WASHINGTON, DC – The Central Florida Regional Planning Council (CFRPC), based in Bartow, Florida received a 2015 Innovation Award from the National Association of Development Organizations (NADO) Research Foundation for the Central Florida Regional Planning Council Brownfields Areawide Plan.
The Brownfields Areawide Plan that addressed the opportunities and challenges facing the East Lake Parker/West North Combee Area through a grant from the Environmental Protection Agency, and in partnership with Polk County, The City of Lakeland, and the community group C.A.R.E.. This forum for collaboration developed a plan for future public and private investment and includes a vision for a catalyst site, a 57 acre property on the southeast side of Lake Parker. The areawide plan addressed reuse plans for the catalyst site as well as improvements for the surrounding area.
CFRPC Executive Director Patricia Steed stated, “Projects cannot be funded until they are planned, and so this plan is an important first step in bringing the community’s vision to reality. The partners and community members were able to build consensus, bring resources to critical issues, and now have a road map for the future.”
NADO is a Washington, DC-based association that promotes programs and policies that strengthen local governments, communities, and economies through regional cooperation, program delivery, and comprehensive strategies. The association’s Innovation Awards program recognizes regional development organizations and partnering organizations for improving the economic and community competitiveness of our nation’s regions and local communities. Award-winning projects were honored during NADO’s 2015 Annual Training Conference, held October 24-27 in New Orleans, LA.
“For nearly 30 years, NADO’s Innovation Award has provided regional development organizations the opportunity to be recognized for their hard work and dedication to promoting economic development in rural and small metropolitan communities across the country. Building on the unique strengths and challenges of each region and community, award recipients continue to promote resilient economic growth not only now, but for many years to come. And I am pleased to announce that this year over 100 regional development organizations were selected to receive NADO’s 2015 Innovation Award,” said NADO 2014-2015 Board President Terry Bobrowski, Executive Director of the East Tennessee Development District in Alcoa, TN.
For more information about the award-winning project, contact Jennifer Codo-Salisbury at the Central Florida Regional Planning Council at (863) 534-7130 or visit the project website http://www.cfrpc.org/areawideplanning/.
About NADO
Since 1967 the National Association of Development Organizations (NADO) has provided advocacy, education, networking, and research for the national network of 540 regional development organizations. NADO members provide professional, programmatic and technical assistance to over 2,300 counties and 15,000 municipalities.