Marcus & Millichap arranged the $1 million sale of 78th Avenue Apartments, a 11-unit apartment property at 4030 78th Ave. N. in Pinellas Park. Sebastian Harris, Adam Podbelski, Ned Roberts and Jason Hague of Marcus & Millichap’s Tampa office represented the seller, a limited liability company. The buyer was a private investor. “Through our exhaustive marketing efforts, we were able to generate 14 written offers from local, out of state, and international investors,” Harris said in a news release. “The volume of activity further highlights the incredible demand we are seeing for value-add multifamily assets of all sizes in Florida.”
Publix Super Markets Inc. reported gains in sales and earnings for the fiscal year that ended Dec. 28, 2019. The Lakeland-based grocery chain reported net earnings for FY 19 of $3 billion on sales of $38.1 billion. Sales were up 5.6 percent from the previous year and net earnings were up 26.2 percent, a news release said. Effective March 1, the company's stock price increased from $47.10 per share to $48.90 per share. Publix stock is not publicly traded and is sold only to Publix associates and members of its board of directors.
Organizers of the St. Anthony's Triathlon are looking for 1,000 volunteers to assist with the race during the last weekend in April. Volunteers are needed for three separate events: the St. Anthony’s Sports and Fitness Expo on April 24-26, the Meek & Mighty Triathlon on April 25, and at the main Triathlon, for both Olympic and Sprint distance races on April 26. All volunteers will get a commemorative race T-shirt, access to the volunteer hospitality tent and the opportunity to watch talented pro and amateur triathletes compete at this popular race. Sign up to volunteer online here. The St. Anthony's Triathlon has been named one of the top 10 Great Destination Triathlons in the United States by Complete Tri and one of the "5 Bucket-List Olympic Distance Triathlons in North America" by Triathlon Magazine Canada.
St. Petersburg technology company GoZone WiFi, a WiFi analytics expert, is the official WiFi analytics partner for 2020 for Wi-Fi NOW, a media and advisory organization headquartered in Denmark. Wi-Fi NOW will work with GoZone to disseminate cutting-edge information on the effective application of WiFi analytics for business growth, a news release said. "Our partnership with Wi-Fi NOW is exciting because it signifies our continued commitment to leading the Wi-Fi analytics industry by bringing venues the data and engagement solutions they’re looking for,” Todd Myers, GoZone CEO, said in the release. The GoZone team also will speak at the Wi-Fi World Congress in San Francisco in May and at the Wi-Fi World Congress in the Hauge, Netherlands in November.
National Advisors Trust has partnered with Dynasty Financial Partners in St. Petersburg to offer a combination of trust services and wealth management to financial advisors. The partnership will help advisors expand their products and service offerings so they can retain and consolidate client assets, James Combs Jr., president and CEO, National Advisors Holdings Inc., said in a news release. “The partnership between National Advisors Trust and Dynasty has a singular focus — providing our network partner firms with additional tools and resources to deliver to their clients. We felt NAT’s client-centric focus fit well with our philosophy and we are excited about all of the potential synergies between the two firms,” Austin Philbin, chief administrative officer at Dynasty, said in the release. Dynasty provides wealth management and technology platforms for independent financial advisory firms. National Advisors is a family of companies providing expert trust, custody, and concierge services to trusted advisors and the families they serve nationwide.
Moody's Investors Service has changed the outlook to negative from stable for Syniverse Holdings, one of the larger technology companies headquartered in the Tampa-St. Petersburg area. The credit agency said the change reflects weak year-to-date operating results for Syniverse, which provides mobile and wireless technology solutions to connect mobile network operators and businesses. Syniverse, with $761 million in last 12 months revenue as of September 2019, had "weak earnings" that increased the company's leverage, or percentage of debt, Moody's said. There also is a risk in a somewhat concentrated customer base which limits negotiating leverage at contract renewals, and rising competitive pressures, Moody's said in a Feb. 28 report. Moody's affirmed Syniverse's existing ratings, including the B3 corporate family rating, a speculative grade rating.
