Last month, I outlined the successes of the CEP’s inaugural five-year plan, Moving Forward. In fact, this plan was reached a full year early. This month’s column will be focused on outlining the recently adopted Moving Forward-Phase II plan which seeks to continue to grow and diversify the local economy.
Moving Forward – Phase II
Just like its predecessor, this plan did not just happen. It is the result of months of discussion and research by the CEP staff and Board of Directors. Once again, the Board asked economist Dr. Sharon Younger to assist them in the creation of this plan. She provided an incredible layer of analysis and detail to assist the Board including a significant amount of data on how the Ocala MSA and the CEP compare to our ten benchmark communities. Continue reading
112.8 million tourists visited Florida in 2016
FLORIDA– Governor Rick Scott announced that Florida set another record in tourism by welcoming the highest amount of visitors in the state’s history with 112.8 million visitors in 2016. This is the sixth consecutive record year for visitation to Florida, exceeding the previous high of 106.6 million in 2015 by 5.9 percent. Tourism jobs also hit a record high in 2016 of 1.4 million jobs, exceeding the previous record in 2015.
Governor Scott said, “Today, I am proud to announce that Florida has once again welcomed a record number of tourists with 112.8 million visitors to the state in 2016. Visitors spent $109 billion and supported a record 1.4 million Florida jobs in 2016 – a testament to the vital importance of tourism to our growing economy. Continue reading
By A.J.(Tony) Powell
What is the answer to this question? “Who has the “right-to-exist”?
History shows that creating a “Country” is a murderous, violent, ruthless process.
It’s easy to overlook the fact that many countries in the so-called ‘Old World/Europe’ are a lot younger than the ‘good-old-USA’ in 1776.
For example-Austria in 1804; Romania in 1887; Italy in 1861; Greece in 1830; Finland in 1917 and many other across the world because, “we killed them – before they killed us!”
Usually, a new country is dominated by an ethnic, political or racial majority. But sometimes, as with Australia, New Zealand and most of the ‘new-world’ a powerful minority, invades, overpowers and exterminates the native majority.
As happened in the Americas where the local population was decimated to the extent that they were no longer ‘relevant’ to the lives or prosperity of the ‘dominators’. Continue reading
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