• Alternate Text
  • Loading

  • Newsletters
  • Podcast
  • Public Notices
  • 40 Under 40 Nomination
  • Mobile App
  • Subscribe
  • Login
  • News
  • Strategies
  • Entrepreneurs
  • M&A
  • Leadership
  • Regions
    • Tampa Bay-Lakeland
    • Manatee-Sarasota
    • Charlotte-Lee-Collier
    • Florida
  • Industries
    • Business Support
    • Commercial Real Estate
    • Residential Real Estate
    • Development
    • Finance
    • Food-Beverage
    • Health Care
    • Manufacturing
    • Retail
    • Sports–Entertainment
    • Technology
    • Travel-Tourism
  • Insights
  • More
    • Advice
    • Transactions
    • 40 Under 40
    • Big Book of Business
    • Subscribe
    • Opinion
    • Executive Diversions
    • Change-Makers
    • Reprints
  • News
  • Strategies
  • Entrepreneurs
  • M&A
  • Leadership
  • Regions
    • Regions
    • Tampa Bay-Lakeland
    • Manatee-Sarasota
    • Charlotte-Lee-Collier
    • Florida
  • Industries
    • Industries
    • Business Support
    • Commercial Real Estate
    • Residential Real Estate
    • Development
    • Finance
    • Food-Beverage
    • Health Care
    • Manufacturing
    • Retail
    • Sports–Entertainment
    • Technology
    • Travel-Tourism
  • Insights
  • More
    • More
    • Advice
    • Transactions
    • 40 Under 40
    • Big Book of Business
    • Subscribe
    • Opinion
    • Executive Diversions
    • Change-Makers
    • Reprints
  • Newsletters
  • Podcast
  • Public Notices
  • 40 Under 40 Nomination
  • Mobile App
  • Subscribe
  • Login

More News

    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • July 6, 2007
Like Radical, Dude

A national teen retailer is bringing its California vibe to Florida.It's opening 17 stores in the Sunshine State in less than a year.

  • Tampa Bay-Lakeland
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • July 6, 2007
Coffee Talk

Insurers to governor: What promises?: Seriously, Gov. Crist can't be surprised that homeowner insurance rates didn't drop as far as he and lawmakers predicted, can he?Challenges linger for Gevity: Lakewood Ranch-based Gevity is still struggling to execute its transformation from a professional employee organization driven largely by workers' compensation insurance to becoming a full-service human resource provider for small and mid-sized businesses.Analyst pessimistic on Tech Data: Though he has increased his target price on Tech Data shares, Zacks Equity Research senior retail industry analyst Rob Plaza is keeping his sell rating for the Clearwater-based technology distributor.New headquarters for WCI?: Is WCI Communities relocating?Speculation in Lehigh Acres: Dennis Black, the Port Charlotte appraiser who shined the light on speculative home buying in North Port, has his sights set on Lehigh Acres next.Do you have 1 million square feet?: Commercial real estate brokers at Cushman & Wakefield have identified nine companies scouting sites in Florida that could each handle 1 million square feet of space.

  • News
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • June 29, 2007
Commercial Real Estate Briefs

Fort Myers' P.F. Holdings buys Horizon PlazaParadise Development buys ArborGate land for WalgreensDebbie's Drapery Design Studio moves to Trace Center WayManatee County School Boardbuys Superior Electronics buildingsSarasota investors buy Riverside Oaks ParkMassachusetts investor buys Commerce Court buildingNewland Communities planning FishHawk neighbor Lake HuttoBPG Investment Partnership buys, renames telecom buildingOcala investors buy buildingsplan condo conversion

  • Charlotte–Lee–Collier
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • June 29, 2007
Tuning up Deals

Anthony Migliore comes to commercial real estate with songs still spinning in his head from a past career. His best melody has been to aim for small successes.

