June 13, 2026 — North Central Florida (Nature Coast & Heartland) new business activity

New business filings across North Central Florida's 13 counties came to 263 for the week of May 23 to 29, the slowest week in three months even as the count held above last year.

Two counties shaped almost the whole week. Marion County dropped 31 filings to 119, while Alachua added 19 to reach 96. Together they made up 215 of the region's filings, with Ocala recording 101 and Gainesville 75, so the activity sits squarely in those two cities.

Most of the pullback came from a handful of business types. Professional services fell 13 to 19, transportation and logistics fell 5 to 21, and real estate fell 4 to 8. Construction and trades fell 8 to 18, though a real project is on the way: Santa Fe College has begun site work on a $16 million automotive training center in downtown Gainesville, a build for local trades to bid this summer and, once open, a pipeline of trained auto technicians for area shops to hire.

Several kinds of business still grew. Agriculture and natural resources doubled, from 5 to 10, and county records show the land-services niche behind it: the Marion County Commission's agenda carried a $312,500 tortoise recipient-site contract, and the Alachua County Commission weighed routing future development to protect conservation land, both work for environmental, surveying, and land-management firms. Technology and media rose from 8 to 13, retail added 4 to reach 18, and education rose from 4 to 7.

This was the slowest of the past 13 weeks and the second straight week with fewer filings, so the recent pace is easing. Even so, the region sits 31 filings ahead of the same week in 2025, up 13.4%. The University of Florida also settled its leadership question this period, recommending a sole finalist for president, which adds stability to the Gainesville-area economy the university anchors.

Steady growth over the past 13 weeks with a dip this past week pulling the average down.

The bold line is the 13-week average. Read it for the longer trend. The thin line is each week's count, which swings week to week.

Technology & Media grew the most this week, 5 more (up 62.5%). Professional Services dropped the most, 13 fewer (down 40.6%). Several smaller sectors also grew.

Marion led the region this week with 119 new filings. Gains were broad, with 4 other counties also up from the week before.

• Site work has started at Santa Fe College's Blount Center in downtown Gainesville ahead of building a $16 million Automotive Technology Training Center. The 17,200 square foot building will hold interactive classrooms and special teaching bays for up to 60 students each semester, with construction set to begin in June 2026. The build gives local construction, site work, electrical, and HVAC firms a 17,200 square foot project to bid on, plus specialty trades to fit out the teaching bays. Once open, it trains up to 60 students a semester for auto service work, supporting local auto service employers. Santa Fe College Newsroom, 2026-04-06
• On May 18, 2026, the University of Florida's presidential search committee recommended Dr. Stuart R. Bell as the only finalist for the university's 14th president, pending approval by the Board of Trustees and confirmation by the state Board of Governors. Bell previously led the University of Alabama. A settled leadership pick at the University of Florida adds stability for the Gainesville area economy, where the university anchors hiring, research, and local spending that many area businesses rely on. University of Florida News, 2026-05-18
• At its May 12, 2026 meeting, the Alachua County Commission weighed a proposal to keep a data center off a specific property and to require any future development there to come back to the commission for approval. The board also reviewed the Land Conservation Board's 2025 accomplishments and its 2026 work plan. The conservation work plan points to land management, surveying, and environmental consulting work for firms serving county land. Routing future development through the commission also gives engineers, site planners, and land use attorneys a clear path to win work on new projects. Alachua County Government, 2026-05-13
• The Marion County Commission's May 5, 2026 agenda included a tortoise recipient site contract with Atlantic Ecological Services of St. Augustine for $312,500 with a neutral budget impact. The board set a department funding meeting for May 26 and a planning and zoning session for June 3 at the McPherson Governmental Campus in Ocala. The $312,500 ecological contract is direct work for environmental and land services firms, and it lines up with agriculture and natural resources filings doubling from 5 to 10 this week. The June planning and zoning session is the pipeline that construction firms, surveyors, and engineers watch for new Ocala area projects. Marion County Board of County Commissioners Agenda (Legistar), 2026-05-05

Marion and Alachua hold most of the volume, with Ocala and Gainesville the two places to spend your outreach. The week was the slowest in three months, and professional services, construction, and real estate all fell, so demand in those is thinner right now. The growth is in farm and land business, which doubled and lines up with the county ecological contracts on the books, and in technology and media in Gainesville. Suppliers, finance, insurance, and haulers serving farm and land operations have new entrants to call, as do IT, software, and media firms near UF. And the Santa Fe College automotive build gives trades a real project to bid this summer. Reach these operators first and you become the partner they keep.

These counts come from new business filings registered with the State of Florida for the 13 counties in the North Central Florida region, grouped by industry and by county and city. We wait about two weeks after the week ends for the state to finish recording all filings, so the counts here are complete and accurate. Share figures are each industry's portion of the week's total. Comparisons are against the prior week and the same week one year earlier.

Frequently asked questions

Why did filings fall this week?

Most of the drop came from three areas. Professional services fell 13 to 19, construction and trades fell 8 to 18, and real estate fell 4 to 8. Marion County also lost 31 filings on its own. The count is final, not a partial total.

Where is the activity concentrated?

Marion and Alachua counties together held 215 filings. Within them, Ocala had 101 and Gainesville had 75. If you sell to new businesses, those two cities are where the volume is.

Is the region growing or shrinking?

The recent weekly pace is falling, and this was the slowest of the past 13 weeks. But the region is still ahead of a year ago, with 31 more filings than the same week in 2025, up 13.4%.