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Retail and health care growth does not abate
By SAUNDRA AMRHEIN
© St. Petersburg Times, Despite signs of a sluggish economy and predictions of bankruptcies nationwide, commercial development in Hernando County has shown no signs of slowing. A handful of projects on the books are either close to completion or about to break ground, in particular a spate of new medical office complexes. "I think health care, from a business and industry standpoint, is a lot more inelastic relative to trends in the economy," said Patrick Marston, managing partner of Optimal Outcomes LLC of Nashville, Tenn. "Regardless of what the economy does, people still get sick, and doctors still provide care." Optimal Outcomes is developing a 30,000-square-foot medical office building on County Line Road across from Spring Hill Regional Hospital that is set to open before the end of the year. The building includes 10 suites for about 15 to 20 physicians who will offer primary and orthopedic care along with occupational therapy, Marston said. Marston and his company were drawn to the county for the first time for this project because of the growth trends, he said. "Health care and the elderly is a numbers game," he said. Younger residents moving up from Tampa also promise to create increased medical and commercial demands, he said. Plus, the cost of living remains lower in Hernando County than in urban areas around Florida. "I think all of those issues culminate to absorb and offset" the effects of the flailing national economy, he said. Elsewhere, two buildings, totaling 20,000 square feet, are slated for medical and professional use at Cortez Boulevard and Winter Street, west of Brooksville, said Alan Garman, owner and president of Civil-Tech Consulting Engineers of Brooksville. Contractors are expected to break ground within the next month, Garman said. "We haven't slowed down at all," Garman said. "I keep hearing about a slowdown, but we haven't really seen it." Civil-Tech is also working on construction drawings and seeking building permits for a 62,000-square-foot rehabilitation hospital at Cortez Boulevard and Weeping Willow Street for HealthSouth. The hospital will offer physical therapy, including a therapeutic gymnasium and hydrotherapy room, separate patient and staff dining areas, and a physician evaluation clinic. "Medical seems to be the biggest thing right now," said Donna Beckett, site plan review coordinator for the county's Development Department. Still, work is buzzing in the restaurant and retail end of business, too. Wal-Mart plans to build two supercenter stores here, one on the south side of Brooksville and the other on U.S. 19 in Spring Hill. Also, construction permits were issued Sept. 19 for an Applebee's restaurant in Brooksville, Beckett said. Also, Office Depot is weeks away from occupying a new site in the Coastal Way Shopping Plaza at Cortez and Mariner boulevards, she said. The store will move into 20,000 square feet east of Belk at the plaza. The move is part of the second phase of development at Coastal Way, which has Sears and Belk as its anchors. The second phase also calls for 5,200 square feet for smaller shops to sit between Belk and Office Depot. The third phase leaves room for a 38,000-square-foot department store. Meanwhile, Exxon has entered into an agreement to build a service station on one of the six outparcels in front of the plaza, where SunTrust Bank has already opened a branch, according to Gary Maxwell, project manager for CBL & Associates of Chattanooga, Tenn., which owns and manages the property. Dunkin' Donuts has shown interest there as well. Another active area in the county is the intersection of Spring Hill Drive and Anderson Snow Road, on the far east side of Spring Hill, Beckett said. Walgreens opened there in the past year, following Eckerd in 1999. A building permit application for a Shell service station recently was filed in the Development Department office. One of the busiest areas in the past year has been the area around the intersection of Northcliffe and Mariner boulevards in Spring Hill. A shopping plaza anchored by Famous Tate Appliance & Bedding Center recently opened. Just to the south, a Publix store is under construction, as well as a strip shopping center and outparcel. So far, State Farm Insurance is the only applicant Beckett has on record applying to occupy a space in the strip center. This development follows the construction of miniwarehouses near the intersection. Elsewhere, the new Lowe's store on U.S. 19 in Spring Hill is expected to open in early 2002, Beckett said. If growth is sagging in other parts of the state and country, Beckett has yet to see a change in her office. "I think it's pretty normal; we've stayed pretty steady," she said. Coastal Engineering Associates of Brooksville is awaiting permits for Tractor Supply Co. so developers can start on the construction of an 18,800-square-foot store at Cortez Boulevard and Cobb Road that will sell agricultural equipment, fence posts, saddles, garden tractors and rakes, said Terry Siekers, project manager and designer for Coastal Engineering. Don Lacey, senior vice president of Coastal Engineering, said that as long as residential growth remains strong in Hernando County, commercial activity will follow. "The people that are moving to Florida are in the 50-65 age group," he said. "You are starting to get the baby boomers that are moving down. . . . There's a bigger stack of people moving south than there's ever been. "Nothing is slowing down." -- Information from Times files was used in this report. Staff writer Saundra Amrhein covers business and development in Hernando County and can be reached at 848-1434. Send e-mail to amrhein@sptimes.com
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