HFF STARTED IN 2018 after rallying a team of community members to stop the proposed Coastal Connector Alternative Corridor from being routed through U.S. Highway 27 and near Northwest 90th Avenue — the heart of horse country and the county’s precious Farmland Preservation Area. Four years later, Little – also a horse and cattle farm owner – and his impressive board of directors, staff and membership remain laser focused on the protection of horse farms in Ocala/Marion County, especially in the Farmland Preservation Area. Most recently, HFF amended the Marion County Comprehensive Plan adding further protection to the Farmland Preservation Area, protecting it from incompatible uses like building a manufacturing facility close to a pasture. “A lot of what we do is not glamorous,” Little says humbly. HFF has become a voice for horse farm owners by being strategic, organized and effective. So, while a strategic plan isn’t “glamorous” it’s also what has made them successful and sustainable. Little knows that this success lies in organization and strategy, an approach they’ve taken with the HFF fiveyear strategic plan, which is explained in four-phases – and equated to the layers of a tiered wedding cake. “HFF is neither anti-growth nor anti-development, rather encouraging urban growth to remain inside the Urban Growth Boundary. Sprawl is the enemy.” -BERNIE LITTLE, CO-FOUNDER HORSE FARMS FOREVER WINTER/SPRING SEASON 2023 | OCALA HORSE PROPERTIES 50 | OCALAHORSEPROPERTIES.COM To advertise Your Farm in this publication, please call (352) 615-8891
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