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Comprehensive Plan Economic Development Element <br />To some degree, the county's economic future is dependent on its relationship to existing dominant <br />and emerging Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) markets. Those markets are large enough and <br />have enough economic momentum to create spillover growth in adjacent non -metropolitan areas. In <br />addition, those markets provide employment opportunities for non -metropolitan area residents who <br />live within a reasonable commuting distance. <br />With recent improvements in communications technology, many industries no longer have locational <br />constraints. Certain location factors, however, are still important depending on the industry and its <br />production process. For example, a location near a major market is important to industries that have <br />a product that gains weight during the production process (i.e. orange juice), whereas a location <br />near the raw materials source is important to industries that have a product that loses weight during <br />the production process (i.e., iron ore). Increasingly important locational factors are land and wage <br />costs. Tangible factors such as climatic conditions and amenities available in a community also play <br />important roles in the decision making process. <br />Through globalization, many new markets have opened for American firms. These new markets <br />have increased the opportunity for these firms to expand. At the same time however, many <br />companies have moved some of their operations to other countries where the cost of producing <br />goods and services is less than in the U.S. Ultimately, Indian River County is not just in competition <br />with other counties and regions in the U.S., but also in competition with other countries that may <br />have economic advantages over the U.S. economy. One country that has a competitive financial <br />advantage is China. Due to the cost of labor and a deflated currency, China has lower production <br />costs than the United States. <br />With respect to foreign trade, the Central Florida Foreign Trade Zone, located in Fort Pierce, <br />provides a duty-free market for certain businesses. The zone includes the St. Lucie County <br />International Airport, the King's Highway Industrial Park, and the St. Lucie West Park of <br />Commerce, with a U.S. Customs and Border Protection office is located at the St. Lucie County <br />Airport. Any business that imports goods to the U.S. for the purpose of supplying that good as a <br />component of another product is eligible to benefit from the Foreign Trade Zone. <br />Transportation <br />Road access to existing MSA markets is critical to the future growth of Indian River County. <br />Figure 5.2 shows the Interstate and state routes that link the county to the MSA markets. <br />For commerce within the state, I-95 is the dominant route. It extends within the state from Miami to <br />Jacksonville. To the North, it extends further up the east coast of the United States to all of the <br />major metropolitan areas either directly or through short segments of connector highway. In Indian <br />River County, there are two interchanges on I-95, one at County Road (CR) 512 in the north part of <br />the county and the other at State Road (SR) 60 in the central part of the county. While both existing <br />Community Development Department Indian River County 8 <br />