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Northeast Florida Business Briefs - Dec. 2006
ALACHUA COUNTY
Kelley Bergstrom, president of Bergstrom Investment Management, donated $2.5 million to the University of Florida's Center for Real Estate Studies.
? Gainesville residents Ken and Linda McGurn donated 216 acres around Lake Tuscawilla, just south of Micanopy, to the University of Florida Foundation. The land is appraised at more than $1 million.
COLUMBIA COUNTY
Lake City Community College received a $241,500 National Science Foundation Robert Noyce Scholarship grant to fund alternative certification preparation for math and science professionals. The training program is being offered in partnership with school districts in Baker, Columbia, Dixie, Gilchrist and Union counties.
JACKSONVILLE
Baptist Health's board of directors approved a $400- million, five-year budget, including a $114-million expansion of Wolfson Children's Hospital, a $65-million expansion of Baptist Medical Center South and a $26-million upgrade and expansion of operating suites at Baptist Medical Center Downtown. More than 40,000 new homes are planned along the Duval-St. Johns border over the next decade, and Baptist expects patient demand to increase as much as 15% annually over the next five to seven years.
? The Jacksonville Naval Air Depot has changed its name to the Southeast Fleet Readiness Center and will begin a reorganization, which will move some of the workload to other East Coast facilities.
? The Jacksonville Aviation Authority has approved a lease with California-based Majestic Realty to develop a 328-acre commercial project called Woodwings East.
? Jacksonville University has issued $70 million in bonds to build dorms and refinance existing debt.
? Rayonier sold 6,660 acres in northeast Florida for $54 million.
NASSAU COUNTY
A Kansas-based healthcare management and development company and a group of local doctors are opening the Amelia Island Surgery Center, the first ambulatory surgery center in the county.
 Hoover |
HAMILTON COUNTY
UPDATE - Gate Kills Ethanol Plan
Gate Ethanol halted plans to build a $160-million ethanol plant north of White Springs because plant costs exceeded projections. Gate Ethanol President Buzz Hoover says the cost of some of the equipment needed has risen dramatically in the last year, making the project economically unfeasible.
