Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/98836
Sarasota News Leader December 14, 2012 Page 70 arts [and] probably the most culture-rich community in Florida, certainly per capita. And you have Ringling [College] and New College, which are huge assets.��� The HuB is by no means on any particular path, any more than Swier was when he arrived in Sarasota. ���When I decided to do The HuB, I decided to let it be organic. I wasn���t going to define what it was. I just leased some space in the Rosemary District and opened the doors, and people would come in and ask, ���What do you do here?��� and I would ask, ���What do you like to do?������ For every business that originated at The HuB, the roots can be traced back to one person walking through the door, he pointed out. ���And that���s why we are so big on the community,��� Swier said. ���The community feeds us. ��� The growth of The HuB is just us harnessing the assets of the city. We are reaping the rewards of the collective efforts of the people, the city. I think The HuB is empowering to all the diverse elements of the town.��� Swier added, ���I think that the town has hungered for something like this for a long time, but has been the victim of so many scams ��� people, groups wanting money, and they���ll do this or create jobs. But the city can point to [The HuB] as something that is real. There are real people that have done real things.��� ���If the city is awesome and keeps and attracts the right minds,��� he added, ���then we will be successful.��� For more information, just go onto the broadband that Swier helped bring to this community and check out hubsarasota.com or richswier.com. % Even the sign listing HuB tenants reflects a colorful take on doing business. Photo by Scott Proffitt