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Protecting Our Future

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One Bay Executive Committee

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 8, 2008

By the year 2050, the population of the seven-county Tampa Bay region is expected to double to 7 million people. To protect our economic vitality, sense of community and natural resources, we have a shared responsibility to participate in shaping future growth within the region.

We face an array of critical issues including transit options, preservation of water resources and our environment, clustering jobs and creation of affordable housing. Preserving farmland and defining a role for sustainable agriculture is also at stake. Strengthening the economic vitality of our region means we must also search for ways to attract higher paying jobs and plan sensible development initiatives. These issues raise vitally important questions about how to develop communities that create a welcoming sense of place. Inclusion of your voice and your thoughts is essential to the process of mapping a vision for the Tampa Bay region. By working in unison, our collective input will provide an important framework to leaders making decisions shaping the future of our Tampa Bay community.

Recognizing the need for a unified, inclusive community conversation about these important issues, One Bay formed through a unique partnership of diverse public and private leaders. The group aligned to facilitate a regional visioning process to identify issues impacting our quality of life. During the past year, the process brought 1,000 citizens together. Representing the communities of Hernando, Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, Manatee, and Sarasota counties, they helped communicate ideas and identified issues and options for managing regional growth. That input is the foundation of four potential scenarios for land use through 2050, offered by One Bay.

The scenarios are being used as a tool to help further assess priorities deemed most important by Tampa Bay's citizens. We urge you to take an active interest in your future by logging on to www.myOneBay.com and taking the survey. You may also request a complimentary One BayScenario Guide or a group presentation, by contacting One Bay campaign manager Debra Kent Faulk, at (813) 258-2599. You can also send an email to info@myOneBay.com.

Your input will ultimately lead to a unified vision for the seven-county Tampa Bay region, which will provide a foundation for a comprehensive framework for managing regional growth and expansion. Our goal is achievement of the highest quality of life for future generations.

We urge you to visit www.myOneBay.com and "Voice It!" Then tell your friends, neighbors, colleagues and employees to do the same.

The One Bay Executive Committee consists of Dan Mahurin (Chairman), Tampa Bay Partnership Regional Research & Education Foundation; Holly Greening, Tampa Bay Estuary; David Moore, Southwest Florida Water Management District; Manny Pumariega, Tampa Bay Reg

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