Corporate report

TAMPA BAY
Food chains hire real estate director
Brian Dixon has been hired to direct Team Oney's real estate operations for Papa John's, Qdoba and Topper's Creamery in an area that includes the west coast of Florida.

Dixon joins Oney with more than 20 years of experience in restaurant franchise operations, including time as a director of real estate and operations manager. He has been with Orlando-based Westhaven Real Estate as a broker associate/senior vice president since 2008.

At Team Oney, Dixon will work with Topper's locations in west and central Florida; Papa John's operations in Orlando, Tampa, Pinellas County and part of Broward County; and Qdoba locations in Orlando and Tampa.

Governing board elects new members
The Southwest Florida Water Management Governing Board elected new officers to the board. New officers, elected to serve a one-year term, include:

Randall Maggard, also named was chairman of the board. Maggard, vice president of Sonny's Discount Appliances Inc., was appointed to the board in October 2011. He represents Pasco County;

Jeffery Adams, vice-chairman of the board, represents Pinellas County. Adams is an attorney and partner with Abbey, Adams LLP in St. Petersburg. He was elected to the board in April 2010.

Bryan Beswick, representing DeSoto, Hardee and Highlands counties, was elected secretary of the board. Beswick is a grove manager of Premier Citrus Management in Arcadia and has been a member of the governing board since March 2013.

Ed Armstrong has been re-elected as treasurer. Representing Pinellas County, Armstrong is an attorney with Clearwater-based Hill Ward Henderson. He was originally appointed to the board in June 2014.

SARASOTA-MANATEE
Longtime Chamber leader resigns
Steve Queior, president and CEO of the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce, announced his resignation May 24.

Queior took over as the leader of the organization in late 2003 and has had a 40-year chamber career, a statement says. His previous experience includes leadership roles at chambers in South Bend, Ind., and Fort Lauderdale.

Under Queior's leadership, the Sarasota Chamber advanced the funding of targeted improvements to downtown Sarasota and aided in the development of Nathan Benderson Park's Suncoast Aquatic and Nature Center.

The chamber has already identified a transition team to lead the search committee for a replacement. Queior has offered to stay on full-time for the remainder of the year or until a new president is hired.

“I look forward to pursuing opportunities here with a narrower focus that would engage my expertise in areas I'm very committed to, such as education attainment, workforce development and housing and nonprofit management,” he says in the statement.

Enzyme supplement firm taps new executive
Enzymedica, provider of digestive enzymes Digest and Digest Gold, has named Kevin Tautkus executive vice president of marketing.

Tautkus joins the firm with more than 15 years' experience with vitamin and health firm Nature's Way, where he held various marketing roles, a statement says.

Tautkus will oversee Venice-based Enzymedica's marketing strategy in his new role and report directly to CEO Scott Sensenbrenner.

CHARLOTEE-LEE-COLLIER
Development sets monthly sales record
Ave Maria Development, a fast-growing self-sustaining town in eastern Collier County, posted its strongest new homes sales month ever in April, with 35.

That figure outperforms the previous top month, February 2015, when there were 34 sales, according to a statement. Homebuilders in the community include CC Homes, Del Webb and Pulte Homes. Prices start in the high $100s.

The town of Ave Maria offers 40 floor plans, with homes that feature lake, preserve and golf course views. At build out, the town is expected to have up to 11,000 residents and 1.7 million square feet of retail, office and business park space spread throughout 4,000 acres.

Hertz board forms tech committee
Hertz shareholders elected David Barnes, a senior executive with United Parcel Service, to the car rental giant's board of directors.

Estero-based Hertz, facing growing competition from car-sharing services such as Uber, says Barnes will also lead a technology committee that will oversee technology strategy and investments. For example, the company announced in April it was investing an undisclosed sum in Luxe, a startup that provides on-demand valet parking and car services.

Barnes, 60, is currently senior vice president, chief information and global services officer for UPS. He is responsible for UPS' technology worldwide, including real-time delivery information on parcels and vehicles. He recently announced he would retire from the parcel carrier June 30.