August 29, 2026 — North Central Florida (Gainesville & Ocala) new business activity

• site contractors: Hamilton County Board of County Commissioners, Levy County Planning Commission, Marion County Development Review Committee, Marion County Development Review Committee, City of Ocala Planning & Zoning Commission
• utility contractors: Alachua County Government, Hamilton County Board of County Commissioners, Levy County Board of County Commissioners, Marion County Board of County Commissioners, Marion County Development Review Committee
• civil engineers: Alachua County Government, Levy County Planning Commission, Levy County Board of County Commissioners
• home builders: Alachua County Government, Hamilton County Board of County Commissioners, Marion County Development Review Committee
• surveyors: Alachua County Government, Hamilton County Board of County Commissioners, Marion County Development Review Committee
• commercial builders: Marion County Development Review Committee, City of Ocala Planning & Zoning Commission
• commercial contractors: Hamilton County Board of County Commissioners, Hamilton County Board of County Commissioners
• concrete and masonry contractors: Marion County Development Review Committee, City of Ocala Planning & Zoning Commission
• land clearing crews: Alachua County Government, Marion County Board of County Commissioners
• concrete contractors: Levy County Planning Commission
• data center developers: Levy County Planning Commission
• electricians: City of Ocala Planning & Zoning Commission
• excavation and paving crews: Hamilton County Board of County Commissioners
• general contractors: Hamilton County Board of County Commissioners
• heavy haulers: Hamilton County Board of County Commissioners
• land developers: Hamilton County Board of County Commissioners
• land use attorneys: Levy County Planning Commission
• metal building erectors: Levy County Planning Commission
• paving contractors: Marion County Board of County Commissioners
• planning consultants: Levy County Board of County Commissioners
• retail fit-out contractors: Marion County Development Review Committee
• roofers: Hamilton County Board of County Commissioners
• RV park developers: Marion County Board of County Commissioners
• self storage builders: Levy County Planning Commission
• sewer and water contractors: Levy County Board of County Commissioners
• storage facility operators: Levy County Planning Commission
• veterinary clinic builders: Hamilton County Board of County Commissioners

North Central Florida recorded 375 new business filings the week of August 8 to 14, down 10.1% from the week before and 6.9% below the same week last year.

New business formation in North Central Florida cooled for a second straight week. The region logged 375 new filings for the week of August 8 to 14, down 42 from the prior week's 417 and 28 below the 403 recorded the same week last year. The 13 week moving average slipped to 382.5, and the trailing window is trending down, so this reads as a softening stretch rather than a one-off dip.

The pullback was concentrated in the building-related sectors. Real Estate and Rental & Leasing fell 18 filings to 39, Construction dropped 12 to 35, and Property Holding & Asset Protection slid 17 to 40. Together those three account for most of the week's overall decline, a sign the development pipeline is easing.

Against that cooling, a few sectors moved up. Administrative & Support Services led the week at 43 filings, up 8, and now makes up 11.5% of the total. Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing & Hunting rose 4 to 15, and Arts, Entertainment & Recreation rose 3 to 13. Wholesale Trade came in at 8, about double its usual weekly pace.

Marion County still leads the region at 170 filings and Alachua is second at 124, but the movement is in the smaller places. Newberry climbed four spots to 14 filings, up 40%, and Starke jumped seven spots to 8, up 60%. Levy fell hardest, dropping 12 to 8.

A steady slowdown over the past 13 weeks.

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.

• 2025-26
• 2024-25
• 2023-24
• 2022-23
• 2021-22

New business formation usually runs highest around Mar and is quietest around Nov, holding near 1,500 a month across the years.

Each line is one year, ending at the current month on the right, so you can read the past year left to right. New Year's Day is left out because the state office is closed, so almost no businesses register that day.

Administrative & Support Services grew the most this week, 9 more (up 26.5%). Property Holding & Asset Protection dropped the most, 17 fewer (down 29.8%).

Marion led the region this week with 170 new filings. 2 of the other 4 counties shown here were also up from the week before.

• Alachua County's commission approved a preliminary development plan for the nine-lot Hernandez Alfonso Farms subdivision on roughly 48 acres. It also approved sending the roughly 996 acre Everlee Farmstead Community comprehensive plan amendment to Florida Commerce and other agencies for review.

  A 996 acre comprehensive plan amendment moving into state review is a long pipeline of site work, and the nine-lot subdivision is closer to the ground. Both feed surveyors, civil engineers, and the crews that clear, grade, and build.

  Who this helps

  • surveyors
  • civil engineers
  • land clearing crews
  • home builders
  • utility contractors

  Alachua County Government, 2026-08-25

• Hamilton County's July 21 commission agenda carried a land development regulation text amendment tied to the Jennings FL 260 subdivision concept plan. It also listed a special exception for a veterinary clinic and an economic development tax exemption ordinance for ESA Steele Services LLC.

  A subdivision concept plan and a tax exemption for a local services firm both signal new building and hiring. The subdivision feeds surveyors and site contractors, while the tax break points to a business expanding its footprint.

  Who this helps

  • surveyors
  • site contractors
  • veterinary clinic builders
  • commercial contractors

  Hamilton County Board of County Commissioners, 2026-07-17

• Hamilton County's August 4 commission agenda listed a proposed future subdivision in Jennings with a 260 lot layout map. It also carried a request from Nutrien White Springs to cross US 41, CR 137 and 8 Mile Still Road during the week of August 28, 2026.

  A 260 lot subdivision layout is a sizable residential pipeline, and a road-crossing request from a mining operation means heavy equipment and hauling work. Both point to site work, utilities, and the trades that follow new rooftops.

