August 8, 2026 — North Central Florida (Gainesville & Ocala) new business activity

North Central Florida recorded 401 new business filings the week of July 18 to 24, a third straight weekly gain.

Companies set up to hold property or protect assets led the week at 64, up 23 from 41. That was the biggest jump of any group. Another 27 new companies were named after a street address, 6.7% of the week's names, and that is the usual sign of a property holding company.

Marion County still led the region with 156 filings, but that is 32 fewer than the 188 it had a week earlier. Alachua County went the other way at 131, up 20 from 111.

Inside those two counties the swing is narrow. Ocala fell to 127 from 162. The city of Alachua jumped to 25 from 4, and Gainesville eased to 78 from 90. A seller working Ocala saw a thinner week. One working the Alachua and Newberry side saw a fuller one.

The smaller counties were busy at the same time. Columbia reached 37 from 25, with Lake City at 33 from 21. Levy rose to 18 from 14 and Williston more than doubled to 11 from 5. Madison went to 7 from 4.

The longer view has not turned up yet. The last 13 weeks total 5,124 filings against 5,164 for the 13 weeks before, so the region is still a little behind its own recent pace. Retail slipped to 30 from 40 and construction and trades to 29 from 34, while company support work grew.

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.

Property Holding and Asset Protection grew the most this week, 23 more (up 56.1%). Retail dropped the most, 10 fewer (down 25.0%). 6 other sectors shown here also grew.

Marion led the region this week with 156 new filings. 4 of the other 5 counties shown here were also up from the week before.

• Marion County's commissioners worked through several separate development items on July 21, 2026, and each one is a distinct piece of work for local firms.

  3 opportunities in this update

  • Sandy Clay LLC asked for approval of a final planned unit development master plan for up to 442 detached single family homes on a 119.75 acre tract. A project that size is built in phases, so the work runs from land clearing and utilities through framing, roofing and finish trades over several years.
  • The board took up an indemnification agreement and a subdivision improvement agreement with a letter of credit with Millrose Properties Florida, LLC for the proposed Whisper Woods Subdivision, Final Plat-33542. A subdivision improvement agreement means the roads, drainage and utilities are the next thing built, so bids come soon.
  • The county lined up $3,343,053.27 plus closing costs to buy right of way for NW 49th Street Phase 3, and awarded a $736,000 Dunnellon Trail contract to Art Walker Construction Inc. of Ocala. Road and trail work of that size pulls in surveying, earthmoving, paving and striping crews.

  One meeting put housing, roads and trail construction on the calendar at the same time, and the firms that bid this work are mostly local.

  Who this helps

  • home builders
  • site work contractors
  • utility contractors
  • excavation and paving crews
  • surveyors
  • civil engineers
  • roofers
  • electricians
  • plumbers
  • landscapers

  Marion County Board of County Commissioners, 2026-07-21

• Marion County's Development Review Committee cleared a full slate of site plans on July 20, 2026, covering housing, lodging and retail work in the same sitting.

  3 opportunities in this update

  • The consent agenda carried the Calesa Township Chestnut Grove Phase 1 final plat and a major site plan for the Calesa Equine Amenity. A final plat means lots can be sold and built on, so builders and the trades behind them are next in line.
  • The Home2Suites Headsprings Hotel came back with site plan revisions. A hotel getting close to construction needs its building trades first, then linens, laundry, food supply, cleaning and maintenance contracts once it opens.
  • The committee also reviewed a waiver for a modular home dealership on US 441, a waiver on the Midway Oaks major site plan, and a lot split waiver for the Newton Recycling Center. Each one is a commercial site that needs paving, fencing, signage and utility work.

  Site plan review is the step right before permits, so this list is the near term pipeline for anyone selling into new commercial construction in the county.

  Who this helps

  • general contractors
  • concrete and masonry contractors
  • commercial cleaners
  • commercial landscapers
  • sign makers
  • fencing contractors
  • hospitality staffing firms
  • linen and laundry suppliers

  Marion County Development Review Committee, 2026-07-20

• The Ocala City Council's July 7, 2026 agenda moved commercial land and permit costs at the same time.

  3 opportunities in this update

  • Ordinance 2026-19 would rezone about 2.04 acres at 619 SE 17th Street from O-1, Office District, to B-2A, Limited Business Commercial District. A shift from office to limited business commercial opens the site to retail and service tenants, and a change of use usually means a build out before anyone opens the doors.
  • The council also took up two conceptual subdivisions, the TBMI Commercial Outparcel Development and Mockingbird Ridge. Conceptual review is the earliest public step, so these are worth watching rather than bidding today.
  • A contract with JRD & Associates, with a not to exceed amount of $91,546, funds a study of the city's development and building permit fees. Permit fees are a real line item on every job in the city, so builders and developers have a reason to follow where that study lands.

  Two of these items add commercial space to build, and the third could change what it costs to permit it.

