Schedule: Thursday, October 24, 2024

Registration Desk Open
8:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Registration Desk 2nd Floor

Exhibit Hall Open
8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Salons F-J

Light Continental Breakfast in the Exhibit Hall
8:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.
Salons F-J

Working Alongside Your Local Main Street Organization
9:00 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.
Salons A-B

This session will examine the impact a Main Street organization can have within a CRA district. Working alongside your local Main Street can provide opportunities to host events, engage with local businesses and further community buy-in to your CRA’s mission.

Moderator: Samia Singleton, Redevelopment Specialist, CRA, City of Kissimmee

Speakers: Benjamin Burnett, Redevelopment Planner, Downtown Kissimmee CRA; Samia Singleton, Redevelopment Specialist, Downtown Kissimmee CRA; Diana Marrero-Pinto, Executive Director, Kissimmee Main Street

The Power of Clarity: Communicating with the Public about your CRA and Gamifying Charrettes
9:00 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.
Salons C-D

Communication strategies are vital for CRAs to inform, engage and build trust with community members, stakeholders and partners. A well-thought-out communications strategy ensures that important information is effectively shared, feedback is received and relationships are nurtured. By establishing clear and consistent communications over various channels, CRAs can enhance transparency, promote community involvement and ultimately achieve their goals for revitalization and economic development. Take a new look at the old way of doing charrettes. This session will demonstrate an interactive game that can be duplicated. We have found that participants enjoy it, and they learn a lot.

Moderator: Beneshea Frazier, Program Manager, Economic Development, Central Florida Regional Planning Council

Speakers: Taylor Mobbs, CRA Coordinator, City of Jacksonville Beach; Xavier Colon, Redevelopment Manager, Fort Myers CRA; Mellone Long, CRA Assistant Director, Fort Myers CRA

CRA and CPTED – The Perfect Marriage
9:00 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.
Salon E

Utilizing color and murals in crime prevention programs and the psychological effects on human perception and activity.

Moderator: Alisa Burleson, CRA Administrator, CRA City of Fort Walton Beach

Speakers: Alisa Burleson, CRA Administrator, City of Fort Walton CRA; Chris Frassetti, Growth Management Director, City of Fort Walton, CRA

Refreshment Break in the Exhibit Hall
10:15 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
Salons F-J

Brownfields Redevelopment as a Holistic CRA Redevelopment Catalyst
10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Salons A-B

This session explores successful projects utilizing the state Brownfields Program and Environmental Protection Agency Brownfields Grants to redevelop stigmatized properties into affordable housing, commercial, industrial, mixed-use and ecological enhancement end uses addressing community concerns, including economic/community development, environmental justice, health equity and sustainability while also increasing taxable values within CRAs.

Moderator: Miles Ballogg, Brownfields Practice Leader, Ensafe

Speakers: Miles Ballogg, National Brownfields Practice Leader, Ensafe; Dr. Jeff Burton, Executive Director, City of Bradenton CRA; Frank Hearne, Shareholder, Merchanik Nuccio Hearne & Wester, P.A.; Edward Johnson, Director, City of Palmetto CRA

Defining Rural Main Streets in an Urbanizing Florida
10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Salons C-D

Population growth – from outside and within Florida – brings increasing traffic volumes and vehicle speeds through Florida’s rural main streets. Interstate highways are cutting up small Florida towns with commercial and personal vehicles, which is making it unsafe for cyclists and pedestrians and destroying city centers. Highways such as SR 27 and US 41 that converge in downtown Williston have torn apart its historic downtown. Seeking to reconnect its community, Williston is collaborating with planners, urban designers and landscape architects to foster the redevelopment of downtown Main Street Williston. Learn how the community is overcoming the issues created by these busy highways to promote a center with a strong sense of place and activity, walkable neighborhoods and shopping districts, and interconnected parks and schools.

Moderator:  Laura Jones, Community Development Director, City of Williston

Speakers: Laura Jones, Community Development Director, City of Williston; Kathie Ebaugh, Director of Planning, JBPro; Nick Hill, Senior Planner, JBPro

Improving Your District One Façade at a Time
10:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Salon E

Moderator: Jaime Perkins, Neighborhood Services & CRA Manager, CRA City of St. Augustine

Speakers: Jaime Perkins, Manager, City of St. Augustine CRA; Taylor Mobbs, CRA Coordinator, City of Jacksonville Beach CRA

Networking Luncheon in the Exhibit Hall
11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Salons F-J

Welcome and Keynote Address
Saying ‘Yes’ to Affordable Cities: Supply, Stability, Subsidy
1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Salon E

Keynote Speaker: Shane Phillips, speaker and author

Shane Phillips manages the Randall Lewis Housing Initiative for the UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies. In this role, he supports faculty and student research, manages events and publishes research, policy briefs and educational materials. His work covers a wide range of housing topics including tenant protections, housing production policies and government revenue and financing reforms. Phillips hosts and produces the UCLA Housing Voice podcast. 

In 2020, Phillips published “The Affordable City: Strategies for Putting Housing Within Reach (and Keeping it There)” with Island Press. His book argues for the co-prioritization of supply, stability and subsidy in housing policy and offers over 50 strategies for improving housing affordability and access. Phillips has been published in outlets including The Atlantic and the Los Angeles Times and occasionally blogs at betterinstitutions.com.

FRA Annual Membership Meeting
2:45 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Salon E

Synergizing Private Investment and Public Policy for Inclusive Urban Housing
3:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Salons A-B

Moderator: Mellone Long, CRA Assistant Director, Fort Myers CRA 

Speakers: Jared Beck, Director of Redevelopment, Inspire Placemaking; Jim Carras, Principal, Carras Community Investment Inc.; Mellone Long, CRA Assistant Director, Fort Myers CRA; David Dixon, Stantec

From the Ground Up: A Community-Driven Approach to Neighborhood Redevelopment
3:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Salons C-D

Join us to learn about the Greater Dunbar Initiative! The Dunbar neighborhood boasts a rich history and vibrant culture, but it also faces challenges such as limited housing options, crime and unemployment. The Greater Dunbar Initiative is a collaborative effort with residents to address these issues while celebrating the community’s strengths. This workshop will explore the Initiative’s plans to build high-quality mixed-income housing and financing strategies for mixed-income housing, increase access to services and economic opportunities and improve public safety and neighborhood connectivity.

Moderator: Michele Hylton-Terry, Executive Director, Fort Myers CRA

Speakers: Marcia Davis, Executive Director, Housing Authority City of Fort Myers; Diana Giraldo, President, Community Redevelopment Reimagined 

Your Community Redevelopment Plan
3:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Salon E

New research shows that most Florida redevelopment plans are outdated and irrelevant. Learn about this research and practical steps to update and align your redevelopment plan, grants and incentives to Section 163, Part III, Florida Statutes, keeping your plan at the forefront of your community’s redevelopment.

Moderator: Jeff Burton, Executive Director, City of Bradenton CRA

Speakers: Jeff Burton, Executive Director, City of Bradenton CRA; Cliff Shepard, FRA General Counsel, Shepard, Smith, Kohlmyer & Hand P.A.

Banquet Reception
6:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.
Salons F-J Foyer

Academy Graduation and Awards Banquet
6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Salons F-J

Help us congratulate our Academy graduates, award winners and the 2024-2025 Board of Directors. (This event is included with a full registration. Guest tickets are an additional fee. See page ___ for details.)

After-Party
8:30 p.m. – 11:30 p.m.
Salons F-J Foyer