Allogy Interactive, McGraw Hill launch University of Central Florida Digital Press to Provide Textbook Downloads

ORLANDO, Fla., – Allogy Interactive, based in Orlando, recently entered into an exclusive agreement with textbook publisher McGraw Hill to create the UCF Digital Press, which will provide University of Central Florida students the opportunity to download their textbooks — complete with rich media, hyperlinks and coaching algorithms — directly to their favorite mobile device.

Colin Forward, Communications Director for Allogy Interactive, said the agreement means student backpacks never have to get much heavier than a tablet computer.

More importantly, digital texts will drive down the costs of a product plagued by expensive printing, shipping and a huge secondary market,” Forward said.

Allogy is taking a revolutionary step forward in the distributed learning environment, Forward said.

“Ask any college student. The hardest cost to swallow every semester is that of textbooks. Not only are they expensive, they are a pain to lug around and often play a supporting role to online resources,” Forward said.

Digital textbooks create enormous opportunities for learning, Forward said. With rich media and hyperlinks, a digital textbook becomes a far more formidable teaching tool.

“We are now able to provide students with instant access to enormous resources,” Forward said. “We won’t make libraries obsolete, but we will provide students with instant access, anywhere, to an entire library of content specific resources,” he said.

Allogy Interactive is a client of the UCF Business Incubation Program in the Central Florida Research Park in east Orange County.

About Allogy Interactive:

Allogy Interactive, a leading developer of mobile applications for education, healthcare, business, and social enterprises, connects people to promote learning, opportunity, and economic growth by understanding the relationships, creating intuitive interfaces and using data to promote the transparency and accountability necessary for achievement.

About the UCF Business Incubation Program:

Since its founding in 1999, the UCF Business Incubation Program has helped more than 160 emerging companies (including 100 current clients) create over $800 million in annual revenue and more than 1,600 new jobs with an average salary of $59,000. With eight – and soon nine – facilities opened across the Greater Orlando community, the Business Incubation Program is a collaboration in economic development between the University of Central Florida, Orange County, the City of Orlando, Seminole County, the City of Winter Springs, The City of Sanford, Lake County, the City of Leesburg, Osceola County, the City of Kissimmee, City of St. Cloud, the Florida High Tech Corridor Council and will be adding Volusia County. For more information, please visit www.incubator.ucf.edu.

Data Transfer Solutions to participate in pilot program to reduce energy consumption in Longmont, Colo.

ORLANDO, Fla. --- Data Transfer Solutions, LLC (DTS), based in Orlando’s Avalon Park, recently was selected with Brendle Group, of Fort Collins, Colo., to participate in a pilot program to reduce energy consumption in Longmont, Colo.

A.M. “Trey” Fragala III, AICP, PMP, chief operating officer at Data Transfer Solutions, said Longmont’s energy efficiency information and education program is one of the most progressive approaches to energy efficiency in the nation.

“The goal of this project is to test and evaluate which methods of providing energy consumption information are most useful to city residents,” Fragala explained.

“The city wants to learn which energy efficiency tools result in the highest level of voluntary household efficiencies and decreased energy consumption,” he said.

DTS developed a suite of carbon calculator tools for Park City, Utah, that provides homeowners with monthly assessments of their energy use online.

“The city of Longmont realizes that significant efficiencies can be achieved if we can provide families with information on what they are doing right,” Fragala said.

“Our goal has been to assemble the data in a format that is easy to understand, effective and accurate,” Fragala said.

DTS provides asset management, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), transportation planning/engineering, web design, database/software applications, and video and multi media production services to local governments and regional and state agencies throughout the U.S.

NAI Realvest Negotiates 10 Year Lease where a new Ocean Buffet will open at former Whistle Junction on U.S. 1 in South Daytona

MAITLAND, Fla. - NAI Realvest recently negotiated a ten-year lease of the 11,414 square foot former Whistle Junction facility at 1854 South Ridgewood Ave. in South Daytona.

