Columbia County’s road to economic growth began decades ago with a vision to build a robust and supportive environment for an array of businesses. Over the years, the Economic Development team has played a crucial role in attracting wide-ranging sectors, promoting innovation, and supporting local entrepreneurs. With a long history of collaboration and progress, this dedicated team continues to innovate and adapt, ensuring Columbia County remains a thriving hub for economic activity and corporate success.
Here, dedication to supporting local businesses’ expansion and prosperity is imperative, and the Economic Development team addresses this need with a broad blend of skills and local awareness that affords the opportunity to give individual support and strategic insights for growth.
By adopting cooperation, teamwork, innovation, development, honesty, and openness and supporting community involvement, the Economic Development team stays ahead in the constantly changing scene by promoting innovative thinking and adopting new technologies, acting in the best interests of those they serve, and forging a strong bond with the community, working with local businesses, groups, and citizens to understand their needs and contribute to their success.
Some of those recent successes include the progress of the North Florida Mega Industrial Park, as the first tenant, AgroLiquid, comes into full operation; a new 60-acre land purchase from a wholesale building supplier; and a $30 million wastewater treatment plant, all truly impressive accomplishments.
“After being rescheduled due to Hurricane Helene in September 2025, we celebrated the official grand opening of the North Florida Mega Industrial Park on November 7, 2025, dubbing it the Greatest Show on U.S. Highway 90,” says Jennifer Daniels, Economic Development Director.
Mayor Noah Walker served as the ringmaster, telling the story that was 20 years in the making, while Todd Powell, Weyerhaeuser’s Vice President of Real Estate from the inception of the project, shared remarks, along with comments from the Chairman of the Board of County Commissioners Tim Murphy; longtime supporter and former commissioner Ron Williams; AgroLiquid’s local plant manager Jeff Herald; Congresswoman Kat Cammack; and Daniels herself.
“This day really honored everyone who played a part in creating this fantastic asset that will be a catalyst for growth and prosperity for Columbia County and the entire north central Florida region,” she says.
In fact, the volume of interest in the park has more than doubled, with most of those leads being viable projects, she adds. “We’ve had several very significant projects come back to the table after going quiet for a couple of years. Leads are coming from a wider array of sources and are much more real, not just speculative.”
In terms of improvements to infrastructure, Columbia County has recently allocated millions in investments for expansions to roads and rail and a new water main. Funded by a legislative appropriation of just under $3 million in 2022, the main entrance road, NFMIP Parkway West, is now under construction with an anticipated completion of late Q4 2026.
In 2023, the Florida Legislature awarded Columbia County $5 million to construct a water treatment facility on site. After realizing that construction of an entire plant was no longer feasible with a $5 million budget, that funding was shifted to build a new water mainline from the City of Lake City’s Price Creek Water Treatment Plant to NFMIP Parkway West, allowing Lake City to be the complete utility provider and eliminating duplication of services. That project is anticipated to be complete by June of 2027.
In 2025, Columbia County received a $2 million Rural Infrastructure Fund Grant Award for the construction of rail within the NFMIP. Those funds are being utilized to construct two side tracks—designed and constructed by Pinsly Railroad Company—used for pulling railcars off of the park’s mainline to prevent queueing, crossing NFMIP Parkway West, and extending approximately 1,500 feet into the catalyst site, the largest area of contiguous acreage within the NFMIP. Because of the civil work already completed as part of the parkway construction, the rail project is expected to be completed by Q3 of 2027.
“This key piece of critical infrastructure is another check in the boxes that help eliminate risk factors for potential industries,” Daniels says. “Having rail on the ground within the largest parcel of the NFMIP is a game changer.”
In local business, the Busy Bee Travel Center’s substantial new location in Ellisville, spanning 75,000 square feet, is slated for completion by early 2027. “Elizabeth and Lucas Waring, owners of Busy Bee, Florida’s own infamous chain of comfy and clean convenience stores, first approached Columbia County Economic Development in 2019 with the idea to build their biggest and best store yet,” Daniels tells us.
This means expanding the footprint of an existing store on Highway 441/41 S and I-75 in Ellisville, an unincorporated area of Columbia County. After working for several years to acquire the adjacent land, the Warings officially and publicly announced the project in May of 2023, an $80 million private investment that will bring approximately 200 jobs along with Busy Bee’s signature sweets and treats, quirky trinkets and gifts, and a new brick oven pizzeria not found in any other location.
“Due to the size and scope of the project, improvements needed to be made along Highway 441/41S and the adjacent county road, Howell Street,” adds Daniels. A $5 million Rural Infrastructure Fund Grant awarded in 2024 is funding the construction of a signalized service road, diverting truck traffic eastward, paralleling Highway 441/41S, behind the SunStop Convenience Store before coming out on the highway.
Additionally, FDOT is completing approximately $40 million in improvements to both sides of I-75, including lowering the highway under the overpass to correct a decades-old safety concern for tractor-trailers.
