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Coffee Talk (Sara/Mana)
Vote yes. Or no. Or maybe.
Sarasota County residents who seek guidance on how to vote Tuesday on the proposal to expand a land-acquisition program won't get much help from the big hitters of Sarasota's business community.
The Argus Foundation says to vote against it.
But the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce says to vote for it. Sort of.
Confused? So was Coffee Talk.
Chamber President Steve Queior concedes his group's conclusion on the issue is "complicated."
The issue coming up for a vote is an expansion of the environmentally sensitive lands program, first passed in 1999. The initial program allowed the county to buy land, such as woods and swamps, using a ceiling of $53 million in bonds. Approval of the expansion would allow the county to use up to $250 million for the program, and also buy other areas, such as parks.
A committee within the chamber initially was going to come out against the plan, citing some of the reasons the Argus Foundation does, mainly that the money could be better used in other ways, such as affordable housing. But the full chamber board voted to endorse the plan, with an "only if" as a condition.
The "only if" is that the county will look to spend the funds on lands for affordable "workforce" housing, not just environmentally sensitive areas.
"Everybody wants to protect special lands," Queior told Coffee Talk, "but there are other important priorities as well, and we are asking them to keep them in mind."
County officials have been receptive to the Chamber's ideas, Queior says, but that is no guarantee the money will be used that way if the referendum passes. The Chamber board realized that, and still voted to endorse the plan.
Kerry Kirschner, executive director of the Argus Foundation, cuts through the "ifs." He opposes expansion of program.
Argus has been there, done that, when it comes to this initiative, having supported the March 1999 referendum that passed. Kirschner says that program is not done yet, so there is no reason to ram thorough another one. "They have plenty of money left," Kirschner says. "Enough to last 15 years."
Plus, the foundation points out that if the county is going to ask taxpayers for another $250 million, there are other issues that would trump the lands program, such as the oft-mentioned affordable housing or constructing a major north-south road.
The referendum is expected to pass.
Naples kicks it up
Invitations for the super-exclusive Naples Winter Wine Festival in January are in the mail and organizers say the 550 spots will go faster than celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse can say "Bam!"
Lagasse will join 16 other culinary stars for the three-day event that will raise millions of dollars for children's charities in Collier County. Last year, the festival raised $11.1 million, more than the celebrity-studded Napa Valley Wine Auction.
The chefs and vintners won't be the only stars at the event; the festival's board of directors reads like a who's who of Southwest Florida business. It includes Don Ackerman, who recently took over as chairman of WCI Communities from Al Hoffman Jr., Bill Bain of Bain Capital, Ned Sachs, managing director and tax counsel for Morgan Stanley, John McNulty, senior director at Goldman Sachs, and Naples developer Scott Lutgert.
This year, it will cost $7,500 for two people to attend events that run from January 27 to 29. The price includes a private car to drive you to the showcase vintner dinner at one of 18 private Naples estates on Jan. 28. For $20,000, four people can attend and they'll be guaranteed to be at the same vintner dinner.
For more information, visit www.napleswinefestival.com or call (888) 837-4919.
Thirty-minutes or that splint is free
Domino's Pizza found success with its 30-minute delivery guarantee. Can it work in the medical business?
Sarasota Memorial Hospital's CEO Gwen MacKenzie hopes so, as she plans to bring the guarantee into the emergency room. The hospital will guarantee ER patients are seen by a doctor or physician's assistant within 30 minutes of registration. The guarantee follows the hospital's Emergency Care Center expansion, which added 26 new treatment rooms and additional emergency room physicians.
MacKenzie instituted a similar guarantee when she was chief operating officer of the Detroit Medical Center. Patients were offered tickets to a Tigers baseball game if they weren't served at one of DMC's six emergency rooms in 29 minutes or less.
A recent study showed the 29-minute model used in DMC statistically improved the safety rate in the ER.
MacKenzie attributed that largely to the benefit of the regimentation and standardization of processes needed to handle patients so quickly.
The reward of Sarasota Memorial's guarantee has not yet been finalized, but is expected to involve tickets to Mote Marine Laboratory, The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art or Sarasota Jungle Gardens.
"There is a learning curve with everything," MacKenzie says, "but this is something we have been practicing since June. This is not just about speed; this is also about patient satisfaction." The guarantee should become official in late November, after the expanded emergency room is opened.
Jim Boast battles Detroit
Jim Boast Dodge Inc. in Bradenton, which also operates under the Bob Boast Dodge name, sued DaimlerChrystler Motors Co. LLC over a sales contract dispute with Chrysler Motors Corp.
According to the lawsuit filed in Tampa federal court by attorney William Osborne of Orlando, Chrysler amended the dealer "minimum sales responsibility" for each of its automobile lines on May 6, 2004, but the automaker has continued to use the prior formula. Since the MSR is used to establish sales incentives, Bob Boast Dodge says the higher-requirement MSR has cost the company hundreds of thousands of dollars in incentives.
Jim Boast Dodge is asking for the court for damages, interest and court costs.
Good luck fighting Detroit.
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