► Florida Blue contributed $250,000 to support the new outdoor classroom at the TampaWell Community Garden and Food Pharmacy, at Tampa General Hospital. (Pictured above)
► Florida Senate President Kathleen Passidomo appointed John Couris, president and chief executive officer of Tampa General Hospital, to serve as a member of the Health Care Innovation Council, a statewide volunteer organization established to advance innovation in health care as part of the Senate’s priority Live Healthy initiative.
► iBorrow, a nationwide private direct lender for commercial real estate, has announced the closing of a bridge loan to facilitate the acquisition of a 59,242-square-foot, 100%-leased industrial building, in Tampa.
► Real estate developer Related Group celebrated the grand opening of Tower I at the Ritz-Carlton Residences Tampa, Tampa Bay’s first Ritz-Carlton-branded project.
► Shumaker lawyer Sean P. Bevil has been tapped as the Hillsborough County Human Relations Board’s next vice chair, where he has been serving as a general member of the Board since 2022.
► GastroMD, in Tampa, added Alexandra McAlvany, who has a background in emergency room patient care and a focus on gastrointestinal health.
► Hyde Park Capital’s client, Accuhealth Technologies, a health care technology company, received a growth investment from Sunstone Partners, a private equity firm focused on tech-enabled services and software companies.
► Skyway Capital Markets, in Tampa, named Jim DiCesaro, as senior managing director in its mergers and acquisitions practice.
► Doug Waechter, a former Major League Baseball player who has played for the Tampa Bay Rays, Florida Marlins and Kansas City Royals, has joined Colliers as an associate for office services.
► Tampa Shumaker lawyer Hillary E. Thornton graduated from the Hillsborough Association for Women Lawyers Leadership Academy.
► Encore Bancshares and its wholly owned bank subsidiary, Encore Bank, which has a Tampa location, accepted the resignation of chief executive officer and Chairman Chris Roberts and enacted the bank’s succession plan, naming Phillip Jett as acting CEO and chairman.
► Construction is underway for AQUA, one of Tampa Bay’s most anticipated condo towers, rising in the waterfront enclave of the Westshore Yacht Club.
► Biomefit, a boutique fitness studio, is planned to open at Sparkman Wharf, in Tampa.
► Shumaker Partner Maria del Carmen Ramos has been appointed as the talent and retention partner for the firm’s Tampa office.
► Tampa General Hospital and the TGH Cancer Institute appointed Dr. Sajeel Chowdhary as medical director of its Neuro-Oncology program.
► ZOM Living, a multifamily development firm, along with partner MetLife Investment Management, has secured approximately $63 million in construction financing for MetWest Residential, a luxury multifamily development in the Westshore District of Tampa.
► Onyx+East launched Vivir, its latest residential community, situated on Bloomingdale Avenue in Valrico, with homes starting from the $400,000s.
► American Landmark Apartments, a multifamily owner-operator, has acquired The Pointe on Westshore, a 444-unit apartment community, in Tampa.
► Northwestern Mutual’s James Erb, a financial adviser in Tampa, has been recognized on the Forbes Top Wealth Advisor Best-in-State list.
► Tampa General Hospital and the University of South Florida celebrated a new state law that names the TGH Behavioral Health Hospital one of the first four behavioral health teaching hospitals in the state of Florida and created the Florida Center for Behavioral Health Workforce within the University of South Florida’s Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute.
