Florida Senate - 2009                                     SB 292
       
       
       
       By Senator Bullard
       
       
       
       
       39-00236-09                                            2009292__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to the statewide legacy communities
    3         initiative; providing findings, intent, and
    4         definitions; establishing the statewide legacy
    5         communities initiative; providing criteria and
    6         declarations concerning the initiative; providing
    7         criteria governing the services and activities to be
    8         supported under the initiative; providing requirements
    9         and goals concerning the provision of such services or
   10         assistance; creating the Urban Empowerment Corporation
   11         within the Department of Community Affairs; providing
   12         criteria concerning the creation, purpose, and duties
   13         of the corporation; providing that the corporation is
   14         an instrumentality of the state for purposes of
   15         sovereign immunity; providing that the corporation is
   16         not a state agency; providing that the corporation is
   17         subject to specified laws concerning open records and
   18         meetings requirements; exempting the corporation from
   19         a specified law concerning procurement; providing that
   20         the corporation is subject to specified laws
   21         concerning ethical requirements; prohibiting the
   22         corporation from creating subsidiaries; providing that
   23         the corporation does not supplant, replace, or direct
   24         existing operations or other programs; providing for
   25         the department to approve the corporation's articles
   26         of incorporation; providing criteria concerning such
   27         articles; providing for management of the corporation
   28         by a board of directors; providing criteria for
   29         appointment and operation of the board of directors;
   30         requiring that the board of directors develop and
   31         implement a plan of action; providing criteria
   32         concerning the plan of action; requiring that the
   33         board of directors provide annual reports to the
   34         Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker
   35         of the House of Representatives; requiring that the
   36         corporation establish a legacy consulting team that
   37         meets specified criteria; specifying the deliverables
   38         that the team is to provide for legacy communities;
   39         providing criteria for the funding of proposals
   40         concerning the legacy community initiative; requiring
   41         that the corporation issue requests for proposals;
   42         providing criteria for the issuance of such requests;
   43         providing criteria for the review and approval of
   44         proposals; requiring an objective scoring process;
   45         requiring acceptance by the residents of a legacy
   46         community; providing requirements for the board of
   47         directors concerning the revitalization plans of
   48         legacy communities; designating a pilot legacy
   49         community; providing objectives concerning the
   50         designated community; specifying additional
   51         communities to be included in the initiative;
   52         providing criteria concerning the revitalization plans
   53         of legacy communities; providing an appropriation;
   54         providing an effective date.
   55         
   56  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   57         
   58         Section 1. Legacy communities; economic development;
   59  governance; cultural enlightenment; pilot project; additional
   60  communities; revitalization plans.—
   61         (1)LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS.—The Legislature finds that:
   62         (a) Many historically and culturally rich communities of
   63  color throughout this state have contributed significantly to
   64  the state's cultural and economic development. Some of these
   65  communities developed through the maritime, transportation, and
   66  agricultural labor of African-Caribbean immigrants whose
   67  descendants are residents of this state. Each such community has
   68  a healthy, vibrant, and productive history, replete with
   69  contributions in entertainment, art, industry, and trade, and an
   70  interactive communal life that attracts families, tourists, and
   71  commerce.
   72         (b) These communities are now often hidden beneath the
   73  debris of many years of blight and disinvestment. These
   74  communities have the unique potential to be rediscovered and
   75  rebuilt through reinvestment, creating a cultural magnet
   76  industry that will again attract families, tourism, and
   77  commerce.
   78         (c) Because legacy communities share a similar plight,
   79  similar assets, similar risks, and similar opportunities, the
   80  approach to their survival and growth should be the same.
   81         (d) A single legacy community cannot generate sufficient
   82  power to command or leverage resources that are sufficient to
   83  address its needs and potentialities. But collectively, legacy
   84  communities can create industries that attract and leverage
   85  resources on a scale that is large enough to foster the building
   86  of economic wealth and to fuel self-sufficiency and
   87  sustainability for future generations. By joining forces, the
   88  legacy communities and the individuals and businesses of those
   89  communities can avoid becoming extinct through displacement and
   90  instead become positioned to revive, prosper, and leave their
   91  legacy for future generations.
