Need to catch up on business news in Southwest Florida? No problem, here are the top stories of the week, pulled from our daily newsletter, Gulfshore Business Daily.
Friday, Jan. 5
Lee Permitting up in Q4, 2017
During December, contractors pulled 126 permits to build single-family houses collectively valued at about $24.2 million in unincorporated Lee County. That compares with 119 permits issued in November and 85 issued in December 2016, according to the Lee County Department of Community Development. Also during December, 14 multi-family units were permitted, compared with four in November and 12 in December 2016. For the year 2017, Lee County issued 1,542 single-family permits, compared to 1,171 in 2016. Permits were issued for 772 multi-family units in 2017, compared to 333 the previous year. The permitted value of all new single- and multi-family dwellings built in 2017 is estimated at $418.8 million. In December, general commercial activity was valued at $19.5 million for 16 permits, compared with $18.3 million in November and $4.1 million in December 2016. For all of 2017, Lee County issued 284 permits for general, commercial structures, compared with 224 in 2016. The value of those structures was about $187.7 million, compared to $122.7 million the previous year. Lee County Community Development issued 4,832 permits of all kinds during December and 51,994 for all of 2017.
Thursday, Jan. 4
Rehmann Opens New Naples Office, Combines with Other Firms
Financial services firm Rehmann has opened a new office in Naples, as well as combined with Bonita Springs-based Wiebel, Hennells and Carufe, PLLC and Naples-based Jana Knudson of Lutz & Knudson, PA. Knudson, CPA, brings more than 30 years of tax and accounting experience to the firm, including operating her own firm. Along with the business combinations, Rehmann’s Naples office has moved to 6609 Willow Park.
Wednesday, Jan. 3
Cape Coral Named to List of Best Places to Find a Job
Cape Coral ranked No. 93 out of 182 best places in the U.S. to find a job, according to a WalletHub study. The city received an overall job market ranking of 88, a socio-economics ranking of 107, and a total score of 52.39, based on its weighted average across all metrics. WalletHub evaluated the job market and socio-economic rankings with 26 relevant metrics, including job opportunities, employment growth, monthly average starting salary and more. In determining the sample, WalletHub considered only the city proper in each case, excluding cities in the surrounding metro area. For the full report, click here.
Tuesday, Jan. 2
Punta Gorda Airport Traffic Up in November
The Punta Gorda Airport serviced 1.37 million passengers in the 12 months ending Nov. 30, 2017, according to The Charlotte County Airport Authority, which owns and operates the airport. The Punta Gorda Airport passenger count for November 2017 was 110,097, a more than 14 percent increase in passenger traffic from November 2016, when there were 96,188 passengers. In November, there were 55,140 departing passengers and 54,957 arriving passengers. This is the second month in a row that the Punta Gorda Airport increased in passenger traffic since the decrease in September due to Hurricane Irma. Before the hurricane, Punta Gorda Airport increased passenger traffic for 47 consecutive months. A total of 376 Allegiant Air flights landed at the Punta Gorda Airport in November 2017.
