A new group aimed at attracting people to the county hears about cultivating a climate that celebrates ideas and diversity.
By LOGAN NEILL
Published October 18, 2004
When one thinks about what attracts people to want to live in Hernando County the answers are fairly obvious. The area's natural beauty and its quiet, laid-back lifestyle are certainly major factors. So are its strong roots to its history and community traditions.
However, the question on the minds of many from the local business and recreation sectors is what can the area do to attract and keep creative and talented people who will help enhance and guide the economic future of the community?
That was the focus of the first gathering of a group tentatively called Creative Mind Group of Hernando, a grass roots organization whose focus is to foster a welcoming climate to the ideals and attitudes that might attract businesses and individuals considering a move here.
"When you think of how rapidly the Tampa Bay area has grown in the past decade, you realize it's only a matter of time before it hits us," said Hernando Fine Arts Council chairman Dave Weinman. "It's time we start getting prepared for it."
Weinman and about a dozen other representatives from the county's business, tourism and cultural communities gathered recently to listen to representatives of CreativeTampaBay, a business-based organization whose principles revolve around cultivating a business and social climate that celebrates new ideas, creativity and diversity.
The group listened as CreativeTampaBay's Deanne Roberts and Peter Kageyama spoke about how forward-thinking communities are more apt to attract members of the "creative class," a term coined by noted Carnegie Mellon economics professor and author Richard Florida to describe college-educated, technologically savvy individuals who make up a significant portion of today's modern metropolitan work force.
Roberts explained that by attracting the creative class, a community creates a vibrant mosaic that enhances economic growth and provides for a more cohesive community.
Hernando Chamber of Commerce president Maria Kretschmar, who was at the gathering, said Roberts' comments have particular merit when it comes to Hernando County.
"Just look at how the demographics have changed here in the past 10 to 15 years," Kretschmar said. "We're becoming more urban, and that's going to continue to attract more and more people as time goes along."
Kretschmar said that attendees were also impressed at how Roberts viewed Hernando County's assets as part of a regional attraction to the creative class.
"A lot ... has to do with Hernando County being viewed as an outdoor retreat," Kretschmar said. "That, plus our attachment to history are viewed as valuable assets."
Weinman feels the Creative Hernando effort's most important duty is to make the area an even more attractive place to live by enhancing its own visibility.
"We need to be creating an infrastructure that will provide people with more things to do," Weinman said. "One of the biggest criticisms you hear about Hernando County is that in order to find worthwhile entertainment you have to go someplace else. It doesn't have to be that way."
Weinman said the group, which plans to meet the second Tuesday of the month, has already discussed the possibility of staging monthly concerts and outdoor festivals at venues throughout the area.
"It's been encouraging to see the energy and enthusiasm from this group," Weinman said. "If we can keep it up some positive things are going to happen."