  Who this helps

  • land developers
  • excavation and paving crews
  • utility contractors
  • home builders
  • heavy haulers

  Hamilton County Board of County Commissioners, 2026-07-30

• Hamilton County's August 17 commission agenda included a request to amend Hamilton County Ordinance No. 2018-05. It also listed a Field House roof repair bid and a master service agreement with Clyde Johnson Contracting and Roofing.

  A roof repair bid and a standing contracting agreement are direct public work for local roofing and general contracting firms, with the master service agreement suggesting repeat business rather than a one-off job.

  Who this helps

  • roofers
  • general contractors
  • commercial contractors

  Hamilton County Board of County Commissioners, 2026-08-13

• Levy County's Planning Commission August 24 agenda carried an ordinance recommending a temporary moratorium on development permits for data center facilities. It also listed a special exception request by Kirby Family Farm for a civic use on roughly 110.35 acres.

  A data center moratorium changes the rules for anyone planning a facility in Levy, and a 110 acre special exception is a large land-use decision. Both matter to the engineers, attorneys, and site contractors who work these cases.

  Who this helps

  • land use attorneys
  • civil engineers
  • site contractors
  • data center developers

  Levy County Planning Commission, 2026-08-24

• Levy County's Board of County Commissioners August 25 agenda included a resolution vacating a partial plat of Williston Park. It also listed a $60,000 procurement to Passero Associates for a fee study and awarded the Levy County Lift Station & Sanitary Sewer Improvements to WH Construction, LLC for $198,785.

  A $198,785 lift station and sewer award is concrete utility construction work, and a $60,000 fee study is professional services spend. Both are dollars flowing to local engineering and construction firms.

  Who this helps

  • utility contractors
  • civil engineers
  • sewer and water contractors
  • planning consultants

  Levy County Board of County Commissioners, 2026-08-25

• Levy County's Planning Commission July 27 agenda listed a text amendment request by Lorenzo's Paradise Marketing LLC. It would add self storage RV/boat storage as a special exception use in the Rural Mixed Use zoning district.

  A zoning change to allow RV and boat storage opens a new use class for builders and operators, feeding the contractors who pour pads, erect storage buildings, and run the facilities.

  Who this helps

  • self storage builders
  • concrete contractors
  • metal building erectors
  • storage facility operators

  Levy County Planning Commission, 2026-07-27

• Marion County's Development Review Committee August 24 agenda carried the Target of Ocala major site plan as a consent item.

  A major retail site plan moving through review means a new store build on the horizon, with work for the site contractors, concrete and masonry crews, and the fit-out trades that finish a retail box.

  Who this helps

  • site contractors
  • concrete and masonry contractors
  • commercial builders
  • retail fit-out contractors

  Marion County Development Review Committee, 2026-08-24

• Marion County's Board of County Commissioners August 18 agenda listed a zoning change by MBV Engineering Inc on behalf of Copper Penny Farm LLC. It would change roughly 26.05 acres of a 31.37 acre parcel to Recreational Vehicle Park.

  A 26 acre rezoning to an RV park is a hospitality build, with work for the crews that clear and grade the site, run utilities to each pad, and pave the roads and lots.

  Who this helps

  • land clearing crews
  • utility contractors
  • paving contractors
  • RV park developers

  Marion County Board of County Commissioners, 2026-08-18

• Marion County's Development Review Committee August 17 final agenda listed the Westwood Trails PUD final plat, a subdivision plat under review by Rogers Engineering & Land Surveying, LLC.

  A final plat is the last review step before a subdivision can be built, so this signals construction is close. It feeds the surveyors, site contractors, and home builders who turn platted lots into homes.

  Who this helps

  • surveyors
  • site contractors
  • home builders
  • utility contractors

  Marion County Development Review Committee, 2026-08-17

• Ocala's Planning & Zoning Commission August 10 agenda listed a resolution for a Planned Development plan and standards book for the New Ocala MOB LLC PD on roughly 4.26 acres at 325 SE 24th Street.

  A planned development on 4.26 acres in Ocala is a compact build, likely medical office or mixed use, with work for the site contractors, concrete crews, and the trades that finish a small commercial project.

  Who this helps

  • site contractors
  • concrete and masonry contractors
  • commercial builders
  • electricians

  City of Ocala Planning & Zoning Commission, 2026-08-10

For someone selling to new businesses here, this week says the easy growth is over but the work is still there. The headline count fell, and the building-related sectors that usually drive it pulled back, so the prospects are thinner on the development side. The public records still name real projects: a 996 acre plan amendment in Alachua, a 260 lot subdivision in Hamilton, a data center moratorium and a sewer award in Levy, and a retail site plan and an RV park rezoning in Marion. The firms best placed to act are the surveyors, civil engineers, site contractors, and utility crews who get hired first when these approvals turn into dirt work, plus the roofers, plumbers, and electricians who follow.

These counts come from Florida's state business filing records for the week of August 8 to 14, 2026, across the 13 counties of North Central Florida. We wait about two weeks after the week ends for the state to finish recording all of its filings, so the counts are complete and accurate. The local developments are drawn from county and city commission agendas, planning commission records, and public notices published in the same window.

Frequently asked questions

How many new businesses formed in North Central Florida this week?

375 new business filings were recorded for the week of August 8 to 14, 2026, down 42 from the prior week and 28 below the same week last year.

Which sector led the week?

Administrative & Support Services led at 43 filings, up 8 from the week before and 11.5% of the week's total.

Which counties are growing fastest?

Marion and Alachua still lead in raw count, but the fastest growth is in smaller places: Newberry climbed four spots to 14 filings and Starke jumped seven spots to 8.

Why do the counts lag the calendar by about two weeks?

We wait about two weeks after the week ends for the state to finish recording all of its filings, so the counts are complete and accurate rather than a moving estimate.