Cuhaci & Peterson Completes Design Work on The Fresh Market at The Falls, south of Miami and gets contact for another in Pensacola

ORLANDO, Fla. --- Cuhaci & Peterson Architects, based in Orlando’s Baldwin Park, completed design work on “The Fresh Market” store at The Falls retail center in the Pinecrest community off U.S. 1 south of Miami. James E. Downs, president of the Baldwin Park architectural firm, said construction is complete on the 18,000 square foot facility and it opened in early September at the south Dade County shopping center. At the same time, Downs said, the architectural firm has been awarded a contract to design another new facility for “The Fresh Market” in Pensacola. That Pensacola store will also offer 18,000 square feet of upscale grocery shopping space.

NAI Realvest Negotiates Lease with Buffet Village at 10,800 square foot former Whistle Junction restaurant in Titusville

MAITLAND, Fla. - NAI Realvest recently negotiated a new lease agreement for the 10,800 square foot former Whistle Junction restaurant at 3125 Columbia Blvd. in Titusville. Paul P. Partyka, managing partner at NAI Realvest, along with principals Matt Cichocki and Kevin O’Connor, negotiated the transaction representing the landlord, SBI Leasing of Titusville. The new tenant is Buffet Village of St. Cloud, and is also a client of Partyka. The Titusville location is the Chinese buffet restaurant group’s fourth restaurant to open in Florida and fifth overall, Partyka said.

Cuhaci & Peterson Architects Names Three to Staff Positions

ORLANDO, Fla. --- Cuhaci & Peterson Architects, Engineers, Planners based in Orlando’s Baldwin Park, has appointed two new project architects and one construction administrator. Amy Phillips, marketing manager at Cuhaci & Peterson, said Gevel Marrero has been hired as project architect. He has a Bachelor of Architecture degree from Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston and has over 17 years of experience with architectural design. Chris Doig, project architect attending the University of Miami with a Bachelor of Architecture degree with a minor in Computer Information and has more than 15 years of experience in architecture. Phillips said Tim Bass, was named construction administrator. He received his Bachelor of Science in Construction from Ohio State University and has over 20 years of experience in the construction industry.

MERITAGE HOMES NAMES CONNIE COLLIER SALES ASSOCIATE IN ORLANDO REGION

ORLANDO, Fla. --- Meritage Homes has appointed Connie Collier as sales associate for the Orlando region. Brian Kittle, vice president of sales for Meritage Homes, said Collier has more than 12 years of sales experience in the residential real estate industry. Collier will be assisting homebuyers at Meritage Homes communities in the central Florida area. Meritage Homes builds new homes in 15 communities throughout the Orlando region with from two to eight bedrooms priced from the low $100s to the high $700s.

NAI Realvest Completes Sale of 4.3 Acre Church Site in West Orlando

ORLANDO, Fla. -- NAI Realvest recently negotiated the sale of a 4.3 acre church site at 5355 Long Rd. in Orlando for $180,000. Paul P. Partyka, managing partner at NAI Realvest, brokered the transaction representing the seller, International Church of the Four Square based in Los Angeles, and the buyer Open Door Primitive Baptist Church which is currently on Silver Star Road in Orlando. Open Door Primitive Baptist is expanding and will be constructing a new building on the site for new church facilities for their congregation, according to Partyka. About NAI Realvest NAI Realvest, covering all of central Florida, is a fully integrated commercial real estate operating company specializing in brokerage, development, investment, leasing and management, consulting and research services in the U.S. and worldwide. NAI Global is an international commercial real estate network with over 350 offices spanning the globe. Since 1978, clients have built businesses on the power of NAI Global’s expanding network. Extensive services include multi-site acquisitions and dispositions, sublease, tenant representation, lease administration and audit, investment services, due diligence and related consulting and advisory services. To learn more, visit www.NAIRealvest.com.

University Club of Orlando to Host Cocktails for a Cause in January to Benefit Coastal Conservation Association

ORLANDO, Fla. --- The University Club of Orlando will host a Cocktails for a Cause reception Thursday, Jan. 24, in hopes of beating their 2012 record of raising $7,500 for the Central Florida Chapter of the Coastal Conservation Association (CCA), an organization of saltwater anglers and conservation activists in 17 states with 30 Florida chapters. Justin Wright, general manager of the University Club of Orlando, said the Fifth Annual CCA Cocktails for a Cause event is an important one for the club. “CCA has held Cocktails for the Cause events at the University Club of Orlando for the past four years and we’ve established a tradition among the group of influential men and women who are thoroughly committed to the conservation of coastal resources for the benefit and enjoyment of the general public,” Wright said. The University Club’s Cocktail for a Cause events have helped raise more than $200,000 over the past five years to benefit a wide range of civic, community, educational and charitable organizations. Wright emphasized Cocktails for a Cause events give organizations the opportunity to raise money while having fun. All tips are donated back to the organizations. “Some organizations have raised as much as $5,000 in a single evening,” Wright added.