The addition of an almost 80,000-square-foot convenience store will also require upgrades to the wastewater system in Ellisville, now managed by the North Florida Water Utility, a joint utility authority partnering with Columbia and Suwannee Counties together in an effort to lower the cost of county-owned utilities simply via economies of scale. Funding efforts are currently underway to increase the capacity.
In terms of the county’s Planning and Zoning Department, Columbia County and Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc. are partnering to provide a full, complete, and thorough review and revision to the county’s Comprehensive Plan and Land Development Regulations, a project that includes a robust community engagement process and pop-up events throughout the county within the 18-month project timeline. This is important for two reasons, says Daniels: the first is to give current residents within the county a voice in the rules that determine where, what, and how growth and development happen around the county. By creating commercial overlay corridors around interstate exits, paths are created for quicker permitting, directing commercial growth to areas where it makes sense for commuters, and attracting business to areas that may have been overlooked and neglected for many years. By updating the Future Land Use in these corridors, homeowners who may be contemplating putting their homes on the market can now ask for commercial prices, putting more money back into their pockets.
Secondly, Columbia County will have a playbook on hand, complete with the rules and requirements, so potential industries don’t have to guess if they fit within the county’s standards.
“One of the first check boxes of any economic development project is if the zoning and comp plan designation already supports the use,” Daniels explains. “Updates to either can cost a company up to 18 months. Modern LDRs with clear industrial zoning, streamlined concurrency requirements, and predictable review times are a clear indicator that Columbia County is easy to do business with and in.”
The county certainly has much to celebrate, and other recent accomplishments include partnering with the City of Lake City to complete infrastructure improvements at both the NFMIP and SR 47/I-75, water/sewer/gas improvements that will open land for both commercial and industrial development in areas of the county where that growth makes sense, creating jobs and increasing ad valorem tax revenue.
“ClearSky Health Rehabilitation Hospital is also now open,” says Daniels of the 36-bed, $45 million private capital investment that provides state-of-the-art, compassionate care for patients recovering from strokes, brain injuries, and other complex conditions.
Approval of two residential development tax rebate incentives resulting in the construction of a total of 120 duplex/townhouses is also cause for celebration, as no multi-family projects had been constructed in the county for more than 10 years, while construction of Recoil Trampoline Park—a brand-new 30,000-square-foot facility—will bring a much-needed entertainment option to the county while also serving as an amenity to attract larger industry.
Challenges, Daniels says, include visibility. “While the Department of Commerce and both the state and local Chambers of Commerce are advocates of Columbia County, we are often still not top-of-mind compared to other Florida metros like Jacksonville or Ocala when site selectors are in the market.”
Restrictions around water usage and capacities, along with other utility infrastructure, are also still a struggle. While there has been tremendous progression over the last five to eight years, there are still many areas of the county that are underserved with water, sewer, gas, and fiber. The potential loss of revenue due to property tax reform is also a concern.
“Many people don’t understand the true implications,” stresses Daniels. “Those dollars pay for fire and ambulance services, public libraries, and our 4-H and Extension Office programs, not to mention the impact on our school system.”
When asked about what lies ahead, Daniels has some ambitious ideas. “In the next few years, I’d love for our Business Retention and Expansion (BRE) program to grow, creating additional resources, funding, and opportunities for our legacy businesses that are looking to expand.”
She’d also like to have at least two new tenants in the NFMIP—“extra credit” if one of those is an aerospace/aviation/military project partnering with SpaceFlorida—along with partnering with the City of Lake City to develop the Gateway Regional Airport, eventually creating a cargo hub to utilize the FTZ designation.
“I also want to establish a Building Construction Technology Center with Florida Gateway College, building the talent pipeline needed for attracting advanced manufacturing jobs,” she says, along with attracting additional amenities that include resort hotels or an event venue so Florida’s Gateway can host regional and national conferences and events.
“Personally, I’d like to expand my opportunities for serving on local, regional, and statewide boards and committees,” Daniels adds. “Not only does this bring me joy, but it gives me a platform to share Columbia County and rural Florida with a wider audience.”
While those might be future aspirations, there are a number of amazing attributes Columbia County offers today for residents, visitors, and potential businesses looking to enjoy all the area has to provide. These include affordability; access to good healthcare, education, and community events; and growing amenities such as new restaurants, family entertainment centers, and expanded sports parks and facilities, all attracting younger families to the community.
“Columbia County has small-town character with genuine community involvement: festivals, sports, parades, and a sense of people knowing and looking out for each other,” Daniels says.
Additionally, innovative minds at Florida Gateway College and the Columbia County School System Career and Technical Education Department are exploring ideas that challenge the rural stereotype, providing educational opportunities for future generations while staying true to local roots.
Boasting an abundance of natural springs, waterways, and a waterfall, as well as hundreds of thousands of acres of National Forest, Columbia County provides a refreshing break from the hustle of a technology-driven society.
“Columbia County is Florida’s Gateway, welcoming people here since 1832,” says Daniels. “You can drive an hour to go to Jacksonville Beach, two-and-a-half hours to hang out with Mickey Mouse, or five hours to salsa the night away in Miami, but something I’ve learned and take to heart is that all roads lead to Columbia County.”
