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As many of you know, "the media" tends to lag behind real data by about six-to-eight weeks. Whether the news is positive or negative, by the time the local newspapers are commenting, it is old news. When Home Depot announces a drop in sales or we hear housing numbers, we are dealing in old information. Today's reaction is usually based on what took place weeks or sometimes months ago. About six weeks ago, we started hearing that traffic was starting to increase in model homes. While the local newspapers have been reporting doom and gloom, many in the industry have been commenting about an increase in business. Friday, the Federal Reserve decided to cut the interest rate by a half a point, and has already discussed future cuts coming to spur activity. The move, a bit of a surprise, was enough to bolster a struggling stock market for at least a few days. For those of you who are dealing in the day to day, this might be a good sign that the worst is over, as positive spins should start trickling in. That, along with the fact that mortgage applications rose for the second week in a row, may be signs that there is improvement ahead.
There is caution to go with that. The Legislature will meet next month to determine what cuts need to be made to offset the state-budget deficit. And of course, the ever-present concern about impact fees is still with us. The Alachua County Commission hearing is coming up. Lake County is still moving forward with plans. The Marion County Commission meets tomorrow at 10 a.m, at the BOCC Auditorium to discuss increasing impact fees. Now, the newest member of the group - Columbia County - is getting into the act, with a commission-school board workshop today, and the imposition of impact fees for the first time expected by January.
As we have said all along, impact fees have a role and a place. However, it is important that elected officials understand what they are doing if unreasonable and burdensome impact fees are introduced. We must play a role in education the community about the role impact fees should have in the overall effort to have enough revenue for local governments to operate.
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www.BuildingEdgeMagazine.com
Our August 2007 issue should have been received by now. The cover story is on Ocala's Adams Homes. The National feature is Curb Appeal: Entry doors, brick and siding, roofing, lighting, landscaping, paving.
The September issue, which includes a feature on The Palms, an exciting new downtown Gainesville condominium development being brought to you by Mitch Glaeser, Greg Trunnell and Miles Kinsell, is now in production. The national feature is Interior Design: Lighting, hardware, trim millwork, interior doors, fireplaces, stairs, closet systems.
Sales are open for our October issue, which will be featuring Isaac Construction in Lake City. The National Feature will be on Weathering the Elements: HVAC, insulation, house wrap, anti-mold products, siding and brick, roofing, pest control .For more information, please contact us at (352) 372-3958 in Gainesville, or (352) 368-1707 in Ocala.
To finish off the year, Demetri Homes of Ocala will be our November cover story and GC Construction of Gainesville will be featured in December.
Our Summer 2007 issue of Commercial Building Edge is now available. The cover feature is on Gray Construction Services. The National Feature is on Green Building.
Sales are now open on the Fall 2007 issue, which will include a cover feature on Ocala's Ausley Construction . The Winter issue will feature Trunnell Construction on the cover.
HOME™: Living in the Heart of Florida Resource Guide
Sales for our newest publication, Home: Living in the Heart of Florida, will be closing in the next few days. We are finishing the issue right now, and are certainly excited about the array of articles and information, we will be bringing to the community. Our website, while still a work in progress, is up. I encourage you to bookmark the link, as we aim to make this the number one website for the North Central Florida Community. It is www.LivingInTheHeartOfFlorida.com. Part of this new publication will be our newcomer/relocation resource guide. It will include just about everything anyone looking to move to our area or relocate within the 12-county market will need. To be listed in the resource guide, please call us today to discuss. I am pleased to note that we have formed some terrific partnerships with local establishments to insure success through the delivery of the publication. Just to name a few, we are working closely with Gainesville Regional Airport , Gainesville Chamber of Commerce and the Newberry/Jonesville Chamber of Commerce. Coming this fall will be a publication for the consumer unlike anything out there today!
