Northwest Florida's opportunities for growth

The U.S. Military

The military has a greater impact in the Panhandle than in any other Florida region. According to a 2013 Haas Center report, defense activities in the region accounted for an estimated 192,243 jobs and $18.9 billion in Gross Regional Product.⁴This figure represents about one-third of the Panhandle’s total economic output.

To help transition verterans into a workforce for the future development of the manufacturing industry, the Manufacturing Institute has created the Get Skills to Work program, which helps train veterans for manufacturing jobs. There are two Florida partners in this program located in the northwest Florida region: Tallahassee Community College and Gulf Coast State College, which is located in Panama City.

Trade & Logistics

The Trade, Transportation, and Utilities sector is the second largest employer in the Florida Panhandle, providing jobs for 104,579 Floridians in 2013, which accounts for 14 percent of the non-farm jobs in this market area. Besides having a well-developed infrastructure that has been improved with investments by state and local governments, the region’s proximity to southeastern markets has helped develop the area into a logistics hub for some companies.

Creative economic development professionals have been instrumental in the development of unique sites such as Florida’s only distribution industrial park (located in Marianna), where a 1.2 million square foot Family Dollar distribution center is located. The community and its economic development professionals partnered with Enterprise Florida and used several available economic development programs to out-compete 117 other communities that were considered for this project.⁵

Further growth of the Logistics, Transportation, and Distribution sector is ongoing, with multiple projects currently in progress. One of these projects is the construction of a 150,000-square-foot ramp at the Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport in Panama City. The new ramp is expected to allow the airport to handle larger jets, attract a more diverse group of airlines, and help attract additional MROs to this region.⁶

In addition, to add to Florida’s port capacity in this region, the Florida Legislature appropriated $20 million in the recent state budget towards the dredging of Port St. Joe’s shipping channel. The potential reopening of this historic Florida port is expected to boost job growth in Gulf County and the region.

4   The Haas Center. “Economic Impact of Defense Activities on the Florida Economy”
5   850 Business Magazine
6   The News Herald. “Airport Launching New Ramp Project”

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