  • Manatee-Sarasota
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • June 29, 2007
Coffee Talk

Gaining and losing muscle in the Russell: Coast Financial Holdings, the battered parent company of Bradenton-based Coast Bank, has suffered yet another setback: Being booted off the prestigious family of Russell Indexes, one of the leading stock market tracking funds.Chamber recognizes pro-business legislators: A diverse combination of old standards and rookie state legislators from the Gulf Coast were given high grades, and praise, by the Florida Chamber of Commerce when it comes to voting and pushing through bills in the best interests of business. Coffee businesses roast a good deal: Sarasota-based coffee entrepreneur Michael Duranko's main goal since he opened his first Local Coffee & Tea shop on Siesta Key in February has been to combine his ambitious growth plans with a keep-it-local mantra.Bay City Plywood re-brands: Tampa-based home improvement chain Bay City Plywood is modifying its name to add "Cabinets" to become Bay City Plywood & Cabinets.Hovnanian: Fort Myers is the worst housing market: What once was one of the best housing markets has turned into the worst.Colliers Arnold growing, makes moves: Clearwater-based real estate brokerage Colliers Arnold has hired 70 new people in the past year and is planning a move to bigger office digs.WCI Communities stock drops below $20: The stock of WCI Communities dropped 18% in the week ending June 26, generating endless speculation on message boards and blogs.Existing-

  • News
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • June 25, 2007
Commercial Real Estate Briefs

Investment company buys Sarasota Commerce CenterPublix Super Markets closes on Charlotte distribution siteManatee County buys Perico land for preservationTriton Cos. plans Hyattfractional on Siesta KeyLowe's home improvement store headed to Palmer RanchCore buildsin West PalmTimberstone Group buys, redevelops Avenue ShopsGarden Street Iron & Metal buys adjacent land, plans expansion, new grinderNorthStar buys funeral homeDeveloper plans Wesley Chapel centerFifth Third Bank buys land for Pasco branchLargo investors buy Clearwater office building

  • Manatee-Sarasota
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • June 25, 2007
Coffee Talk

Ray Jay in play? Nay, they say: Shares of regional retail brokers shot up earlier this month in response to Wachovia Corp.'s announced deal to buy A.G. Edwards for $6.8 billion, creating the nation's No. 2 regional broker.Gulf Coast bank deal nearly complete: The sale of one Sarasota's most successful community banks is one step closer to being complete, as federal regulators have approved the $77 million deal between People's Community Bank and Birmingham, Ala.-based Superior Bancorp.Allen to the rescue, and make it quick: In its biggest acquisition to date, Naples-based software company Allen Systems Group completed the purchase of Mobius Management Systems for $211 million.Hip restaurant chain still might hit Sarasota: Coffee Talk hears that P.F. Chang's, the trendy Chinese bistro chain, will be coming to the Sarasota market after all - only not to Pineapple SquareMotley Fool takes aim at Jabil Circuit: The financial performance at Jabil Circuit, the St. Petersburg-based electronic products solutions company, drew the attention of one of the writers for the Motley Fool personal finance website recently.NCH Healthcare sells lab company: Naples-based NCH Healthcare, responding to competitive pressures on hospital services, sold off DSI Laboratories to LabCorp, the laboratory testing giant.Go ahead, befriend your colleagues: It turns out executives are comfortable with employees becoming friends with co-workers while on the job

  • News
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • June 15, 2007
Commercial Real Estate Briefs

Enterprise Associates brings Marquee to BradentonMurdock Village proposals near important deadlineWarm Mineral Springs developer adds town center conceptEncore Bank buys offices to remodel and leaseDevelopers buy land for Partners CoveFort Myers' Dupree family acquires two office buildingsRyan Cos. US buys 380 acres for corporate parkKenyon & Partners moving to Sabal Industrial ParkBarfield Bay buys Brookside

  • Manatee-Sarasota
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • June 15, 2007
Coffee Talk

