The Florida Small Business Development Center at Pinellas County is offering a two virtual workshops this week. Tuesday, Oct. 13 from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m., the center will offer a session on marketing strategies including how to improve sales and how to use social media to bring in more leads. To register, click here. A reverse trade show will be held Friday, Oct. 16 from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. During the show, participants can meet Pinellas County buyers, contract administrators and procurement staff. Visit www.PCED.org/ReverseTradeShow to register.
Benjamin Friedman, a market intelligence specialist with Pinellas County Economic Development, is the recipient of the 2020 Dan Webster Young Innovator Scholarship Award. The award, presented by the Florida Economic Development Council and sponsored by the Florida High Tech Corridor Council, is given annually to recognize the achievements of an outstanding young innovator in economic development in Florida. The recipient receives a scholarship of up to $5,000 to be applied toward coursework and fees associated with achieving the Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) designation. Friedman specializes in advanced data analysis techniques and recently created a project showing how automation could disrupt employment in Pinellas County. Friedman is an alumnus of Leadership St. Pete and the Tampa Bay Beaches Institute for leadership.
The Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority has funding in hand for new capital projects after completing two bond issue deals. The Series A bonds, worth $20.16 million, will finance capital improvements to the expressway system, including work on the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway. The Series B bonds, worth $202.2 million, will refund all or part of an earlier bond issue from 2012. The combined new money financing and taxable advance refunding transaction generated $25 million of proceeds to advance capital projects while still lowering THEA’s annual debt service by $1.2 million for the next 15 years, a news release said. Moody's assigned an A2 investment-grade rating to the bonds with a stable outlook.
The Mosaic Company Foundation said it will invest $100,00 over five years to Tampa Bay Thrives, an organization focused on increasing mental health awareness and access to services. Tampa Bay Thrives, previously called West Central Florida Mental Wellness Coalition, is a diverse group of local leaders in the area who work in industries and communities greatly affected by mental health and substance abuse. Tampa Bay Thrives mobilizes the community to strengthen behavioral health outcomes for depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders, with a focus on improving early intervention, access and awareness, a news release said. In Tampa Bay and West Central Florida, one in six people live with depression, one in 12 has a substance use disorder and suicide and overdose rates continue to rise. The area covered by this coalition is underserved for mental health and substance abuse resources, the news release said. The Mosaic Company (NYSE:MOS) is a Tampa-based crop nutrient producer and marketer.
Allied Universal wants to hire more than 50 security professionals in Clearwater. The company said it is recruiting for all shifts and all levels of experience. Allied will hold an open house event on Oct. 21 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Countryside Mall at 27001 US Highway 19 North, Suite 1039 in Clearwater. Those interested can complete an online application here.
Marcus & Millichap has arranged the $7.4 million sale of Curlew Lakes, a 44,389-square-foot retail property in Palm Harbor, according to a report in Connect Florida commercial real estate news. The property is located at 31077 U.S. Hwy 19 N. James Medefind and Evan Cannan of Marcus & Millichap’s Tampa office represented the seller in the transaction. Property records identify the seller as Curlew Lakes LLC. The buyer, Trident Curlew Lakes, a private investor with an address in Las Vegas, was represented by Rob Narchi of Marcus & Millichap’s West Los Angeles office.
The St. Petersburg City Council has approved an 30-year agreement with the Glazer Vision Foundation, which is making a $1.5 million donation to the city for naming rights for the playground at the St. Pete Pier. The foundation was established by the Glazer family, which owns the Tampa Bay Buccaneer as well as the Vinoy Renaissance Resort & Club, said Alan DeLisle, city development administrator in stressing the family's ties to St. Petersburg. On Thursday night, Council Vice Chairman Gina Driscoll repeated the concerns she initially raised last week about the size, location and theme of the sign. Chris Ballestra, director of enterprise facilities, said the sign is smaller than other Pier signage and located at a spot that makes it easy to maintain. The sign displays children running, which matches the theme of the playground, Ballestra said. The naming rights revenue offsets city costs of operating the Pier, DeLisle said. DeLisle expects to bring additional deals for naming rights at the Pier to the City Council.
Katz Capital Management LLC has bought an office building in west St. Petersburg that formerly belonged to Anchor Property & Casualty Insurance Co. Pineywoods Florida VI LLC, a fund associated with Katz Capital, paid $4.5 million for the property at 5999 Central Ave., according to a deed recorded Oct. 5 in Pinellas County. Pineywoods has a $3 million mortgage with Valley Bank for the property, county records show. Neither Katz Capital, a private equity real estate firm in Tampa, nor Anchor Insurance returned calls for comment on the purchase. Anchor stopped writing new business earlier this year and sold its policies to Homeowners Choice Property & Casualty Insurance. The four-story, 33,170-square-foot office building acquired by Katz Capital is one-half of the Wittner Center. The other building in the complex, at 5959 Central Ave., is still owned by Anchor, according to Pinellas property records.
Florida Tiger Bay Clubs will kick off their election 2020 series Friday, (Oct. 9) at noon with a virtual panel discussion on Amendment 3, which would establish a top-two open primary system for primary elections for state legislators, governor and cabinet. Confirmed panelists are former congressman Jason Altmire, state senator and Republican party chairman Joe Gruters, Democratic party chairman Terri Rizzo and Glen Burhans, Jr. of voting advocacy group All Voters Vote. To watch the free event, click here.
With a 3.8 percent positivity rate in Wednesday's overnight Covid-19 data and a 4 percent positivity rate Thursday, St. Petersburg mayor Rick Kriseman speculated in a tweet that the city may be seeing the "beginning of the impact of less restrictions, school, etc." While the city's rolling two-week average remains at 3.1 percent, the mayor urged residents not to become complacent. "We will remain focused here in St. Pete," he wrote. "If we want to see the numbers go down to where they were, we need to be vigilant in wearing our masks and maintaining distance, especially when indoors."
The Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority has announced the return of limited service of the 300x route beginning Monday, Oct. 12. The service was temporarily suspended on March 29 due to Covid-19. The 300x route transports passengers from the Ulmerton Park & Ride to the Marion Transit Center in Downtown Tampa. It will operate on a limited schedule Monday through Friday. Trips will depart the Ulmerton Park & Ride at 6:10 a.m., 7:10a.m., 3:17 p.m. and 4:17 p.m. Trips will depart the Marion Transit Center at 7:42 a.m., 8:42 a.m., 4:42 p.m. and 5:42 p.m.
