Storm Redevelopment
9:15 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.
Palma Ceia 3-4
Florida is currently rebuilding actively from storms with the names of Matthew, Irma, and Michael. Another season is producing active storms. To quote many people who go through these storms, “nothing can prepare you.” However, to at least pass on the experiences and resources that others know about, only because they have been through it, is the mission of this session. Please bring your experience and questions to discuss some tips, lessons learned and best practices.
Moderator: Toni Shamplain, FRA-RA, City of Panama City, Manager, CRA
Speakers: Y. Lisa Colon, Esq., Partner, Smith, Currie & Hancock LLP; Gladys Cook, Disaster Housing Recovery Director, Florida Housing Coalition; Cherry Jochum, Federal Disaster Recovery Coordinator and Philanthropy Advisor for FEMA National Disaster Recovery Support; Giovanni Moss, Project Manager, Innovative Emergency Management and Rick Stauts, Executive Director, City of Florida City CRA
CM I 1.0
Toni Shamplain is the Downtown North CRA Manager with the City of Panama City CRA. She is also the President Elect of the Florida Redevelopment Association and holds the designation of Florida Redevelopment Administrator through the FRA Academy.
Prior to her current position Ms. Shamplain was the Main Street Manager with the Downtown Improvement Board where she not only served as Main Street Manager but also was responsible for 3 of the 4 CRAs administered by the DIB. Additionally, she was the first Director for the Panama City CRA as a stand-alone agency that later merged with the City of Panama City. Ms. Shamplain holds a bachelor’s degree from Bethune Cookman University and has earned various Certifications in Management, Outcome Evaluations, Human Resources, as well as a Certificate of Appreciation from the Executive Office of the United States President, Washington D.C.
Toni’s areas of expertise include not only community revitalization and redevelopment, but design and implementation of substance abuse treatment programs, designing group homes for children as well as the elderly; primary health care; criminal justice and corrections; information officer for a computer software design corporation, and working in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Ms. Shamplain also has expertise in System Analysis, Budgets, Public Policy, Faith Based Organizations and Not for Profits, etc.
Ms. Shamplain has worked effectively within various levels of government to include city, state and federal government. She is also a former Instructor with the Georgia Schools of Substance Abuse Studies, a Visiting Professor for Historical Black Colleges, adjunct professor Daytona Beach State College, Guest Lecturer at Georgetown University, and a National Motivational Speaker. Ms. Shamplain has been featured on National TV (CBS) for her advocacy and program success in Miami Florida while also being a contributing author with the Child Welfare League of America. Shamplain recently graduated from Rowlett Real Estate School and is preparing to take the state examination.
Gladys Cook Ms. Cook is the Disaster Housing Recovery Director for the Florida Housing Coalition. She brings over 25 years of experience in housing and community development in Florida. For many of those years, she has been a technical advisor for the Florida Housing Coalition and has developed training and program design for nonprofit organizations and local governments. As a planner, she provides research and analysis skills in the formation of housing incentives, conducting needs assessments, and housing specialties such as land banking and community land trusts. She offers capacity building and strategic planning for organizations including predevelopment, underwriting and compliance for homeownership, rental and supportive housing. Gladys is a problem solver and consensus builder seeking to maximize human and capital resources to expand the supply of accessible, sustainable, and affordable homes for workforce and special needs households.
Cherry Jochum Ms. Jochum is the Federal Disaster Recovery Coordinator Philanthropy Advisor for FEMA National Disaster Recovery Support. She is currently serving the North Florida area under the DR-4399-Florida Integrated Recovery Coordination (IRC) program.
Skilled at identifying opportunities, creating partnerships, and maximizing resources, she spent the last 14 years immersed in recovery and rebuilding efforts with DHS/FEMA, the American Red Cross and other organizations active in disasters. Ms. Jochum held FEMA contracting officer’s technical representative (COTR) certification and has years of FEMA in-field and classroom trainings. She monitored Federal and State grantees to ensure
accountability and transparency of millions of recovery dollars. She has broad program and staff management experience. She is active on the local and national community and serves on the board for several organizations. She is an FQS Qualified Public Assistance Project Specialist, Individual Assistance Specialist, Surge Capacity Force Specialist and Human Resources Specialist.
Ms. Jochum has significant fundraising (development) experience in proposal writing, annual reports, and grant appeals. Currently serving in Florida for the Hurricane Michael long term recovery as the Philanthropy Advisor to the Federal Disaster Coordinator, her job is to increase efficiency and coordination during the ongoing recovery duration between the federal government and philanthropic organizations in order to improve recovery efforts.
Prior roles in both university and nonprofit settings required her active engagement on committees and community boards. She has taken the lead for public relations and communication efforts and provided presentations to employers and associations on the topics of employee retention and recruitment and fund development. In NW Florida, she was the founding development director for Early Childhood Services, Inc., a multi-million-dollar public/private partnership providing childcare resource and referral services and quality child care in nationally accredited child development environments to sixteen NW Florida counties. She spearheaded philanthropy efforts that spanned the agency volunteer board of directors and the Tallahassee Legislature. She wrote and co-wrote numerous Federal, State and consortium grants for numerous nonprofit organizations. Ms. Jochum was instrumentally responsible for a federal-state-local partnership which brought quality childcare to Graceville, Florida, a Federal EZ Zone.
Ms. Jochum was deeply involved in both state and federal efforts post the twin disasters of Katrina and Rita. She was able to foster essential relationships among a diverse group of colleagues representing federal, state and local agencies. Ms. Jochum served as the Deputy Regional Director for the presidentially mandated Office of the Federal Coordinator for Gulf Coast Rebuilding (OFC). She was boots on the ground for the Gulf Coast states (LA, TX and MS). At OFC, Ms. Jochum coordinated rebuilding efforts for local governments and ensured participation from key community and business stakeholders. Her role was instrumental in tracking hurricane recovery funds to expedite and investigate delays in funding for critical infrastructure projects. She served the Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Criminal Justice through the Department of Justice to stand up the Hurricane Criminal Justice Infrastructure Recovery Grant Program Office. Ms. Jochum was responsible for designing the grant program which serves as one of the largest Federal hurricane recovery grants in the nation to restart and rebuild the criminal justice system. Her work was instrumental in facilitating the on-going rebuilding efforts for the State of Louisiana’s law enforcement infrastructure.
Rick Stauts Mr. Stauts is the Executive Director of the Florida City Community Redevelopment Agency. A native Texan, he graduated from Stephen F. Austin University with a BBA. Rick moved to Morgan City, Louisiana, working for the Credit Bureau for nine years, then the First National Bank. In 1987, Rick moved to Florida with First American Bank in Tallahassee. In 1989, Rick became an Economic Development Specialist and later, Planning Manager with the State of Florida Community Development Block Grant Program.
Since 2003, Rick has been the CRA Executive Director in two cities, Homestead until 2007, and Florida City from 2007 to present. Rick served two five-year terms on the Florida Redevelopment Association Board of Directors, serves on the FRA Nominating Committee, and is the Past Chairman of the FRA Academy Committee. Rick has presented at conferences and workshops for such groups as the Florida League of Cities, Florida Redevelopment Association, Florida Economic Development Council, Florida Community Development Association, Florida Housing Coalition, Florida Main Street, FEMA, and US HUD.