Coping with challenging times - Volusia/Flagler Business Report

Transcription

Coping with challenging times - Volusia/Flagler Business Report
Focus on: DEVELOPMENT/CONSTRUCTION pages 10-16
July 21, 2008
Coping with
challenging times:
Mike Whaling of Daytona Beach
engineering firm InfiniSys
Electronics Architects.
Area engineering firms responding to struggling economy in variety of ways … Page 10
PRSRT STD
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Daytona Beach, FL
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2 July 21, 2008
Volusia/Flagler Business Report
PDFA-0000739564
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July 21, 2008 3
Volusia/Flagler Business Report
0000739948
ON THE COVER: Mike Whaling,
vice president of InfiniSys Electronic Architects, an engineering
firm in Daytona Beach. InfiniSys
is one of several engineering
firms in the Volusia-Flagler area
that have made changes in response to the struggling economy. See story on page 10.
Focus on: DEVELOPMENT/CONSTRUCTION pages 10-16
Inside:
Action heroes:
Local business boosters’ efforts in the Big Apple
paying off … Page 4
July 21, 2008
Look who’s talking:
Local firm Pevonia in discussions with cosmetics
giant L’Oreal, sources say … Page 6
STOREWIDE SUMMER
Sale
Green for building green:
VHBA advocates use of incentives to spur construction of energy-efficient homes … Page 16
Enjoy 10-50% Savings During
the Entire Month of July
Photo: Sean McNeil
Coping with
challenging times:
Mike Whaling of Daytona Beach
engineering firm InfiniSys
Electronics Architects.
(excluding Rolex & Swarovski)
Area engineering firms responding to struggling economy in variety of ways … Page 10
INSIDE:
Editor’s Notebook: Action heroes — Local business boosters’ efforts in the
Big Apple paying off ..................................................................................................................................Page 4
Guest Commentary: Why buying existing commercial buildings over
building from scratch may be best choice for some..................................................................Page 5
Look who’s talking: Local company Pevonia in discussions with cosmetics
giant L’Oreal, sources say ........................................................................................................................Page 6
Briefs..................................................................................................................................................................Page 8
People on the Move ...................................................................................................................................Page 9
Jeffrey Gitomer: Sales guru offers tips on the best way to prevent ill customers......Page 18
Calendar of upcoming local business events ..............................................................................Page 19
Focus: Development/Construction
Coping with challenging times: Area engineering firms responding to
economic downturn in variety of ways..........................................................................................Page 10
Real Estate Roundup: Grand Am racing team building new digs in DeLand..............Page 12
The List: Area’s largest engineering firms ....................................................................................Page 14
Green for building green: VHBA advocates use of incentives to spur
construction of energy-efficient homes ........................................................................................Page 16
Volusia/Flagler Business Report
Connecting Business to Business
July 21, 2008
Copyright © 2008 The News-Journal Corporation
P.O. Box 9970, Daytona Beach, FL 32120-9970
Phone: 386-681-2737
E-mail:
news@vfbr.com for editorial submissions
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Web site: www.vfbr.com
Manager: Paige Holley
Senior Editor: Clayton Park
Reporter: Chris Anderson
Business Advertising Specialist: Debi Brand
Graphic Designer: John Klipfel
Photographers: Chris Anderson, Sean McNeil, David Tucker
The Volusia/Flagler Business Report is published every other Monday. Press releases, calendar items and letters to the editor
should be e-mailed to news@vfbr.com. People on the Move announcements should be limited to 50 words and accompanied by
a photograph (head shot only; 300 dpi preferred). Calendar items should be submitted 30 days in advance of the event.
Corrections
The correction we ran in our July 7th issue regarding our 2008 Top Private Companies list contained
a typographical error. MBI, a DeLand-based provider of direct-mail advertising services, is the 67th largest
private company based in the Volusia-Flagler area, not 65th as incorrectly indicated in our correction last issue. A corrected version of the list, which ranks companies by 2007 revenues, is posted on our Web site,
www.vfbr.com.
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4 July 21, 2008
Volusia/Flagler Business Report
Opinions
Action heroes:
Biz boosters’ efforts to tout Volusia-Flagler
area at trade show in Big Apple paying off
oaring gas prices, rising inflation, shaky
consumer confidence, the credit
crunch and continuing housing market
slump have caused businesses to scramble
for cover from the mounting economic
storm that, for the most part, is beyond their
control.
During such perilous times, it would be
nice to have superheroes to come to our rescue, like in the various blockbuster action
flicks currently packing them in at the multiplexes this summer.
Fortunately for businesses in the Volusia-Flagler area, such superheroes do exist –
namely economic development folks such as
Volusia County’s Department of Economic
Development, the Daytona Beach/Halifax
Chamber of Commerce’s Business Development Partnership (BDP) and, in Flagler
County, Enterprise Flagler.
Not content to sit on the sidelines and
S
Clayton
Park
Editor’s Notebook
wait for economic development opportunities to come to them, these action heroes often take matters into their own hands by
conducting trade missions to the far corners
of the globe in search of companies that
might be interested in relocating or expanding here or in buying the products and/or
hiring the services of local manufacturers
and suppliers.
One recent example occurred at the
2008 Medical Design & Manufacturing
(MD&M) East Expo, which took place in
New York City in early June. The annual
trade show draws more than 10,000 medical
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Photo: Phil Ehlinger
Rick Michael (right), director of Volusia County’s Department of Economic Development, and John
Kizer, a business specialist with the department, sit at a booth at a medical products industry trade
show in New York that was held June 3-5.
product development professionals from
throughout the eastern United States and is
described by its organizers as the medical
device manufacturing industry’s largest
event.
Attending the event on behalf of our
area were Rick Michael, director of Volusia
County’s Department of Economic Development, three of his staff (business development manager Phil Ehlinger and business
specialists John Kizer and Paul Mitchell),
BDP Economic Development Administrator
Sam Goodwin, and two area business execuSee NOTEBOOK p. 17
PDFA-0000739953
July 21, 2008 5
Volusia/Flagler Business Report
Why now is the best time (for some) to buy existing commercial buildings
’m working with a client who is considering whether to buy a building in the Volusia-Flagler area. His business has occupied
a nearby building for the past 15 years. He
can’t make up his mind, even though his bank
has said it will finance the purchase.
It may sound like a cliché, but I truly believe now is the best time to buy existing
commercial buildings if you intend to be an
owner/occupier (as opposed to an investor).
Here’s why:
1. The recent change in the way city and
county services in Florida can be funded
away from traditional real estate taxes will
only shift the tax burden across the board.
Studies have shown that in many cases
placing limits on property taxes have not
shrunk public-sector spending. Local governments simply find new sources of revenue, such as fees and assessments.
