[CPEO-BIF] Heartland Fertilizer to apartments, Palmetto, Florida

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

This family business opened in 1912 to serve farms. Soon it could make way for new apartments

BY MARK YOUNG
Bradenton Herald (FL)
May 1, 2018 

PALMETTO - Manatee County's birth began with agriculture and older residents will often be quick to tell you that any number of existing roadways started as dirt roads between this farm and that farm.

"Unfortunately, agriculture has been going away," said Gary Guthrie, owner of Heartland Fertilizer at 917 11th Ave. W. "Look at what's going on out east and you'll understand why. The groves are virtually gone. Lakewood Ranch used to have a lot of tomato farms, but the agriculture community is shrinking and that was our bread and butter. Each year, we keep losing another tomato farm."

The price of progress can be tempting for struggling farm owners. Though agriculture is still the No. 2 industry in Manatee County behind tourism, the question becomes: For how long? And each time acreage of farmland is sold, the unseen trickle down effect is felt by those such as Guthrie.


…

For the entire article, see
http://www.bradenton.com/news/local/article210203589.html

--

Lenny Siegel
Executive Director
Center for Public Environmental Oversight
a project of the Pacific Studies Center
P.O. Box 998, Mountain View, CA 94042
Voice/Fax: 650/961-8918 
<lsiegel@cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org

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