Six months ago, Sarasota Coastal Credit Union president and CEO Tom Randle told the Review his institution was like a gnat when compared to the Gulf Coast's community and regional banks.Make that more of a growing swarm of gnats. It turns out PGT, the recently turned public Venice-based manufacturer, makes more than impact-resistant windows and doors.It also produces MBAs. It's latest output was 13 employees, all of whom graduated earlier this month from the MBA program at the Sarasota/Manatee campus of Webster University. Ever improving and expanding our coverage, the Gulf Coast Business Review has hired Dave Szymanksi as Tampa Bay Editor. WCI Communities, the Bonita Springs-based homebuilder, postponed its annual meeting after corporate raider Carl Icahn urged fellow shareholders to stay away.Although CFOs in the Tampa/St. Petersburg area predict a decrease in the hiring of accounting and finance professionals in the third quarter of 2007, hiring in the market is the same as the national average according to survey results released by Robert Half International. Katie Rickert is carving up the old axiom that teenagers and college students are lazy, lackadaisical and longing for direction. And she's doing it one knife at a time. The Sunshine State has topped yet another list of good places to do business.

  • News
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • June 8, 2007
Commerical Real Estate Briefs

NY groups pay $14.7 million for Oaks PlazaCritical Path Development planning flex buildingProscenium developer signs deal with NederlanderRE/MAX Gulfstream leases 2nd downtown officeLandMark Bank to take three floorsTarget buys land for super storeFort Myers investors plan University Drive office Harbor Development Corp. invests in N. Fort Myers CVSInland acquires Brandon Centre SouthClearwater investor acquires Starlight PlazaTrail America Tire & Wheel moves to Plant City

  • Manatee-Sarasota
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • June 8, 2007
Coffee Talk

A study published in March by Tillinghast Towers Perrin shows the average homeowner would have to pay an assessment of $13,971 to cover a $15 billion storm. Even a $2 billion storm would cost the average homeowner $1,726.The vindication train engineered by Tampa-based commercial real estate broker Steve Kossoff continues to roll. First, in a deal signed last month, Bradenton-based retailer Beall's agreed to lease 200,000 square feet in the former Winn Dixie warehouse in Sarasota - the same 950,000-square-foot complex surrounding 60 acres on Palmer Ranch in Sarasota County that Kossoff and his Meridian Development Group bought for $30 million last year.Sarasota based valve manufacturer Sun Hydraulics is a hot company once again in Business Week magazine's annual Hot Growth list.Garrett Richter, the Republican state representative from Collier County, says he wishes he could have voted "maybe" when confronted with the property insurance bill earlier this year.Agriculture is a huge business in Florida, especially in inland counties.But does agriculture business have a future? The answer is a qualified yes, according to Howard Finch and Stuart Van Auken, two professors at Florida Gulf Coast University's Lutgert College of Business in Fort Myers.

  • News
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • June 1, 2007
Real Estate Briefs

Big Island Excavating prepares to open Fort Myers mineClearwater's Victor Distributing planning Fort Myers officeIndianapolis investors buy Tiki on the Beach motelSpirit Finance buys Bradenton 84 LumberDermatology at Lakewood Ranch buys nearby buildingRetailer Home Depot acquires land on GulfstreamFairway Investments buys Main Street at Hampton LakesBarfield Bay Properties acquiresBrentwood Place ApartmentsNaidip buys Landrys, Carrollwood center

  • Charlotte–Lee–Collier
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • June 1, 2007
Coffee Talk

Company, family leaves little time for politics: Turns out Laura Benson won't be in for a primary fight after all in the race to be the Republican nominee for the District 69 State House seat in 2008.Chamber bill dies, then resurrected: A bill to make it a crime for a for-profit business to use the words "chamber of commerce" died in the Florida House of Representatives' economic development committee back on May 4.Get ready for some good eats: Hungry entrepreneurs interested in owning a fast food restaurant with an old Southern feel - all-day breakfast including country ham and buttermilk biscuits anyone? - will have their chance when Bojangles' Restaurants returns to Florida.Medicare payments threaten radiation company: Medicare, the government's health-insurance system for older people, is examining how it reimburses for the use of equipment and that could hurt Fort Myers-based Radiation Therapy Services, the country's largest publicly traded operator of radiation treatment centers.Lennar staying put in Southwest Florida: As homebuilders flee Southwest Florida's moribund homebuilding market, one national builder plans to be here for at least another five years.Suffolk plan for the long haul: Michael Beaumier just smiles patiently as the question is asked. He's heard it dozens of times.Gulf Coast airport traffic rises: Passenger traffic at airports along Florida's Gulf Coast registered healthy increases this spring over last y