Paul P. Partyka, principal and 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 Fort Myers-based Ocean Buffet, Inc., who was represented by Josephine Wang of Carlino Commercial Group. It will be the third location for Ocean Buffet when it is anticipated to open in July. The firm also operates Ocean Buffet restaurants in Fort Myers and St. Augustine, Cichocki said.

This is also the eighth transaction involving a buffet style restaurant that the NAI Realvest team has completed in the last 18 months.

About NAI Realvest:

NAI Realvest in Orlando, 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.

Mattamy Homes Earns Two Gold Awards, One Silver in the Home Builders Association of Charlotte's Parade of Homes

CHARLOTTE, N.C. --- Mattamy Homes U.S. Group, the U.S. division of Canada’s largest home builder, earned three top awards in the Home Builders Association of Charlotte’s 2011 Parade of Homes.

Bill Kiselick, Charlotte division president for Mattamy Homes in the Charlotte region, said Mattamy earned both the Gold award and the Silver award in Category III, which includes single family homes priced from $290,000 to $337,000. Mattamy earned a second Gold award for the best new home in category II, for homes priced from $221,000 to $289,000.

Mattamy earned its first Gold award with the Honeyflower model home at South Point Village, located in Belmont off South Point Rd. The Honeyflower model home offers, three bedrooms with two-and-a-half baths in 2,425 square feet of living space with a two car garage. The “Dilworth” inspired home features oversized windows, nine foot ceilings and eight foot doors.

Mattamy Homes offers 10 distinctive three and four bedroom floors plans at South Point Village that range from 1,601 square feet of living space at 2,873 square feet.

Mattamy Homes earned a Silver award in the same category for its Periwinkle model home at Skybrook in Huntersville off Eastfield Road north of Highland Creek Parkway in Mecklenburg County near the Cabarrus County line.

The Periwinkle model home with 2,470 square feet of living space in three bedrooms and two-and-a-half baths with a two car garage, is the first of a series of homes Mattamy is building on 50 foot home sites at Skybrook.

Mattamy earned its second Gold award for the Lavender model home at Waterlynn on Waterlynn Club Drive off I-77 in Mooresville. The two-story Lavender model home, with 2,117 square feet of living space, offers three bedrooms with the master bedroom suite on the ground floor, a loft, two-and-a-half-baths and a two car garage.

Kiselick said Mattamy Homes plans to build 157 new single-family homes at Waterlynn ranging in size from 1,800 square feet of living space to 2,600 square feet priced from the $190s.

About Mattamy Homes

Mattamy Homes expanded into the U.S. in 2003 and has divisions in Jacksonville, Orlando, Charlotte, Phoenix and Minneapolis. The homebuilder is the largest and most active in Canada with annual revenues exceeding $1.3 billion.

Orlando Fashion Square Reports New Leases that Total 50,000 Square Feet of Space, Projects, Additional 50,000 Square Feet in 2011

ORLANDO, Fla. --- Orlando Fashion Square reports new leases in 2010 totaling more than 50,000 square feet of retail space.

John Crossman CCIM, president of Crossman & Company, the Orlando firm that serves as exclusive leasing representatives at Orlando Fashion Square said he projects that new leases in 2011 will total an additional 50,000 square feet.

“We anticipate a significant increase in visitors and new tenants at Orlando Fashion Square as a result of the opening of the National Entrepreneur Center in May,” Crossman said.

The National Entrepreneur Center, which provides support services to new and emerging business startups, leased 22,000 square feet of space at Orlando Fashion Square in a historic move Crossman said could launch a national trend.

“The choice of a centrally-located retail destination for its principal campus is a burst of strategic genius that marks National Entrepreneur Center as one of the real visionaries in the economic gardening movement,” Crossman said.

“We expect more agencies and organizations across the country will follow the example the National Entrepreneur Center is setting in making its services accessible and convenient to the small business entrepreneurs who will power the U.S. economy in the coming decades,” Crossman said.

