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Area residents will soon be able to visit a Mexican street market to indulge in Tex-Mex fare and tequila, all while sitting at table in a mezzanine loft being serenaded by a Mariachi band. And as each night wears on, those Mariachis will pack up their guitarróns, trumpets and violins and turn it over to authentic Mexican musicians and entertainers, who will perform on a main stage. That’s the vision of the Cantina Tex-Mex & Tequila Bar, a new full-experience restaurant slated to open in downtown Ocala this fall in the former Bank of America building on the square. Cantina will feature 100 specialty tequilas. ....
What we have going on here is geography at work, said Mark Davis, president of the Mid-Florida Regional Manufacturing Association board. If you look at it closely, Ocala is halfway between Atlanta and Miami. Davis said the continued growth of distribution and manufacturing will enhance the trend of diversifying the area workforce. During the recession 13 years ago, Marion had one of the highest unemployment rates in the nation because local jobs leaned heavily on hospitality and retail. During COVID-19, that job diversity prevented a similar employment dip. Building on spec It s called building on spec, which is short for speculation. Construction companies – some with ties to national distribution and manufacturing businesses – build warehouses that can meet the needs of companies planning to branch out to Florida. ....
A frenzied Marion County home sales market means sellers are now cashing in on high profit margins, while buyers are being forced to make snap decisions just to secure a home. The hot market is also putting a squeeze on renters, who are now seeing the availability of rental homes shrink and the prices skyrocket. As prices rise, experts fear many middle class workers may get priced out of the single-family home sales market. The bottom line, real estate experts say, is Marion County has a huge shortage of homes to buy and places to rent. And, those same officials say, it will get worse before it gets better. ....
SW Marion growth: More Fore Ranch homes on the horizon Long before the construction of Interstate 75 bisected Marion County about five decades ago, Circle Fore Ranch along State Road 200 was a working cattle ranch on 500 acres. The land, located just west of I-75, continued as a working ranch until the early 2000s, when plans were unveiled by the Fore family to replace cattle with homes – lots of them. That’s how the Fore Ranch community began nearly two decades ago. Today, there are hundreds of single-family homes, townhomes and condominiums on about 350 to 400 acres. And the development is poised to grow even more in the near future. ....