Case in point: the city of New Smyrna
Beach is considering – for the first time —
implementing a boat ramp launch fee. This is
only the beginning.
California in 1978 was the first state to
overturn its method of paying for government with Proposition 13, which placed caps
on property taxes.
I witnessed this firsthand in the late
1980s when I worked for a company that was
I
John
Wickert
Guest Commentary
renovating a shopping center in a Los Angles
suburb. As director of leasing, I was responsible for creating the additional income
stream to pay for those renovations.
Upon completion of the project, it was
estimated that it cost an additional 18 percent
in non-construction costs to complete than it
would have prior to passage of Proposition 13.
My then-company never did work in California after that.
2. Many national retailers are still looking to expand and remain bullish on Florida.
This view was expressed by several retailers who attended the recent International
Council of Shopping Centers convention in
Las Vegas in May. Two things have kept Florida relatively healthy despite the economic
downturn: A. we are still creating jobs; B.
people are still moving into the state.
However, national retailers these days
appear only interested in grade “A” locations,
as opposed to secondary locations. In the
past, retailers would say “Show me every-
thing you’ve got.”
Locally, one example of an “A” location
for retailers is the intersection of Williamson
Boulevard and Dunlawton Avenue/Taylor
Road in Port Orange, just west of Interstate
95. In the next 12-24 months, you will see over
1 million square feet of retail space under development here.
In addition to high traffic counts, the
area offers desirable demographics: 86 percent home ownership; a median annual
household income of $54,283; and 43 percent
of residents who are between the ages of 35
and 64.
3. All the “easy” land in Central Florida
has already been developed.
For the most part, sites that remain undeveloped have impediments to development of some sort: the presence of environmentally sensitive wetlands; entitlements; insufficient infrastructure, etc.
4. Asking prices for commercial buildings have stabilized.
If someone came to me a year ago to list
a property for sale and were motivated sellers, we would look at comparable recent
sales and add 10 percent to the asking price.
Today, if you’re a motivated seller, you’re going to look at it the opposite way. I’ve seen
more price adjustments downward in recent
months than the other way around.
I have a 33,120-square-foot manufacturing building for sale in Edgewater. If you were
to build the same today, the land would cost
$1.4 million. If you subtract that from the asking price of $2.6 million, it leaves $1.2 million,
or $36 a square foot for the building. At today’s cost, the building be at least $55 a
square foot to build.
Buying the existing building therefore
translates into a savings of $630,000 or $19 a
square foot.
Remember that real estate values in
simple economic terms are driven by supply
and demand. As demand starts to pick up, so
will property values. This is true, whether it’s
for a commercial property or a residential
property.
For the reasons I just mentioned, the
cost of buying an existing commercial building in the Volusia-Flagler area today is typically less than the cost of building that same
one from scratch. That’s why I say now is the
best time to buy an existing building.
■
John Wickert, CCIM, is a commercial
real estate broker with the NAI Realvest office in Daytona Beach. He can be reached
at jwickert@realvest.com or at 386-7955713.
0000739552
0000739555
PARTNER PROFILE:
ROBERT A. MERRELL, III
Mr. Merrell graduated from Duke University and received
his Juris Doctor, cum laude, from the University of
Florida Levin College of Law. Mr. Merrell practices in the
areas of zoning, environmental permits, comprehensive
planning, code enforcement, and land development. He is
a member of the Land Use and Environmental Law, Local
Government Law, and Administrative Law Sections of the
Florida Bar, as well as the Environment, Energy and
Resource Section of the American Bar Association.
Mr. Merrell is currently a member of the Surfcoast Chapter of the Florida Planning and
Zoning Association, as well as the Daytona Beach/Halifax Area Chamber of Commerce. He
previously held positions as the Chairman of the Volusia County Association for Responsible
Development, Chairman of the Volusia County Environmental and Natural Resources Advisory
Committee and member of the Board of Directors of the Red Cross Coast to Coast Chapter. Mr.
Merrell served as a member of the Halifax and Indian River Task Force and the Volusia County
Economic Development Strategic Planning Working Group. Mr. Merrell is a graduate of the
Leadership Daytona Class of 1989 and is admitted to the United States District Court for the
Middle District of Florida and the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
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Volusia/Flagler Business Report
Look who’s talking:
Daytona-based Pevonia in discussions with cosmetics giant L’Oreal, sources say
By Clayton Park
Business Report Staff
he majority owners of Pevonia International, a Daytona Beach-based maker of
professional spa skincare products,
have recently begun talks with French beauty products giant L’Oreal SA, the Business
Report has learned.
What is not certain is the nature of
those talks, which could involve either a potential sale of Pevonia or perhaps a strategic
alliance or licensing deal.
A source close to the company, who
spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed
speculation that Pevonia founders Philippe
Hennessy and his wife Sylvie were in discussions with L’Oreal, but would not say what
about.
The Hennessys would not likely agree
to sell their company unless they could continue to be significantly involved, said the
source, who said neither Philippe or Sylvie,
who are both in their 60s, have any plans to
retire.
The Hennessys, who moved to the United States from France in the 1980s, were
North American distributors for French
skincare products maker Matis prior to
T
launching their own company in 1991.
Sylvie, a biochemist by training, is creator of the Pevonia skincare products line.
She is also highly regarded within the industry as an educator and lecturer. Several spa
trade publications have described Sylvie as
an industry pioneer.
Philippe, a former executive with 3M in
Europe and AT&T International whose background is in engineering, is Pevonia’s president and chief executive officer.
Pevonia products are sold exclusively in
day spas and hotel/resort spas throughout
much of the world. Celebrities who use
Pevonia products reportedly include movie
stars Angelina Jolie, Cate Blanchett and
Matthew McConaughey.
While the Hennessys have granted interviews to industry trade publications over
the years, the couple have generally shunned
the general media. A spokeswoman for Pevonia did not respond to a request from the
Business Report to speak with the couple for
this article.
The source close to Pevonia said the
Hennessys have declined requests for interviews with the Business Report because
“they don’t want to be known locally in Day-
tona.” The source described the couple as an
American success story because “they started with nothing and turned it (Pevonia) into
the largest professional skincare spa (products) company in the world.”
Pevonia does not disclose its revenues.
The source close to the company said a competitor’s estimate in the Business Report’s
June 23rd issue that Pevonia’s annual sales
were $15 million to $30 million “was way off.
It’s much, much higher.”
The source said Pevonia and the Hennessys’ other businesses employ a combined
total of 70 to 100 people locally and at least
600 worldwide. The couple’s other businesses include Medicalia, which makes medical
spa skincare products, Cosmopro, a maker of
professional spa equipment, and the Sylvie
Hennessy Academy of Esthetics & Spa
Treatments. The companies are all based in
Daytona Beach, in a 120,000-square-foot,
multi-building complex at 280 and 300 Fentress Blvd.
