Rotary send-off party
The Dade City Sunrise Rotary club recently hosted a send-off party for the five-member Cultural Exchange Team representing Rotary District 6950, which is made up of 48 Rotary clubs with more than 2,000 members in Pinellas, Pasco, Hernando and Citrus counties.
The team of young professionals has spent months preparing for the month-long exchange program.
The group has been studying the Korean culture and language. It will travel to South Korea to presenting information about Florida and the Suncoast counties to their Korean hosts.
Sukhwa Young, a Korean-American, is a Realtor from Wesley Chapel and is the exchange team’s leader.
Other team members are Erin Ellis, an architect in Palm Harbor; John van Daalen, a chef in Dunedin; Cheryl Cleveland, a martial arts instructor in Odessa; and Dee Zajac, a nurse in Palm Harbor.
Dade City Sunrise Rotary President Camille Hernandez was the team leader last year for the exchange team, which traveled to Australia. She played an active role in preparing the 2011 team for its trip to Korea.
Ace Hardware coming to Lutz
Ace Hardware has begun renovation on the space vacated by Walgreens in Sunset Plaza, at the corner of US Highway 41 and Sunset Lane in Lutz.
The store is slated to open in December. This is the first Ace store opened by owners Scott and Todd Andrews, who currently operate Sunshine Pool & Supply.
The 11,000 hardware store will incorporate the pool and supply store, with roughly 2,000 square feet of the space devoted to swimming pool supplies and water testing.
Accounting and tax specialist celebrates 20 years in business
Anne Marie Brown, who specializes in accounting and Internal Revenue Service representation for her clients, is celebrating 20 years in the business, as of this month.
The Lutz professional supports many local and charitable organizations and plans to continue to serve clients in the Tampa Bay area for many years to come.
International Hair Co. ribbon-cutting
International Hair Co. in Wesley Chapel had its grand opening on Oct. 8. The event included a car show, entertainment, prize giveaways, pink hair extensions to support breast cancer awareness and discounts on REDKEN products.
Refreshments and chances were sold to raise money to benefit the homeless in Wesley Chapel, with $400 raised for the cause.
The business is located at 5329 Village Market in Wesley Chapel. For more information about its services or to set an appointment, call (813) 991-9697.
Insurance company adds to staff
Great Florida Insurance-Land O’ Lakes is growing and has hired Eileen Kociela as a new customer service associate. She comes to the company with more than 10 years in the insurance company, with most of that experience coming in Pasco County.
Scare up savings at Goodwill’s Planet Halloween
Goodwill is making shopping for Halloween easy. There’s a 25 percent discount on its website, www.goodwill-suncoast.org, and there’s an online costume idea book, too. In addition, each of its 15 stores has a “Planet Halloween,” which is a store within a store, dedicated entirely to Halloween merchandise. The store also has staff members it calls its “Boo Crew” to help shoppers find what they need to create cool costumes.
The stores also offer a wide selection of Halloween home décor and fall decorations.
Odessa industrial property sells for $1.39 million
Prudential Commercial Real Estate FL has announced the sale of an industrial property at 1900 Gunn Highway for $1.39 million.
The transaction was handled by Renee Dyer and Matt Kim. The 22,000-square-foot property was purchased by Gunn Highway Holdings, LLC and is being leased to CTG Holdings, a diversified energy services company that has been based in Tampa since 2001.
The Odessa facility will serve as the global corporate headquarters for CTG Power Solutions, a division of CTG Holdings.
It also will house manufacturing and packaging operations for medium- and high-speed reciprocating diesel and natural gas-fired engines.
Kirkland’s to open at Market at Northwoods Center
Kirkland’s, a home décor store, has signed a lease to occupy an 8,385-square-foot space at Northwoods Center in Wesley Chapel.
A soft opening of the store is planned for Nov. 9 and a grand opening is scheduled for Dec. 3 and Dec. 4.
“We are thrilled to bring the first Kirkland’s to the Wesley Chapel market at Northwoods Center,” Ann Smith, vice president/leasing director for Inland US Management LLC, a subsidiary of Inland Western said in a prepared statement.
“Kirkland’s is one of the leaders in home décor retailing and will be an excellent addition to our strong line-up of national retailers that contribute to the center’s 96 percent occupancy.”
Kirkland’s offers a broad selection of home décor items including framed art, mirrors, candles, lamps, picture frames, accent rugs, garden accessories and artificial floral products. It also offers an assortment of gift items for holidays and other celebrations.
Northwoods Center, 1321 Bruce B. Downs Blvd. in Wesley Chapel, is a 95,994-square-foot center anchored by Marshall’s and Petco and shadow-anchored by Super Target.
