"We've also done in excess of $200,000 in renovations to our current facility," says Randy Sevald, the firm's president. "And we've added 15 people to our staff since November."

This expansion follows on the heels of Sevald's purchase of the company. "I worked for the company for more than three years as a vice president," he says. "I bought out [existing] management, and my two partners and I are shareholders of the company now. They had been involved for nine years. The company was going stagnant and they decided it was time for a change. They asked me to take over. There was a lot of mismanagement previously. It was quite disastrous. I refer to it as raising the Titanic.

"We've caught on to something new," he adds. "It's called making money. We'll record the single highest profit for the company this year, doing $3 million plus in sales."

The expansion is due to the firm's growth in its customer base, says Sevald. "Plus we've added diversity to our distribution and the mechanical assembly of new products. We're saving in our labor rates and are able to give our customers more aggressive pricing."

Notwithstanding the economies of scale in paying lower wages for Hernando-based employees, "the personnel here is probably more committed than any we could find in a big city," Sevald says. "The only drawback to being rural is shipping. UPS, FedEx and our mail all come from Tampa. That requires better planning."

As to the opening of the Suncoast Parkway, Sevald sees great possibilities for the local economy. "It should cause industry to migrate our way," he says. "That will bring more manufacturers to our area, and they'll become our customers."

Gale Insulation, which already occupies a 10,000-square-foot building in the Airport Industrial Park, is constructing another 20,000-square-foot facility behind nearby. photo:D.J. Wilson

Another expansion at the Airport Industrial Park is Gale Insulation's move from a 10,000- to a 30,000-square-foot facility. Companies that have recently occupied space in the business park include Pocket Change Southeast Ltd., a Wisconsin-based firm that supplies arcade games to malls; Tampa-based Eagle Supply Co., which distributes roofing products; Vancouver, British Columbia-based Cana-Pacific Ribbons and Supply; and Bernie Little Distributing, which has opened a 5,400-square-foot Anheuser-Busch distribution facility.

"This is a satellite facility," says Bernie Little Jr., whose company is headquartered in Ocala. "We have 15 to 20 employees in Hernando. This is a big growth area for us. The Suncoast Parkway opening is the key to our growth in the area."

Another sector adding to growth in Hernando's economy is the cement and concrete industry. A new $5-million facility is under construction in Brooksville for Tampa-based Flagstone Pavers Inc. Florida Rope, which was last year acquired by Coatesville, Penn.-based American Lifting Products, is also building a new 10,000-square-foot manufacturing facility. The company supplies products to the mining industry.

Leesburg, Fla.-based Florida Crushed Stone operates a cement production facility in Brooksville that is currently expanding from production of 700,000 tons to 1.45-million tons per year. "This is driven by rapid growth in Florida, especially North Central Florida," says Mike McHugh, the firm's vice president of operations. "And demand for cement is growing in Florida. We're selling all the cement we can make and have been for years."

The firm, which employs 400 workers, was recently acquired by West Palm Beach-based CSR America, a subsidiary of CSR Ltd. Of Sydney, Australia. The American subsidiary is one of the largest construction materials suppliers in the United States.

"We were acquired in late July," McHugh says. "They want to continue to operate this company as a separate entity. They're very bullish on the area and the economy in Florida. We're the last to feel a slowdown generally and the first to recover."

As part of the expansion a second kiln and additional shipping and processing facilities will be added to the existing plant. "We expect to add 80 to 85 full-time positions as the expansion is completed," says McHugh.

Colombian migration

A firm with international roots has also brought new jobs to Hernando. Comproind International has recently transferred its six-employee operation from Bogota, Colombia, to a new 2,500-square-foot manufacturing facility at the Airport RailPark. The firm manufactures industrial and electrical cleaning products.

"They're transferring assets because of the current government in Colombia," says Rick Michael, executive director of the Economic Development Commission of Hernando County Inc. "Theirs is the first company to locate in RailPark."

Several other companies have their eyes on a RailPark location as well. "A manufacturer and distributor of building products plans a 20,000-square-foot facility," Michael says. "Another distributor of building products will go into a 30,000-square-foot building and a manufacturer of vehicle bodies is planning a 42,000-square-foot building. We'll have 120 employees moving into that section after infrastructure is complete."

The RailPark, at the eastern perimeter of airport property on U.S. Highway 41, comprises 55 acres that will be serviced by rail. "Fifteen of those acres are already taken," Michael says. "We've started engineering for the rail."