The Hennessys in February sold minority stakes in Pevonia and Medicalia for an
undisclosed amount to TSG Consumer Part-
ners, a San Francisco-based private equity
group.
Yasser Toor, a managing partner with
TSG, told the Business Report in June that
the Hennessys agreed to the Feb. 13 deal in
order to raise capital to further grow Pevonia
and Medicalia. The transaction did not involve the couple’s other businesses.
L’Oreal has been aggressively expanding, largely via acquisitions. In 2006, the cosmetics giant, whose brands include Maybelline cosmetics, paid $1.2 billion to acquire
Body Shop, a U.K.-based global retail chain
that sells natural bath and beauty products.
Industry observers say L’Oreal bought
Body Shop because of its desire to tap the
growing market for “green” — i.e., environmentally friendly — skincare products.
L’Oreal, earlier this year, acquired Yves
Saint Laurent Beaute, a deal which gave the
company licenses to several fragrance and
cosmetic product lines, including the Stella
McCartney and Oscar de la Renta brands.
Pevonia, which touts its skincare products as “green” and is dominant in its market
See PEVONIA p. 8
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8 July 21, 2008
Volusia/Flagler Business Report
PEVONIA from p. 6
Briefs
Halifax’s ex-marketing chief gets
big severance package
Halifax Health, operator of the VolusiaFlager area’s largest hospital system, recently
agreed to pay its former chief marketing officer more than $100,000 as part of a resignation settlement, according to a legal document obtained by the Business Report.
The $101,666 paid to Kathryn Hughes,
who resigned May 30, included four months’
salary and $10,000 in “outplacement assistance,” according to the document. Hughes,
as part of the settlement, agreed “to take all
steps necessary” to secure the refund of a deposit paid by Halifax on her behalf to Hammock Dunes for club membership.
The settlement agreement also stated
that Hughes cannot work for a competing
hospital for at least a year. Hughes also
waived the right to pursue legal action for
wrongful discharge.
The settlement agreement also stipulated that “neither party shall defame the other
in any way, or refer to the other party in such
a manner as would tend to portray that party
in a negative light.”
Hughes left Halifax amid criticism from
some in the business community for her decision to hire a Los Angeles film production
company to produce a series of four television commercials for the hospital system,
which draws a portion of its revenues from
local taxpayers. The commercials cost $1 million to produce. Hughes also hired an out-ofstate ad agency to create a new logo for the
hospital system, which was eventually
scrapped.
42,000-square-foot store in The Promenade
retail center on the northeast corner of Nova
and Beville roads later this month. A
spokesperson for the center’s owner, Boca
Raton-based Woolbright Development Inc.,
did not immediately return a telephone call
from the Business Report seeking comment.
Ch. 11 filing raises questions about
retailer’s plans for Daytona
A South Daytona-based electronic water treatment system maker broke ground on
July 10 on a 20,000-square-foot building at
1585 Industrial Drive that will become its
new home upon completion of construction
early next year.
Griswold Water Systems currently leases a smaller space for its manufacturing operations at 3111 Opportunity Ct.
The company plans to occupy 5,000
square feet in the new building and will lease
the remaining space to other businesses, said
Janeen Carroll, the company’s office and operations manager.
■
Steve & Barry’s, a Port Washington, N.Y.based casual clothing retail chain, filed for
chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in early July,
raising questions as to whether national retailer will continue with plans to open a store
in Daytona Beach.
The retailer, in announcing its plans to
file for bankruptcy protection, said it planned
to close more than 100 stores and that it
would consider a full liquidation of its assets
if it is unable to secure emergency financing.
Steve & Barry’s was set to open a
South Daytona company breaks
ground on manufacturing plant
niche, appears to match the profile of the
kind of company L’Oreal is looking for.
“L’Oreal has a strategy to diversify its
distribution base, and spa is one of the targeted areas,” wrote Harold Thompson, a research analyst with Deutsche Bank in London, in an e-mail responding to questions
from the Business Report. “This is partly why
they bought the Body Shop. Not only did
they want a ‘green’ brand to keep up with the
times, but they also wanted a stand-alone retail format. So (it’s) very possible that they
are in talks to enter the ‘spa’ channel in a
more aggressive way.”
L’Oreal is one of several public European
companies Thompson monitors. He did not
indicate having any specific knowledge as to
whether L’Oreal was looking to acquire Pevonia, but agreed to answer questions in general terms.
“(L’Oreal) has been excellent in acquiring relatively small brands, which it has then
successfully globalised in its targeted distribution channel,” Thompson wrote. “L’Oreal
is not shy of buying small as long as it sees
great potential to globalise the brand in its
specific distribution channel.”
■
Clayton Park can be reached at clayton.park@vfbr.com or at 386-681-2470.
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July 21, 2008 9
Volusia/Flagler Business Report
People on the Move
Bolling
Johnson
Dimitrakopoulos
Aviation
Radd Johnson has joined Trans Northern Airways, a Daytona
Beach-based private jet charter company, as director of fractional
ownership and charter services. Johnson previously worked as a
business consultant in Daytona Beach and DeLand.
Real Estate
Rose Bolling has joined Hart & Associates Realty in Ormond
Beach as a sales associate. Bolling previously worked as a sales associate at Ideal Realty/Keller Williams Realty Florida Partners in South
Daytona.
George Dimitrakopoulos has joined Adams, Cameron & Co. Realtors’ 759 W. Granada Blvd. office in Ormond Beach as an agent. Dimi-
Kimball
Melnechuk
Bonner
trakopoulos previously owned two restaurants in the Daytona Beach
area.
Waypoint Real Estate Consulting, a Palm Coast-based real estate
sales and marketing consulting firm, has hired three employees:
Cameron Kimball has joined the company as vice president of
sales for its Abaco Beach Resort & Boat Harbour account in the Bahamas. Kimball previously worked as a sales representative with the
Ginn Company.
Shane Bonner has joined the company as a sales executive for its
Abaco account. Bonner previously worked as a sales representative
with the Ginn Company.
Kurt Melnechuk has been named a sales executive at the company. Melnechuk will continue his role as director of sales and marketing of the company’s Abaco account.
■
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Volusia/Flagler Business Report
Focus: Development/Construction
Coping with challenging times
Area engineering firms responding to
economic downturn in different ways
By Chris Anderson
Business Report Staff
that we had to do it, but it’s the sign of the
times,” said Mark Hampton, the firm’s presihe owners of InfiniSys Electronic Ar- dent.
“If there aren’t as many projects going
chitects in Daytona Beach recently decided to cope with the economic down- on, we don’t need people just sitting around,
waiting for something to do,” Hampton said.
turn in an unusual way.
