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Pasco gives Trinity reprieve
Pasco County commissioners granted an extension to the developer of Trinity Town Center to continue the project, which had faced demolition after being incomplete for so long.
Bill Planes, who also owns South Capital Construction, was given various deadlines between Dec. 20 and June 1 to clean up debris and finish buildings on the site at Trinity Boulevard and Little Road. He was also given up to two years to pay $35,000 in fees owed to the county for permit extensions, but also owes $286,000 in property taxes over the last three years.
Port boosts security
The Tampa Port Authority approved a $1.9 million expenditure to hire Hillsborough County sheriff's deputies for additional security. The amount will cover the first year of a six-year contract.
The per-capita cost for 17 officers is more than $100,000 each, covering vehicles and equipment along with deputies' pay. Richard Wainio, director of the Port of Tampa, said it spends at least $6 million annually on security.
Travel site auction
The U.S. Bankruptcy Court set a Nov. 29 auction date to liquidate assets of 1800Hotels.com, a Tampa-based website that offered discounted rooms before filing for reorganization this past summer.
The site ran into trouble with its room suppliers, leading to thousands of reservations being canceled. It filed for Chapter 11 reorganization in July, then asked the court last month to liquidate its assets.
Launched by former St. Petersburg College student Graham Peakin, 1800Hotels started as a tip-sheet service for Irish tourists and expanded to Tampa two years ago. Peakin claimed $40 million in revenue in 2008 and expected to double that amount.
Company disputes taxes
The company that leases space at Marina Jack, a prominent waterfront property in downtown Sarasota, might sue the Sarasota County Property Appraiser's Office.
The company, Jack Graham Inc., seeks to challenge the property appraiser's decision to go after $1.5 million in taxes on the property, including $1.2 million for unpaid back taxes. The company says Marina Jack serves a public purpose and should be exempt from paying property taxes.
On Nov. 15, Jack Graham Inc. received permission from Sarasota city officials to sue the property appraiser; it needed permission because the city owns the land and the building. The firm leases the land and buildings for 3% of its annual revenues, which came out to about $300,000 last year.
Sarasota County Property Appraiser Bull Furst says Marina Jack isn't the only tenant on public lands that pays property taxes. Some of the restaurants near Marina Jack, for example, pay property taxes.
Firm purchases peer
One of the largest construction firms in the country, Rhode Island-based Gilbane, has bought W.G. Mills, one of the largest construction companies on the Gulf Coast.
Terms of the deal for Manatee County-based Mills weren't disclosed. Gilbane, a $4 billion company, is expected to close the deal for Mills Dec. 1. Mills reported $275 million in 2009 revenues.
The management team at Mills, including CEO and founder Walter Mills, President Lem Sharp and Executive Vice President Tim Hensey, will continue to lead the company. Walter Mills founded the firm in 1972.
County embraces movies
Manatee County commissioners recently passed an updated version of a film industry ordinance in the hopes of attracting new business to the county.
The ordinance, originally passed in 1990, authorizes the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau to create a film commissioner position. CVB officials Elliott Falcione and Debbie Meihls will jointly fill the position.
In addition to promoting the region, the film commissioner will create a uniform permit application for the entire county. Moreover, the film commissioner will oversee when and how county property is used in a production.
Lee considers incentives
Lee County commissioners are weighing subsidies totaling $5 million for an undisclosed biotech company that is considering locating in the Fort Myers area.
The company is seeking taxpayer subsidies to cover the costs of building a 155,000-square-foot facility that will house 214 employees in the next five years, according to documents filed with Lee County.
The firm plans $40 million in capital expenditures and will pay an average wage of $66,397, plus benefits of $6,634 per employee. Subsidies for the project would come from the county's $25 million incentive program.
Arthrex signs agreements
Naples-based medical device manufacturer Arthrex recently agreed to distribute a cartilage-repair device in Europe made by Kensey Nash, another medical device company.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the Kensey Nash device is used to support the regeneration of cartilage in the knee. Kensey Nash is based in Exton, Pa.
Separately, Arthrex reached a settlement in a patent-infringement suit brought against it by Virginia-based MicroAire Surgical Instruments. Terms of the settlement were not disclosed but involved technology for minimally invasive treatment of carpal tunnel syndrome.
Arthrex, one of the largest companies on the Gulf Coast, reported $800 million in revenues in 2009.
Gas pipeline ruptures
A natural-gas pipeline operated by TECO Peoples Gas ruptured in Fort Myers on Nov. 11, forcing a gas outage at 1,200 businesses in Lee and Collier counties.
Businesses such as restaurants in Lee and Collier counties scrambled to find alternative sources of fuel while natural gas supplies were restored for more than half of the customers four days after the accident. Peoples Gas says it expects to restore full service by Nov. 19.
TECO says the pipeline was ruptured when a heavy equipment operator from another company ruptured the main natural-gas line.
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