By B.C. Manion
John Gallagher has been the administrative leader of Pasco for 30 years, and he’s never been more pumped up about the county’s prospects.
“I’ve been here since the dinosaurs, and I can tell you this is the most exciting time in Pasco County,” Gallagher said. He added, “Not to be corny, but I think we’re on the verge of greatness, especially on the (SR) 54 corridor.”
Gallagher’s optimism stems from a fundamental change in the county’s mindset.
Pasco was once best known for its rural areas, agricultural interests and housing developments for employees who left the county each day to work elsewhere.
“All we did was build subdivision after subdivision,” Gallagher said.
Gallagher talked about the future prospects of the county at a recent meeting of the Economic Development Committee of the Greater Wesley Chamber of Commerce.
Pasco is no longer willing to remain in that role as a bedroom community, Gallagher said.
It has improved its roads and come up with a growth plan that gives businesses an incentive to locate along the SR 54/SR 56 corridor.
Gallagher said the county is also looking to increase its ability to lure new companies to the area and help existing businesses grow through economic development incentives, which would be available if voters extend Penny for Pasco sales tax.
Don Porter, whose family has played an influential role in the development of the Wiregrass Ranch area, urged those gathered to help generate support for Penny for Pasco.
“It’s so simple and so straightforward and so painless,” Porter said. “It’s the most efficient and effective tax in my lifetime. I really think it’s in everyone’s interest to talk to your neighbor. That’s where it starts. There is no good rational reason for voting against the Penny for Pasco.”
County residents are set to vote in November whether they are willing to approve Penny for Pasco’s extension for another 10 years, which would keep an additional penny in sales tax to support roads, schools, law enforcement and economic development, among other things.
Gallagher said the revenue provided by the tax will help Pasco in its quest to build true communities where residents live, work and play, rather than commuting for an hour and a half every day to get to work.
Beyond the aggravation of dealing with traffic, being on the road so much cuts into people’s quality of life, Gallagher said.
Gallagher thinks the county has made considerable progress in recent years, as signaled by the opening of The Shops at Wiregrass, plans by T. Rowe Price and Raymond James to have locations in the area and the anticipated construction of an upscale outlet mall near the intersection of SR 56 and I-75.
