Local Entrepreneurs Attend Chamber Workshop to Learn How to Obtain Governmental Contracts

Local Entrepreneurs Attend Chamber Workshop to Learn How to Obtain Governmental Contracts

ORANGE CITY, Fla. – The Chamber of Commerce West Volusia recently was the site of a workshop for business owners interested in obtaining governmental contracts.

The session – titled “Doing Business with Federal and Local Governments” – was sponsored by The Center for Business Excellence, and presented by The Small Business Development Center of Daytona State College. It was held at the chamber’s Business Learning Center in Orange City.

Speakers were Rick Fraser, president of the Center for Business Excellence; Ned Harper, SBDC director at Daytona State College; and Linda White and John Wanamaker, chamber president/CEO, and treasurer/corporate secretary, respectively.

About 20 local business owners attended the workshop, including Mike Chinelli, an Orange City-based contractor.

“The class offered good direction on how to obtain contracts,” Chinelli said. “And, that should be important with the stimulus package creating a lot of government work."

Wanamaker, broker for Coldwell Banker Commercial AI Group in Orange City, has attended similar classes in other counties, but said this session was a first for the West Volusia area.

“There are other cities and counties that sponsor classes like this for local businesses,” he said. “We’re hopeful that this will catch on here and we’ll see more local governmental agencies sponsoring educational classes for our business owners.”

About Coldwell Banker Commercial AI Group:
Owned and operated by commercial real estate veterans John Wanamaker and Chuck Rudis, Coldwell Banker Commercial AIG is a leader in the listing, leasing and selling of properties, as well as a premier developer of community-friendly and LEED-accredited projects for small business owners.

For more information about this release, please contact:

Chuck Rudis, John Wanamaker or Stepan Babanin, Coldwell Banker Commercial AI Group, 386-775-8633, chuck@cbcaigroup.com, john@cbciagroup.com or stepan@cbciagroup.com

Charlene Hager-Van Dyke, Larry Vershel Communications, 386-837-8780, 407-644-4142 or chagervandyke@yahoo.com

Coldwell Banker Commercial sponsors green information session at Chamber of Commerce of West Volusia

Coldwell Banker Commercial sponsors green information session at Chamber of Commerce of West Volusia

ORANGE CITY, Fla. – Nearly two dozen of city, county and state officials, as well as local business types, attended a recent “going green” seminar sponsored by Coldwell Banker Commercial AI Group.

The two-hour session – titled “Rebuilding the Local Economy through Sustainable Alternatives” – was intended to create awareness and a dialog between community leaders and elected officials, according to John Wanamaker, Coldwell Banker Commercial AI Group broker.

In addition to Wanamaker and CBC’s Stepan Babanin, who talked about the savings their own company has seen since they began using sustainable alternatives, several other speakers offered insight about recycling, water conservation, and electric company rebates available through their agencies.

The speakers were Darlene Keefe and Kathy Lapp, Progress Energy; Lindsey Roberts, WAV (Water Alliance of Volusia); Ann Benedetti, St. Johns River Water Management District; and Laura Raftery, Gel Recycling.

“We had about 20 people who attended and their feedback was fantastic,” Wanamaker said of the session held at the new Chamber of Commerce of West Volusia building in Orange City.

One such attendee was Andy Kelly, Volusia County Councilman for District 1, who also is a member of the Florida Association of Counties’ Energy Independence Work Group.
Kelly said he is excited about the positive results and hopes to see some of the ideas implemented at the county level.

“It was an excellent program with a lot of quality ideas,” he said. “I hope that everyone who attended will apply some of those ideas – even if it’s only changing out light bulbs or turning down the thermostat – in their own homes and businesses.”
Wanamaker said he thinks those attending were impressed by the way the session was all tied together at the end.

“It showed them how much money can actually be saved for a very small investment,” he said.

About Coldwell Banker Commercial AI Group:
Owned and operated by commercial real estate veterans John Wanamaker and Chuck Rudis, Coldwell Banker Commercial AIG is a leader in the listing, leasing and selling of properties, as well as a premier developer of community-friendly and LEED-accredited projects for small business owners.

For more information about this release, please contact:
John Wanamaker, broker for Coldwell Banker Commercial AI Group, 386-775-8633, john@cbciagroup.com

Charlene Hager-Van Dyke, Larry Vershel Communications, 386-837-8780, 407-644-4142 or chagervandyke@yahoo.com