May 4, 2009

REGISTER TODAY FOR THE Q2 COMMUNITY ECONOMIC BRIEFING MAY 8 – The Volusia County Department of Economic Development will breif business, banking, education and local government leaders at 7:45 a.m. Friday, May 8, in the Volusia Room on the second level of Daytona Beach International Airport. The briefing will highlight the area’s employment trends, commercial and residential building activities and residential foreclosure rates for January, February and March 2009. Seating for this event is limited to 120 registrants. To reserve your seat, please call the Department of Economic Development at (386) 248-8048 by 5 p.m. Monday, May 4. Breakfast will be provided.

NASCAR DAY – On May 15, NASCAR Day will be an opportunity for fans, corporations, schools and organizations across the country to donate to the NASCAR Foundation to raise funds to help thousands of children live better lives. Proceeds raised the sale of NASCAR Day pins at “APlus at Sunoco” locations will benefit the NASCAR Foundation and Children’s Miracle Network. The promotion is running April 1 through May 18. To find a Sunoco location where pins will be sold, visit WWW.NASCAR.COM/NASCARDay.

POSTAGE INCREASE IN EFFECT – On Friday, May 11, the price for a one-ounce First Class Mail stamp increased from 42 cents to 44 cents. Other mailing service prices also have changed. However, “Forever Stamps,” regardless of purchase date, can be used without additional postage.

EMPLOYERS WANTED FOR YOUTH EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM – The Center for Business Excellence is seeking local businesses to participate in a paid summer youth employment program for individuals 16 - 24 years beginning June 2009. The program will hire up to 500 economically disadvantaged young adults in Flagler and Volusia Counties. Participants in the training program can work 15 or more hours per week. There is no cost for a business to participate and all participant wage costs are funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Businesses interested in serving as a work site for the summer employment program may apply through www.onestops.com, call (386) 323-7082, or e-mail summerprogram@cbe-fvc.org.

QUICKBOOKS CLASSES IN MAY – The Small Business Development Center at Daytona State College is presenting a Quickbooks Advanced series on Thursday evenings in May. The series is for basic Quickbooks users that would like instruction on using features like budgeting, forecasting, asset tracking, and advanced data analysis. For more information or to register, call Nancy Franssen at (386) 506-4723.

FLORIDA BROWNFIELDS REDEVELOPMENT ACT – The Florida Brownfields Redevelopment Act, adopted in 1997, is one of Florida's most successful economic development tools; it encourages and awards the redevelopment of designated areas that may have actual or perceived environmental concerns. Since its inception, the program has created and generated more than 15,000 jobs and $890 billion in capital investment in Florida. In Volusia County, the cities of Daytona Beach and Port Orange have taken advantage of this program. Call Paul Mitchell at the Volusia County Department of Economic Development to learn more at (386) 248-8048, or e-mail pmitchell@co.volusia.fl.us.

VANN DATA GREEN INITIATIVE – In conjunction with worldwide Green Day efforts April 22, Vann Data Services Inc., encouraged the public to “Go Green” by dropping off old personal computers, monitors, printers, scanners, laptops, and other electronics to be properly discarded. Vann Data partnered with A1 Assets, an industry leader in electronics recycling and reuse that transported 13,441 pounds of old equipment to its facility where it will salvage parts for reuse and properly dispose of those components that no longer are usable. Vann Data encouraged participants to donate $1 per item to Stewart-Marchman-Act (SMA) Behavioral Healthcare. SMA provides comprehensive addiction and mental health treatment in Volusia and Flagler counties.

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