Ashton Woods Homes Names Pete Small Vice President of Finance, Controller in Orlando, Tampa

ORLANDO - Ashton Woods Homes has appointed Pete Small vice president of finance and company controller in Orlando and Tampa.

Michael Roche, vice president of sales and marketing for Ashton Woods Homes in Orlando and Tampa, said Small has more than 17 years of experience in corporate finance in the home building industry.

Prior to joining Ashton Woods Homes, Small served as Director of Accounting for Sonny’s Franchise Company where he was responsible for the 130-unit restaurant chain. In addition, Small served as CFO of Beazer Homes USA, where he was responsible for financial management of 11 divisions along with mortgage and title service operations.

Small has a Bachelors of Science in Business Administration and Accounting from the University of Central Florida. He is a licensed CPA.

Ashton Woods Homes is a subsidiary of the Great Gulf Group of Companies, a North American real estate conglomerate headquartered in Toronto, and currently has communities under development in Austin, Houston, Dallas, Atlanta, Raleigh, Phoenix, Tampa, Denver and Orlando. * * *
For more information contact: Michael Roche, VP Sales & Marketing Ashton Woods Homes Orlando-Tampa 407-647-3700; John Reny, President, Ashton Woods Homes Orlando-Tampa 407-647-3700

Avalon Park Group names Rich Browning vice president

ORLANDO - Avalon Park Group, which is developing Avalon Park in east Orlando, has appointed Rich Browning vice president.

Eric Marks, senior vice president at Avalon Park Group, said Browning has more than five years of experience, including management positions at NAI Realvest in Maitland and BB&T Bank. Browning is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin at Madison’s MBA program.

For more information contact:
Stephanie Hodson, Marketing Director, Avalon Park Group, 407-658-6565; Beat Kahli, Owner/Founder, Avalon Park Group, 407-658-6565; Larry Vershel or Beth Payan, Larry Vershel Communications, 407-644-4142

President Obama’s Jobs Initiative a Small Step in the Right Direction, Says Mercantile Capital Corporation President Chris Hurn

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. --- Christopher Hurn, president of Mercantile Capital Corporation, the region’s most active provider of U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) 504 loans for small business owners who want to acquire or develop their own facilities, appeared on Fox Business News recently to comment on President Obama’s efforts to stimulate job growth in the U.S.

“Some of the things being discussed -- like tax credits for new hires and a payroll tax holiday for employers -- are a good step in the right direction,” Hurn explained, “but I’m not entirely convinced that the Obama Administration has figured out how to truly stimulate our economy and actually create jobs.”

Economic stimulation starts with taxation, Hurn asserted. “You have to put money in people's pockets and then trust the American consumers and businesses to do what is best with it,” he said.

“You can't stimulate job growth without stimulating spending,” he said. “The tax credits that have been proposed are marginally beneficial, but tax credits for new hires were included as part of the original recovery bill. It’s easy to see that they haven’t had the impact we all hoped,” he said.

Hurn unveiled his own four-point plan to jump-start the national economy:

1. Implement a meaningful payroll tax holiday for both employers AND employees (Jan. 1 to July 1, or better yet, all of 2010);

2. Permanently abolish the capital gains tax on any investments made in eligible small businesses (fewer than $100 million or under 500 employees) during 2010;

3. Repeal or drastically modify Sarbanes-Oxley, as it has hampered business growth and hasn't done nearly as much good as was intended;

4. Get health reform right---the plans in circulation are still missing two very important things: tort reform and the ability to purchase health insurance across state lines.

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For more information, contact:

Chris Hurn, CEO, Mercantile Capital Corporation, 407-786-5040

Larry Vershel, Larry Vershel Communications 407-644-4142

Grubb & Ellis|Commercial Florida Appoints Paula Buffa, CCIM, RPA Senior Vice President, Office Group in Tampa

Grubb & EllisCommercial Florida Appoints Paula Buffa, CCIM, RPA Senior Vice President, Office Group in Tampa

TAMPA, Fla. - Grubb & EllisCommercial Florida has named Paula Buffa, CCIM, RPA senior vice president of its Office Group. Buffa is currently president of the Westshore Alliance in Tampa.

Jeffrey Sweeney, SIOR, president and managing principal of Grubb & EllisCommercial Florida with offices in Tampa, Orlando and Melbourne, said Buffa has 23 years of experience in commercial real estate and ranks as one of the most highly qualified office specialists in Florida. A three-time CoStar Power Broker awardee, Buffa was also named one of 2005’s Top 20 Women in Commercial Real Estate by Florida Real Estate Journal.

She attended Middle Tennessee State University and began her commercial real estate career with CB Richard Ellis in Nashville. She relocated to Tampa in 1997. Most recently Buffa was associated with GVA Advantis in Tampa. She is also past president of both the Florida Gulfcoast Commercial Assn. of Realtors and Tampa Bay Chapter of Commercial Real Estate Women.

Buffa is a Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) and designated a Real Property Administrator (RPA) by Building Owners and Managers Institute International.

At Grubb & EllisCommercial Florida, Buffa’s clients include American General Insurance, Troy State University, IVANS, Sage Software Healthcare, GolfTec, HCA Healthcare, Professors Capital, Arcis Investments and RR Tampa LLC.

“We are delighted Paula Buffa has joined our Tampa office,” Sweeney said. “She will play a major role in our continued growth in the region.”

About Grubb & EllisCommercial Florida:

Grubb & EllisCommercial Florida is an affiliated commercial real estate services firm specializing in the leasing and sale of office, industrial, retail, land and investment properties. Currently Grubb & EllisCommercial Florida has 40 brokers divided among its Tampa, Orlando and Melbourne offices to serve the entire mid-Florida marketplace.

About Grubb & Ellis:

Named to The Global Outsourcing 100™ in 2009 by the International Association of Outsourcing Professionals™, Grubb & Ellis Company (NYSE: GBE) is one of the largest and most respected commercial real estate services and investment companies in the world. Our 6,000 professionals in more than 130 company-owned and affiliate offices draw from a unique platform of real estate services, practice groups and investment products to deliver comprehensive, integrated solutions to real estate owners, tenants and investors. The firm’s transaction, management, consulting and investment services are supported by highly regarded proprietary market research and extensive local expertise. Through its investment subsidiaries, the company is a leading sponsor of real estate investment programs that provide individuals and institutions the opportunity to invest in a broad range of real estate investment vehicles, including public non-traded real estate investment trusts (REITs), tenant-in-common (TIC) investments suitable for tax-deferred 1031 exchanges, mutual funds and other real estate investment funds. For more information, visit http://www.grubb-ellis.com/ <http://www.grubb-ellis.com/> .

Contacts:

Paula Buffa, CCIM, RPA 813-830-7887

Jeffrey Sweeney, SIOR President 407-481-5387

Larry Vershel Communications 407-644-4142