   92         (e) Legacy communities are at risk of massive displacement
   93  due to gentrification. Families are at risk, businesses are at
   94  risk, and therefore the community is at risk. These communities
   95  are being discovered and appreciated by new residents and others
   96  who are willing to invest under current conditions and develop
   97  the economic potential. The result is escalated land values,
   98  higher taxes, and numerous rental conversions that make it
   99  difficult to accommodate persons having low incomes, those
  100  living on a fixed income, the working poor, and the unemployed.
  101  When low-income residents are displaced, the community's culture
  102  is also displaced, and there is a change in the community's
  103  character, a loss of place, and an erosion of the community's
  104  stability and economic foundations. Civic and sacred places are
  105  abandoned. Businesses shrink into oblivion. Educational
  106  institutions change drastically as the population shifts.
  107  Eventually culture, race, and social status are lost to the new
  108  community and the history of the place becomes a forgotten
  109  memory. In the process, families are devastated.
  110         (f) Gentrifying communities have a unique opportunity to
  111  capture the benefits of change and revitalization efforts
  112  without unnecessary and unwanted displacement of a community's
  113  residents. Because change is introduced and development is
  114  imminent, communities that have been devastated can become
  115  renewed for existing residents and for those new residents who
  116  are willing to become a contributing part of the community. New
  117  residents can become a healthy part of a gentrifying community
  118  if their participation does not result in displacement and if
  119  the existing residents, culture, and assets are valued,
  120  respected, and empowered. The opportunity is to rebuild the
  121  community as a mixed income, diverse, and culturally sound place
  122  to live, work, and play, in which the historical character,
  123  culture, populace, and assets of the community are recognized as
  124  foundational and irreplaceable. In such communities, everyone
  125  benefits from the improvements and everyone participates.
  126         (2) LEGISLATIVE INTENT.—Through this act, the Legislature
  127  intends to:
  128         (a) Create a statewide initiative by which the projects and
  129  activities of individuals, community organizations, and
  130  businesses in a legacy community implement the legacy-community
  131  strategies as planned. The statewide approach, to be known as
  132  the Legacy Communities Initiative, shall provide the linkages so
  133  that each legacy community is able to appropriately publicize
  134  the community, share and leverage resources, and reinforce
  135  common interests and projects.
  136         (b) Enable sustainable funding for the initiative for 10
  137  years in order to help ensure that the initiative's activities
  138  and strategies are not short-circuited by a lack of funding.
  139         (c) Broadly ensure support and accountability and help
  140  minimize the challenges within the local community which have
  141  traditionally hindered legacy communities in their respective
  142  rebuilding efforts.
  143         (d) Foster opportunities for participating legacy
  144  communities to share information and expertise, collectively use
  145  best practices, and benefit from networking with similar
  146  communities.
  147         (e) Initiate creative financial benefits so that many
  148  legacy communities may be served by common resources and shared
  149  expertise. Using collective purchasing, the revenue of legacy
  150  communities will increase, creating employment that, with
  151  increased tourism, will help to sustain the communities'
  152  economies.
  153         (f) Conserve revered historical places and cultural
  154  legacies, recognizing that legacy communities are unique
  155  benefactors contributing to the proud and rich heritage of the
  156  state and nation.
  157         (3) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this act, the term:
  158         (a) “Corporation” means the Urban Empowerment Corporation.
  159         (b) “Department” means the Department of Community Affairs.
  160         (c) “Legacy community” means a historic and culturally
  161  distinct community that is established in an area of this state
  162  and developed by capturing and cultivating the people's
  163  cultures, skills, beliefs, interests, and values.
  164         (d) “Pilot legacy community” means the legacy community
  165  designated to initiate the legacy communities revitalization
  166  plan to develop, implement, and establish a model for subsequent
  167  legacy communities to follow.