Orlando Fashion Square mall is located on E. Colonial Drive near downtown Orlando.

About Crossman & Company:

Headquartered in Orlando, Florida, Crossman & Company is a commercial real estate brokerage firm that specializes in the retail industry. Currently their portfolio under leasing and/or management exceeds 150 shopping centers throughout the Southeast US. Founded in 1990, Crossman & Company focuses solely on landlord representation and serves clients including Publix, PREIT, and GE. Please visit www.crossmanco.com, or call 407-423-5400 for more information.

Marketplace Advisors, Inc. celebrates 10th Anniversary, Sees Opportunity as development has emerged in select market areas

ORLANDO, Fla. --- Marketplace Advisors, Inc., a real estate consulting company that focuses on retail districts, town centers, sustainable community development, celebrated its 10th anniversary in May, and founder and president David Marks said he is becoming more optimistic about the future of commercial real estate markets in Central Florida.

“The Central Florida region has experienced employment growth of 20,400 jobs over the last 12 months (March 2010 to March 2011), a two percent increase. Several pockets of commercial and residential activity are occurring in the Horizons West area in southwest Orange County, Lake Nona’s Medical City area, The Villages, and the UCF area,” Marks said.

Marks said these areas all have strong demand factors driving development. “Employment drives residential development and residential development drives retail and service businesses. All of these area hotspots are being driven by these circular factors,” Marks said.

Marks has more than 25 years of experience in commercial real estate consulting and community planning. His 10-year study of sustainable community planning in the U.S. and Europe has generated a unique database of planning and development models.

Marks is a frequent speaker at U.S. urban planning and community development conferences and conventions and is now currently negotiating with several New York publishers on a book that details his study.

First Green Bank Plans To Expand To Volusia In 2011

EUSTIS, Fla. – First Green Bank, the new Lake County bank that has already opened locations in Eustis and Clermont and announced plans to open a headquarters location in Mount Dora in June, also plans opening a branch in Ormond Beach later this year.

Kenneth E. LaRoe, chairman and chief executive officer of First Green Bank, said First Green’s mission-driven business is catching on in Lake County with its emphasis on personal customer service and respect for the environment.

The bank offers personal and business banking courier services with a fleet of energy-efficient Toyota Priuses, remote deposit capture machines that mean businesses don’t even have to visit the branch locations, energy efficient and environmentally sustainable business practices that include the bank’s new 11,800 square foot Mount Dora headquarters facility — only the second privately-owned building in Florida to seek the LEED platinum certification, denoting the highest possible energy efficiency and environmental sustainability.

“Our mission is an environmental and social one,” LaRoe said. “We take a holistic approach to business in which we meld capitalism and shareholder value with environmental and social responsibility,” he said.

Innovative Software Products, Inc. Enters Partnership Agreement

ORLANDO Fla., --- Innovative Software Products, Inc. (ISP) which provides custom software development for servers, desktop computers and mobile devices, has formed a partnership with Lenovo, which markets Thinkpad computers.

Adam Jones, president of Innovative Software Products, said the partnership means Lenovo is now ISP’s official hardware vendor.

“We will sell Lenovo desktop computers, servers and Thinkpad laptop computers to our software clients,” Jones said.

“Altogether, we have sold Dell hardware products valued at more than $1 million, so hardware products represent a major business line for us,” Jones said.

ISP has existing partnerships with Level 3 Communications, Rackspace Hosting, Ingram Micro, Lifeboat Distribution, and Digicert. The addition of Lenovo as a partner enables ISP to provide even more comprehensive, efficient solutions to their clients

Innovative Software Products, Inc. is a member of the University of Central Florida Business Incubation Program and located in the Central Florida Research Park in east Orange County.