That cost is part of the $1.2-million budget the Aviation Authority has earmarked for additional improvements. "This encompasses design for the Airport RailPark," says Bob Mattingly, the airport manager. "By first quarter 2001 we ought to be looking at advertising for [infrastructure] construction."

Other projects covered by this year's budget include improvements to airport pavement and storm sewer drainage, construction of additional corporate aircraft hangars and T-hangars as well as infrastructure development of an additional 50 acres into 22 lots in Corporate AirPark. "Phase one is completed for development," Michael says. "A hundred percent of those parcels are committed."

The airport's proximity to the Suncoast Parkway plays a large role in the impending development. "The Parkway opening in January has a definite impact on the airport," Mattingly says. "Number one, it will increase industrial corporate interest."

To take better advantage of proximity to the parkway, "we're in discussions for a new airport entrance road a quarter mile east of the interchange at Spring Hill Drive," says Mattingly. "This involves additional land owners. If this all goes through, we hope to have it open one year down the road."

Another impact is greater use of the airport itself. "We'll see an increase in demand for private aircraft storage," says Mattingly. "People can get here easily and that's one reason we're building additional hangars. We have a waiting list for storage of private aircraft."

Next year's budget of $2 million for capital improvements, he says, "will be allocated to building the RailPark's infrastructure, additional hangars and costs involved with designs for runway and taxiway work."

The airport's fixed-base operator, American Aviation, has also built a 20,000-square-foot maintenance hangar, "an asset for the airport," says Mattingly.

National Guard

Another asset on airport property is the new building for the Florida Army National Guard that will bring eight Blackhawk helicopters to Hernando County. "This is a $7.1-million investment in the airport," Mattingly says. "They'll bring 25 full-time staff here, everything from pilots to maintenance and operational and administrative personnel. It's a benefit for the surrounding area. They're not just a military unit. The helicopters are used in emergency situations. They'll assist the public in large-scale emergencies, such as hurricanes and fighting wildfires."

The airport also houses the aviation unit of the Hernando County Sheriff's Department. "They have two helicopters with all the gizmos for crime fighting," says Mattingly.

Not all the activity is east of the Suncoast Parkway. Another 261 acres west of it is also ready for industrial development. Holland Spring Industrial Park is gearing up for selling its land to corporate users. "The only game in town is Spring Hill Drive for industrial and distribution," says Don Baynard of Cushman & Wakefield, which manages the property. "It's between two exits [on the Suncoast Parkway] with zoning and utilities in place."

Interconnect Cable Technologies Corporation, which manufactures and distributes cable assemblies, will soon be doubling its facility to 21,600 square feet. photo:D.J. Wilson

But Baynard doesn't expect immediate sales on the heels of the opening of the parkway. "It will take six months for people to get on it and go up there," he says. "One year from opening they'll drive there and go, 'Wow.' They can get a lot of house for the dollar. It will impact residential first, then retail and then they'll get some companies coming."

Baynard sees incentives for residential developers to set their sights on the box. "Look at the cost of 50 acres of similar land in Hillsborough County, if a developer could find it contiguous," he says. "Hernando is competitive from the standpoint of development costs, impact fees and initial land price. Hillsborough County land use practices will force residential developers to Hernando. They're already in Pasco but Pasco has wetlands issues. There's less of that in Hernando and developers are looking."

Developers also like the fact that landfill isn't needed in Hernando County. "Many areas require $12,000 to $15,000 per acre for fill," Baynard says. "That's a big number. Hernando has a surplus of fill. Many of Florida's 30-acre lakes have been dug out for dirt to build at interstate overpasses. The Suncoast Parkway road builders had surplus dirt in Hernando."

"Major players are starting to look at the area," says Bruce Ehrhardt, also at Cushman & Wakefield. "[An undisclosed REIT] is assembling 2,000 acres for a major new golf course community along the lines of Lake Jovita [in Pasco County]."

Baynard says 1,500 acres have sold in Hernando since 1996 for residential development in what he terms "The Box," which runs from U.S. Hwy. 19 east to U.S. Hwy. 41 and from County Line Road north to State Road 50. "The box has clean residential development," he says. "National retail companies are interested in the box. Drive by shopping centers and you'll see they have no vacancies and their parking lots are full at 3:30 in the afternoon."

