The Fourth of July weekend was a great opportunity to host a dozen inuential site selectors in Volusia County. Not only did they get to see the exciting NASCAR Coke Zero 400 race, but they also were taken by bus on a windshield tour throughout the county.
"Being invited to host these individuals in the Team Florida suite at the Daytona International Speedway was a rare opportunity," said Team Volusia CEO, Keith Norden. "It was a chance to align the most compelling assets of Volusia County with the most compelling assets of Florida and talk business in a casual atmosphere at the Coke Zero 400 on July 1."
The site selectors in attendance traveled from across the nation, Germany and Switzerland. Enterprise Florida had exclusively invited guests based on their interest in the Sunshine State and possible future site locations for their clients. Several of the site selectors had not visited Volusia County before and were impressed with what they saw. One of them, John Castro, Senior Vice President of Cressa Consulting Group in Dallas said that he is in the midst of closing a deal in another Florida county, however, he looks forward to working with Team Volusia in pursuit of projects in the future.
The guests enjoyed a leisurely Sunday before attending a group dinner at the Grille at Riverview. Monday featured a full schedule, beginning with a morning tour of southeast Volusia County. Later the group met at One Daytona for a meeting with city economic development practitioners and community leaders, with a presentation by NASCAR and International Speedway Corporation. A tour of west Volusia County followed, with a casual lunch at the Brickhouse Restaurant in historic downtown DeLand, where County Manager Jim Dinneen, welcomed the special guests to our county. Then it was back to the east and northeast region of the county for a tour and VIP experience of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University's MicaPlex. Later in the afternoon, the group gathered at the newly renovated Streamline Hotel, the birthplace of NASCAR, followed by dinner at the Grind Gastropub & Kona Tiki Bar in Ormond Beach. After a long day, the guests were ready for a restful night at the Hampton Inn in New Smyrna Beach before heading home with a new understanding of all that Volusia County has to offer.
