FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 18, 2016
FOURTH ANNUAL SOUTHWEST FLORIDA BROWNFIELDS REDEVELOPMENT SYMPOSIUM
TO BE HELD IN SARASOTA
~Symposium will highlight economic and environmental benefits of brownfield redevelopment~
SARASOTA, Fla. – The Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s South District, in partnership with the city of Sarasota, the Southwest Florida Regional Planning Council and Visit Sarasota County, will hold an educational symposium about the environmental and economic benefits of brownfield redevelopment on June 8 and 9. The annual symposium will share information about Florida’s Brownfields Redevelopment Program, which facilitates redevelopment and job creation by empowering communities, local governments and other stakeholders to work together to assess, clean up and re-use sites previously impacted by pollutants.
"The Brownfields Redevelopment Program revitalizes communities and fosters economic development. By providing financial and regulatory incentives, the opportunities to clean and redevelop blighted
property to achieve the community vision are greatly enhanced,” said Jon Iglehart, DEP South District director.
“The annual symposium is in Sarasota
this year to both showcase recent successes and develop a regional vision to
benefit all our local communities. The local brownfield redevelopment projects in Southwest Florida
have enhanced neighborhoods and created
local jobs. This year’s annual symposium will springboard us to greater success.”
This year’s agenda includes presentations from keynote speakers on June 8: Mayor Willie Shaw, city of Sarasota; Ed Johnson, manager, East Tampa Community Redevelopment Area; and Joseph Ullo, director, DEP Division of Waste Management. On June 9, the educational program will include case study discussions from Sarasota, South Bay and Fort Myers; a mayors-focused round table on the vision of sites in their communities led by Mayor Shaw; and breakout panel sessions featuring local government and private sector subject-matter experts discussing brownfield redevelopment.
The program focuses on the cleanup of contaminated sites and economic redevelopment of those sites. To make incentives available to a community, a local government must designate a brownfield area by resolution. Utilizing economic and regulatory incentives, the program encourages the use of private revenue to restore and redevelop sites, create new jobs and boost the local economy.
To learn more about the Brownfields Redevelopment Program, click here.
To register for this event, click here.
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