Lake County officials touted their economic development successes over the past 12 months during a State of the County address Tuesday.
Commission Chairman Jimmy Conner said the county has been better able to help businesses since Lake’s Growth Management, Economic Development and Tourism departments merged.
Since then, Economic Growth has assisted with a $1.5 million expansion of Quietflex, a Texas-based company that nearly doubled its HVAC manufacturing facility in Groveland, adding six pieces of equipment and hiring 25 employees, according to a video presentation presented Tuesday.
Moreover, Coreslab, a pre-cast concrete provider, has relocated to Leesburg and is expected to bring 100 jobs to the area.
“We have to diversify our economy,” County Commissioner Tim Sullivan said. “We have to continue to move forward, and companies like Coreslab will be a big part of that.”
Robert Chandler, the county’s economic growth director, said the economy has recovered with tax revenues up 6 percent this year. Tourism has played a larger role in that recovery, he said, noting that 20 percent of the county’s economy is tourism based.
The county has focused on fishing and volleyball to attract tourists to the region. This past summer, the Florida Region of USA Volleyball hosted the NORCECA international sand volleyball tournament at Hickory Point Sand Beach volleyball complex in Tavares.
“The (tournament) brought in top athletes from 16 different countries,” according to the county presentation.
It also resulted in an economic impact of $150,000 for the county.
In addition to economic growth, county officials also pointed to other financial successes. In particular, commissioners were pleased the infrastructure sales tax was renewed last month.
“You don’t become a community united by yourself,” Conner said of the State of the County’s theme: A community united. “You do it through unselfishness and teamwork. When you have a community united, I don’t know how you could have a better example than 71.41 percent (voter approval) on your penny (sales tax) renewal.”
As a result, commissioners said future projects to be paid for with these funds will include sidewalks, public safety equipment, park and road improvements and other infrastructure needs.
The county also lauded how it refinanced its long-term debt costs, resulting in a projected savings of $6 million over the term of the debt.
Public safety is another area where progress was noted, according to county officials.
The county signed automatic aid agreements with six Lake County municipalities, which means the closest emergency unit responds to a call, regardless of jurisdiction. County officials said those agreements will improve response times while saving money.
Addressing public infrastructure improvements, the county cited the county’s public works department and its new focus on constructing sidewalks near schools. The department completed a new sidewalk along Eudora Road and retrofitted another in Sylvan Shores near Mount Dora.
Those projects provided sidewalk connections from area neighborhoods to Triangle Elementary School and U.S Highway 441, providing safety for students and pedestrians, according to the presentation.
The county has also focused its efforts on expanding its interconnected trail network.
The county cut the ribbon on the South Lake Trail extension, which includes two new pedestrian bridges and is part of the Coast to Coast Connector trail, a bicycle trail spanning from St. Petersburg to Cape Canaveral, according to the presentation.
“We are helping people get to their jobs,” County Commissioner Leslie Campione said. “We are helping people get to schools. We are helping people get to the doctor’s office. We are moving people around in Lake County that otherwise would find it very difficult.”