Quentin has completed about 40 projThey asked their employees to start
ects
so
far this year, which Hampton said is
working 10-hour days four days a week as oproughly
a 60 percent drop from the number
posed to the standard eight-hour days five
of
projects
it had completed by this time last
days a week. The change, which took effect
in May, has resulted in cost savings, not only year. “It’s definitely a marked downturn from
for the company but also for the workers, previous years,” he said.
In another move to save on operating
said Mike Whaling, InfiniSys’s vice president
costs, the firm decided to consolidate its two
of business development.
“We did an analysis of things and saw offices into one location in June. “We think it
that was the best thing to do,” Whaling said. will improve our overhead,” Hampton said.
Quentin does a lot of work for local mu“We’re cutting down on the gas our employees use for their commute and cutting down nicipalities, such as designing or redesigning
on the usage of electricity for our computers, waste water treatment plants and water
drainage basins, said Hampton.
air-conditioning, and other equipment.”
Palm Coast engineering firm Atlas DeInfinSys isn’t the only engineering firm
sign
Group Inc. has laid off three employees
in the Volusia-Flagler area to make changes
in
the
last year and a half, reducing the size
in response to the sluggish economy.
Several area firms decided to lower op- of its staff to four people.
“We didn’t want to (cut jobs), but we
erating costs through layoffs and consolidahad to, said Curt
tion of operations.
Wimpee,
Atlas
Others have chopresident.
“We
saw
sen to shield themwhat
was
coming,”
selves from the
he said, referring to
downturn by diverthe economy.
sifying its services.
While Atlas
Quentin
L.
focused largely on
Hampton & Assoresidential projects
ciates Inc., a Port
a couple of years
Orange-based enviago, the downturn
ronmental and civil
in new home conengineering firm,
struction forced
has laid off 12 emthe company to
ployees in the past
pursue more comyear, their top execPhoto: Sean McNeil mercial
projects,
utive said. Most InfiniSys employee Stewart Samyelson draws up a
such
as
assisting
were part-time in- wiring diagram on his computer at the engineering
living
facilities,
spectors. “I hate firm’s offices in Daytona Beach.
T
Photo: Sean McNeil
Mike Whaling, vice president of business development at InfiniSys.
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Volusia/Flagler Business Report
Focus: Development/Construction
churches and banks, which makes up most of its
business today, Wimpee said.
“The fact that we’re a small company gives
us the advantage of being able to adapt to things
quickly,” Wimpee said. Atlas recently won contracts to work on two large retail projects in Lake
County and one in Flagler County, Wimpee said.
Atlas has completed about 30 projects so far
this year, which is on pace with the company’s
progress this time last year, Wimpee said.
Ormond Beach engineering firm Zev Cohen & Associates Inc. is doing “pretty well during rough times,” said company President
Dwight DuRant.
“We’re thankful to be staying on course.
We’ve been here for more than 30 years. Most of
our clients are repeat customers, which we really appreciate, especially during times like these,”
DuRant said.
DuRant said he expects the civil, environmental, and landscape architecture firm to complete more than 150 projects by the end of the
year, which he said would be about the same as
last year. Zev Cohen employs 55 workers.
But as far as accounts receivables go, DuRant said the company is between 10 percent
and 15 percent behind last year. “But we’re just
happy to be able to hold our own, right now,” he
said.
Zev Cohen started offering road and transportation-related engineering work about a year
ago in order to diversify its services.
DuRant believes transportation will be-
come a larger part of the company’s business
over the next several years, maybe growing to as
much as half of its annual revenue.
Zev Cohen’s recent contracts include work
on the Ocean Center expansion project in Daytona Beach, expansion of Halifax Health’s Daytona Beach campus, and the new Mori Hosseini
Center at Daytona State College.
At InfiniSys, the problem wasn’t getting
enough business – it was rising utility costs and
gasoline prices, said Whaling.
Some of InfiniSys’s employees have long
commutes and had expressed concern that soaring fuel pump costs could force them to find
jobs closer to home, said Whaling.
InfiniSys designs technology systems —
such as television, Internet, phone networks and
security systems — largely for apartment complex developers. Roughly 95 percent of the firm’s
business is out of state, mostly in New York,
New Jersey, Washington, D.C., Houston, and
Austin, Texas.
“Those are pretty good markets for us right
now,” Whaling said, adding, “Some folks are taking a little bit longer to pay their bills, but things
are good overall.”
Whaling said the new four-day-a-week
schedule “seems to be working” for his company. “We think it was the right decision.”
■
Chris Anderson can be reached at
chris.anderson@vfbr.com or 386-681-2224.
Photo: David Tucker
Dwight DuRant, president of Ormond Beach engineering firm Zev Cohen and Associates.
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12 July 21, 2008
Volusia/Flagler Business Report
Focus: Development/Construction
Grand Am racing team building new digs in DeLand
A
DeLand-based professional motorsports team is building a new, larger facility just west of the city’s municipal
airport.
Racers Edge Motorsports, which competes in the Grand-Am Rolex Series, is building a 12,000-square-foot headquarters on Eidson Drive. The company’s current offices
are located at 1755 Lexington Ave.
facility. Racers Edge is talking with another
team about leasing the remaining space,
Mirachi said.
Short takes:
Chris
Anderson
Real Estate Roundup
Construction of the facility began in early May and is expected to be completed by
early October. Jacobsen Contracting Inc. was
hired as the project’s general contractor.
Racers Edge leases its current 3,000square-foot office, which it moved to after
moving from New Jersey two years ago.
“If you’re going to race in the Grand-Am
series, you might as well be closer to Daytona Beach,” said Jon Mirachi, company president.
Photo: Chris Anderson
Racers Edge Motorsports is building a 12,000-square-foot facility on Eidson Drive in DeLand.
Mirachi said it was his plan to lease for
awhile before owning a building. “It was always my intent to build a facility here, so we
took a temporary facility while looking and
making sure that we got the right lot.”
Racers Edge will take up 4,500 square
feet of the future 12,000-square-foot facility,
as it plans to lease the remaining space to
other motorsports teams.
Racers Edge has signed a lease with Inspire Motorsports, which currently leases a
space next door to the current Racers Edge
Hotel/restaurant development planned
in DeLand — An Orlando-based developer is
planning to build a hotel and two restaurants
near DeLand Municipal Airport.
Ruba Properties Inc. is looking to build
a four-story, 55,000-square-foot hotel and two
franchise restaurants on Flightline Boulevard, just off W. International Speedway
Boulevard. The site, at 811 Flightline Blvd.,
would be across the street from the offices of
component manufacturer FloMet.
Ruba Properties is currently courting
mid-scale, franchise hotel chains that might
be interested in a location on the site, said
Natvar Nana, the company’s president.
“We’re talking with several interested
parties right now,” said Nana.
The site is an ideal location for a hotel
because of its proximity to the airport and a
major highway: West International Speedway Boulevard, Nana said.