  168         (e) “Revitalization plan” means a written document,
  169  developed through stakeholder interaction, which presents a
  170  snapshot of a community's priorities, needs, people, places,
  171  character, and story; sets forth a strategy to address and
  172  resolve established needs and problems; and describes how the
  173  community will preserve, protect, build, and sustain its people
  174  and places, its past, and its future.
  175         (4) STATEWIDE LEGACY COMMUNITIES INITIATIVE.—There is
  176  established the Statewide Legacy Communities Initiative.
  177         (a)The statewide initiative is established to support and
  178  fund projects and activities undertaken by individuals,
  179  community organizations, and businesses in legacy communities
  180  implementing the legacy community strategy. The statewide
  181  initiative shall provide the linkages that each community needs
  182  to be able to appropriately publicize the community, share and
  183  leverage resources, and reinforce common interests and projects.
  184         (b) The statewide initiative shall provide support and
  185  accountability and help to minimize challenges within the local
  186  community which have traditionally hindered legacy communities
  187  in their respective rebuilding efforts. The statewide initiative
  188  shall also serve to standardize the processes and participatory
  189  requirements, thereby equalizing the opportunities for all
  190  communities involved.
  191         (c) The statewide initiative shall provide sustainable
  192  funding for a period of years as specified in state
  193  appropriations, which must ensure that the activities and
  194  strategies of the legacy communities initiative will not be
  195  discontinued due to a lack of resources.
  196         (d) The statewide initiative shall foster opportunities for
  197  participating communities to share information and expertise,
  198  collectively use best practices, and benefit from networking
  199  with similar communities. The Legislature expects that the
  200  participating communities will be served by common resources and
  201  shared expertise, will share in collective purchasing, and will
  202  help sustain their economies by increased tourism, revenues, and
  203  employment. The collective power of revitalized communities and
  204  reinstated industry can reverse the effects of years of
  205  disinvestment.
  206         (5) STATEWIDE LEGACY COMMUNITIES INITIATIVE SUPPORTED
  207  SERVICES.—Funding for the statewide legacy community initiative
  208  shall support certain designated services and activities for
  209  legacy communities. The scope of such services and activities
  210  includes:
  211         (a) Creating community land trusts. The objective of each
  212  community land trust is to ensure that the community property
  213  remains under the jurisdiction of the community and to preserve
  214  the property for generations in the future. The initiative's
  215  land trust specialists shall provide technical assistance to any
  216  existing community land trust in a legacy community or help to
  217  develop a new community land trust based on the core values of
  218  the legacy community initiative.
  219         (b) Training, organizing, and supporting faith-based and
  220  partner community organizations in fostering a system of
  221  communication, community education, advocacy, leadership, and
  222  family support in each legacy community. The objective is to
  223  increase the capacity of faith-based groups to work with
  224  community-based organizations, resident groups, and resource
  225  partners in order to achieve the community's goals. Consultants
  226  may aid faith-based and community organizations in accessing
  227  resources and building cooperation among residents, businesses,
  228  and youth toward building together and protecting their assets,
  229  culture, families, land, and legacy.
  230         (c) Promoting youth initiatives that help reintroduce
  231  traditional values and behavioral mores to the community's
  232  youth. The statewide legacy community initiative shall support
  233  programs to help youth to improve academically, personally, and
  234  socially, at home in the family and in the community. Activities
  235  provided under this strategy must foster skill development and
  236  opportunities to be constructively involved in community
  237  building and career development. The legacy consulting team
  238  shall assist the new legacy community in accessing or enhancing
  239  programs that mentor, train, and help youths build their
  240  community and develop marketable skills that are transferable
  241  between communities, help youth become employed in the larger
  242  society, and provide youth with investment education, budget and
  243  financial counseling, leadership skills, community building
  244  opportunities, and home-building training.
  245         (d) Preserving the culture of gentrifying communities. The
  246  statewide legacy community initiative shall support legacy
  247  consultants in assisting each legacy community in developing and
  248  marketing cultural programs, festivals, story-telling programs,
  249  educational activities, and other activities that preserve and
  250  promote the culture of the community and its people. Technical
  251  assistance shall be provided to help the legacy community
  252  identify its own cultural industry where the existing residents
  253  and businesses build on the strength of what they have
  254  traditionally had in their hands, their homes, and their hearts.
