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City manager resigns
Sarasota City Manager Bob Bartolotta resigned as city manager Jan. 17. Terry Lewis, the former North Port police chief who recently completed a term as interim administrator for Sarasota County, was named acting city manager for the city of Sarasota.
Bartolotta's resignation stems from an ongoing investigation into allegations he broke public record laws through illegally accessing emails. Bartolotta denies the accusations.
Sarasota City commissioners unanimously agreed to hire Lewis on an interim basis.
Bankruptcy plan disputed
The bankruptcy plan for Teltronics, a Manatee County-based electronics manufacturer, is in limbo because the official creditors committee in the case opposes the proposal.
The plan, the committee says, would allow unsecured creditors to share the proceeds of the sale of the company. Speyside Capital Partners LLC previously agreed to acquire Teltronics for $5.5 million. A bankruptcy confirmation plan hearing is scheduled for Feb. 15.
Palmetto-based Teltronics filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in June. It had revenues of $26.2 million in 2010, against a net loss of $5 million, according to the filing. It also carried assets worth $10.3 million, and a total debt of $19.1 million.
Official steps aside
Two-term Manatee County Commissioner Donna Hayes says she won't run for reelection later this year.
At least two other candidates announced they would run for the seat, in District 5. One candidate is local entrepreneur Vanessa Baugh, a Republican. Another candidate is James Golden, a Democrat who ran unsuccessfully for Congress against U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Longboat Key, in 2010. Golden served four terms on the Bradenton City Council.
Hayes decided not to run for re-election earlier this month, when Florida Highway Patrol cited her for careless driving and failing to immediately report a crash.
Home sales mixed
The median sales price of an existing single-family home rose nearly 33% in the Fort Myers area in December but fell by almost 2% in the Naples area compared with the same month a year ago, according to Realtor associations from each area.
In the Fort Myers area, the median price of an existing single-family home in December rose to $116,950 compared with $88,000 in December 2010. In the Naples area, the median price of an existing single-family home fell to $207,000 in December compared with $211,000 in December 2010.
The number of sales of existing single-family homes declined in both areas in December compared with the same month a year ago. In Fort Myers they dropped 34% to 864 sales and in Naples they fell 16% to 276.
Airport traffic falls
The number of passengers traveling through Southwest Florida International Airport in Fort Myers in December fell 3.8% compared with the same month one year ago.
The Lee County Port Authority says 667,789 passengers passed through the Fort Myers airport in December. For 2011, more than 7.5 million passengers passed through the airport, a 0.3% increase over 2010.
The airport's top carriers in December included Delta, AirTran, Southwest, JetBlue and USAirways.
Hotel revenues rise
Revenues at hotels and motels in Lee County rose 5.4% in November compared with the same month a year ago, according to the Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau.
Revenue per available room, an important financial measure that combines occupancy and daily rates, rose to $53.89 in November, an increase over the $51.11 in November 2010.
In November, the average occupancy rate rose 3.3% to 50.2% compared with the same month a year ago and the average daily rate increased 2.1% to $107.32 in that same period.
OSI plans expansion
OSI Restaurant Partners LLC renewed its lease on 120,000 square feet of space in its headquarters located at Corporate Center One in Tampa.
The company, parent to Outback Steakhouse and several other restaurants, also leased an additional 60,000 square feet.
The Westshore Boulevard Corporate Center One houses roughly 12 million square feet of space. Along with OSI's lease agreement, the New York-based consulting firm SB Americas leased 29,000 square feet.
Ron Huffner and Clay Sovich of Cassidy Turley represented the landlord in each agreement.
Amscot goes to South Florida
Amscot Financial, the Tampa-based financial services firm, will open its first location in Miami in March, and will eventually add 20 new locations in 2012, according to CEO Ian MacKechnie.
The company brought in $173 million in revenues in 2011, up roughly 3% from its 2010 total. Amscot has 1,251 full-time employees, and also employs roughly 1,000 seasonal tax preparers.
The bulk of Amscot's growth took place between 2003 and 2006, when the company went $26.7 million in revenues to $85 million three years later.
PODS to hire 150
PODS Enterprises Inc., the Tampa-based moving and storage company, plans to hire roughly 150 employees in the region by the close of the second quarter of 2012.
The firm will fill positions for customer service representatives and sales consultants to meet the seasonal demand for its moving services and steel storage containers, says Senior Vice President Lisa Goettel in a release.
The company has plans to fill between 20 and 40 positions each month from February until July; the recent positions posted to the firm's website are full-time jobs.
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