida split between Central Time and Eastern Time. Commissioners initially wanted to poll voters on choosing...

Littoral Warfare Research Facility.(Panama City)(construction begins on new research center at Naval Surface Warfare Center)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... PANAMA CITY -- Construction has started on a one-of-a-kind Littoral Warfare Research Facility, a three-story, $10-million research center to house offices for 49 scientists and engineers when completed in 2006. The facility is part of the Naval...

Bay Medical Center.(Panama City Beach)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... PANAMA CITY BEACH -- Bay Medical Center will start construction of a $9.5-million complex, Bay Medical at the Beach, this month, for completion in early 2006. The new complex will bring specialized medical services such as CT scans, magnetic...

Florida State University.(Tallahassee)(sets record for contract research)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... TALLAHASSEE -- Florida State University set a record for contract research in the 2004 fiscal year at $182.7 million, up 13%. Nearly 80% of the funding came from the federal government. Also boosting FSU's research standing is the addition of...

Florida's most influential: How we picked.
November 1, 2004... How We Picked Identifying the most influential people from among the 16 million who now live in Florida is very much a subjective exercise. Reproducing the roster of the Florida Council of 100 could easily generate a viable list; likewise...

Company executives.(The Business World)
November 1, 2004... Micky Arison Miami, 54, Chairman/CEO, Carnival Corp. When you can count your net worth by the billions, you know you've got clout. Arison is the second-richest resident of the state, with a net worth approaching $6 billion....

Power couples.(The Business World)
November 1, 2004... Andres Duany & Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk Miami, 55 & 53, Founders, Duany Plater-Zyberk & Co. The husband-and-wife team is known for founding the Congress for the New Urbanism, which the New York Times called "the most important...

Attorneys.(The Business World)
November 1, 2004... Cesar L. Alvarez Miami, 56, President/CEO, Greenberg Traurig Alvarez was the first Hispanic to be named CEO of a nationally recognized law firm. Over the last seven years, Alvarez has grown the firm from 325 lawyers in eight offices to...

Bankers.(The Business World)
November 1, 2004... Adrienne Arsht Miami, 62, Chairwoman, TotalBank From the networking breakfasts she holds at the Ritz in Coconut Grove to sponsoring the arts and hosting Democratic fund-raisers, Arsht has extended her reach beyond small ($650 million...

Political consultants.(Politics)
November 1, 2004... Bruce Barcelo Jacksonville, 52, Consultant, Barcelo & Co. Barcelo is the political consultant and pollster of choice for Republican bigwigs in Jacksonville. In addition to working with northeast Florida's political glitterati,...

Tallahassee insiders.(Politics)
November 1, 2004... Brian Ballard & Jim Smith Tallahassee, 43 & 64, Partners, Smith, Ballard and Logan Former state Attorney General and Secretary of State Smith and son-in-law Ballard have built one of the most prestigious lobbying firms in Tallahassee....

Elected officials.(Politics)
November 1, 2004... FLORIDA State Sen. Jeff Atwater District 25, North Palm Beach, 46 Atwater won the upset victory of the 2002 elections by beating Bob Butterworth. He's on Republican Party and media pundit lists of possible future statewide...

University and college officials.(Academia)
November 1, 2004... Ray Ferrero Fort Lauderdale, 70, President, Nova Southeastern University Ferrero gets credit for--among other things--leading the way in developing the Fort Lauderdale school's Library, Research and Technology Center. It's perhaps the...

Scientists.(Academia)
November 1, 2004... Lance deHaven-Smith Tallahassee, 53, Professor, Florida State University Fresh out of graduate school in 1978, deHaven-Smith won the top award for the best paper at the Southern Political Science Association's annual convention. That...

Philanthropists.(Non-Profits)
November 1, 2004... Hodding Carter III Miami, 69, President/CEO, Knight Foundation Carter brings a bit of glamour to the organization by way of his national media background. He is the former press spokesman for the Department of State under President...

Conservationists.(Non-Profits)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Greg Chelius Tallahassee, 54, Florida Director, Trust for Public Land The trust has emerged as a leading force in land conservation efforts in Florida, buying sensitive properties and then reselling them to local or state governments....