  255  The legacy community shall be coached in marketing natural
  256  assets to create trade that is built on the culture, traditions,
  257  and talents of the community.
  258         (e) Providing economic development and wealth-building
  259  resource programs and activities. The programs shall be designed
  260  to help the community develop and access nontraditional economic
  261  resources and funds. These programs must involve economic
  262  sources other than the government or private foundations to
  263  provide self-sustaining and self-generating methods to build
  264  wealth and support for the community and put people to work in
  265  meaningful ways that keep assets and resources in the
  266  communities so that they are shared by families and sustainable
  267  through future generations.
  268         (f) Involving community residents in the design and
  269  development of their own communities. Using professionals, the
  270  legacy consulting team shall engage the community in design
  271  workshops to build consensus and participation in planning and
  272  community design and introduce the community to tools such as
  273  community-sponsored ordinances, rezoning, special districts, and
  274  other neighborhood conservation processes.
  275         (g) Integrating community builders with other contractors
  276  to develop a team of local community builders who can continue
  277  to carry out the activities and provide leadership in the
  278  community to sustain its efforts. The technical assistance team
  279  shall coach the community and its nonprofit organizations to
  280  develop the programs, fund the efforts, and engage the community
  281  in its own revitalization.
  282         (h) Providing each legacy community with technical
  283  assistance support to identify eligible property, prepare
  284  acquisition applications, and physically redesign local
  285  properties to reflect the culture of the community and promote
  286  mixed-use and mixed-income development through resident
  287  ownership mechanisms. Each legacy community shall receive
  288  technical assistance to address current and future environmental
  289  issues in their communities and to incorporate environmental
  290  planning solutions in the design and physical revitalization of
  291  their communities.
  292         (i) Developing and implementing a marketing strategy that
  293  links legacy communities with their cottage industries through a
  294  continuous cultural corridor. The strategy shall engage support
  295  and promotion by African and Caribbean-American icons and
  296  companies willing to underwrite portions of the campaign.
  297         (j) Advocating leadership and empowerment efforts. Such
  298  efforts shall, through screening, selection, and support of
  299  community representatives who are knowledgeable about community
  300  concerns and responsive to residents' needs, be proactive in
  301  creating opportunities for families in the community. The legacy
  302  consulting team shall educate the community through small group
  303  discussions and family-based dialogue on the importance and
  304  process of participating in civic activities.
  305         (k) Reclaiming underemployed men and bringing them back
  306  into wholeness and leadership in the legacy community and in
  307  their families. This is an imperative that the statewide legacy
  308  community initiative must address. A principal goal of the
  309  statewide legacy community initiative is for all legacy
  310  communities to focus on the reversal of crime and substance
  311  abuse, emphasizing intervention and diversion from crime. Each
  312  local legacy community shall place a strong emphasis on
  313  supporting black men who are displaced from the home and
  314  disproportionately represented in institutions. The statewide
  315  legacy community initiative shall support local legacy
  316  communities in developing a variety of strategies to help
  317  prevent youth from becoming involved in gangs, crime, and
  318  substance abuse. The statewide legacy community initiative shall
  319  also support efforts to strengthen families and build healthy
  320  marriages, emphasizing rites-of-passage activities, constructive
  321  counseling, and mentoring programs. Male role models must be
  322  actively recruited from fraternities, faith-based groups, black
  323  civic organizations, elders, trade groups, male celebrities, and
  324  neighborhood male activists. The legacy consulting team shall
  325  work with existing organizations and assist them in accessing
  326  resources and links to other similar programs to maximize their
  327  efforts in this area.
  328         (l) Empowering women, the seniors, and families to work
  329  with existing organizations and assisting them to access
  330  resources and links to other similar programs. Legacy community
  331  consultants shall work with nonprofit organizations to help
  332  women cope with the issues that most affect them and their
  333  children, including, but not limited to, domestic violence,
  334  economic development, women's health care, child-rearing, and
  335  support for single mothers.
