OK, it’s not the NBA Championship, but the feat is impressive, even if we might not quite understand it all.

The Orlando Magic hit an exclusive social networking mark, becoming the first Eastern Conference team — and second in the NBA — to obtain 1 million Twitter followers.

Despite having more than 60 million users worldwide, a number that includes countless organizations, businesses, athletes, musicians, actors and other celebrities, fewer than 250 Twitter users have reached the 1-million-follower plateau. The only other NBA team making that claim is the Los Angeles Lakers. After the Lakers and the Magic (http://twitter.com/Orlando_Magic), the next-highest NBA Twitter following belongs to the Cleveland Cavaliers, which have fewer than 35,000.

Also notably, the Magic’s All-Star center Dwight Howard — or @DwightHoward as he’s known to his “Tweeps” — eclipsed the milestone last season and now has nearly 1.5 million followers of his own. Teammate Rashard Lewis, aka @Rashard_Lewis, also is active on the Twittersphere, in addition to his presence on several other social networking platforms.

It’s a brave new world.

(Shameless plug: I can be followed on Twitter @MikeRCandelaria.)

---

Watch out, big banks. Community banks are out to get you.

At least, that’s the look of things from the grass-roots Move Your Money campaign. The goal is to encourage people across America to move their accounts away from the big banks and to smaller, community-oriented financial institutions. (Information about the online campaign can be found at www.moveyourmoney.info.)

Community-oriented banks report success, with new customers moving their accounts from some of the nation’s largest banks to signal displeasure with recent actions. One such smaller player is Trustco Bank, whose Florida regional president, Eric Schreck, comments: “We’ve seen millions of dollars in new deposits come to Trustco Bank locations across Central Florida as a result of this campaign. And those are only the ones in which people clearly identified why they were switching banks; there are likely many more.”

The battle lines of large versus small are drawn, again.

---

Welcome news has come from Heart of Florida United Way. Its 211 & Elder Helpline has expanded to include a crisis hotline for people facing suicidal urges or other life crises that render them unable to cope.

HFUW was awarded the contract to provide local crisis hotline services through the Florida Department of Children and Families. While the contract is for Orange and Osceola counties, all callers, regardless of where they live, will receive appropriate services. Much like 911 or 411, 211 is a free, multilingual, 24-hour resource that helps people find critical assistance with everything from food and rent to elder care and disaster relief. Now by dialing 211, residents can also find immediate help if they are feeling suicidal or dealing with family violence, drug and alcohol addictions, sexual assault or any overwhelming life crisis.

As part of 211’s expansion, six full-time senior crisis specialists have been added, bringing 211’s total staff to nearly 40. All senior crisis specialists have extensive backgrounds or advanced degrees in social work and related fields. Over the past two years, 2-1-1’s overall call volume has increased 47 percent.

---

Trust has been restored. Well, sort of.

With the nation creeping slowly out of the recession, trust in business and government in the United States has improved significantly, according to the 2010 Edelman Trust Barometer, an annual global consumer study. Edelman is a leading independent public relations firm, with 3,200 employees in 51 offices worldwide, including Orlando.

Ah, but there’s a rub. Nearly two-thirds of U.S. respondents express concern that business and financial institutions will return to “business as usual” as the recession comes to an end. The study illustrates that trust in business was gained through proactive measures taken during the economic crisis. Yet, while positive, those measures don’t offer a clear path forward for the retention of that trust.

When it comes to trust in business, more work is need. And more jobs wouldn’t hurt, either.

 

---

Orlando Health has taken the art of parking to new heights, and lengths, with the latest addition to its downtown campus: a new $27.5 million parking garage. Yes, $27.5 million.

The garage, at Orange Avenue and Columbia Street, is adorned with a total of 16 palm tree murals, ranging in height from 32 to 61 feet. The palm trees replicate original artwork created by nationally known local artist Maria Reyes-Jones. Other impressive tallies: The nine-level parking garage has a total parking capacity of 2,246 spaces. The parking deck footprint is equivalent to two football fields. Its total gross square footage is equal to 18 football fields. A sidewalk, created from the 5,700 cubic yards of cast-in-place concrete for the project, would extend nearly 10 miles. The 16 graphic art banners constitute 15,360 square feet, or about one-third of an acre.

The scenic garage furthers Orlando Health’s announced plans to renovate and expand its downtown campus, one of the largest expansion efforts in the organization’s history, with anticipated construction ranging up to $150 million.

That’s putting your money where your medicine is.

---

It’s a long shot, for sure. Yet, here’s hoping that just maybe, someday, it becomes a long drive, as in a home run: Major League Baseball in Orlando.

Congressional candidate Armando Gutierrez wants to deliver a franchise. There are even investors, he says, and there has, in fact, been some national speculation about team movement. The holdup, besides no stadium, of course, is that MLB hasn’t expressed any official intention to expand teams or relocate an existing one. Still, that hasn’t slowed Gutierrez, who says he is planning to study the viability of local big-league baseball without a single taxpayer dollar being spent.

The last league expansion occurred in 1998, when the Arizona Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay Rays (then Devil Rays) were established. The most recent relocation of a franchise happened in 2004, when the Montreal Expos moved to Washington, D.C., and were renamed the Washington Nationals.

Not holding my breath. Just dreaming a bit.