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Unlicensed Contractor Citations Soar
The number of county citations against unlicensed construction contractors nearly tripled in the first six months of 2007 compared with the same time period last year. The Marion County Building Department registered 157 citations through June, and only 58 for the first six months of 2006. In part, that's because of stepped-up enforcement efforts, said Tracy Gale, spokeswoman for the Building Department. Click Here>>
State: Widening of SR 40 Years Off
Residents and property owners from several Ocala National Forest communities descended on the gymnasium at Ocklawaha River Bridge Baptist Church last Tuesday to get the latest on the plans to widen East State Road 40. The news they got was that construction will not start any time soon and it will not be cheap. Right now, the Florida Department of Transportation has about $2.5 million of funding set aside in 2011-12 for the first phase of design, from about one mile west of County Road 326 to County Road 314.
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Alachua County Considers Tax District, Animal Fee
A new assessment to fund Alachua County Animal Services and a special tax district to pay for parks and recreation will be explored as the County Commission continues to search for new ways to raise money in response to state-mandated property tax cuts. Commissioners met Thursday night to discuss the 2008 budget, which will have a property tax reduction of about $2.5 million.
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Public Meeting for SW 62nd Boulevard Connector
The public is invited to a meeting to discuss options for extending SW 62nd Boulevard from SR 26 (Newberry Road) to SR 24 (Archer Road.) The meeting will be held this Wednesday from 6 to 8 p.m. at the auditorium of the Doyle Conner Building, located at 1911 SW 34th Street, Gainesville.
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Moment of Truth Nears for Marion County Taxpayers
The bill won't arrive until November, but this week, Marion County business and homeowners will get an idea of their property taxes for the upcoming year and beyond. On Monday, Property Appraiser Villie Smith's office mails out the annual "TRIM," or truth in millage, notice to inform property owners what their maximum tax bills will be in November.
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Columbia County and School Board Officials Plan Impact Fees Workshop
The cost of new construction in Columbia County is expected to increase as early as January because of impact fees. The Columbia County Board of County Commissioners and the Columbia County School Board has scheduled a joint workshop for today to discuss adopting the ordinances necessary to making Columbia County impact fees a reality.
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Dunnellon Chamber of Commerce Thinks City Council's Plan Lacks Input
Dunnellon's City Council has come under fire by the Chamber of Commerce, which claims the city has done little to communicate and solicit input as it begins to move the city in a new direction. Council members said they do not understand the complaint. Chamber President Lanse Fero said more people need to be included in the discussions about changing the city's comprehensive plan and its impact on the city's economic and geographic future.
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Leesburg Eyeing Cuts in Reserves and Programs
Capital improvements and city programs could be on the chopping block. The City Commission will discuss a proposed $153 million budget, which is a 13 percent decrease from last year's budget, at a workshop last Tuesday.
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The Impact Fee Question: A Tale of Two Counties
The Citizens for Better Government (CBG), a Lake County-based group that has been adamantly opposed to higher impact fees in Lake County, recently released a report that compared Lake County to eight counties in several Southeastern states. The comparisons examined how each stacked up to Lake County, and specifically how impact fees affected each of those areas. The Daily Commercial not only decided to independently verify the CBG's information, but to also travel to one of those counties.
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MCBA Calendar of Events
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BANCF Calendar of Events
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State Budget-Slashing Ideas Leave No Services Untouched
Poor pregnant women could face extra hurdles to get a Caesarean section. Some criminals could spend less time in prison. Hospitals might lose money they get to treat poor immigrants. Tipsters could get less reward money to help find missing kids. Those are some of the cost-cutting recommendations that more than two dozen state agencies are considering to help close a more than $1 billion budget shortfall, due to a sluggish economy that has sapped tax collections. The proposals are just that -- proposals -- ordered by Gov. Charlie Crist and legislative leaders due today. The Florida Legislature will meet Sept. 18 for a three-week special session to decide what to cut and what to keep, and whether to raise fees to help cushion the blow to the myriad Floridians who depend on state spending.
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More Workforce Housing Key to Healthier Economy
The cost of housing is cited again and again as a chief problem for companies trying to recruit and retain a high quality workforce. A study released by the Beacon Council this week reinforced this -- workforce housing landed as one of businesses' top three economic concerns, along with transportation and insurance.
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FIU Students Building Green Home to Display at Olympics
While most participants in Beijing's Summer Olympics next year will be going for the gold, a group of Florida college students will go for the green. Florida International University students are building a 3,200-square-foot house that aims to become one of the most energy efficient and environmentally friendly homes in the world.