  336         (m) Fostering traditional cultural values. The statewide
  337  legacy community initiative shall train families to implement
  338  historically known spiritual principles and principles of
  339  Kwanzaa every day and to remember the values taught by the
  340  ancestors which spiritually guide and keep people healthy,
  341  cohesive, wise, and compassionate. Consultants shall work with
  342  existing organizations and assist them in accessing resources
  343  that link them with proponents of community culture and
  344  traditions to help re-teach these values and to help incorporate
  345  them into the daily behavior and traditions of the legacy
  346  community.
  347         (6) STATEWIDE LEGACY COMMUNITIES INITIATIVE; URBAN
  348  EMPOWERMENT CORPORATION; ORGANIZATION.—
  349         (a) There is created within the Department of Community
  350  Affairs the Urban Empowerment Corporation.
  351         (b) The corporation shall be a not-for-profit corporation
  352  registered, incorporated, and operated in accordance with
  353  chapter 617, Florida Statutes.
  354         (c) The corporation shall serve as the coordinating
  355  organization for the development and implementation of the
  356  Statewide Legacy Community Initiative. The purpose of the
  357  corporation is to assist in carrying out the duties and
  358  responsibilities set forth in this section. The corporation
  359  shall operate to fulfill its purpose and, in the best interests
  360  of the state, the corporation:
  361         1. Shall be a corporation primarily acting as an
  362  instrumentality of the state pursuant to s. 768.28(2), Florida
  363  Statutes, for the purposes of sovereign immunity;
  364         2. Is not an agency within the meaning of s. 20.03(11),
  365  Florida Statutes;
  366         3. Is subject to the open records and meetings requirements
  367  of s. 24, Art. I of the State Constitution, chapter 119, Florida
  368  Statutes, and s. 286.011, Florida Statutes;
  369         4. Is not subject to the provisions of chapter 287, Florida
  370  Statutes;
  371         5. Is governed by the code of ethics for public officers
  372  and employees as set forth in part III of chapter 112, Florida
  373  Statutes;
  374         6. Is not authorized to create corporate subsidiaries; and
  375         7. Does not supplant, replace, or direct existing
  376  operations or other programs.
  377         (d) The articles of incorporation of the corporation must
  378  be approved in a written agreement with the Department of
  379  Community Affairs. The articles of incorporation must provide
  380  that:
  381         1. The corporation shall provide equal employment
  382  opportunities for all persons regardless of race, color,
  383  religion, gender, national origin, age, handicap, or marital
  384  status;
  385         2. The corporation is subject to the public-records and
  386  public-meetings requirements of s. 24, Art. I of the State
  387  Constitution;
  388         3. All officers, directors, and employees of the
  389  corporation are governed by the code of ethics for public
  390  officers and employees as set forth in part III of chapter 112,
  391  Florida Statutes;
  392         4. Members of the board of directors of the corporation are
  393  responsible for the prudent use of all public and private funds
  394  and that they will ensure that the use of funds is in accordance
  395  with all applicable laws, bylaws, and contractual requirements;
  396  and
  397         5. The fiscal year of the corporation is from July 1
  398  through June 30.
  399         (e) The affairs of the corporation shall be managed by a
  400  board of directors who shall serve without compensation. Each
  401  director shall have one vote. The chair of the board of
  402  directors shall be selected by a majority vote of the directors,
  403  a quorum being present. The board of directors shall consist of
  404  five members appointed by the Governor. The Governor shall
  405  appoint the members by September 1, 2009.
  406         (f) The board of directors shall provide a copy of the
  407  corporation's annual report to the Governor, the President of
  408  the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the
  409  Secretary of Community Affairs.
  410         (g) The corporation shall develop and implement a plan of
  411  action that:
  412         1. Facilitates meetings between prospective investors and
  413  eligible organizations in the corporation;
  414         2. Provides for hiring full-time staff members, including
  415  an executive director, who understand relevant community
  416  development issues needed to ensure that appropriate services
  417  are provided to each legacy community participating in this
  418  initiative and who can promote legacy communities to investors
  419  who respect the community's efforts to preserve its heritage;
  420  and
  421         3. Develops cooperative relationships with publicly
  422  supported organizations, private corporations, and private
  423  foundations that work together to provide resources or special
  424  knowledge helpful to the legacy community's economic and social
  425  growth.