About the UCF Business Incubation Program:

Since its founding in 1999, the UCF Business Incubation Program has helped more than 160 emerging companies (including nearly 100 current clients) create over $800 million in annual revenue and more than 1,600 new jobs with an average salary of $59,000. With eight – and soon nine – facilities opened across the Greater Orlando community, the Business Incubation Program is a collaboration in economic development between the University of Central Florida, Orange County, the City of Orlando, Seminole County, the City of Winter Springs, The City of Sanford, Lake County, the City of Leesburg, Osceola County, the City of Kissimmee, City of St. Cloud, Volusia County and the Florida High Tech Corridor Council. For more information, please visit www.incubator.ucf.edu.

Survivalists Eyed as Key Market for Central Florida Horse Farm

ORLANDO, Fla. --- Stirling Sotheby’s International Realty is reaching out to an unusual market to sell a 32-acre equestrian estate on Tuscanooga Road in Groveland, Fla.: survivalists.

Roger Soderstrom, founder and owner of Stirling Sotheby’s International Realty, said the property could make the perfect refuge for a family or group that wants to live “off the grid.”

The property, owned by blues performer Rozzy Osborne, features a security entrance with camera, a private gun range, a whole house generator, 500 gallon propane tank, two separate wells, a half-acre garden, stables, a tree house, a fish pond with a private dock and a covered picnic area with electricity that would easily seat 40 people.

Soderstrom said the remote property could support a self-sustained lifestyle.

“There is a large market of survivalists in the U.S. who, for religious, political or philosophical reasons, desire a more private lifestyle removed from the hustle and bustle most of us consider routine,” Soderstrom said.

Linnette Sanzalone, the Stirling Sotheby’s International Luxury Homes Specialist representing the property, conducted a research study of the survivalist market in the U.S.---or “preppers,” as many of them prefer to be called---and says the property qualifies as the perfect rural compound.

“The Osborne equestrian estate is self-contained, secure and offers almost total privacy,” Sanzalone said. A five-acre wetland area at the back of the property could generate income from peat sales. More than 18 acres currently used as horse pasture could be converted into farmland.

The four-bedroom, four-bath luxury home at the center of the property offers 3,847 square feet of living space with tray ceilings, crown molding, oversized rooms, solid custom wood floors, built-in shelving units, two pantries, double built-in ovens, commercial grade ice machine and top-grade appliances.

Two additional oversized storage rooms could be converted into guest rooms or an exercise room, Sanzalone said.

A well-built 2,100 square foot barn near the main house could easily be converted to a guest house, workshop or man cave, Sanzalone said.

To view a video of the property visit http://www.stirlingsir.com/index.php?action=listingview&listingID=149361

The blues singer’s property is currently listed at the highly discounted price of $599,000.

Volusia Law Firm Named "Partner of the Year" for its Support of Horizon Elementary

PORT ORANGE – For the third consecutive year, Rue & Ziffra, P.A. has been named “Business Partner of the Year” by Horizon Elementary for its annual contributions to the Port Orange school.

The 25-year-old Port Orange-based personal-injury law firm received the honor for its sponsorship of the school’s Science Jeopardy Program and Science Night, according to firm President Allan Ziffra.

“Again, we are happy to participate in the Horizon Elementary School program, which is fun for the students and at the same time it helps them develop and sharpen their science skills,” he said.

Rue & Ziffra – one of 550 Volusia Partners through Volusia County Schools – has been sponsoring the popular program the past five years. Additionally, the firm is a PTA Business Member, and also lends its support to Horizon’s Annual Fall Festival, and 5th grade end-of-the-year celebrations.

About Rue & Ziffra: Founded by John D. Rue and Allan L. Ziffra, the personal-injury law firm of Rue & Ziffra has served the Central Florida community for more than 25 years. The firm’s commitment to its profession and its clients has earned it a reputation as one of the top personal-injury law firms in Central Florida. Known for handling everything from automobile and motorcycle accidents to medical malpractice, wrongful death, and social security and disability cases, Rue & Ziffra has recovered millions of dollars for injured clients and their families. With a staff of nine attorneys, the firm maintains offices in Port Orange and Orange City. For more information, visit www.rueziffra.com.