Cott Corp. has closed the previously announced sale of S&D Coffee and Tea to Westrock Coffee Company for $405 million. Cott will use the proceeds from the sale of S&D to complete the acquisition of Primo Water Corp. as the company transitions to becoming a leading pure-play water solutions provider, Tom Harrington, Cott CEO, said in a news release. Cott (NYSE: COT) is a water and filtration service company and one of the largest companies headquartered in the Tampa-St. Petersburg area.
Tampa International Airport visitors will encounter an construction detour late this weekend. Beginning 8 p.m. on Sunday, March 1 through 4 a.m. on Monday, March 2, the airport will temporarily detour most arriving guests onto Spruce Street to accommodate ongoing construction on the George J. Bean Parkway. Visitors during these hours are encouraged to leave a little extra time, a news release said. As part of Tampa International's master plan expansion, the airport is widening the inbound and outbound Parkway. Ultimately, the new roadways will help the TIA accommodate 34 million annual passengers.
Westdale Asset Management Ltd., a national real estate and management company headquartered in Dallas, has acquired Dunedin Commons, a 280-unit, Class A garden-style apartment community at 2701 Dunedin Commons Place. The seller was Primerica Group One, a real estate firm specializing in commercial and multifamily development in the Tampa Bay area. Berkadia, a joint venture of Berkshire Hathaway and Jefferies Financial Group, arranged the sale, according to a news release. Dunedin Commons was built in 2018.
Three business units of Windhaven Insurance Co. are laying off 61 people in Tampa, as the company winds down operations. Windhaven, a non-standard private passenger auto insurer based in Miami, was placed into rehabilitation by a Florida court and the Florida Department of Financial Services was appointed as the receiver, according to a Dec. 17 report in Insurance Journal. In a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notice to the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity dated Feb. 25, Windhaven said the company actively sought financing to continue operating but that effort proved unsuccessful. Windhaven will close its office at 4343 Anchor Plaza Parkway in Tampa effective Feb. 28. Affected workers at Windhaven Claims Management, Windhaven Select and Windhaven Underwriters were notified about the layoffs on Feb. 25 "which is as much notice as was practicable because providing notice sooner would have precluded the company and/or its affiliates from obtaining the financing needed to enable the company to continue operating," the WARN said.
Congressman Charlie Crist (D-FL) announced $449,052 in grant funding for community health centers in Pinellas county Thursday. The funding comes from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It will help deliver healthcare to uninsured or under-insured residents of Pinellas County. Community Health Centers of Pinellas, the largest nonprofit healthcare organization in Pinellas, which serves 55,000 residents, will be awarded most of that funding, nearly $300,000, according to a statement released through Crist's office. The remainder, $162,412, will go to county-run programs. "An investment in community healthcare is an investment in our future," said Crist. "This funding secures healthier futures for thousands of Pinellas residents. Community Health Centers of Pinellas and all of our excellent low- to no-cost healthcare organizations help to remove the financial barrier to healthcare for our neighbors. This funding will allow these organizations to reach even more patients, helping to combat health disparities in low-income communities."
A 20-year-old Spring Hill, Florida man identified as Taylor Ashley Parker-Dipeppe was one of four people arrested in what the U.S. Department of Justice said was a conspiracy to threaten and intimidate journalists and activists. The defendants conspired via an encrypted online chat group to identify journalists and others they wanted to intimidate, focusing primarily on those who are Jewish or journalists of color, a press release from DOJ said. Two of the defendants created posters which included Nazi symbols, masked figures with guns and Molotov cocktails, and threatening language, and the coconspirators printed and delivered or mailed the posters to journalists or activists the group was targeting, according to the release. In Tampa, the group targeted a news reporter who was born and raised in Puerto Rico, but Parker-Dipeppe delivered the poster to the wrong address, the criminal complaint said. The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Forces in Seattle, Tampa, Houston and Phoenix.