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Cities Set to Defy State on Tax Rates
About half of Central Florida's cities are indicating they may ignore the state's orders to slash their tax rates. Local elected leaders last week outlined their spending plans for the year ahead, and 26 of 55 cities and counties in the Greater Orlando area set preliminary tax rates higher than those mandated by legislators.
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Sumter Voters May Get Say on Fees to Pay for Growth
Sumter County school officials must wait until Tuesday's regular board meeting to discuss future funding options after county commissioners refused to support a school impact fee without voter support. Schools Superintendent Rick Shirley said a $1,000 impact fee on new, non-age-restricted homes would let families and new residents pay for those upgrades rather than placing the burden on existing taxpayers.
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Property Tax 'Portability' Gets Frosty Reception from Tax Panel
A proposal to let homeowners take at least part of their existing tax breaks with them when they move received a frosty reception Thursday from part of a commission studying Florida's tax structure. Several members of the Taxation and Budget Reform Commission's property tax work group said the "portability" proposal would exacerbate inequities caused by the Florida Constitution's Save Our Homes Amendment, which voters adopted in 1992.
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Localities Spent Big in Tax Debate
Nearly $1 out of every $10 spent lobbying the Florida Legislature this year came from cities and counties looking to lessen the blow of property tax cuts and seeking more money for hometown projects. All told, special interests -- including insurance companies, giant telecommunications firms and local governments -- spent between $35 million and $83 million on lobbying just the Florida Legislature, newly filed reports show. Anywhere from $17 million to $52 million also was spent to lobby Gov. Charlie Crist and state agencies.
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FPL Seeks Permits for Wind Project
Plans for windmills to generate power in St. Lucie County are still in preliminary stages, Florida Power & Light said Wednesday. It's one of the company's efforts to find alternative sources of energy to generate electricity.
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Florida Regulators Plan to Reject Insurers' Rates
State insurance regulators said they plan to reject the rate reductions of three homeowners' insurance companies because they are too small. Floridian Auto and Home and Travelers Indemnity Co. of America each reduced rates by 8.3 percent; Cypress Property & Casualty cut rates by 5.4 percent. Regulators had predicted that insurers would reduce rates by 24 percent on average to reflect costs savings they were to achieve by buying reinsurance from an expanded state pool.
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Florida Rock Shareholders OK Merger
Florida Rock Industries Inc. shareholders overwhelmingly approved the company's proposed merger with Vulcan Materials Co. at a special meeting Tuesday. That's because the U.S. Department of Justice has not completed its antitrust review of the deal, Florida Rock CEO John Baker told shareholders. Baker said he still hopes that the deal can close by Sept. 30, but the closing might be extended into October as the companies wait for the antitrust clearance.
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Crist: Economic Boom May Have Green Roots
Saying there's "gold in green,'' Gov. Charlie Crist predicts his sweeping efforts to reduce greenhouse gases and ratchet up use of alternative energy in the state also will provide an economic boom. But some of Crist's fellow Republicans in the Florida House do not share that view and say his initiatives will cost Floridians more.
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Fed Cuts Bank Interest Rate to Calm Markets
The Federal Reserve, declaring that increased economic uncertainty poses risks for U.S. business growth, announced Friday that it has approved a half-percentage point cut in its discount rate on loans to banks. The action was the most dramatic effort yet by the central bank to restore calm to global financial markets which have been roiled in the past week by a widening credit crisis.
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Mortgage Applications Climb for Second Week
U.S. mortgage applications rose for the second straight week, driven by growing demand for refinancing and home purchase loans, an industry group said Wednesday. The Mortgage Bankers Association's seasonally adjusted mortgage application index rose 3.4 percent in the week ended Aug. 10 to 678.7, its highest level since the middle of May. The rising applications figures seem to fly in the face of a spate of reports pointing to a crisis of confidence in the mortgage industry
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Micro-Markets Defy Downturn
Although real estate sales and prices are flat or down in dozens of metropolitan areas, they may be up in micro-markets within those areas, along as there is at least moderately good local job and income growth. These strong markets are characteristically located in closed-in, established neighborhoods convenient to the urban center's employment and cultural attractions. These areas have above median incomes with housing prices to match.
