The Official Logo for Bike Week 2010, "The World's Largest Motorcycle Event" ahs been selected from a variety of entries. Donated by Hayworth Creative, the design will be an integral component to the 69th Anniversary of Bike Week in Daytona Beach, to be held February 26-March 7th, 2010.

Bike Week Festival Task Force Licensing Committee Chairman Sean Belgrade cited the difficulty of this year's selection, "There were so many great designs to choose from and we thank all of those companies that submitted. Our congratulations go out to Kevin and Maria Hayworth and all their staff for what's sure to be one of our best and most versatile designs."

The Official Bike Week Logo will appear on all correspondence, banners, web pages and publications having to do with Bike Week in Daytona Beach. It will also appear in all national print advertising involving a number of industry publications.

For more information on Bike Week in the Daytona Beach area, contact The Chamber, Daytona Beach/ Halifax Area at (386) 255-0981 or via the official website at www.officialbikeweek.com.

Approximately 60 teams with some 780 youth athletes are expected to attend the United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA) Fall Open Baseball event to be held September 11-13 in Volusia County. The Central Florida Sports Commission is co-hosting the tournament, which will be held at the New Smyrna Beach and Ormond Beach Sports Complexes. Older divisions (13-14 year-old players) will play at Ormond Beach. The younger teams (9-12 years old) will compete at New Smyrna Beach. Teams from around Central and North Florida are expected to attend.

Preparations also continue for the 2nd annual Daytona Beach Half Marathon, which will be held on Sunday morning, November 1st. Approximately 700 runners from around the nation are expected for the 13.1-mile race, which starts and ends at Daytona International Speedway. The course also winds through Daytona Beach streets and includes a run along Daytona's Boardwalk. Runners from as far away as Missouri, New York, and the United Kingdom have already registered for the event.

The race is hosted by the Sports Commission and the Speeway, and is co-sponsored by the Daytona Beach Sports Council of Volusia County. To learn how you can get involved as a sponsor or vendor, or to register as a partcipant, visit the Daytona Beach Half Marathon website at www.daytonahalf.com.

The Save Our Homes amendment caps homestead property assessment increases to no more than 3 percent in a given year (painless during a real estate market boom). But with the market falling, state law prevents assessments from dropping so homesteads could see a higher tax bill this year. At the same time, business, commercial and residential rental properties might see a slight decrease.

The County’s preliminary budget calls for a general fund tax rate of 5.45 mills (the rollback rate). While it is 21 % higher than the current rate, it's officially not a tax increase because it’s designed to raise the same amount of revenue as the current year. Volusia’s proposed operating budget is $617.7 million (2.7 % less than FY 2008-09). Volusia’s overall budget (including capital projects) is $724.6 million (a 1.3 percent decrease). Total property tax revenues: $235.1 million (a 2.7 percent decrease). 

Gilreath stated that tax bills can remain stable “if local governments limit spending.” He noted that St Johns River WMD is considering a significant reduction in their next year’s budget.  

The Business Development Partnership and the Economic Services Alliance will be holding a Business 2 Business Expo, presented by Microsoft, at the Ocean Center on November 18, 2009. The Business 2 Business Expo will combine exhibit space, breakout sessions and speakers to attract an audience of the community's business leaders. The one-day show is being developed to give more flexibility for business owners and attendees on busy schedules.

The BDP is incorporating a CEO Breakfast, the Annual Lunch, an evening reception and other speakers into this event. Speakers include Jon Gordon, author and consultant, and John Brandt, founder and CEO of the MPI Group.

The Expo will kick off with a vendor set-up reception on Tuesday, November 17th. The L. Gale Lemerand Entrepreneurial Speaker Series will host Warren Brown, founder and owner of Cake Love and former host of "Sugar Rush" on Food Network.

The B2B Expo is the perfect venue to showcase your products or services! For booth and sponsorship information, contact Sam Goodwin at 255-0981, ext. 233 or Samuel@daytonachamber.com.

Members of YPG's Board of Directors and Chamber staff attended the Next Leaders (Young Professionals) national conference in Cincinnati, Ohio, September 17-19. Over 200 young professionals from across the nation gathered to hear presentations on leadership development, effective strategies for young professional organizations and social media. Breakout sessions also provided ideas about sponsorship, partnering with charitable organizations and growing membership.

The conference coincided with Cincinnati's Oktoberfest celebration, and a good time was had by all!