- December 16, 2025
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Hard Rock coming soon
The Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino will convert its upscale Floyd's nightclub to a Tampa location of the world-renowned Hard Rock Cafe by year end, doubling the space to 17,500 square feet.
The new restaurant/music venue will include an outdoor patio, burger bar and gift shop. Hard Rock International also plans to use it as a test site for new products and presentation equipment to be rolled out to all 169 locations in 52 countries.
Hard Rock Cafe will be in the northwest corner of the existing casino complex at Interstate 4 and Orient Road. Floyd's employees will be offered positions at the new venue.
Raymond James suit out
The majority of a class-action lawsuit against St. Petersburg-based Raymond James Financial Inc. has been dismissed. The suit in New York federal court accused the brokerage of misleading its clients that auction-rate securities were safe.
The ruling released Sept. 2 is the latest litigation against financial companies following a February 2008 freeze in the auction-rate debt market, which at that time reached $330 billion. U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan, who previously dismissed the same suit last year but allowed plaintiffs to file again, said Raymond James' clients failed to show that the firm acted with fraudulent intent.
Only one misinformation claim by a single plaintiff was allowed to stand.
WFG opens state HQ
WFG National Title Insurance Co., a subsidiary of Lake Oswego, Ore.-based Williston Financial Group, will open its Florida headquarters in Safety Harbor. The company currently operates in 33 states.
The office will be used to recruit and support title agencies statewide, with WFG saying now is a prime opportunity for making cost-effective acquisitions. Michael Sexton, a mortgage and title insurance industry veteran with nearly 25 years of experience, will be state manager.
Education firm bought
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing recently acquired Impact Education, a Fort Myers-based provider of educational software. Terms were not disclosed.
Houghton Mifflin will merge Impact Education with its SkillsTutor division. Adam Hall, the president and CEO of Impact Education since 2007, has been named president of SkillsTutor.
Boston-based Houghton Mifflin is the largest publisher in the world of educational materials for children in kindergarten through 12th grade. SkillsTutor software helps students learn reading, math, language arts and science on computers and mobile devices.
Complaint dismissed
A circuit-court judge has dismissed a civil complaint against land development company Bonita Bay Group by Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum.
McCollum alleged the Bonita Springs-based residential developer failed to refund fees to members of its social clubs as promised. Bonita Bay Group suspended refunds in late 2008 because of the deteriorating economy and subsequently sold four clubs to members and investors.
Circuit Court Judge Michael McHugh dismissed the claims after reviewing briefs and hearing oral arguments, the company says.
Marco airport expands
The Federal Aviation Authority has granted nearly $5.5 million for the Marco Island Executive Airport to build a taxiway.
The Marco airport has a 5,000-foot runway but it's the only one in Florida that accommodates business jets and doesn't have a taxiway. Because the airport doesn't have a taxiway, aircraft must taxi on the runway while other aircraft wait to land or take off.
Collier County spent 10 years to complete the environmental permitting and mitigation for the project.
Hospital seeks upgrade
Blake Medical Center, a 383-bed hospital in west Bradenton, announced plans to build a Level II trauma center.
The project will cost at least $2.5 million, hospital officials say, and would offer trauma care to residents in Manatee, Sarasota and DeSoto counties. The closest hospital to Bradenton and Sarasota with Level II trauma care is Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg.
Blake officials hope to submit an application for the designation to the Florida Department of Health by early next year. The health department will review the application to see if there is a critical need for the upgrade. The entire process could take at least a year.
Blake, which is owned by HCA, says a move to Level II, including a renovation and expansion of its current emergency room, could create up to 20 jobs.
Opportunities rise
The number of online job postings in August for Charlotte, Manatee and Sarasota counties rose 17% from a year ago, according to a national research firm that analyzes Internet job searches.
In total, the Conference Board, a New York-based research firm, found there were 12,283 online positions for the three counties posted last month. Manatee County was up 20%, the biggest gain, while Sarasota County saw a 17% increase and Charlotte County rose 8%.
County recruits studio
A television production firm that was offered more than $1 million in state and local government incentives will spend $14 million to establish a business in Lakewood Ranch, according to the Economic Development Corp. of Sarasota County.
The company, which officials initially declined to name, committed to create 117 jobs over the next two to three years with an average annual salary of $72,000. The company also plans to lease a 30,000-square-foot building in Lakewood Ranch.
Sarasota County officials, through the EDC, approved $650,000 in cash incentives, which will be paid over time as hiring increases. The state of Florida will also provide $468,000 in tax rebates, contingent on the county's contribution of one fourth of that total ($117,000).