  426         (h)By December 1 of each year, the corporation shall issue
  427  an annual report of its activities. The report shall include:
  428         1. An assessment of compliance with its plan of action and
  429  information on any assistance and activities provided by the
  430  corporation to assist legacy communities.
  431         2. A description of the benefits, economic and social, to
  432  this state resulting from the corporation's work.
  433         3. Independently audited financial statements, including
  434  statements that show receipts and expenditures during the
  435  preceding fiscal year for personnel, administration, and
  436  operational costs of the corporation.
  437         (i)1. The corporation shall establish a legacy consulting
  438  team to ensure that appropriate resources, services, and
  439  programs are provided to each legacy community participating in
  440  the statewide legacy community initiative.
  441         2. The corporation shall consist of experts who shall
  442  assist legacy communities in developing a revitalization plan to
  443  bring together residents, property owners, and business persons
  444  to plan for a long-term investment in the legacy community. The
  445  legacy consulting team shall work to identify community needs,
  446  develop specific strategies for revitalization in each
  447  respective legacy community, and engage resources to meet the
  448  needs. The legacy consulting team shall provide deliverables for
  449  each legacy community which include:
  450         a. Assessment of needs and capacity.
  451         b. Consultation and advisement.
  452         c. Community and board education.
  453         d. Community builders training.
  454         e. Development or enhancement of existing programs and
  455  services that embrace the legacy community initiative
  456  strategies.
  457         f. Resource development.
  458         g. Revitalization plan assistance.
  459         h. Establishment of linkages within the legacy communities
  460  network.
  461         i. Establishment of linkages to resources and potential
  462  partners outside the legacy communities network.
  463         j. Liaison and interface activities with the Legislature.
  464         k. Expertise and technical assistance in the funding
  465  application and awards process.
  466         l. Troubleshooting, mediation, and facilitation of local
  467  processes.
  468         m. Promotion of legacy communities and the initiative.
  469         n. Assistance with evaluation and corrective actions.
  470         (7) STATEWIDE LEGACY COMMUNITY INITIATIVE; APPLICATIONS;
  471  REVIEW; FUNDING.—
  472         (a) The corporation shall issue requests for proposals to
  473  fulfill the purposes of the statewide legacy community
  474  initiative as described in this section. The corporation shall
  475  review the proposals in a committee appointed by its board of
  476  directors, which shall make a recommendation for final selection
  477  based on an objective scoring process, with published criteria
  478  developed by the board of directors of the corporation before
  479  issuance of the request for proposals. A proposal may be
  480  approved in three phases: prestartup and development,
  481  implementation, and sustainability and replication. Final
  482  approval of the selected proposal must be by the board of
  483  directors of the corporation and consistent with the published
  484  criteria it developed before issuing the request for proposals.
  485         (b)1. In order to be eligible for assistance, a proposed
  486  legacy community seeking to implement the statewide legacy
  487  community initiative must demonstrate acceptance of the
  488  initiative by the community's residents.
  489         2.The corporation shall review the revitalization plan of
  490  each legacy community. For those communities accepted into the
  491  initiative, the corporation shall act as a mentor for the legacy
  492  community, develop marketing information concerning the
  493  community, and use its local resources to attract capital
  494  investment, government grants, and foundation assistance.
  495         (8) DESIGNATING PILOT LEGACY COMMUNITY.—That portion of
  496  Miami-Dade county known as Coconut Grove is designated as the
  497  initial statewide pilot legacy community.
  498         (a) Coconut Grove is the epicenter for promoting Caribbean
  499  culture in this state. The Coconut Grove area celebrates the
  500  contributions of Caribbean immigrant populations from Key West
  501  to Tallahassee. The legacy communities initiative shall identify
  502  and empower the immigrant Caribbean communities. In Miami-Dade
  503  county, Coconut Grove was the first such settlement for these
  504  populations, the largest of which were Bahamians. It is
  505  historically and culturally the first Caribbean community in
  506  Florida, and its recent increasing diversity adds to the
  507  richness of this community as a Caribbean Epicenter.
