“ One is the growth and expansion of healthcare in St. Johns County,” he said.“ There are currently six major projects under construction and others that will be announced soon. We are working hand in hand with our education partners across the state to actively recruit professionals to fill these positions.” Maynard said a related issue is creating housing opportunities for that workforce and diversifying the county’ s tax base.
“ The chamber continues to work with our elected officials to provide more opportunities for the construction of attainable housing,” he said.“ Finally, we are continuing to work to lower the percentage of ad valorem tax on rooftops and grow our advanced manufacturing tax base with high skilled high wage employment opportunities.”
With the county’ s population expected to grow by nearly 100,000 over the next 10 years, according to the University of Florida Bureau of Economic and Business Research, Maynard said infrastructure issues are also a priority.
Scott Maynard
“ I believe the county has a good plan in place for infrastructure improvements and continued smart growth,” he said.“ Once the current road projects are completed, people will see improvement in mobility. Expanding our public transportation should also be a key goal in the future.”
Infrastructure issues are also on the radar in Flagler County, where Economic Development Manager Tywan Arrington said maintaining the region’ s amenities and quality of life are important goals.
“ These include providing quality fundamental infrastructure and assets, protecting and managing natural resources and preserving and enhancing cultural, recreational and leisure activities,” he said, adding that development of a site readiness program for commercial and industrial development is key.
Arrington said the county is implementing a strategic plan created in 2022 that is reviewed and updated annually and is focused on diversifying the county’ s tax base and developing competitive advantages for new and existing businesses.
The future of economic development in St. Johns County is not defined solely by how much the County grows, but by how well it grows
Jobs, diversification of the tax base and workforce development are issues St. Johns County Economic
Development Director Christine Valliere said are important for future economic growth and are among the county’ s key performance indicators.
“ Those indicators include growth in high-quality jobs, expansion of the commercial and industrial tax base, private capital investment, business retention and expansion activity, workforce training outcomes and the county’ s ability to attract and support industries that align with local strengths, including advanced manufacturing, aviation and aerospace, healthcare, logistics, agriculture and entrepreneurship,” she said.
Tywan Arrington
Valliere said economic development is not just about growth for the sake of growth, but something sustainable that fits the needs of residents and businesses.
“ The future of economic development in St. Johns County is not defined solely by how much the County grows, but by how well it grows,” she said. The next 10 years will require thoughtful coordination among economic development, land use, housing, transportation, education, utilities, and quality-of-place investments. St. Johns County enters this period from a position of
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