Leesburg Area Chamber of Commerce

News

It’s a “Whovillation Celebration”! Leesburg Area Chamber of Commerce 2016 Award Recipients

Press Release
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Thursday, December 1, 2016, 6 p.m. at the Leesburg Armory, the Leesburg Area Chamber of Commerce hosted their 80h Annual Chamber Awards and Installation Gala, a “Whoville-ation Celebration”.  Two hundred and thirty guests gathered to celebrate the Chamber and Leesburg Area businesses and community’s achievements.  Entering through the caves of Mount Crumpit into the lair of the Grinch, then onward to Whoville. Event coordinator and décor extraordinaire, Events by Miss Daisy transformed the venue into the festive city of Whoville, and gourmet caterer, Chef Jessy Flinn, Gourmet Today created a “Who” inspired menu. Special Guest, the Grinch was full of Christmas cheer! 

An inspirational and motivational greeting by the Chamber’s Executive Director, Sandi Moore began the event program.  Past-Presidents of the Leesburg Area Chamber presented the 2016 Leesburg Area Chamber of Commerce Awards to local community members and area businesses that have invested time, money and heart into Leesburg.  Recipient of the prestigious chamber award, the George O. Pringle Award was Ken Bragg.  Followed by Business Women of the Year Award recipient Jennifer Rivera, Insight Credit Union, Public Service Award recipient Don Van Beck, Veterans Memorial Park,   Ambassador of the Year Award recipient Barbara Glatt, Leadership Award recipient Al Minner, City of Leesburg, Business Achievement Award for Small Business recipient Burry’s Pharmacy, Business Achievement Award for Medium Size Business recipient, SignCrafters and Business Achievement Award for Large Business Ro-Mac Lumber and Supply.  Each award recipient was nominated by the Leesburg Area Chamber Members, Ambassadors, and Board of Directors.

Thank you to all of the Event Sponsors for helping make this night memorable and extraordinary!   Events by Miss Daisy, Classic Tent & Events, City of Leesburg, Grand Rental Station, Ford Press, Lake County Economic Growth Department, Beyers Funeral, Comcast, Deans Pest Control, Duke Energy, Insight, Lake Eye, Plaza Cadillac, Leesburg Regional Medical Center, Akers Media Group, ERA Grizzard, Leesburg Partnership, Morris Realty, Ro-Mac Lumber & Supplies, Stokes Fish Co., Lake Trucking, Citizens First Bank, Lake Eye Associates, CenterState Bank, LassiterWare Insurance, ESI, and United Southern Bank.
Promoting Progress and Profit in the Leesburg Area!

For more information please contact maria@leesburgchamber.com or Sandi@leesburgchamber.com. Visit http://www.leesburgchamber.com

Leesburg Area Chamber Foundation raises $15,800 for Leesburg Community Schools.

Community News, Press Release
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16-10-01_cwv-2366Leesburg, Florida – On Sunday, October 2, 2016, partners Leesburg Area Chamber of Commerce, Style Magazine and co-founder of Ketel One Vodka, David Van de Velde, joined forces to organize a fundraising event at Fairfax Hall in Arlington Ridge that included a 7-course vodka infused dinner, concert, live cooking demonstrations and laughs.  Celebrity Chef Jon Ashton took the stage as the evening’s Emcee, as local chef’s Vic Donahue II, Jessy Flinn, Cody Workman and Jon Bell demonstrated how to prepare the dish while 35 students from the Leesburg High School Culinary department served that dish to the audience.  Entertainers; 3 Tenors and a Soprano serenaded the audience with familiar ballads from the Phantom of the Opera, and Les Miserable.

During the evening, winners of the Cooking with Vodka Recipe Contest were announced, First Place Winner, Carole Iberer for her recipe, “Three Berry Pie with Blueberry Vodka”,  Second Place Winner, Don Moreau for his recipe, “Shrimp and Sausage Gumbo” and Third Place Winner, Gary Neumann for his recipe, “Screwdriver Tenderloin” and each were presented with an award.  Recipes from the evenings dinner are available on the https://leesburg.cookingwithvodka.com/.

The event raised $14,000.00 towards Leesburg Community Schools for special projects and an additional $1,800.00 was raised at the event and gifted to the Leesburg High School Culinary Department.

Thank you to Plaza Cadillac, Lake Eye, Fross & Fross Wealth Management, Bennett Law Center and LRMC Foundation for sponsoring this event!

The Leesburg Area Chamber Foundation is a 501 (c ) 3 that fundraises to raise money for Leesburg Area Community Schools in partnership with the Leesburg Area Chamber of Commerce’s Education Committee.

Promoting Progress and Profit in the Leesburg Area! For more information, please contact maria@leesburgchamber.com. Visit leesburgchamber.com.

 

 

 

Leesburg Rates #9 Healthiest Housing Market

Uncategorized
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New York financial technology company SmartAsset released the rankings from its second annual Healthiest Housing Markets Study  and Leesburg made the list at number 9 in Florida, up from their ranking of  16 in 2015. The study measures market health by the average number of years residents spend in homes, home values, ease of sale, and the costs associated with ownership.
For a look at how Leesburg compares with the Florida leaders, check the table below:

Rank City Average Years Living in Home Avg. Homes with Negative Equity Homes Decreasing in Value Avg. Days on Market Home Costs as % of Income Healthiest Markets Index
1 Lake Butler 13.1 12.8% 7.4% 88.0 19.8% 88.39
2 Lady Lake 11.1 9.0% 20.3% 50.4 19.6% 87.11
3 Satellite Beach 14.4 9.0% 8.8% 41.9 23.1% 86.47
4 Hernando 11.5 12.3% 11.1% 145.8 19.4% 82.92
5 Zephyrhills, 11.6 26.6% 12.7% 35.8 19.6% 82.42
6 Sun City Center 11.2 11.6% 14.2% 90.7 21.0% 82.16
7 Safety Harbor 13.9 9.9% 10.4% 79.2 23.4% 81.65
8 Rockledge, 12.5 15.1% 10.1% 92.0 21.5% 81.48
9 Leesburg, 11.4 16.3% 20.9% 61.9 20.4% 80.55
10 Estero, FL 9.0 8.0% 9.0% 127.6 21.7% 80.33

Press Release – Rep. Metz Files Bill to Repeal District Cost Differential

Press Release
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Leesburg Chamber Executive Director Sandi Moore, City Commissioner Dan Robuck III and City Manager Al Minner attended the Lake County Legislative Days in Tallahassee. One of the Leesburg Area Chamber’s initiatives addressed was Leesburg’s Economic Development Climate, they communicated the importance of K-12 public education system and its effect on local business recruitment and economic development in the Leesburg Area.
Education Funding for Florida schools is decided based on the Florida Education Finance Program funding formula.  “The current FEFP results in Lake County School District being #66 (out of 67) in State funding despite being number 19 in student population”.

Groveland, Florida-State Rep. Larry Metz (R-Yalaha), filed House Bill 4047, seeking to repeal the District Cost Differential (DCD) contained within the Florida Education Finance Program (FEFP) funding formula for K-12 education.

For More Information:  Press Release – Rep. Metz Files Bill to Repeal District Cost Differential