Feature» Xindian City philosophy and the mission statement, “Promote peace through mutual respect, understanding, & cooperation — one individual, one community at a time.” With this thought in mind, Tavares Mayor, Rob Wolfe “started meeting with different Taiwanese delegates here [in Florida] and commissioners throughout the state. I met with the Director General out of Miami who is in charge of the Taipei cultural office. They see what they can invest in here in the States. We wanted to see what we could expand between the city of Tavares and Taiwan, and that’s when we brought up the idea of having a sister city.” A package was put together with the idea of cultural exchange and other economic and business benefits for approval by the city council. Potential benefits from the EB-5 program, which encourages investing by foreign nationals in a qualified regional center with the idea that at least ten jobs are created, and the foreign national receives a green card with a successful venture, was included in the presentation. City council was receptive, and Director General Ray Mou said “they found a city that has a lot of likenesses to Tavares. They have a lot of waterfront activities, the Dragon Boat Festival, and they also have seaplanes once in a while that land there.” Once things were set into motion, Mayor Wolfe and his wife received a formal invitation “to meet with, and try to establish the sister city program with
Xindian and also meet with the different delegates, Prime Minister of Taiwan, and quite a few others in the foreign ministry and foreign affairs.” The city of Tavares purchased airfare, and Xindian’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs covered all other expenses, and treated the Mayor and his wife to a whirlwind of meetings, dinners, and activities with many influential
officials. The activities exposed the mayor to various cultural and economic sources that Xindian has to offer. The Taipei International Floral Expo and the Nankang Software Park were highlighted as part of their economic success. Nankang manufactures and develops worldwide software, and manufactures the ever-popular iPhones and iPads. Visits were also made to learn more about the history of the United States and China’s combined involvement during World War II, in the National Chiang KaiShek Memorial Hall. A special trip was made to surprise the performers of last year’s Taiwanese middle school troupe – the students were highly honored. Several North American officials were also visiting Taiwan, and Mayor Wolfe compared notes with the Brad Woodside, mayor of Fredericton, New Brunswick, about the success of their sister city program. They have already seen prosperous returns, even in a short
time, with an investment of ten to twelve million dollars in to Fredericton. In Tavares, a variety of economic and cultural exchanges exist, including Progressive Aerodyne, who manufactures seaplane kits and is interested in exporting to Xindian. With no seaplane marina, it is a possible business venture that could also support seaplane tours of Taiwan. Wolfe recalled previous success of centralized cultural housing including forty to sixty houses as an investment source for Taiwanese nationals to live while conducting business. Other prospects including medical expansion, and industrial park development, but the most exciting opportunity might just be embedded in sports entertainment. Former Major League Baseball star, Chet Lemon has plans to build a $4.5 million sports complex, and with the popularity of American baseball, opportunities were imparted for this project as well. As is customary, Mayor Wolfe and his wife, took several gifts to bestow upon their hosts, including coffee table books highlighting Tavares, baseballs, and the Tavares fire chief sent over a custom designed fire helmet. Upon receiving the helmet, Xindian’s Mayor Mei-Yueh Wang tried it on-- a symbol of things to come. By the end of the mayor’s stay, a Letter of Intent was presented and a formal signing ceremony took place the last day. After the signing, the collaboration was sealed as both Mayor Wang and Mayor Wolfe sipped from a small cup of Taiwanese vodka. Upon return to the States and foreseeing a positive outlook on the partnership, Mayor Wolfe said, “out of the blue, a man who had business ties in China and Taiwan said he’d help out in any way he could to try to bring investors to Tavares.”
FOCUS Magazine Lake County january 2011
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