Celebrities, athletes and artists.
November 1, 2004... Jimmy Buffett Palm Beach, 57, Entertainer The over-the-hill pirate in James W. Buffett's song blew enough money to buy Miami, but not so the songwriter himself. The balladeer of Florida fun and rueful romanticism has a $12-million...

Families.
November 1, 2004... The Colliers Southwest Florida, Collier Enterprises/Barron Collier Cos. The Colliers have remained a defining force in southwest Florida since Barron Gift Collier--Collier County's namesake--bought 1.25 million acres in the 1920s....

Emeritus.(Floridance)
November 1, 2004... Reubin Askew Tallahassee, 76 One of the most important Floridians ever, the former legislator, governor and U.S. trade representative now teaches public policy at the Askew School of Public Administration and Policy, renamed in his...

Tidying up: managing documents is critical to business life.(Financial Records)
November 1, 2004... Attorney Brett Verona takes the matter of protecting his clients' identity very seriously. He keeps all client paper files in a locked cabinet in his Tampa law office. Those headed to the trash bin are shredded first. At day's end, he...

Keep or ditch? Consider these document-management rules.(Document Management)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... * Store it. Keep original documents with signatures or documents that cannot be replaced (employment or lease agreements, personnel records, tax returns, etc.) and digitize and destroy others. * Shred it. Shred unneeded documents. Cross-cut...

Counterattack: the tourism industry is circling the wagons to protect its image in the wake of the hurricanes.(Marketing)
November 1, 2004... On a scale of 1 to 5--the same measurement used to rank a hurricane's strength--how much has this year's storm season damaged the reputation of Florida's $51-billion tourism industry? It's a Category 5, according to Visit Florida, the...

Jumping the gun.(travel & tourism)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Visit Florida sprung into action after Hurricane Charley, creating a series of three advertisements to appear in USA Today. The ads, worth $108,631, assured potential visitors that all was well in the Sunshine State and invited them to book...

Key West spin.(travel & tourism)(Florida Keys and Key West )(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... Ads for the Florida Keys and Key West took a humorous approach to lure back visitors, assuring them the area was "Back to Abnormal." Executives from Tinsley Advertising in Miami came up with the campaign. CEO Sandy Tinsley helped develop...

The real scandal: ethics gets the attention, but poor leadership is the bigger problem.(Leadership)
November 1, 2004... In mid-August, at the height of the scandal over lucrative contracts handed out by the Department of Children and Families to people with the right connections, a little side story came and went. House Speaker Johnnie Byrd had made a phone call...

Republican--and proud of it: with the GOP lambasting trial lawyers, academy President Alexander Clem finds himself in a frustrating position.(Trial Lawyers)(Republican Party (United States))
November 1, 2004... Alexander Clem is a lifelong Republican from a family of lifelong Republicans. His father, Chester Clem, is a former state legislator and Republican Party official who ran for governor in 1986. Clem himself is a past president of the Orange...

The Florida Supreme Court has added construction law to the list of specialties for which board certification can be obtained.(In the News)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... The Florida Supreme Court has added construction law to the list of specialties for which board certification can be obtained. Lawyers must have at least five years of experience, comply with continuing legal education requirements and pass a...

GrayRobinson.(In the News)(Burt Saunder joins office)(Brief Article)
November 1, 2004... State Sen. Burt Saunders, R-Naples, has joined the Naples office of GrayRobinson, where he will practice healthcare, land-use and state and local government law as an of-counsel attorney.

A treasure trove: the spirit of survival lives along Florida's treasure coast.(dining with tolf)
November 1, 2004... I made the last landfall in Stuart a few weeks before Frances stormed ashore, destroying the wonderful Riverwalk along the St. Lucie and disrupting downtown, forcing restaurants to close and distribute their perishables to the hurricane...

Top rank Florida[TM].(Illustration)
November 1, 2004... Public Universities BY TOTAL ENROLLMENT 2004 Last Name of Institution Phone Rank Year Main Campus Website 1 1 University of Florida (352) 392-3261 ...

Dick Vitale, at home.(editor's page)
November 1, 2004... Last Christmas, Dick Vitale--yep, the Dickie V. of "awesome, baby" and "diaper dandies" and "time for a T.O., Mr. Knight!"--told the Boys and Girls Clubs of Sarasota County to pick the seven neediest kids the club serves, kids who otherwise...