by David Chapman
Staff Writer
Members of the Northeast Florida Builders Association heard from the man behind a recently signed bill that could prove beneficial for their industry moving forward.
State Sen. Mike Bennett, author of SB 360 — known as the Community Renewal Act or commonly referred to as the growth management bill — spoke about the bill and the meaning behind it to a capacity crowd at NEFBA’s board of directors meeting Wednesday morning.
Bennett, of Bradenton, has been making the rounds across the state to discuss the bill and its impact on growth promotion through removing both state mandated costs of transportation concurrency and the development of regional impact process.
“There have been some big crowds with people on both sides of the fence (on the issue),” said Bennett, who spoke at the University of South Florida Tuesday before meeting with NEFBA Wednesday. “Everyone seems to have an opinion on it.”
Bennett said he receives similar questions from the majority of the groups he speaks before, but one question usually is at the forefront: when will people begin to see growth?
“The effects of (SB) 360 we may not know for another 2-3 years,” he said. “Growth management is a fluid process.”
Bennett noted that the bill does nothing to limit the power of local government, which can still charge new developments for its impacts in ways that best suit the needs of the individual area and control development through zoning and land use.
For NEFBA members, having Bennett come to the organization was a welcome and educational opportunity.
“His signage of SB 360 gives our industry, which has been in some turmoil, a little bit of hope,” said Glenn Layton, NEFBA president.
NEFBA Executive Director and City Council member Daniel Davis agreed.
“My idea is that anything that can help get shovels in the ground and hammers swinging is a good thing,” said Davis. “We’re really honored to have him here to speak with us ... he’s a true friend of our industry.”
While the bill has helped remove some of the roadblocks for the industry, said Bennett, it isn’t going to be a total cure — it’s going to take work to improve the situation.
“This is not a do-all, save-all for builders and developers,” said Bennett in an earlier interview. “They still have to fight.”
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