October 5, 2009
SPACE PROGRAM END WILL HAVE REGIONAL ECONOMIC IMPACT As the
clock ticks toward the end of the space program, its important to note
how this will affect the regional economy, including Volusia County. On
the employment side, more than 600 workers will lose their jobs by the
end of the month. Its estimated that up to 12,000 workers
approximately 4,000 - 5,000 Volusia County residents will be idled by
the end of 2010. Besides the negative impact on regional employment,
obviously many regional businesses are partners with the space program.
Save Our Space Program! is a campaign to keep the space program alive.
Go to www.savespace.us for more
information.
SBA LIMIT INCREASED Starting this month, the Small Business
Administration (SBA) is raising the cap on its guarantee of goodwill
financing to $500,000. Historically, lenders were free to administer
SBA-guaranteed loans with any amount of goodwill financing. But in March
2009, the SBA changed its rules so that guarantees for goodwill
financing would be capped at $250,000, or 50 percent of the loan amount,
whichever was lower. SBA spokeswoman Hayley Matz said the agency
adjusted the cap after collecting data on goodwill financing to ensure
small businesses have continued access to capital. For more information,
go to the SBA website at www.sba.gov.
TRAILS AND THE GREEN A workshop at DeBary Hall will address how
trails can boost property values and capture the economic opportunities
of eco-tourism. The event will be Friday, Nov. 6. For more information,
or to register, go to
http://tinyurl.com/greentrail, or contact Tara McCue at (407)
262-7772, or Tara@ecfrpc.org.
GUERRILLA MARKET RESEARCH Learn how listening to and understanding
your customer can be the key to success. The marketplace is littered
with failures because they didnt ask for, understand and/or heed the
voice of the customer. The UCF Technology Incubator is sponsoring a
lunch and learn forum on this topic, from 11:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. Thursday,
Oct. 8, at University Tower, 12202 Research Parkway (2nd floor),
Orlando. For more information and registration, contact Renee Ayala at
(407) 882-0202 or e-mail
rayala@mail.ucf.edu.
QUICKBOOKS LEVEL 2 AT SBDC If you have a basic knowledge of
QuickBooks and desire advanced learning in the areas of setting up and
using inventory features, price levels, billing rate levels, budgeting,
forecasting, payroll and more, this series is for you. The course is
sponsored by the Small Business Development Center at Daytona State
College and taught by a certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor. Classes start
Oct. 5 and continue Oct. 12 and 19 at Daytona State College, bldg. 110,
room 248. Call Nancy at (386) 506-4723 to register and make arrangements
for payment.
FLORIDA-FRIENDLY LANDSCAPING Amid mounting anxiety about
Florida's shrinking supply of water, residential yards especially
those with St. Augustine grass are getting a lot of the blame. Water
authorities calculate that, on average, about half of the approximately
150 gallons used every day by a typical Florida resident goes to keeping
the yard green. The prime keeper of wisdom on what qualifies as
Florida-friendly landscaping is the state's Institute of Food and
Agricultural Sciences. The agency offers much guidance on the concept
through its county offices and its web site,
http://fyn.ifas.ufl.edu/homeowners/nine_principles.htm
ONLINE BANKING SAVES TIME AND MONEY More than two million American
households adopted online banking and bill payment during the past year,
raising the total to nearly 70 million, according to a new survey from
financial services technology firm Fiserv Inc. Consumers avoid late
charges due to postal delays and people who pay their bills online save
time and postage compared with paying by check. Most banks guarantee
their payments and the online service is free for account holders.
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.