  508         (b) In Coconut Grove, the objectives are to:
  509         1. Preserve the Bahamian-Island culture and character in
  510  the businesses, community places and events, daily life, and the
  511  built environment;
  512         2. Promote and support the Island District Merchant's
  513  Association and wealth-building strategies;
  514         3. Support home ownership and protect residents from
  515  displacement;
  516         4. Protect and support community-based organizations and
  517  strategies that assist families, youth, elders, and individuals;
  518  and
  519         5. Facilitate cohesiveness, effective advocacy, and
  520  community involvement in the revitalization process.
  521         (9) SPECIFYING ADDITIONAL COMMUNITIES.—Additional
  522  communities that must be included in the Legacy Communities
  523  Statewide Initiative along with the pilot project in Coconut
  524  Grove include Brownsville, Little Haiti, Liberty City, Overtown,
  525  Lemon City, Opa Locka, Carol City, Cooper City, South Miami, Key
  526  West, Bahama Village, Del Ray, West Palm Beach, Belle Glade,
  527  Riviera Beach, Pleasant City, Eatonville, Orlando, Port St. Joe,
  528  and Jacksonville.
  529         (10) REVITALIZATION PLANS OF LEGACY COMMUNITIES.—Each
  530  legacy community's revitalization plan must:
  531         (a) Set out assumptions and objectives and serve as the
  532  framework for the revitalization of the community.
  533         (b) Be usable as a communication and marketing tool.
  534         (c) Be formulated by a diverse team of professionals and
  535  stakeholders to address the many different complex issues facing
  536  the Coconut Grove pilot project and other legacy communities.
  537         (d) Describe the legacy community's history.
  538         (e) Set forth statistics and current conditions with
  539  respect to family status, income, jobs and employment
  540  opportunities in the community, current zoning issues, public
  541  transportation, conditions in local education, social services,
  542  housing, economic development, community cohesion, the culture
  543  of the community, environmental justice issues, visual themes in
  544  the community, historical and preservation issues, community
  545  involvement, key community interest areas, community relations
  546  challenges, and the community's social and economic history,
  547  culture, collective character, current composition, and assets.
  548         (f) Describe the process for community involvement which
  549  provides a forum for residents to become informed about civic
  550  affairs and actively involved in making decisions that
  551  ultimately affect their community, and define ways in which the
  552  process must be improved or changed to make members of the
  553  community equal partners in the dialog concerning revitalization
  554  projects in their neighborhoods.
  555         (g) Be developed in response to needs of the community as
  556  indicated by empirical data, surveys, focus group feedback,
  557  economic indicators, prior studies, community input, historical
  558  background, community asset mapping, stakeholder input, resource
  559  partnership input, and demographic profiles.
  560         (h) Define strategies concerning the services and
  561  activities described in subsection (5) and identify standards
  562  for effective delivery of such services and activities.
  563         (i) Be reviewed and receive comments from each identified
  564  stakeholder.
  565         (j) Set forth the community's needs and opportunities, the
  566  need for revitalization and its importance to the community,
  567  partnerships, resources and assets, goals for revitalization,
  568  proposed projects and activities, the process and essential
  569  strategies for addressing needs, timeframes and benchmarks for
  570  various phases of developing the local legacy community,
  571  committed or potential resources, budget projections, benefits
  572  and returns on investments, deliverables, local recommendations,
  573  an evaluation process, anticipated outcomes and results, and
  574  proof of sustainability.
  575         Section 2. The sum of $__________ is appropriated from the
  576  General Revenue Fund to the Department of Community Affairs for
  577  the purpose of paying salaries and other administrative expenses
  578  necessary to carry out the provisions of this act relating to
  579  the statewide legacy community initiative during the 2009-2010
  580  fiscal year.
  581         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2009.