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July 21, 2008 13
Volusia/Flagler Business Report
Focus: Development/Construction
liers is that a hotel there would receive a large
and steady amount of business travelers,”
Nana said.
There are currently two national hotel
chain locations within half a mile of the proposed hotel: a Holiday Inn and Comfort Inn.
Nana said he’s also talking to several
restaurant franchise owners about the site. “A
well-known, national or regional restaurant
would do well there,” he said. “There’s a need
for that sort of restaurant in that area.”
Ruba Properties chose the Flightline location, which will be the company’s first ever
project in Volusia County, because of its potential, Nana said.
“DeLand will offer tremendous opportunities for years to come. DeLand has a
good growth path,” said Nana. “I see more
businesses opening there constantly.”
Most of Ruba Property’s past projects
have been in Orange and Lake counties.
* * *
Paving the way — The city of DeLand
recently began building a road northwest of
the DeLand Municipal Airport in preparation
for a future 50-acre industrial business park.
The city, which already operates a business park near the airport, has awarded a
$600,000 contract to Junior Davis Construction Co. in Kissimmee to build 2,800 feet of
road to make way for the project. A $300,000
contract has also been awarded to McMahan
Construction Company in DeLand to install
infrastructure, such as pipes and utility lines.
“This will give us the availability of land
and opportunities to build business in the
area,” said Dale Arrington, the city’s director
of community development. “We’ll soon put
together a marketing plan and begin marketing to businesses.”
Arrington declined to specify what type
of businesses it plans to market the new industrial park to. “We want high-quality companies here,” she said.
Jenny Stumbras, executive director of
the DeLand Area Chamber of Commerce,
said, “Making room for more businesses will
definitely be a positive” for the area.
Construction of the road will begin in
August and finish by early 2009.
* * *
Office project underway in DeBary; another in the works — An investment group,
operating as Cinnamon Tree Professional
Park LLC, recently broke ground in preparation for a three-story, 23,000-square-foot office building in DeBary, on Pond Court, just
east of Enterprise Road.
Construction is expected to be completed within nine to 10 months, said Anthony Ewen, a partner in the investment group.
Holly Hill-based Michael Construction
Inc. has been hired as the project’s general
contractor.
Ewen said the investment group has
pre-lease agreements from several future
Photo: Chris Anderson
Infrastructure work is about to be installed for a future three-story office building in DeBary.
tenants of the building. Spaces in the building are available for lease at a rate of roughly
$24 a square foot a year, Ewen said.
The investment group is also developing another office building just to the north
of the future Cinnamon Tree Professional
Park, on Summerhaven Drive, also in DeBary.
The investment group, operating as
Summerhaven Professional Center LLC, is
planning to build a three-story, 12,600square-foot office building.
“We’re scheduled to break ground by
the end of the month,” said Ewen.
Construction of the Summerhaven Professional Center should be finished by April,
Ewen said. The asking lease rates for spaces
in the planned building will be around $24 a
square foot per year, he said.
■
Chris Anderson can be reached at
chris.anderson@vfbr.com or 386-681-2224.
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14 July 21, 2008
Volusia/Flagler Business Report
Focus: Development/Construction
Largest Engineering Firms
Upcoming lists:
Ranked by
Licensed
Engineers
Ranked
byNumber
Numberofof
Licensed
Engineers
■ August 4 Nonprofit Organizations
■ August 18 Mortgage Companies
■ September 1 Title Companies
For more information call: 386-681-2457
Engineering Firm
Top Local Executive/Title
Address, Phone, Website
Number of
Offices
Areas of Specialty
Number of Licensed
Engineers
Total Staff
1
SEIDCON, Inc.
P.D. "Patti" Immel
106 Edward Dr. (Temporary Office), Palm Coast
32164 (386) 437-7323
www.seidcon.com
4
Information Assurance/Security Engineering, IT
System Integration, Quality Assurance &
Independent Validation
173
203
2
Wade Trim/Tomoka
Hal Burroughs, President
21
Land Surveying, Civil Site Engineering, , Water
Resources, Transportation, Landscape
Architecture, Urban Planning
115
400
3
CPH Engineers Inc.
Kamran Khosravani, CEO and
David Gierach
1410 LPGA Blvd., Ste 148, Daytona Beach 32117
(386) 274-1600
www.wadetrim.com
520 Palm Coast Parkway SW, Palm Coast 32137
(386) 445-6569
www.cphengineers.com
14
Civil, Planning, Landscape, Architecture,
Environmental, Survey
63
357
4
Universal Engineering
Services Inc.
Brian C. Pohl, Branch
Manager
911 Beville Road, Daytona Beach 32119 (386)
756-1105
www.universalengineering.com
17
Geotechnical, Environmental, Construction
Materials Testing
36
580
5
Nodarse & Associates Inc.
Leila Jammal Nodarse, P.E.
9
Geotechnical, Construction Material Testing and
Threshold Inspection, Environmental Consulting
24
228
6
Zev Cohen & Associates, Inc.
Dwight M. DuRant
4
General Civil, Landscape Architecture, and
Environmental
9
53
7
InfiniSys Electronic
Architects
Richard Holtz, CEO
3
Low Voltage Engineering, Apartment Technology,
Technology for Universities
8
14
8
Ghyabi & Associates Inc.
Maryam Ghyabi, CEO
3
Transportation Planning, Civil
6
50
Singhofen & Associates, Inc.
Robert Gaylord
2
Municipal/Stormwater Management Land
Development Engineering
6
17
10
Quentin L. Hampton &
Associates Inc.
Mark Hampton, President
3881 S. Nova Road, Port Orange 32127 (386)
761-6810
www.qlha.com
1
Waste Water Plants, Water Plants, Storm Water
Facilities, Construction Administration, and
Construction Representation.
5
33
11
Sliger & Associates, Inc.
Dione Sliger Bazile; Tony
Bazile; Joe Zapert; Steve
Kruger and Pete Barber
3921 Nova Road, Port Orange 32127 386.761.5385
sligerassociates.com
1
Land Surveying and Mapping
4
30
Mark Dowst, President
536 N. Halifax Ave. Ste. 100, Daytona Beach 32118
(386) 258-7999
1
General Civil, Surveying, and Landscaping
3
13
Pete Zahn, President
240 S. Palmetto Ave., Daytona Beach 32114 (386)
252-0020
www.zahneng.com
1
General Civil, Land Planning, Permitting
3
10
N/A
Land Resources, Water Resources, Transportation
2
7
1
Electrical and Technology Infrastructure
2
7
1
Certified Umpire for Dispute Resolution, general
engineering, investigations, reports.
2
5
1
Civil Engineering / Landscape Architecture / Land
Planning
1
4
12 Mark Dowst & Associates Inc.
Zahn Engineering Inc.
