Commissioners push trails, historic tourism and a local-option sales tax as part of county strategy

At the meeting the council and several commissioners discussed adding outdoor-adventure infrastructure and historic-tourism initiatives to the county’s strategic plan and explored a proposal that would send a local-option sales tax referendum to voters to fund preservation and infrastructure projects.

Commissioner Holly Davis outlined the sales-tax idea and framed it as a tool to preserve land and fund infrastructure improvements: "We are the only county in the 67 Florida counties that do not have a local option sales tax," she said, arguing that a small local tax could leverage out-of-county spending and fund targeted projects. Davis said part of any levy would likely be earmarked for land preservation while other portions could support infrastructure such as safe road or trail connectors.

Several council members and outside speakers urged the TDC to prioritize mountain-biking and accessible trail development. Max Schulman and other members described existing interest and examples in neighboring counties and said the county already has suitable topography and publicly owned lands that could host trail systems if interagency arrangements and funding were established. A local trail advocate said the National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA) and high-school mountain biking programs are growing statewide and could anchor youth and family participation if trail infrastructure existed locally.

Tom Craig, speaking for CitrusTrails.org, urged building trails to attract users and businesses: "If you build it, there we go," he said, describing regional examples where trail systems produced measurable economic activity. Commissioners recommended a short-term investment in subject-matter expertise and a convening with state forestry, parks and water-management agencies to identify sites, permissions and funding mechanisms. One option suggested was benchmarking Marion County’s trail strategy and using outside consultants to scope feasible projects and costs.

Commissioners also discussed historic tourism opportunities — including Seminole War trail segments and other local historic sites — as lower-cost additions to the strategic plan that can attract older visitors and diversify offerings beyond outdoor recreation.

Davis said the tax proposal would require a public referendum and that professional organizers (such as the Florida-based groups who run similar ballot campaigns) often test community support before advancing; she recommended staff-level research and a community workshop to develop a draft scope before any referendum decision.

Provenance excerpts: discussion of trail development, need for subject-matter expertise, and Davis’s sales-tax remarks occurred in the strategy and other-business portions of the meeting.