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Southwest Fla. & Tampa Bay Business Briefs - Nov. 2009
Bradenton —?Mustang Vacuum Systems, which makes vacuum coating and metallizing equipment, plans to add 125 jobs at its south Manatee County plant within the next two years.
» The city’s housing authority is developing plans to replace the 70-unit Sugg housing development in east Bradenton with a new facility.
Brooksville — The Pasco-Hernando Workforce Board and the Hernando County Chamber of Commerce have teamed up to create a worker retraining academy.
Hillsborough County — A citizens committee of the county’s Environmental Lands Acquisition and Preservation program has suggested purchasing and preserving the 13,000-acre Cone Ranch in northeast Hillsborough.
» Construction of the Suncoast Parkway’s $10-million Lutz Lake Fern Road interchange is complete.
Longboat Key — Amid a fight over maintenance fees between the owner of the Colony Beach & Tennis Resort and the owners of the resorts’ 237 condo units, the resort has suspended its hotel services, stopped booking rooms, fired tennis pros and canceled its annual Stone Crab, Seafood & Wine Festival. The Colony, the first home of the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy, had been ranked among the nation’s best tennis resorts.
Naples — Beasley Broadcast Group (Nasdaq-BBGI) has created a mobile phone application that allows users to listen to 36 Beasley-owned radio stations in the country.
» The Federal Reserve Bank and the Florida Office of Financial Regulation have ordered Orion Bank to submit to government oversight to stay open. The regulators have concerns about the bank’s management and financial reporting.
Odessa — Dais Analytic, which uses nanotechnology to reduce energy costs and pollution, has won a $200-million trade agreement with China that Dais Analytic says will bring 1,000 jobs to Pasco County over the next five years.
 “Unconditional Surrender” |
» The 26-foot statue “Unconditional Surrender” will
stay where it is, overlooking Sarasota Bay, after a Sarasota man agreed to buy it for $500,000 and then donate it to the city. Some residents urged commissioners to refuse the
donation, saying the statue was
more roadside attraction than
fine art.
Tampa —?Walter Industries is moving its headquarters to Alabama. Once a home builder, Walter Industries has evolved into a $1.2-billion energy company with more than 2,000 employees. The Tampa headquarters employed 53.
» Odyssey Marine Exploration (Nasdaq-OMEX) has resolved a dispute with the British government over its discovery of the HMS Victory, which sank 265 years ago. Odyssey received $160,000 for two cannons it raised. It dropped its claim on any treasure, but may profit by helping the British government salvage the wreckage.
Winter Haven —?Cypress Gardens, the iconic theme park that opened in 1936, has closed.