14
17
123 North Orchard Avenue, Suite 1A, Ormond
Beach 32174 386-673-5440
www.nodarse.com
300 Interchange Boulevard, Ormond Beach 32174
(386) 677-2482
www.zevcohen.com
482 Fentress Blvd., Suite N, Daytona Beach 32114
(386) 236-1500
www.electronicarchitect.com
1459 North US Highway 1, Suite 3, Ormond Beach
32174 (386) 677-5499
www.ghyabi.com
377 Palm Coast Parkway SW, unit 5, Palm Coast
32137 386-986-3501
www.saiengineers.com
50 Leanni Way Unit C-4, Palm Coast 32137 (386)
447-4993
www.arcadis-us.com
232 Bay Street, Daytona Beach 32114
Dickens & Associates, Inc.
Edwin W. Best
386-253-1511
www.DickensAssociates.com
2642 Sunset Dr., New Smyrna Beach 32168-5610
P.E., CEO and
Kennedy Consulting Service Doyle Kennedy,
(386) 427-4045
President
email: KennedyConsulting@cfl.rr.com
50 Leanni Way, Suite B4, Palm Coast, 32137 (386)
Atlas Design Group, Inc.
Curt Wimpee
446-8288
www.atlasdg.com
Arcadis B
Libbey Webb, Operations
Manager
CSI Engineering
Mike Cash, President
605 W. New York Ave., Suite C, DeLand 32720
(386) 740-1454
1
General Civil, Site Planning, Environmental Studies
1
5
Innovative Engineering
Solutions Inc.
Glenn Skarani, president
25 Seacrest Drive, Ormond Beach 32176 (386)
405-5351
1
Electrical - Mechanical, Industrial, Consumer
Products, Fixturing
1
5
M&M Systems, Inc.
John Condorodis, president
4 West Tower Circle, Ormond Beach 32174 (386)
676-7335
www.mmsysinc.com
1
Industrial & Commercial Controls, UL508A Panel
Shop, Hardware & Software Development
1
23
The
is is
ranked
by by
number
of licensed
engineers.
FirmsFirms
mustmust
have have
an office
in Volusia
and/or and/or
Flagler counties
to be included
the list.on
Some
firmsSome
on theFirms
list reported
The engineering
engineeringfirms
firmslist
list
ranked
number
of licensed
engineers.
an office
in Volusia
Flagler counties
to be on
included
the list.
on the list that are
companywide
figures
thatthe
include
engineers and
staff
outsidecompanywide
of the Volusia-Flagler
listbased
is based
company
reports.
Only
companies
thatthat
responded
to our
request
for information
headquartered
outside
Volusia/Flagler
area
reported
figures.area.
ThisThis
list is
on on
company
reports
and
only
companies
responded
to e-mail
our email
request
for
are
included. are
For included.
more information,
contact
the Business
Report
at research@vfbr.com.
information
For more
information,
contact
the Business
Report at research@vfbr.com.
B Local staff figures. Arcadis is a worldwide company.
Volusia/Flagler Business Report
July 21, 2008 15
0000740073
16 July 21, 2008
Volusia/Flagler Business Report
Focus: Development/Construction
Green for building green
VHBA promotes use of incentives to encourage construction of energy-efficient homes
By Chris Anderson
Business Report Staff
he city of DeLand recently began offering incentives to home and commercial
property builders that go green.
The Volusia Home Builders Association, a private organization that represents
home builders throughout the region, hopes
the county and other cities within Volusia
will follow DeLand’s example.
DeLand’s city commission voted unanimously in March to reward builders that
construct homes and commercial buildings
that are more energy efficient and environmentally friendly than standard-built homes
and buildings. The incentive program became effective July 1.
Under the city’s new program, if a developer builds a home or commercial property that is certified as green by standards
set by the Florida Green Building Coalition,
the developer will have reduced permitting
fees, an expedited review of the building’s
plans, and a 15 percent reduction in water
and sewer impact fees on that structure.
Those incentives could result in savings
T
for builders ranging from a few hundred dollars to as much as several thousand dollars
per unit, said Greg Blose, director of government affairs for the VHBA.
The association in early July announced
its creation of a “model ordinance” for green
building that it is encouraging local governments throughout the Volusia-Flagler area to
adopt. Volusia County is currently reviewing
a proposed green building ordinance that
would be similar to what the VHBA has proposed, Blose said.
Matt Adair, chief building official for the
city of DeLand, said the VHBA played a role
in the city’s decision to offer incentives to
builders to build homes and commercial
buildings that are more energy efficient.
“We always wanted to have some sort of
incentives program for smarter, greener
building,” said Adair. “The VHBA helped sort
things out for us.”
Blose said his organization started talking with Adair and the city about the incentives several months ago.
“We’re trying to spread the word out
there about green building,” Blose said. “It’s
On the Net:
www.volusiahomebuilders.org
www.floridagreenbuilding.org
www.usgbc.org
the right thing to do.”
Blose said the VHBA wants local municipalities to adopt the standards for green
building established either by the Florida
Green Building Coalition or the U.S. Green
Building Council as well as to offer incentives.
Steve Reeger, special projects coordinator and building science specialist with Daytona Beach-based ICI Homes, said it’s important that the buyer, not the builder, be the ultimate decision maker in whether their
home or commercial building is green.
“It cannot be mandatory,” said Reeger,
whose company is one of the Volusia-Flagler
area’s largest builders of custom homes. “We
do not need more regulations. Let us be creative and let the consumers decide what
they want us to do and what they are willing
to pay. ... If the consumer is not willing to
write a check (to make the structure green),
it’s a waste of time.”
Home builder/developer Jerry Johnson,
owner of The Johnson Group in New Smyrna Beach, said the appeal of a green home or
commercial building is getting stronger, especially as the price of utility bills increase.
“The return for us on all this is a better
chance to sell a house where the owner will
pay a smaller water and electric bill,” said
Johnson. “It may cost them $25 more a
month on their mortgage, but they may save
$250 on the utility bills. Water and electric
are going up. We need to educate people on
the benefits of green.”
The Florida Green Building Coalition’s
Web site describes a green home as “an energy-efficient home that incorporates multiple environmental, ecological, and sustainability features that materially enhance the
built environment… such as efficient materials, low water use, and native landscaping.”
As for whether the VHBA thinks other
cities will adopt the ordinance, Blose said, “It
should be a relatively easy sell.”
■
Chris Anderson can be reached at
chris.anderson@vfbr.com or 386-681-2224.
0000739549
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July 21, 2008 17
Volusia/Flagler Business Report
PDFA-0000739962
NOTEBOOK from p. 4
tives, David Slick Sr., president of Command
Medical Products in Ormond Beach, and
John McDonald, a sales engineer with American Industrial Plastics in Daytona Beach.