NAI Realvest completes new office lease agreement for an East Orlando law firm’s second location at La Vina Marketplace at Lake Nona

MAITLAND, Fla. --- NAI Realvest recently negotiated a lease agreement with a law firm expanding into its second location at La Vina Marketplace 9161 Narcoossee Rd., Lake Nona in southeast Orlando. Senior Associate Mary Frances West, CCIM brokered the transaction representing the landlord Ripley’s International LLC. The new tenant, Englert, Leite & Martin, PL – expanding from their Avalon Park location – has leased Suite B-210 with 1,467 square feet on the second floor of La Vina Marketplace. There is now only one second floor office suite with 1,610 square feet available at the La Vina Marketplace, according to West who leads the leasing team at the office-retail center. About NAI Realvest NAI Realvest, serving all of central Florida, is a fully integrated commercial real estate operating company specializing in brokerage, development, investment, leasing and management, consulting and research services in the U.S. and worldwide. NAI Global is an international commercial real estate network with over 350 offices spanning the globe. Since 1978, clients have built businesses on the power of NAI Global’s expanding network. Extensive services include multi-site acquisitions and dispositions, sublease, tenant representation, lease administration and audit, investment services, due diligence and related consulting and advisory services. To learn more, visit www.nairealvest.com

Omega3 Innovations’ Heart-Healthy Cookies and Chocolate Blur The Line Between Food and Medicine

VENICE, Fla. – Munch on a cookie to ward off diabetes and obesity? Enjoy a decadent-tasting chocolate to improve memory and reduce stress? While the ideas may sound outrageous to most dietitians, the physicians who founded Omega3 Innovations insist it is the future of our health. “Only by creating products that outperform junk food in both taste and practicality, can we change people’s diets,” says Dr. Bo Martinsen, co-founder of the “healthy cookie company.” The challenge for the staff at Venice-based Omega3 Innovations has been learning how to combine the two most recommended nutrients – fresh fish oil and beta-glucan oat soluble fiber – into tasty and clinically-effective super foods. Now, after years of research and experimentation, the biotech company has found the solution. “With our patented formulation, we were able to stabilize the oil to prevent it from separating and going rancid during the manufacturing process,” Martinsen says. He says that high doses of “super-fresh fish oil” from Norway are combined with other nutritious ingredients to produce the Omega Cookie, a heart-healthy and tasty cookie, as well as the Omega Passion, a healthy, yet delectable, frozen chocolate confection. The company also offers Omega Cure, a liquid fish oil with no taste or smell. Omega3 Innovations’ cookies and chocolates contain up to a prescription-sized dose of omega-3 (4g EPA/DHA), as well as 750 mg of cholesterol-reducing soluble oat fiber, two ingredients that have been top-performers in fighting heart disease, obesity and type 2 diabetes in thousands of studies, according to Martinsen. Pilot studies done by Omega3 Innovations, along with customer reports, indicate that the products can make a significant clinical difference. Venice resident Valerie Smith says her improved check-ups are proof. “After eating one to two Omega Cookies a day for three months, my doctor took me off of both my diabetes and cholesterol-lowering medication,” she says. Another Omega3 Innovations customer says that since he began taking daily doses of Omega Cure two years ago, his triglyceride levels dropped from 1800 to 80 to the astonishment of his doctor. The company’s patented technology also allows for the addition of anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals and other nutrients without compromising taste and nutritional value, or succumbing to adding preservatives and sweeteners, according to Dr. Anne-Marie Chalmers√, who co-founded the company with her husband. “Offering products in different sizes, flavors and presentations gives Omega3 Innovations the ability to satisfy most customers’ desires and needs for healthy nutrients,” she says. Martinsen agrees, saying their products “bridge the gap between food and medicine.” “We’re moving into the future where new breakfast foods, snacks and desserts truly can become a bridge to better health.” About Omega3 Innovations: Founded by Bo Martinsen, M.D., and Anne-Marie Chalmers√, M.D. – two physicians who have worked with omega-3 fish oil for more than 16 years – the company offers several varieties of Omega Cookies, Omega Passion chocolates, as well as Omega Cure supplements. Each cookie contains seven capsules worth of omega-3 fish oil, five grams of fiber, 200% of the daily value of vitamin D and 35% of calcium. The company was an innovation winner at the 2010 annual Economic Development Corporation of Sarasota County’s Hall of Fame awards and was nominated in this year’s young business category. Omega3 Innovations is the first to create a bakery product that contains an effective dose of omega-3 fish oil. Omega3 Innovations is also in the process of developing a line of hospital food products and treats suitable for cafes and fast food restaurants. For more information, visit www.omega3innovations.com.

Sustainable Florida Gives First Green Bank Sustainable Green Building Award at 15th Annual Best Practice Awards Banquet

Mount Dora, Fla. --- Sustainable Florida, an independent non-profit organization that promotes efforts to preserve Florida’s environment while building markets for Florida’s businesses, has presented First Green Bank of Mount Dora with its Sustainable Green Building Award. Kenneth LaRoe, chairman of First Green Bank, said the Sustainable Green Building Award recognizes the pioneering role the bank has played in developing its headquarters facility on U.S. 441 in Mount Dora---the second privately owned commercial building in Florida, and the first of two in Lake County to meet the U.S. Green Building Council’s Platinum Standard for sustainability and energy efficiency. “Our mission is to encourage more sustainable communities that can rebuild our economy from the ground up,” LaRoe said. First Green Bank was named one of America’s Greenest Banks by the American Banking Association and the Independent Bankers Association. A recent survey of 7,300 U.S. banks by MSN.com ranked First Green Bank one of the 359 safest banks in America and the only Central Florida bank to earn that distinction.

Only One Town Home remains at Savannah Park at Heathrow by Ashton Woods Homes

LAKE MARY, Fla. --- Ashton Woods Homes is down to its last home at Savannah Park at Heathrow, the town home community located off International Parkway by Heathrow, Michael Roche, vice president of sales and marketing, said. The home offers four bedrooms, three and one half baths, private courtyard and 1,936 square feet of living space. Roche said the home is fully furnished and priced at $249,990. Ashton Woods Homes, headquartered in Atlanta, is one of the nation’s largest private homebuilding companies with operations in growth communities in Atlanta, Austin, Dallas, Houston, Killeen, Orlando, Phoenix, San Antonio, Raleigh and Tampa. For more information, visit http://www.ashtonwoods.com .