Realtor Gary Schraut agrees with Baynard's perspective. "Hernando County is an exciting place to be right now," he says. "With the Suncoast Parkway opening in January, we're already feeling the effects, even though the highway's not open yet. I've been doing real estate in Hernando for 15 years now and have never seen activity like this. With housing in the $80,000 to $90,000 range, we just don't have the product. People are calling for houses and we're having a hard time finding them. We're behind the curve right now. Housing had been flat, with an increase of 2 percent a year in pricing. Now it's going up 7 to 10 percent a year. Home buyers had better jump in quick."

But it's not just residential transactions that are impacting Schraut. "I sold the land to the St. Petersburg Times to construct a 30,000-square-foot office building one-quarter mile east of State Road 50 off the parkway," he says. "We'll also have a 40,000-square-foot manufacturing and warehouse facility at I-75 and State Road 50."

The Florida Army National Guard will bring eight Blackhawk helicopters and 25 full-time staff to its Airport Industrial Park facility, a $7.1-million investment in the airport. photo:D.J. Wilson

This facility is going into the newly named Gateway Industrial Park. "The building is for a California company that manufactures and distributes pool products," says Michael at the EDC. "We have a community development block grant of $750,000 for infrastructure at that acreage. By spring we'll have 50 additional acres available. We'll see some speculative building there. Other companies are interested in that location."

Looking to gear up for the additional new companies and workers they'll be bringing to the area, Hernando HMA Inc. has recently purchased an option on 94 acres on State Road 50 for a new 91-bed hospital. The company, which operates Brooksville Regional Hospital, plans the new facility as a replacement to the older hospital.

"It's in the best interest of the county to build a new facility," says Thomas Barb, the firm's executive director. "It's less than a two-and-a-half minute drive from its present location."

This move requires approval by the county commission. "We're very optimistic that the commissioners will approve this change," says Barb.

HNA Computer Systems Inc., a distributor of medical software products, moved into its new 11,000-square-foot headquarters in the Corporate AirPark early this year. photo:D.J. Wilson

Gearing for youth

Meanwhile, Hernando HMA is expanding Spring Hill Regional Hospital, which is less than two miles from the Suncoast Parkway. "This is a newer facility at County Line Road in the middle of the growth zone," Barb says. "We're adding to our labor and delivery rooms and 10 neonatal beds. This is a big deal. Hernando, Pasco and Citrus [counties] have no neonatal unit now.

"We're also proposing a $5-million expansion of our emergency room," Barb adds. "We're expecting more childbearing-age families moving into the area as the Suncoast Parkway opens."

National retailers are noting this projected demographic statistic as well. Coastal Way Shopping Center, developed by Chattanooga, Tenn.-based CBL & Associates Properties Inc., opened in August at State Road 50 and Mariner Boulevard. Sears and Belk department stores anchor the 240,000-square-foot retail center.

"One hundred thirty thousand residents are now shopping in Hernando instead of heading south," says Michael.

Other new options for those residents will soon include an Outback Steakhouse and Cody's Roadhouse Grill. "Albertson's is working on a site in Spring Hill," says John Wickert at ReMax Advantage Realty. "This is the first Albertson's north of Pasco."

Wickert has seen an increase in his real estate activity as time approaches for the parkway to open. "This is a 43-mile direct link to Tampa," he says. "While it currently takes an hour and 15 minutes to get to Tampa, it will take 35 minutes. That will have a huge impact. A snapshot of my business two years ago was 70 percent of my commercial customers were local in Hernando and Pasco counties. Now it's 50/50. That's a dramatic shift."

Pasco-Hernando Community College is also attracted by the high-growth statistics of western Hernando ("the box," as designated by Baynard at Cushman & Wakefield). The school is currently negotiating on a 53-acre site in Hunter's Lake east of U.S. Highway 19 and south of Spring Hill Drive for another campus.

"This is a very picturesque site," says Lynn Rothman, the school's marketing director. "And it's a good location in terms of access. We chose that as the top site because of the huge population projected on the west side of Hernando."

"This is due to in-migration," says Baynard. "People can get a beautiful home for a good price in a nice area with good schools. The state has done a good job of assembling large parcels for reserves. It's not going to be all rooftops. There are hiking trails, canoeing, kayaking, fishing, miles and miles of channels and canals at the coastal areas for water recreation. It has an interesting outdoor environment that's different from any other place on the Gulf Coast. That's why it's called the Nature Coast. I've been at it for 10 years in Hernando and it's all coming to fruition now."