The county’s Department of Economic
Development purchased a booth space,
which it shared with American Industrial
Plastics. Slick also spent time during the
three-day trade show sitting at the booth to
talk to passersby who were interested in finding out more about Volusia County.
Ehlinger said the county’s economic development team took turns alternating between manning the booth and walking the
trade show floor, handing out informational
materials about the area (including copies of
the county’s annual Corporate Guide and
Economic Development Quarterly publication), as well as gathering contact information from various attendees who might be
worth following up on.
Goodwin, whose group operates separately from the county’s economic development department even though both have the
same overall goal, spent his entire time at the
trade show walking the floor.
Ehlinger said he and the county’s team
particularly honed in on medical products
manufacturers located in the northeastern
U.S., where the cost s of living and doing
business are much higher than in central
Florida.
The county team, which contacted
dozens of target companies prior to the trade
show to try to schedule a time during the
event when they could meet, came away
with a number of promising leads as a result,
said Ehlinger and Michael.
One of the companies they met at the
trade show, a manufacturer based in Maryland, has already come to Volusia County for
a follow-up meeting and tour of available
sites for a potential 15,000- to 30,000-squarefoot distribution center, said Ehlinger. The
company, which makes stringent antiseptic
solutions used in hospitals, could make a decision on whether to open the distribution
center here within the next two months, he
said. The center, which would initially employ up to 20 people, might also be eventually expanded to include manufacturing operations, he said.
Goodwin said he came away with a
number of promising leads as well. “We sent
out 40 postcards (following the trade show)
to companies that have shown an interest” in
possibly relocating or expanding to the Volusia-Flagler area, the BDP official said.
One company, a medical products maker in Pennsylvania, has already expressed a
desire to visit the area to look at sites for a potential 10,000-square-foot manufacturing
plant, Goodwin said.
Economic development action heroes,
we salute you.
■
WITH AN EXACT REPLICA OF
TODAY’S NEWS-JOURNAL
ON YOUR COMPUTER.
Clayton Park can be reached at clayton.park@vfbr.com or at 386-681-2470.
PDFA-0000739958
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WEST VOLUSIA
18 July 21, 2008
Volusia/Flagler Business Report
Customer wellness: the best way to prevent ill customers
veryone is talking about the rising cost
of healthcare. Not me. I’m talking about
the health and well being of your customers.
How healthy is their relationship with
you? What’s your cost of keeping them
healthy? Is it on the rise?
Let me give you a clue about the cost of
customer health. It pales in comparison to
the cost of losing them.
Have any customers that are in poor
health? Have any customers who are sick (of
you)? Sick of dealing with you? Dying to replace you? What’s the cost of that?
If your customer is angry — think of
them as having business illness. They’re
deathly sick of you! Like human illness it has
various stages of debility. Once discovered,
you will go to all lengths, and spend thousands of fruitless dollars to try to save the patient. But if the illness is discovered too late,
the patient is likely to die.
You could have spent far less dollars and
prevented this illness from occurring. Instead of waiting until your customer is terminally ill, why not institute a customer wellness program to prevent illness from occurring in the first place?
Hey, wait a minute. That sounds too
easy!
HERE’S A WAKE UP CALL: Prevention
is the best way, the easiest way, and the least
E
expensive way. It’s also the competition prevention way.
Here is my Customer Wellness Program
— a success formula for serving memorably
and keeping customers loyal. (NOTE: It will
require that EVERYONE on your team buy it,
buy in, get in the groove — the customer
awareness groove — and get service healthy.)
1. Establish benchmarks. Minimum acceptable standards, methods of response, decision parameters, a list of every reason a
customer calls, a list of every customer complaint, a list of every customer expectation,
and a documented “best response” to each
of those situations.
2. Empower employees with specific
actions to decide based on your benchmarks. Empower everyone to say yes. Only
empower senior management to say no.
3. Start with “YES!” Everyone needs to
start with attitude training FIRST. Get there
by whatever positive means it takes.
4. Train everyone in your business.
Starting with YES! Attitude and developing
OFFICE & WAREHOUSE SPACE
fundamental skills in achieving goals, understanding yourself and your co-workers, developing pride, accepting responsibility, listening to understand, effective communicating, embracing change, making decisions,
memorable service, and working as a team.
5. Develop a standardized “gripe response” formula. Train everyone in your organization to execute it perfectly.
6. Ask your customer to help you serve
them better by asking, “What’s up Doc?” or
“where does it hurt?” Listen to discover your
customer’s most important characteristics in
a relationship with you. Ask them where you
can improve. Ask them to evaluate your
strengths and weaknesses in those areas of
prime importance to them. Find out their
perceptions, and match them to yours. Modify or change your characteristics and perceptions to meet theirs.
7. Evaluate your own strengths and
weaknesses. Make a plan for weakness improvement that has a deadline and measurable results.
8. Identify your competitive advantages
(your super strengths). Play to those as often
as possible. To identify them, ask customers.
9. Stay in front of your customer more
than your competition. Develop tools that
aid that process (newsletters, faxes, articles,
gifts, tickets).
10. Train everyone to serve exceptional-
ly and memorably every time a customer is
encountered. Treat every customer as
though they were a celebrity.
11. Surprise your customers as often as
you can. Exceed their expectations in a
memorable way. You know what it feels like
when you are surprised — do it to someone
else. Get people talking about you.
12. Decide you are willing to go the extra
mile. Sometimes extra effort is required to
make service happen. You have to have a
willingness to go the extra mile to achieve it.
12.5 Your report card is unsolicited referrals. Unsolicited referrals are the measure
of your success, the testament of your quality, and your ability to serve.
Think you can do it? Think you and
every co-worker in your company can make
customer wellness happen?
Want my opinion? You have no choice.
Wellness and healthcare are two of the
biggest issues in America. Make the wellness
of your customers is your biggest issue. ■
Jeffrey Gitomer, president of Charlotte,
N.C.-based Buy Gitomer, is a consultant
who gives seminars and conducts Internet
training programs on selling and customer
service. He is also the author of “The Little
Red Book of Selling.” He can be reached at
salesman@gitomer.com or at 704-333-1112.
0000739572
0000739571
Attractive Office Park Environment
(Across from the new Cadillac dealership)
1,500 to 30,000 sq. ft.
Holly Business Park, 1011 Eighth St., Holly Hill
3,000 to 12,000 sq. ft.
Fentress Business Center, 795 Fentress Blvd., Daytona Beach
www.seiproperties.com
386-257-1943
3,000 SF Professional Office with high traffic and visibility on Nova
Road. Built-out and ready for occupancy - Easy access with ample
parking. Ideal for attorneys, accountants and business professionals.
8,505 SF Business Office in great central location
Flexible interior space built-out with large open areas and ready for
occupancy. Ample parking and easy access from both Nova Road and
Third Street. Ideal for all types of businesses and professional uses.
