January 2024

Dear EDC Investors,

My first two months as Director of Investor Relations with the EDC have gone by quickly. I have enjoyed engaging with many of our Investors and business community members. I appreciate the warm welcome and your willingness to share wisdom about our community with a deeper understanding of the variations that make Sarasota County a special place to live, work, and prosper.

We have seen a myriad of activities to finish the year with great engagement from a vast spectrum of community leaders and Investors. Our team actively communicates the outcomes of these events through our social media channels and e-blasts. The Chair Advisors Roundtable in mid-November featured special guest Shari Bower, Regional Executive of the Miami Branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. Thank you to PGT Innovations for hosting us! Our Investor Social - hosted by Art Lambert and his team at the new S-One Holdings corporate headquarters in The Landings - was a success. The event was sponsored by FPL. The event was a spectacular evening. 

I hope you can join us for our Transforming the Community for Tomorrow event on January 18th at the Benderson Family Finish Tower at Nathan Benderson Park. Panelists will share valuable insight regarding the work of Mote Science Education Aquarium (Mote SEA), Center Point at Waterside, and The Legacy Trail. Our Transforming events bring community experts together to share wisdom on activities that enhance our economy with a presentation/panel discussion in an effort to maximize engagement within our business community.

Our Fundraising and Investor Committee started this fiscal year with a new Committee Chair, Sinead Carr, from Express Employment Professionals. Sinead has built an impressive business in just three short years, and she brings her tremendous tenacity and work-ethic to our Committee. We are rebuilding our Ambassador program by ensuring our team is well prepared to speak to the value the EDC brings to the community as we venture out to attract more Investors and gain sponsorships for our events. A special thank you to Michael Saunders & Company as they hosted our Committee for a special forum led by Matt George, also known as the Non-Profit Prophet. Matt shared with the group his three decades journey in the non-profit world and strategies he utilized to gain investors while clearly conveying the mission and results of his organization. This type of education further accelerates our opportunities to expand our efforts in 2024.

The December Board of Directors meeting gave us a great glimpse of the vibrancy of Wellen Park and the work Rick Severance and his team are doing to build a wonderful master-planned community. This assists in providing another great development to the county, just west of the Interstate-75 Innovation Corridor. 

As we set our goals for 2024, increasing our private funding is front and center as a priority. We believe we have the momentum to grow from 23 Chair Advisor Companies to 30+ by year's end. Our Chair Advisor level opens up more marketing and engagement opportunities for those businesses that are increasingly involved with building the fabric that represents our EDC. We welcome every business inside and out of Sarasota County to become part of our EDC! 2024 promises to be a phenomenal year. 

Finally, from my perspective, Sarasota County is a special place. I have witnessed a heightened sense of purpose by our business leaders to grow effectively and take responsibility for the future of our community. The business leaders at our EDC are innovative, thoughtful, and focused on growing a diverse economy through their own participation and goodwill. It’s a refreshing place to call home.

Regards,

Erik Zimmer

Director of Investor Relations

Ezimmer@edcsarasotacounty.com

(t) 941.309.1200 ext. 101

(m) 941.326.6323

Welcome New Investor!

We are thrilled to have Mahoney Concrete as a new Investor! Thank you for Investing in us and our mission!

Mahoney Concrete Systems, LLC was founded in 2017 and is proudly head quartered in Sarasota. They provide their clients with a wide range of services from commercial super-flat place and finish, to structural concrete high rises, and industrial tilt wall buildings.

Welcome aboard, Mahoney Concrete!

Economic Development Update

In December, Vice President of Economic Development, Josh Ewen and City of North Port Economic Development Manager, Vinicia (Vinnie) Mascarenhas traveled to Ft. Lauderdale to attend the Area Development Forum.

The opportunity provided a direct link for Sarasota County and the City of North Port to network with 24 site selectors, corporate real estate executives, and business decision-makers from around the country. Regional and national economic development organizations (EDOs) were well represented, as well as FloridaCommerce and Florida Power & Light. The teams promoted the benefits of business expansions in Sarasota County, including the City of North Port's

Interstate-75 Innovation Corridor which will support over a million new square feet of business park development.  

Join Us!