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Council honors firms at banquet
By JENNIFER GOLDBLATT, Times Staff Writer In January 2001, the owners of Steel Time Truss Co. built a plant in Land O'Lakes and started manufacturing steel trusses that they previously only installed. In just its second year, the Land O'Lakes company expects sales to jump from $136,000 to $400,000 a year. Keys Concrete Industries built a $2-million concrete plant at Ehren Cutoff and State Road 52 in July 2001 to serve more New Tampa customers. The Odessa-based company, which has four other plants, added 20 new employees to its staff of 100. For those investments, the Pasco manufacturers were honored Tuesday night at the annual industry appreciation banquet hosted by the Pasco Economic Development Council. The banquet, which drew a crowd of 500, was held at Saddlebrook Resort. The council presented seven awards to local companies based on leadership, growth and corporate citizenship in the past 18 months. Winners were picked from 39 nominees. Optima Technologies LLC, was honored as Technology Industry of the Year. The Port Richey company makes parts for laser printers and recently acquired a new division, called Axon Technologies, which makes custom computers and parts for government agencies. President Steve Jensen said the new division, along with the consolidation of Atlanta operations in Pasco, added 10 new local positions to his staff of 61. In the service industry, Dade City's Pasco Regional Medical Center and Today's Graphics were honored. Naples-based Health Management Associates bought the hospital two years ago, and in the past 18 months has invested nearly $2-million in new equipment and renovations and hired about 50 new employees. The hospital has a staff of 325 and 120 beds. Today's Graphics, a 6-year-old company that makes everything from trophies to real estate signs, spent $82,000 on new equipment that will help it expand commercial and retail sales. The company has two employees. The New Industry Award went to TwinStar Optics, Coatings & Crystals, a maker of laser-optic components, which moved its 18 employees from Oldsmar to Port Richey's Custom Commerce Center in July 2001. The Special Contribution Award, which honors a nonprofit agency that has made a significant expansion, went to East Pasco Medical Center in Zephyrhills. The 154-bed hospital has been in the midst of an expansion binge in recent years including the addition of an $8.6-million radiology lab and an emergency room expansion. The hospital is owned by the Winter Park-based nonprofit, Adventist Health System. It also recently received permission to start an open heart surgery unit and announced plans to build a seven-story hospital on Bruce B. Downs Boulevard in Wesley Chapel. The medical center also plans a $10-million to $20-million medical office and outpatient complex on 19 acres it owns on Bruce B. Downs Boulevard just south of State Road 54. The complex is scheduled for completion in 2003.
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From today's Pasco Times Editorial Letters Letters |
