CUES is moving ahead with two exciting components of its Regional Indicators Project. The third regional indicators publication is nearing completion and will be published early in 2006. The report is a follow up to the first two reports, Regional Shift and Imaging the Region, which identified key themes in South Florida’s lifestyle and population, environment, and economy, and highlighted significant ways the region changed during the 1990s up through the 2000 Census. The third report will focus on the future of the region, its unique opportunities and the tough challenges it faces. It will look ahead to 2030 at projections of the region’s demographics, urban development, economy and the environmental and social challenges that accompany our growing region.

CUES is also expanding its efforts to communicate and collaborate with other indicators projects around the state and nation. On December 1, 2005, Dr. Lenore Alpert and Lindsay Walker made a presentation on “Building Regional Indicators Networks” at the Fourth International Community Indicators Consortium Conference in Burlington, Vermont. They shared CUES experience of building a statewide indicators network and learned valuable new strategies to apply to CUES indicators work. Furthering these efforts, CUES will convene the fourth meeting of the Florida indicators network, including new colleagues from northwest Florida, to move ahead in identifying common indicators and securing funding for the group.

The second annual CNU Florida Statewide Meeting will be held at Rollins College in downtown Winter Park on January 12-13, 2006. An essential element of the state chapter’s annual activities, this Meeting seeks to bridge the gap between the annual CNU national Congress and the regional group gatherings that have occurred regularly throughout Florida.
The Meeting is an opportunity for CNU members from around the state to come together to discuss issues of regional or statewide concern, to learn about the latest ideas, findings and projects, and to network.

The primary theme of this year’s Meeting is the link between transportation and regional planning. The discussion will examine the impact of auto-oriented transportation planning and the evolving potential to implement the New Urbanism in league with more diversified regional transportation systems. Case studies will include recent regional plans designed under the leadership of Jonathan Barnett for the Orlando Region and Andres Duany’s for the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

A highlight of the event will be the Thursday evening lecture by Robert Davis, the accomplished developer of Seaside. For more information and to register, see www.cnuflorida.org.

Beach Restoration – Under contract with the Bureau of Beaches and Coastal Systems of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, CUES has been examining the related issues of tourism and beaches and assessing the state’s beach management program. Dr. William B. Stronge of FAU’s Department of Economics is serving as consultant. CUES is in the third phase of the project, which concerns public education and the economics of restored versus non-restored beaches in the wake of the 2004 Hurricane Season.

Coastal High Hazards – At the request of the Florida Department of Community Affairs (DCA), CUES conducted an analysis and compiled a report on state law related to such coastal issues as comprehensive planning for hazard mitigation and emergency preparedness and response. The report is one of DCA’s deliverables under Executive Order Number 05-178, which created the Coastal High Hazard Study Committee in September 2005. The committee is charged with formulating recommendations for managing growth in Coastal High Hazard Areas, defined as the Category 1 Hurricane Evacuation Zones.

Manatee Protection – CUES is finalizing the third draft of the Manatee Protection Plan for Palm Beach County, responding to state- and federal-agency review comments. Another public workshop will be held following release of this third draft.

Statewide Boating Study – CUES is nearing completion of the Lee County Pilot Project, one part of our work under a two-year contract with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to prepare a Boating Access Facilities Inventory. CUES is partnering with the Urban Harbors Institute at the University of Massachusetts – Boston on this project. We are also compiling a comprehensive database of information on boat ramps, marinas, dry storage facilities, mooring fields, and docks throughout the State of Florida.

Working Waterfronts and Public Access – In collaboration with the South Florida Regional Planning Council (SFRPC), CUES is finalizing the Marine Management Strategy Plan to address working-waterfront issues in Monroe County, FL. The plan provides guiding principles, strategies, and action steps aimed at preserving and enhancing both public water access and the working waterfront throughout the Florida Keys. The compendium incorporates an economic analysis, a legal overview, an analysis of key stakeholder interviews, a literature review, information on waterfront preservation efforts in other areas, and a map atlas. CUES Director Jim Murley and SFRPC Executive Director Carolyn Dekle are scheduled to present the plan to the Monroe County Board of County Commissioners at its December 21st meeting in Marathon.

The Florida Public Officials Design Institute at Abacoa, dedicated to improving South Florida communities by offering training in smart growth and design, will host its seventh session in Jupiter, Florida, on January 26 & 27, 2006. This session, originally scheduled for early November, was postponed due to Hurricane Wilma. Four public officials will learn first hand how to apply sound design principles to their cities, based upon the projects they have selected. January's session will include the communities of Miami Gardens , Homestead , Deerfield Beach and Boca Raton .

The two-day session will begin with teams of design experts visiting the communities for site tours by the officials and presentations by staff. Later that evening, at 7 PM on January 26th, there will be a keynote lecture by John Classe, developer of Baldwin Park , at the Florida Atlantic University Jupiter Campus Auditorium, which is open to the public (see below for details). The second day of the Design Institute will consist of an all day workshop during which the design team will address the challenges of each project. Through brainstorming sessions, the team suggests ideas, develops alternative solutions and makes recommendations. For more information please visit www.floridadesigninstitute.org or contact Marie York, 561-799-8689, myork@fau.edu or Mary Beth Hartman, 561-799-8730, mhartman@fau.edu.

