The county commission hasn’t demonstrated any intention on trying to attract businesses other than service oriented, referencing the so-called medical corridor and the scorched-earth policy of defoliating the area on County Road 491 for a drainage area which was started by a prior commission, but no commissioner who had the opportunity bothered to examine what was going to transpire even though it existed for (Ron) Kitchen and (Scott) Carnahan, per a Chronicle article.

The type of businesses where citizens could make a living wage need to be attracted into the county and without such intentions, Citrus will become another bedroom community (suburb) for Orlando and Tampa. This necessity is inescapable; without such foresight, the dismal reality of those who have and those who have not will continue to worsen, resulting in a smaller tax base, program cuts and higher taxes.

Putting the clamps down on the industrial park in Holder was short-sighted, with no acknowledgement to the potentials that would become available because of its proximity to Marion County, attracting perhaps a biotech lab to complement the potential medical corridor.

All the while, the commission still gives attention to the Citrus port idea; utilizing the barge canal is still talked about after 20 years or more and anybody who has ever gone fishing in the gulf knows that big container ships will never be in the Gulf and this whole concept should have been written off the county commission agenda years ago.

The aim to make Citrus County one huge retirement community fails in the realization that retirees live on a fixed income, and for the most part this limited income scenario does not entice future business growth. Without such growth, the retirees’ extended families will not come nor stay to reside in Citrus County. Their children, grandchildren and even great-grandchildren will not find occupations that would enable them to sustain their families here. And should they find positions in Orlando or Tampa and commute, as anyone who has ever done knows, they are going to do their shopping in those other counties where the regional stores have the better deals, and their varying entertainment dollars will also go there.

If we don’t get involved as a people, we get what we deserve: No representation in county government. It doesn’t have to be this way, join me and let’s make a difference!

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