In a surprise move, Charlotte County’s Economic Development director Dave Gammon handed Charlotte County Commission Chair Bill Truex his resignation letter on Aug. 9, which was to take effect Aug. 12, but Gammon left the same day.
The issue came to light when the Board of County Commissioners put Gammon’s resignation on the agenda for a special meeting for 1 p.m. Monday, Aug. 19.
Originally the special meeting was to discuss a capital projects review and the Cape Haze septic-to-sewer project.
There were no further comments from the county.
Dave Gammon
When interviewed at his home in Punta Gorda on Thursday, Gammon said he was “ready to move on after eight years” and that he was proud of the county’s achievements since he became director in 2019.
Among them was bringing in new businesses to Enterprise Charlotte Airport Park (ECAP) in Punta Gorda, where the square footage has doubled since he became director, he said.
During a May presentation before the Charlotte County Airport Authority, Gammon provided an overview of new businesses, buildings, and construction underway at the airport and said ECAP continues to grow with 2.5 million square feet already developed and 1.5 million more square feet planned.
ECAP parcels
Also, he said he was behind mixed-use zoning which led to the development of Promenades Mall, now renamed Promenades at Parkside. After construction, it will become Port Charlotte’s new downtown.
The mall, built in 1976, consists of 230,000 square feet of retail and office space. The plan is to add an additional 270,000 square feet that will include offices and retail uses, totaling 500,000 square feet of commercial uses. The development rights are also limited to 791 market rate apartments and a 600-room hotel, plus outdoor areas where people can congregate after work, shopping or dining.
Promenades at Parkside
Gammon also pushed for a new 19,420-square-foot building and hangar for Charlotte Technical College’s Airframe and Powerplant program, which is held on Punta Gorda Airport land. The classrooms total 9,015 square feet and the hangar’s size is 10,405 square feet.
Gammon started working for the county in 2016 in business recruitment. In 2018, he was named interim director before becoming director of the Economic Development Department the following year.
Looking back at his time working for the county, Gammon recalled when the county hired a marketing firm to produce a video at ECAP and to visualize what it would become in the future.
“It’s happened now,” he said. “Before, [people] didn’t know what Charlotte County was; ECAP put Charlotte County on the map.”
Gammon said he hasn’t decided what he will be doing next, but that he is “looking for the next opportunity.”
Both he and his wife Susan are Realtors. “We are flexible,” he said.
The BOCC meeting on Aug. 19 will be in Room 119 at 18500 Murdock Circle, Port Charlotte.
