its location between Jacksonville to the north , Daytona Beach to the south and Orlando to the west . And recent expansions in the healthcare services industry from area hospitals and universities bode well for the future .
“ We are dedicated to branding ourselves as a destination for a specific set of business categories related primarily to healthcare services and healthcare training ,” he said .
With AdventHealth building a new hospital and Flagler Health + investing heavily in the community , as well as education programs from the University of North Florida and others on the way , Palm Coast is poised to take advantage of the growing needs of the healthcare industry , Aflin said .
“ If we apply our resources skillfully like a scalpel into this medical technology and medical training , I think we fulfill a need not just for Palm Coast but the region ,” he said . “ We will provide a product that is highly sought after , and it goes beyond just the city limits of Palm Coast .”
In Clay County , Commission Chairman Wayne Bolla recognizes the importance of economic development to the community and its residents .
“ Everybody campaigns on economic development ,” he said . “ It ’ s probably the No . 1 issue that never goes away . There are other things that pop up from time to time , but economic development is kind of a central theme .”
For Bolla , measuring the impact of economic development efforts boils down to two key performance indicators : job growth and wages .
“ I look at unemployment , and right now , we are at 2 % in Clay County ,” he said . “ Just about everybody who wants to work has a job . The other one I try to focus on is average wage in the county .”
Bolla said it is not enough to have jobs available for residents but for those jobs to provide a living wage .
“ When we look at bringing businesses into the county and offer incentive packages , I look
Wayne Bolla at what kind of pay rates they have for their workers ,” he said . “ That is what is important here , getting a living wage .”
All three leaders recognize that economic growth is not always viewed positively by residents . As elected officials , they are aware of residents ’ concerns about increased traffic that comes with growth and other quality of life issues .
“ We have to be smart enough to satisfy our current residents but also be aware of what our future residents will demand from the city ,” said Palm Coast ’ s Alfin .
Ideas about “ smart growth ” have been around for years and evolved into discussions of “ responsible growth ” in recent years . But Alfin said the better term is “ smart , managed growth .”
“ In my meaning , it ’ s a clear understanding that economic growth is a balancing act of a number of different factors ,” he
said . “ Managed growth can only happen if the tax base , the demographics , the housing and the quality of life are all balanced because they are all related and connected to each other .” In St . Johns County , Dean repeated a similar mantra . Economic growth is good for the community “ if it ’ s done right ( and ) if it meets the test of infrastructure in place and compatibility ,” he said .
“ Both residential and business growth are the fuel ,” Dean said . “ they feed the engine of the services we provide to the community .” The story is the same in Clay County , Bolla said . “ Economic growth is good for the community in that it is difficult to provide all the services that people want ,” he said . “ We ’ re trying to build an environment here where it ’ s a great place to live and for the small-business owner to have a great opportunity to start a business right here .”
Howard Holley is Co-Founder and CEO of TouchPoint Innovative Solutions and Publisher of EVOLVE Magazine .
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