Monday – January 22, 2007

MORE THAN 300 ATTEND STATE OF COUNTY ADDRESS – A crowd of more than 300 attended last week’s State of the County address delivered at the Ocean Center by County Chair Frank Bruno. The text of the speech can be viewed on the county’s website www.volusia.org.

COUNTY IDA ISSUES $3 MILLION LOAN – Florida Folder Services, Inc., Port Orange, is the latest company to benefit from the county’s Industrial Revenue Bond (IRB) program following the approval of an inducement resolution by the Industrial Development Authority for up to $3 million to expand the company’s manufacturing and printing operation. Owned by McDonough Properties, Florida Folder Services plans to construct a 27,000-square-foot production facility in the Barnett Business Park in Daytona Beach. Upon completion, the company is expected to increase its local employment by 15 manufacturing/printing jobs.

INDUSTRIAL REVENUE BONDS USED TO EXPAND LOCAL MANUFACTURING OPPORTUNITIES – Industrial Revenue Bonds (IRB) are another financial tool used by the county’s economic development team to encourage capital investment in manufacturing and related investments. This program is used to support the expansion of capital expenditures such as construction, land acquisition, renovations of existing facilities and the acquisition of capital equipment and machinery. Most IRBs are offered at competitive interest rates that average around 75 percent of the prime lending rate. If you would like to learn more about the county’s tax-exempt IRB program, contact Phil Ehlinger, the county’s Business Assistance Manager, at 386/248-8048.

AIRPORT TRAFFIC DOWN 1 PERCENT IN DECEMBER -- During December, 40,395 passengers traveled through the airport compared with 40,840 in December 2005. For the 12-month period ending December 31, 542,681 passengers passed through the County-operated Airport compared with 615,841 passengers in 2005, a decline of 12 percent. The traffic decline reflects the continued reduction of seats offered by Delta Air Lines, the airport’s primary carrier. Delta filed for reorganization under Chapter 11 in October 2005. Airport officials expect the passenger numbers to increase starting this month. Low-fare airline AirTran Airways commenced new service January 11 with three daily nonstop flights to Atlanta with connecting service to more than 40 cities nationwide. AirTran will increase its flight schedule February 15 by adding daily nonstop service to Washington-Baltimore and a fourth daily nonstop flight to Atlanta.

TRADE SHOW OPPORTUNITY AVAILABLE FOR BRAZIL -- Companies interested in initiating or expanding their international prospects in Brazil and Latin America have an opportunity to exhibit at Hospitalar 2007 in San Paulo, Brazil, June 12-15. Hospitalar is an international healthcare exhibition attended by almost 80,000 professional visitors and more than 1,000 exhibitors in the healthcare industry. Companies that most likely would benefit from this opportunity are local manufacturers of medical devices, medical disposables, diagnostic devices, implants and other related medical components. The Brazil medical device market is more than $1.5 billion annually. To learn more contact Michael Schiffhauer, International Trade Specialist, at 407/316-4730. Ask about participation in the Enterprise Florida section of the USA Pavilion at Hospitalar.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TEAM HEADING FOR CINCINNATI – The county’s economic development team will head for Cincinnati in February to participate in the V-Twin Motorcycle Trade Show. This event attracts hundreds of motorcycle and component manufacturers and has been a good source of business leads. Currently, the local economic development team is working with two companies that resulted from the V-Twin event. Both projects are in the advance stages of negotiations and include relocation opportunities for industrial sites in Ormond Beach and Daytona Beach.

NEWS ITEMS WANTED! – Please send your business news items to Dave Byron, Volusia County Community Information Director, 123 W. Indiana Ave., DeLand, 32720-4612, by fax at (386) 822-5072 or by e-mail at dbyron@co.volusia.fl.us.