Director Murley discussed “Economic Challenges of the Marine Industry in Broward County” at the Seventh Annual Marine Industry Summit on December 8th in Fort Lauderdale. Mr. Murley also led the Focus Group session on Economic Challenges. Lenore Alpert drafted this group’s recommendations based on participant input scribed by Senior Research Associate MJ Matthews. Strategies and action steps developed during the summit aim to foster public/private partnerships, such as enlisting county support, to help preserve and sustain the marine industry in Broward County. City and marine-industry representatives, along with local elected officials and agency personnel, discussed the significant value (total economic output = $13.6 billion) of South Florida’s marine industry at the local, regional, and state levels. The summit was convened and sponsored by the Marine Industries Association of South Florida.

Senior Fellow, Frank Schnidman, is already planning the 2006 Land Use Institute. This annual program is designed to provide an effective and efficient review of current issues in land use for attorneys, planners, public officials, developers, and academics. The upcoming Institute will be held in Chicago on August 17-19, 2006. For more information on the Institute or to suggest a specific topic, please contact Frank at schnidma@fau.edu.

View our complete online calendar!

CNU Florida Annual Statewide Meeting to be held at Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida. The meeting will take place from January 12-13, 2006 and features renowned speakers such as Jonathan Barnett, Richard Davis, and Andres Duany.
For more information on this important event.

Introduction to Real Estate Law, Negotiations, and Approvals is a new executive education course offered by the Knight Program in Community Building at the University of Miami School of Architecture. The course will be held January 20-21, 2006 in Coral Gables, FL and is part of a series of executive education courses in real estate development informed by the School of Architecture’s expertise in New Urbanism. Law, negotiations, and approvals are fundamental aspects of the real estate development process, both within the private sector and between the private, public, and nonprofit sectors. The concerns of those involved have often collided in the wake of rapid growth and shifts in settlement patterns. Resulting court cases and legislation have sought to protect quality of life, the environment, the interests of property owners, and the rights of developers.
For more information and course schedule, please visit www.arc.miami.edu/knight. For questions, call or e-mail Julia Pizarro, jpizarro@miami.edu or 305.284.3731.

Redevelopment in Broward County: Successful Collaboration Between Developers & Government
This conference, scheduled for Wednesday, January 25th from 11:30 - 6:30, will feature: National and local experts with answers and insights on redevelopment challenges, opportunities, and best practices; Municipalities and developers showcasing current and planned projects; An attendees' Toolkit containing important information, guidelines, and resources for redevelopment in Broward County.
More information and registration

John Classe Lecture - Design Institute Keynote Speaker
Please join us at 7 pm on January 26, 2006 on Florida Atlantic University's Jupiter Campus to hear John Classe, Vice President of Planning and Infrastructure of Baldwin Park Development Company, give a true sense of what it takes to develop new urban towns. Mr. Classe, a refreshing and entertaining speaker, is redeveloping the 1,100-acres of the former Naval Training Center in Orlando, transforming it into the pedestrian-friendly community of Baldwin Park with neighborhoods, shops and offices. He talks openly about the economic realities of traditional neighborhood development, about the marketplace, and design based upon finance, rather than amenity placement. Prior to joining Baldwin Park, Mr. Classe was the Principal Engineer for Disney’s town of Celebration and Universal’s Island of Adventure. Join us for an open discussion of the practicalities of redevelopment, with an eye for design that makes economic sense and meets the demands of today’s marketplace.

This free event will begin with refreshments at 6:00 and the lecture at 7:00 in the Jupiter Campus Auditorium of Florida Atlantic University. [Directions]

LUNCHTIME SPEAKER SERIES: "IMPLEMENTING TRANSIT ORIENTED CONCURRENCY"
Friday, January 27, 2006
12-2 p.m.
Tower Club
One Financial Plaza, 28th Floor, Fort Lauderdale
(southeast corner of Broward Boulevard & SE 3 Avenue)
Lunch provided - $20 BAPA members / $25 Non-Members
Elliot Auerhahn will discuss the new transportation concurrency system which was implemented by Broward County in the spring of 2005. Elliot will address the purpose of the system, how it is working so far, what changes to expect, and how the new state Growth Management law may affect concurrency in Broward County.

Elliot is currently the Director of the Broward County Permit Center, a cooperative effort among several County agencies to provide superior customer service for permitting and licensing activities. Auerhahn has 31 years of professional planning experience, the first 10 of which were in the transportation planning field, in Georgia, South Carolina and here in Broward County. Since then he has been with the Broward County Development Management Division, focusing on impact fees, concurrency, platting, land development regulations, DRIs, and other aspects of current planning. During most of 2004 Elliot served as Acting Director of the Department of Planning and Environmental Protection. Elliot received a Bachelor's Degree from Duke University, and a Master's Degree from Georgia State University.

Please RSVP no later than Tuesday, January 24 to Sue Henderson at shenderson@broward.org. Payment accepted at the door.
PLEASE NOTE: SHORTS/JEANS ARE NOT PERMITTED AT THE TOWER CLUB