Steve Shimp knows Lee County. since his arrival on the scene

in 1982, Shimp has been involved in business and community affairs, as

president of Owen-Ames-Kimball Co., a Fort Myers subsidiary of Michigan’s

Muskegon Construction Company, and as a tireless volunteer. When he

established the local Owen-Ames-Kimball the company had no sales and no

pending contracts. Now it posts more than $40 million in annual sales. Shimp’s

volunteer efforts range from the company’s founding role in a work skills

program conducted in Lee County high schools to serving on the boards of

Habitat for Humanity of Lee County, the Southwest Florida Council of Boy

Scouts, the Edison Community College Foundation and the Edison-Ford Winter

Estates Foundation.

This year, he’s taken on another high-profile role as

chairman of the Horizon Council, a 57-member public-private group that advises

Lee County on economic development issues.

What are the Horizon Council’s priorities this year?

Our executive committee has adopted two initiatives. The

first is to put together six focus groups comprised of leaders of local

companies in various industries. The groups will assess and come up with

solutions to improve the county’s business climate. Five of the groups are in

the real estate, manufacturing, health care and software development fields,

and what we call “back office,” in recognition of a number of call centers that

support major businesses across the country. The sixth group consists of chief

executive officers from larger companies, not necessarily from a given industry

but collectively working together to see how we can do things better.

Our second initiative, of primary concern, is to continue

looking at our public education system. We need to improve the funding and

performance of our public schools. We recognize that the quality of the public

education system influences our ability to attract business to Lee County.

As a commercial builder, how have you seen the local

construction industry affected by the recession?

As the nation comes out of this recession, we will recover

quickly and strongly, but right now we’re still on the downside of the curve.

The Lee County construction industry is not driven as much by development as by

the general construction needs of the overall community. It is driven by the

businesses that exist here, and because of that, we have a pretty broad base.

Our industry is strong and doing reasonably well, particularly in the face of

what’s going on in the rest of the country.

What is driving Lee County?

This is an open community. Things don’t happen in Lee County

because of a small group of heavy hitters. Things happen in Lee County because

a lot of people participate.

Going forward, how will Lee County fare economically?

The outlook for Lee County and the region is first-rate. We

still have large amounts of quality land ready to be developed, and we have an

attitude that’s focused on having quality developments. We have a growing

university that’s a prime driver for the future. We have an airport that has

been successful and well-managed that is now about to go into a major

expansion. Our health care organizations are sound, and our technology

infrastructure is in place. This is a community in which the average person can

afford to both work and live. When you put all of these things together, it’s a

little hard not to be optimistic.

You devote hours to volunteering. What advice would you give

to those trying to find time to balance volunteering with their work

responsibilities?

Assess what you want to be involved in and what you deem

important to the community so that you will enjoy the experience. You want to

be involved in an organization that you feel is worthwhile.