Zephyrhills chamber awards
The Greater Zephyrhills Chamber of Commerce had its annual banquet to honor the communities’ businesses, outstanding chamber members and others who contribute to community life through their leadership.
Here are the honorees for 2021:
Small business of the year: Zephyrhills Cinema 10
Large business: Sunrise Eatery
Ambassador of the year: Debbie Murray
Leadership in government: Chief Derek Brewer, Zephyrhills Police Department
Diamond Award: Zephyrhills Museum of Military History
Citizen of the Year: Gwendolyn Beasley
Chamber member of the year: Beth Aker
Zephyrhills Chipotle opens
Chipotle Mexican Grill has opened its first Zephyrhills location, at 7646 Gall Blvd. The restaurant serves burritos, quesadillas, tacos, salads and other menu items. It also has a drive-thru pickup lane that allows customers to pick up digital orders without leaving their vehicles, according to a news release. The restaurant opened on Oct. 28.
Florida Educators Insurance relocates
Florida Educators Insurance, a Horace Mann Insurance Company, had a Nov. 16 celebration of the grand opening of its new location, at 2660 Stonewood Park Loop in Land O’ Lakes. The event included games, food and drinks.
Economic development honors
The Pasco Economic Development Council (Pasco EDC) recently received honors from three economic development organizations, hauling in a total of four awards for top marketing initiatives, according to a Pasco EDC news release.
- The Southern Economic Development Council (SEDC) honored Pasco EDC with an award for the Pasco County: Meet, Live, Work, and Play on Florida’s Sports Coast video at its annual conference in Tampa on Aug. 16.
Pasco EDC won The Best of Class, Large Division award for the video that was created to showcase the county as a place to do business, as well as visit and host a sporting event or meeting.
- The International Economic Development Council (IEDC) awarded Pasco EDC with two awards in the population over 500,000 category, at its annual conference in Nashville, Tennessee, on Oct. 6.
The 2019-2020 Annual Report received a bronze award.
The digital Ready Sites property videos won a silver award.
- The Florida Economic Development Council (FEDC) recognized Pasco EDC’s relationship with Florida’s Sports Coast by presenting the Innovative Partnership award to Pasco EDC at its annual conference in Orlando on Oct. 14.
edible grand reopening
edible, at 3749 Bruce B. Downs Blvd., in Wesley Chapel, recently had a grand reopening celebration on Nov. 20 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The event featured a live DJ, a balloon artist, face painting, free samples and more. For more information, call 813-929-7362.
Business and Education Summit
CareerSource Tampa Bay will hold an education and business summit on Jan. 10. The summit, entitled: “Vision 2022: Shaping the Future of Work,” is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., at the Tampa Marriott Water Street, in downtown Tampa. Coffee and networking starts at 8:30 a.m.
For more information or to register for the event, visit CareerSource Tampa Bay’s Vision 2022, at CareerSourceTampaBay.com/vision2022.
Registration is $50 per person. Sponsorships also are available for businesses that want to help underwrite the event or would like to register multiple individuals.
SBA offers info on FAQs
The U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy has released a new version of its most popular publication, “Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business.” Another publication, “What’s New with Small Business?” also has been updated. For more information, go to Advocacy.sba.gov.
Tampa ranks No. 6
The personal-finance website WalletHub has released its report identifying 2021’s Best Places to Retire in Florida, and Tampa came in at No. 6.
To determine the most ideal retirement places for older Americans, WalletHub compared more than 100 cities in the Sunshine State across 29 key indicators of retiree-friendliness. The data set ranges from cost of living to health care facilities per capita to number of attractions, according to a news release from WalletHub.
To view the full report and individual city ranks, visit tinyurl.com/24x5mk3j.
Volkswagen grand opening
The North Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce recently had a ribbon-cutting during the Oct. 26 grand opening celebration of the Volkswagen dealership at 26500 Silver Maple Parkway in Wesley Chapel.
Starkey appointments
Pasco County Commissioner Kathryn Starkey has been named to three committees at the National Association of Counties, according to a Pasco County news release.
Starkey will serve on these committees:
- Community, Economic and Workforce Development Steering Committee, as vice chair
- International Economic Development Task Force, as vice chair
- Large Urban County Caucus, as a member
The association’s mission is to strengthen America’s counties, and create healthy, safe and vibrant counties across the country. It serves nearly 40,000 county elected officials and 3.6 million county employees, the news release says.
New dining and retail
The Shops at Wiregrass, at the intersection of Bruce B. Downs and State Road 56, in Wesley Chapel is expanding its retail and dining options.
Among the new offerings are Atleta, Coffee Latitutes, Go! Calendars Games & Toys, Optimal Wellness, SiKicks & Collectibles, Sky Jewels and Tonella’s Handcraft.
To get details about these and to find out more about the mall’s current and coming tenants, visit the mall’s social media channels.