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Plastic Pipe an Affordable and Green Choice for Housing
The plastic pipe is a critical component that helps keep American homes and municipal water and sewer systems affordable and functional for decades to come. Plastic piping systems have a number of properties that protect consumers and the environment. For example, they protect the environment by minimizing the energy required to heat water for home use.
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FHA Loans Make a Comeback
The collapse of the subprime mortgage business has revived interest in federally backed Federal Housing Administration loans among low-income and first-time home buyers who have been shut out of the mortgage market. After a three-year slump, applications for FHA loans jumped 73.8%. In recent years, private lenders have launched innovative mortgage products targeted at first-time home buyers and borrowers with impaired credit. Despite the rebound, FHA is flawed and needs some major improvements.
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Companies See Profit Potential in Green Efforts
Big business fears that the fight against climate change will cost billions are now giving way to a different view: green can be the color of money. The United States, Europe and Japan are locked in a frantic race to cash in on the exploding business of saving the planet. London has become the center for the multibillion dollar market in carbon emissions, attracting investors who trade CO2 allowances. Silicon Valley is leading the way in attracting venture capital for green technologies that shows signs of mirroring the dot-com boom - and critics say eventual bust - of the 1990s. And Japan's Toyota has sold more than a million Prius hybrid models, its cutting-edge eco-friendly car.
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U.S. Green Project Enters Canadian Home Market
The Canada Green Building Council will introduce a rigorous new green home certification program a year ahead of schedule by piggybacking on a U.S. pilot project instead of conducting one of its own. Some Canadian homebuilders were so eager for the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) for Homes program that they joined the American pilot project, said Derek Satnik, chair of the council sub-committee dealing with the issue.
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Butler Plaza Seeks Gainesville Annexation
Gainesville's city limits could expand to include most of Butler Plaza in an annexation that would give city commissioners the deciding vote on plans to develop another 140 acres north of the existing development. Applications to start the process that would bring nearly all of the Archer Road shopping center, which contains about 1.2 million square feet of commercial space, into Gainesville were filed Tuesday morning, ending years of speculation about when, or if, it would join the city.
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U.S. 441 is Road to Home Improvement
The new Home Depot stands pretty well on its own as a destination for home improvement shoppers, but it is just the newest and largest of several businesses that, whether by coincidence or design, have formed a building supplies cluster in the area of U.S. 441 and NW 53rd Avenue.
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Commercial Building Bolsters Phoenix
In Phoenix, the temperature is about 100 degrees, yet construction crews are busy at work on just about every corner of this city's downtown. The convention center is being expanded, a light-rail system is coming and several hotels are sprouting up alongside new offices and retail space. Troy Hoberg, director of business development at Hunt Construction Group Inc., which built the $400 million downtown stadium, said that he does not see construction slowing down in the foreseeable future.
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Development Proposed for Coney Island
Michael Devito, a Goldman Sachs Group vice president, has a special attachment to Coney Island. He's a three-time winner of the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July hot-dog-eating contest and loves the all-beef franks. Coney Island, an hour by subway from Wall Street, has attracted bankers and butchers, kids and adults, locals and tourists for 110 years. Many are returning this summer for what may be their last visit before development transforms Brooklyn's historic seaside amusement district.
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Bridge Collapse Spurs Senate to Study Infrastructure
In response to the Aug. 1 collapse of the bridge in Minneapolis, the American Society of Civil Engineers has stepped up efforts to disseminate technical information on the current state of disrepair in the nation's infrastructure. They endorsed legislation to create a commission to study the nation's infrastructure needs to receive priority treatment in the U.S. Senate.
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Bush Immigration Regulations Fall Short
The Bush Administration announced its plans to modify its border security and immigration enforcement policies based on current law through a series of proposed reforms. However, Stephen E. Sandherr, chief executive officer of the Associated General Contractors of America, believes that the measures fall short of the nation's security and economic needs. He says they will see progress only if Congress enacts comprehensive immigration reform.
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AGC of Greater Florida Calendar of Events
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Residential August 2007
Commercial Summer 2007
HOME: Living in the Heart of Florida
Fall 2007
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