Florida faces many vital issues related to managing and planning for growth, conserving critical lands and waters, and protecting the environment. During the most recent Florida Legislative Session, more than 3,500 bills were introduced with only 194 passing into law. To make the best use of our limited resources, each session 1000 Friends identifies our…
DetailsFRA Webinar: 2020 CRA LOCAL ANNUAL REPORTS Thursday, March 19th 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EDST Although the local annual report due March 31 has been the law for many years for CRAs in Florida, the contents of the report have been changed. It is a SHORT list of contents, but EVERY CRA must make…
DetailsThe U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), creators of the LEED green building rating system, announced the City of Sarasota is among 20 new cities and counties selected to participate in the 2020 LEED for Cities and Communities Grant Program. The program helps local governments committed to accelerating progress on climate change, resilience and social equity…
DetailsCoordinators behind three of Tallahassee’s largest upcoming festivals are all keeping close watch as cases of the coronavirus increase in Florida and around the nation. The 52nd Annual Springtime Tallahassee is scheduled for March 27 and 28 and has been cancelled only once in its history when the two-day event was rained out two years ago.…
DetailsPlans are accelerating for a shuttle to transport people from Coquina Beach to Bridge Street in Bradenton Beach. Bradenton Beach Community Redevelopment Agency members voted 5-0 March 4 to direct CRA member Jake Spooner, also a city commissioner, to work with city attorney Ricinda Perry and city engineer Lynn Burnett to plan the tram’s path.…
DetailsTallahassee, Fla. – The Sadowski Coalition – a nonpartisan collection of 32 statewide organizations – today issued the following statement attributed to Jaimie Ross, facilitator of the Sadowski Coalition and president and CEO of the Florida Housing Coalition, regarding the announcement that the Florida House agreed to the Florida Senate’s budget position to use all affordable housing trust…
DetailsThe Senate gave preliminary approval to a bill Thursday creating a sea level rise office and task force. That measure (SB 7016), written by the Senate Infrastructure and Security Committee and spearheaded by Chair Tom Lee, creates the Statewide Office of Resiliency and the Statewide Sea-Level Rise Task Force. The state’s Chief Resilience Officer (CRO),…
DetailsFlorida’s Bert Harris Act, passed in 1995, allows property owners to seek compensation if a municipality changes its zoning or land use regulations and the land loses resale value. A bill that would tweak that law, improving the process for property owners, is now making its way through the state legislature. Critics say it could…
DetailsIn a regional effort, Seminole County, Orange County, Osceola County and the city of Orlando have all implemented a 10-year plan to combat the affordable housing crisis. “We as a regional entity have to attack this together,” said Lee Constantine, Seminole County Commissioner. “We aren’t going to solve Osceola County, without solving Orange County, without…
DetailsIn the fall of 2019, the National League of Cities and the National Association of Counties (NACo) collaborated with PACENation to produce a three-part webinar series aimed at outlining the benefits of PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy) to local governments, educating local officials about PACE financing and explaining how the program can be used for…
DetailsThe mission of the Washington, D.C.-based National Civic Art Society is to promote “public art and architecture worthy of our great republic.” To that end, they have drafted a proposed executive order entitled “Making Federal Buildings Beautiful Again.” Citing the perceived failures of modern civic architecture, the group espouses a return to the tradition of…
DetailsRight now in our Legislature, it’s full speed ahead for them to tell local governments they will decide if the house next door to you will become a short-term vacation rental (CS/SB 1128). Think about that. A group of 160 people in Tallahassee will decide if the homes on your block will rent every week…
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