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Highlands County official: natural gas costly to extend; broadband funding opportunities exist for Lake Placid
Summary
A Highlands County economic development official told the Lake Placid Local Planning Agency that bringing natural gas to a proposed industrial site would require major investment, while public and private broadband funding sources and maps could guide future fiber deployment.
Sarah Beth Murphy, a representative of the Highlands County Economic Development Office, told the Town of Lake Placid Local Planning Agency on an informational agenda item that extending natural gas to a roughly 370-acre development area north of State Road 70 would be expensive and likely need outside financial assistance.
Murphy said the county’s 2022 site‑readiness study with Duke Energy showed natural gas lines are more than 10 miles away, “so that would definitely require a significant investment within the town of Lake Placid,” and would likely need a major grant such as an Economic Development Administration award. She added that natural gas tends to attract heavier industrial users and cautioned that Lake Placid’s existing zoning “is very well situated for things like distribution and very light manufacturing,” not the heavier industrial zoning that some gas‑dependent facilities require.
The presentation also covered broadband. Murphy said Highlands County is using American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to install roughly 20 miles of fiber (largely dark fiber for county buildings) and that private internet service providers are being connected along those routes. She pointed the agency to public resources for tracking broadband funding and eligibility, including the Connected Florida map at floridajobs.org (Florida Office of Broadband, within the Florida Department of Commerce) and the FCC National Broadband Map.
Murphy said parts of Lake Placid still appear eligible for broadband funding on the FCC map, and that state programs aimed at internet service providers include a “deployment” fund and a workforce funding round that could support apprenticeship and on‑the‑job training. “The deployment section of this has just closed,” she said, and the state is preparing another workforce‑focused round for which some local governments, educational institutions and workforce boards may qualify.
Town members asked whether developers were currently “kicking the tires” on the land north of State Road 70; Murphy said she had no specific developer names and noted environmental constraints near nearby conservation areas and the distance for emergency services as complicating factors. The agency also discussed how zoning would affect the types of businesses that could locate at the site and whether the town would need to change zoning to attract gas‑dependent industry.
Murphy offered to provide links and packet materials to staff and to respond to additional questions, and she said her contact information is on hylandsbusiness.com.
Why this matters: natural gas and fiber infrastructure can change what industries are feasible in a small town and affect economic development prospects and public‑private funding decisions. The presentation did not request formal action by the Local Planning Agency; it was informational and intended to help the town’s upcoming comprehensive plan and capital improvements discussions.
