Many communities throughout the United States are facing complex land use issues posed by a post-industrial economy, such as the best use of underutilized industrial land. For some communities, industrial land represents a legacy ripe for redevelopment. Others see industrial land as an opportunity to foster new jobs and diversify the local tax base, and thus apply regulations, incentives, and even penalties to maintain the industrial land base against pressures to convert that land to other uses.
At the request of the Hernando County Office of Economic Development, the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council conducted a study of industrial land and strategies for supporting future employment growth, analyzing the current industrial landscape and exploring opportunities for long-term preservation.