For information contact:
386-258-8771 or 386-566-0694 or rweinberg@rwcontractors.com
July 21, 2008 19
Volusia/Flagler Business Report
Calendar
Upcoming local business events
July
Thursday 17
street Grill, 100 E. New York Ave., DeLand. Info:
734-4331.
Monday 21
Ormond Beach Chamber of Commerce, executive committee meeting, 8 a.m. at
na Yacht Club, 1201 S. Riverside Drive, New Smyrna Beach. Info: 428-2449.
chamber, 165 W. Granada Blvd., Ormond Beach.
Info: 677-3454.
Bob Evans Restaurant, 1711 Dunlawton Ave., Port
Orange. Info: 761-1601.
Ormond Beach Chamber of Commerce, new member reception, 5-7 p.m. at
chamber, 165 W. Granada Blvd., Ormond Beach.
RSVP: 677-3454.
Port Orange/South Daytona Chamber of Commerce, after-hours, 5 p.m. at
Family Days Lakeside Community Center, 1999
City Center Cir., Port Orange. Info: 761-1601.
August
Ormond Beach Chamber of Commerce, board meeting, 8 a.m. at chamber, 165
Friday 1
W. Granada Blvd., Ormond Beach. Info: 677-3454.
Southeast Volusia Chamber of Commerce, networking breakfast, 7:30 a.m. at Smyr-
Port Orange/South Daytona Chamber of Commerce, board meeting, 8 a.m. at
Thursday 24
Volusia Home Builders Association,
executive committee meeting, 4-6:30 p.m. at
VHBA office, 3520 W. International Speedway
Blvd., Daytona Beach. Info: 226-1414.
Tuesday 22
Southeast Volusia Chamber of Commerce, business after-hours, 5-7 p.m. at All
About Floors, 124 S. Ridgewood Ave., Edgewater.
Info: 428-2449.
Small Business Development
Center, business planning workshop, 6-9 p.m.
Southeast Volusia Chamber of Commerce, membership committee meeting, noon
at chamber, 115 Canal St., New Smyrna Beach.
Info: 428-2449.
Port Orange/South Daytona Chamber of Commerce, board meeting, 4 p.m. at
chamber, 3431 Ridgewood Ave., Port Orange. Info:
761-1601.
street Grill, 100 E. New York Ave., DeLand. Info:
734-4331.
Port Orange/South Daytona Chamber of Commerce, morning mix and mingle,
8 a.m. at Floridian Bank, 1696 N. Clyde Morris
Blvd., Daytona Beach. Info: 761-1601.
Tuesday 5
Daytona Beach/Halifax Area Chamber of Commerce, new member reception,
Monday 28
Volusia Home Builders Association,
board meeting, 5:15-6:30 p.m. at VHBA office,
3520 W. International Speedway Blvd., Daytona
Beach. RSVP: 226-1414.
at Daytona Beach College’s DeLand campus, 1155
County Road 4139, DeLand, building four, room
133. Info: 506-4723.
Wednesday 30
TBD. Info: ashley@benedictadvertising.com.
Wednesday 23
Daytona Beach/Halifax Area Chamber of Commerce, Business Development
Friday 18
Port Orange/South Daytona Chamber of Commerce, business forum, 7:45
DeLand Area Chamber of Commerce, networking group, 7:30 a.m. at Main-
a.m. at chamber, 3431 Ridgewood Ave., Port Orange. Info: 761-1601.
5 p.m. at Gene’s Steak House, 3674 W. International Speedway Blvd., Daytona Beach. RSVP: 255■
0981, ext. 229.
How to submit items:
Partnership annual after-hours event, 4:30-7 p.m.
at Halifax River Yacht Club, 331 S. Beach St., Daytona Beach. Cost: members pay $10; non-members pay $25. Info: 255-0981.
E-mail notices of upcoming business events for
possible inclusion in the Calendar at least 30 days
in advance of the event to news@vfbr.com. Events
must be held either in Volusia or Flagler counties
and must be of a business nature.
PDFA-0000739952
Volusia/Flagler Business Report’s
Nomination
Requirements:
2008 YOUNG
BUSINESS
LEADERS
AWARDS
Eligibility. Nominees must be over 18 and
under 40 years of age on October 13, 2008.
There is no cost to submit nominations.
The 2008 Young Business Leaders Awards will recognize
and spotlight young, local business leaders making a
difference in our business community. Selected
winners will be professionals, under the age of
40, who have reached a significant level of
success in their careers. They will be profiled in
the October 13th issue of the
Volusia/Flagler Business Report.
Inside:
Criteria. In choosing honorees, the
Business Report staff will consider vision
and leadership, innovation, achievement, and
impact on business and community
involvement.
Nomination Form. Forms must be submitted
online at www.vfbr.com
Deadline. 5:00 p.m., Friday, September 5,
2008.
For more information call (386) 681-2457
or email: nominations@vfbr.com.
Area manufac
VMA expo … turers showcased at
Page 8
October 15, 2007
2007
today!
Flagler’s other boom
County leads
nation – in GDP
growth? … Page
4
Business Scene
Young Business
Leaders
Nominate the
young leaders
you know
Property tax deba
te
Why shifting
is a bad idea burden on to businesses
… Page 28
Meet this year’s
winners
– Pages
14-27
PRSRT STD
U S POSTAGE
PAID
Daytona Beach
FL
Permit #150
Daytona Beach Young Professionals
Group, networking social, 6-8 p.m., location
DeLand Area Chamber of Commerce, networking group, 7:30 a.m. at Main-
families
Employees and their families
of News-Journal Corporation
and subsidiaries/affiliates are
not eligible for nomination.
Previous winners are not
elibible
eligible for nomination.
20 July 21, 2008
Volusia/Flagler Business Report
PDFA-0000739558
On May 1st, 1967, Ormond Beach Memorial Hospital opened its doors to our community. Back then,
the hospital had 96 beds. Today, the hospital now known as Florida Hospital Ormond Memorial, has 205 beds,
a Cancer Institute, the Memorial Heart Institute and an Emergency Department guarantee of seeing a health care
provider within 30 minutes of walking through the doors.
With advancement comes growth and the need to expand. A new Florida Hospital currently under construction
on Williamson Avenue is set to open its doors in the summer of 2009. The 718,000 square foot facility—double
the size of the current hospital—will sit on 135 acres featuring all private rooms with window views. The medical
campus will include a child learning center for hospital employees, a community wellness center with outdoor
trails and a community education center. This new hospital will be better equipped for starting up new medical
services that we can offer to the community
and our medical staff will be able to provide
even higher levels of care.
Find out what’s new at Florida Hospital Ormond Memorial by checking out our new website, www.floridahospitalormond.org.