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MELIA BOWIEAs this county nears buildout, some companies look across the border to Pasco for less traffic and more land at lower cost.
By the time Pinellas County sent the letter, it already was too late.
Receipt company Eastern Ribbon & Roll was moving from Clearwater to Pasco County in a $4-million deal.
"There was a letter saying they were sorry, they heard we were moving and (saying) if there was anything they can do ...," Eastern chief financial officer Alvin Hausner said Friday. "But the truth is, (we) had set our sights on Pasco."
The appeal: new roads, no traffic, open land and low prices.
More and more, the incentives are attracting a growing number of corporations that want to expand and are running out of room in Pinellas - the most densely populated county in the state.
Demographics in Pasco show it's growing faster and younger. Housing starts in 2003 topped 5,800, breaking a 1978 record and putting Pasco among the nation's fastest-growing populations, according to the Census Bureau.
"Pasco County has never been in a stronger position than it is now," said Mary Jane Stanley, president and chief executive officer of the Pasco Economic Development Council. "Pasco is prime to get the larger projects now."
For years, the county was viewed as a sleepy, rural neighbor to the north, but economic leaders are launching a major push to bring more high-wage and high-tech corporations to Pasco.
In four years, the number of business parks grew from 11 to 23 (some are breaking ground). In April, the county approved plans to preserve 326 acres for industrial use.
New roads are going in to accommodate the county's rapid residential boom, and highways such as the Suncoast Parkway, State Roads 54 and 56 - not to mention exits off Interstate 75 - have cut in half some travel times throughout the region.
Pasco has more than 172,000 vacant, developable acres available for industrial, commercial and residential growth, county planners say.
Meanwhile, Pinellas is fast approaching buildout.
About 9,000 developable acres remain, said David Walker, principal planner with the Pinellas County Planning Commission.
"Nine thousand acres is not a whole heck of a lot," he said, noting it totals 5 percent of the county's land.
The result: "We spend a lot of our efforts on retention" and redevelopment, said Buzz David, Pinellas County's director of economic development.
Projections show Pinellas will run out of room to build sometime between 2010 and 2012, he said.
About 18 months ago, Pinellas leaders launched an economic initiative that deals with forming a policy to redevelop business sites and address the county's changing landscape.
Among the perks Pinellas retains: a diverse and educated work force, a broad mix of business types, airport access and a well-developed transportation system.
But no one disputes the appeal of an emerging market to the north.
"Pasco is where we were 20, 30 years ago," said Susan Latvala, chairwoman of the Pinellas County Commission. "There is raw land available. You can build what you want."
Economic leaders in Pasco are capitalizing on that.
In the past two years,the Pasco Economic Development Council's staff has stepped up presentations to local and state business groups, developers and real estate agents - averaging 35 presentations annually.
This spring, the council spent $40,000 to launch a sleek new advertising campaign in area business publications pitching Pasco's benefits to prospective companies.
The efforts are meeting with success.
In the past few months, "we get at least a call a day now about companies wanting to relocate to Pasco," Stanley said, noting the activity also indicates an improving economy.
Whereas the county once attracted smaller businesses with five to 10 employees, now it is bringing in corporations.
The evolution is important for Pasco, where some worry about becoming a bedroom community. (In 2003, about 45 percent of residents left the county for jobs in Hillsborough and Pinellas.)
Major employment centers are a must, as are large companies that can contribute to the tax base. Increasingly, progress is being made.
Since March, two major companies, whose combined revenues top $1-billion, have announced plans to leave Pinellas for Pasco.
Combined, they will bring about 240 jobs with plans to create 80 more in two years.
Nailing down the moves took less than eight months - a shift from the typical two-year recruitment process. Some companies take as long as six years.
Pasco County commissioners credit a residential boom that will provide an employment base, good roads and a probusiness attitude.
There are also other factors at work.
"Timing is everything," Commissioner Steve Simon said.
"Eight, 10 years ago before the major (road) arteries were here and with the high interest rates, you could have had an army of people trying to attract businesses and still been scrambling."
Regionwide targeted industries include biomedical companies, high-tech manufacturers and financial service firms.
In Pasco, county leaders are working to lure flight simulator manufacturer Opinicus. Executives at the Clearwater company want to expand from their 30 employees.
A five-year plan calls for hiring 225 more workers whose jobs, including those of executives, would top an average annual salary of $67,000.
Opinicus has not yet made an announcement regarding its relocation plans, but Pasco County records state the corporation plans to build a 60,000-square-foot facility at an estimated cost of $2.5-million at State Road 54 and the Suncoast Parkway.
Corporate migrations aside, economic developers for Pasco, Pinellas and Hillsborough say they enjoy good relationships and try to operate as a region.
But "there is a degree of competition among us," said Bruce Register, corporate business development manager for Hillsborough County's economic development department.
"Everyone is charged with trying to expand their own tax base," added David in Pinellas.
And a tug of war is taking shape as the economy improves and companies seek more leg room.
Although executives at billion-dollar staffing company SouthEast Personnel Leasing said they like Pinellas, they are leaving in September.
The Tarpon Springs company is moving to Holiday, where executives are spending $2.5-million for the six-story Raymond James Tower on U.S. 19.
Like others relocating to Pasco, SouthEast chief executive officer John Porreca said he was feeling a squeeze for space.
With an expansion in the works and sales expected to top $1.2-billion for 2004, the company bought a building just across the Pinellas border in Holiday.
"It's 31/2 miles north of our current location," Porreca said, adding it's also closer to their employees, 60 to 70 percent of whom live in New Port Richey.
In August, Talk America in Palm Harbor also expanded into Pasco with a Seven Springs call center and 100 jobs. The company's Palm Harbor office remains open.
But Talk America is discussing an even larger move. Plans to establish a 500-person call center in west Pasco were introduced in August. The investment could top $6-million. No dates or sites have been set. Pinellas also has been working with the company to meet its needs.
Ultimately though, it all depends on the economy, Latvala said.
"Businesses are going to do what they have to."
- Times staff writer Michael Sandler contributed to this report. Melia Bowie covers business in Pasco County. She can be reached in west Pasco at 869-6229 or toll-free at 1-800-333-7505, ext. 6229. Her e-mail address is bowie@sptimes.com