  Who this helps

  • commercial general contractors
  • interior build out contractors
  • architects
  • land planners
  • real estate brokers
  • permit expediters

  Ocala City Council, 2026-07-07

• Alachua County reported that 42 road projects worth $46 million wrapped up in the third quarter of its 2026 budget year, covering more than 110 lane miles plus nine new crosswalk and signal projects. Another 12 projects worth $20.4 million are under construction and 32 more worth $53.6 million have not started building yet. All of it sits inside a $250 million 10 year road program paid for by the Wild Spaces and Public Places surtax.

  A $250 million program with 44 projects still ahead of it is a standing order book for road builders and everyone who supplies them, and it runs for years rather than one season.

  Who this helps

  • paving contractors
  • earthmoving crews
  • traffic signal contractors
  • pavement marking crews
  • surveyors
  • civil engineers
  • aggregate and asphalt suppliers
  • equipment rental companies

  Alachua County, 2026-08-07

• Alachua County said enhanced nutrient reducing septic systems are now required for new installations in the Silver Basin, in the Santa Fe priority focus area, and on lots of one acre or less in the Orange Creek and Santa Fe basins outside that focus area. The county offers rebates of up to $16,000 to upgrade an existing system in the Silver and Santa Fe basins, and existing systems in the Silver Basin have until 2046 to comply.

  A rebate of up to $16,000 makes an upgrade something a homeowner will actually call about, and every new build in those basins now needs the more advanced system.

  Who this helps

  • septic installers
  • excavation contractors
  • plumbers
  • home builders
  • soil and environmental consultants
  • well drillers

  Alachua County, 2026-08-05

• The Suwannee River Water Management District extended its modified Phase II water shortage order through December 31, 2026. It applies to every county in the district and to the unincorporated parts of Alachua and Levy counties. Established lawns may be watered one day a week and new landscaping two days a week, with no irrigation between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. The order also changes the hours for high pressure overhead farm irrigation and limits which days golf courses may water. Microsprays, drip irrigation, hand watering and reclaimed water are not restricted, and pressure washing is allowed only for construction, maintenance and safety.

  Rules that reward drip and microspray push farms and property owners to convert, and that conversion work is paid work for irrigation contractors through the end of the year.

  Who this helps

  • irrigation contractors
  • landscapers
  • well drillers
  • farm supply dealers
  • golf course maintenance crews
  • agricultural consultants

  Suwannee River Water Management District, 2026-07-15

• Columbia County posted a joint federal, state and local public notice for a Hazard Mitigation Grant Program application, HMGP-4734-0170-FL, to put emergency standby generators at 21 critical facilities. The sites include community centers at Lulu, Mason City, Southside and Fort White, Springville and Westside, along with fire stations, libraries, sanitary and storm lift stations, maintenance shops and a communications center around Lake City and Fort White.

  Twenty one generator installations is 21 small job sites, each needing a pad, a fuel line, a transfer switch and an inspection, and the work is spread across the county rather than parked at one address.

  Who this helps

  • electrical contractors
  • generator dealers and service firms
  • concrete contractors
  • fuel system installers
  • crane and rigging companies
  • electrical engineers

  Columbia County, 2026-06-18

Three straight up weeks after a slow June is worth noticing, and the makeup of this week points where to spend the effort. Property and land companies grew the most, and the public record in Marion County shows why that demand is real: a 442 home master plan, two final plats and a hotel back in review, all in the same few days. Alachua County is the other half of the picture, with a $250 million road program still carrying 44 projects and a new septic rule that comes with a rebate of up to $16,000. Builders, site work and utility contractors, surveyors, irrigation and septic installers, and the accountants and insurance agents these new owners hire in their first month have the clearest shot this week. Almost three in four of these new filings are limited liability companies, so most of them still need a bank, a bookkeeper and a policy.

We count new business filings recorded with the State of Florida for the businesses in this region, using the week the filing was recorded. We wait about two weeks after a week ends for the state to finish recording that week's filings, so these counts are complete. Filings are grouped into plain language categories by what the business does, and county and city figures come from the address on the filing. The local developments come from government records and official notices, each linked below.

Frequently asked questions

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

401 new business filings were recorded for the week of July 18 to 24, 2026. That is 7 more than the 394 of the week before and 11 more than the 390 recorded the same week last year.

Which county had the most new business filings?

Marion County led with 156, followed by Alachua County with 131 and Columbia County with 37. By city, Ocala had 127, Gainesville 78 and Lake City 33.

Is business formation in the region growing?

It is rising week to week and flat to slightly down over the longer run. This was the third weekly gain in a row, but the last 13 weeks total 5,124 filings against 5,164 for the 13 weeks before, so the region has not yet passed its own recent pace.

What kind of business is forming most here right now?

Companies set up to hold property or protect assets, at 64 filings, or 16.0% of the week. Administrative and support services came next at 44, then professional services at 35.

Why do these counts come out about two weeks later?

The state takes about two weeks to finish recording all of a week's filings. We wait for that so the numbers you see are the complete count for the week, not a partial one.