  • News
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • May 25, 2007
Coffee Talk

Do I hear more auctions? Going once...: Realtors at Sarasota-based SKY Sotheby's involved in a traditional tent-held auction of 20 multimillion-dollar homes May 18 considered the event a massive success.Still waiting on SevenShores: When the Review profiled the SevenShores condo and mixed-use development project June 9, it was a story about persistence and perseverance.Ave Maria University sells old campus: Ave Maria University will sell its campus near Vanderbilt Beach Road and Interstate 75 to a group of undisclosed Tampa investors who will redevelop it as a retirement community, says Nicholas Healy Jr., the university's president.Tampa firm finds interest in its latest discovery: Diving crews working for Tampa-based Odyssey Marine Exploration found much more than $500 million in water-buried treasure earlier this month in the Atlantic Ocean.Medical firm seeks to alleviate debt with IPO: Executives at Clearwater-based medical supply firm CCS Medical Holdings are seeking to cash in on the firm's recent revenue growth spurt by announcing plans to go public.Motivate from within: Everyone needs a little motivation now and then, even the best of the best employees.

  • News
    By
  • Business Observer Staff
  • May 25, 2007
Commercial Real Estate Briefs

Dealership buys Naples property, moving to Pine Ridge RoadFifth Third Bank planning third Cape Coral branchLand & Sea invests in Tamiami buildingSivertsen Commercial Real Estate developing plans for Tamiami parcelLion's Gate Development announces The ProsceniumWashington Crossing to start in '08 Simply Self Storage acquires Osprey self-storage sitePinellas EDC pitching Toytown to developersKorman Residential Properties buys River Chase for $69 millionWoolbright Development buys Bloomingdale PlazaThe Rosen Group invests in Tampa BJ's

  • Charlotte–Lee–Collier
« 1477 1478 1479 1480 1481 1482 1483 1484 1485 1486 »
The best of Business Observer, delivered directly to your inbox

Get the latest business and commecial real estate news from Tampa Bay to Naples.

Sign Up

Latest News

1
  • December 16, 2025
Report: Tampa No. 2 retail real estate market nationwide
2
  • December 16, 2025
Longboat Key to get first-ever Goodwill store
3
  • December 16, 2025
$74M Naples botanical garden names interim CEO
4
  • December 16, 2025
Sarasota County buys 3.59-acre Venice waterfront property
5
  • December 16, 2025
Naples senior center founder, prominent social services advocate dies at 75

Contact

  • 1970 Main St.
  • Third Floor
  • Sarasota, FL 34236
  • Phone: 941-362-4848

Extra, Extra!

  • Newsletters
  • App
  • Podcast
  • Big Book of Business

more

  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Distribution Points
  • Jobs
  • Privacy Policy
  • Subscribe
  • Accessibility Options

sister sites

  • Your Observer
  • Jax Daily Record
  • Orange Observer
  • Accessibility Options
  • Copyright © 2025 Observer Media Group Inc., All Rights Reserved
×
3 Articles Remaining!
Not a Subscriber?

Click here to Subscribe

Already a Subscriber?

Click here to Login

Sign Up for Daily Brief

Start your day with the top Gulf Coast business news you need to succeed.

Sign Up for CRE Central

Stay updated with a weekly roundup of big deals, market shifts and the people shaping commercial real estate from Tampa Bay to Naples.


Smart People Subscribe.

Turn headlines into game plans. The playbook’s right here.
Subscribe to the Business Observer today.

Subscribe Now