Robert Love believes Davie can rebound from the recession quicker than most towns.
The town now boasts its own economic director, a job Davie lacked when it counted most: during the economic real estate boom five years ago.
"I look at Davie as a diamond in the rough. The town had an economic director, but we lost him," Love said. "There wasn't a single person out there marketing the town aggressively, making the assets of Davie known. I think that there were business opportunities we missed. I think the town was hurt financially."
But Love said that director wouldn't have been hired without the Davie Economic Development Council. As co-chairman of the nonprofit panel, he said his board of business leaders, owners and entrepreneurs has jolted the town's economy while boosting its laid-back, country-western vibe for 25 years, he said.
"Instead of a business owner going to the front desk at town hall, we were the front desk," said Love, a four-year DEDC member and owner of American Realty Consultants, a 16-year-old business in east Davie. "We'll talk to the town manager and the planning and zoning director on behalf of the client."
Through the DEDC, Davie hired an economic director, Peter Tokar, to behave as liaison between business owner and the town Economic Development department. Tokar and the council also connects retailers to the Community Redevelopment Agency for grant incentives, and hypes the charms of Davie's rural lifestyle at conferences and trade shows like the Urban Land Institute, a Miami-based nonprofit promoting land development.
Since Davie hired Tokar last July, the DEDC's role has ebbed somewhat. While they still feed real estate leads and leasing opportunities to the director, Tokar handles clients directly.
Now, the council meets monthly to supply business leaders with informational seminars ranging from the tax benefits of LEED-certified buildings, or structures constructed from "green" elements, to the hot-button Amendment 4 on November's ballot.
During a recent DEDC seminar at Nova Southeastern University, Love led a discussion of the controversial item, which lets residents vote on land use master plan changes in general elections, with two guest speakers debating Amendment 4's pros and cons.
Tensions flared as Bett Willets, a Florida Hometown Democracy coordinator and Amendment 4 advocate, argued that overdevelopment destroys the "beauty of the state" by "overzealous people who want to add to our urban sprawl" while the amendment blocks such development and preserves open space.
"We have a huge stake in shaping our futures," Willets said. "Knee-jerk, hurried land-use changes and thoughtful public process is in need of a shakeup."
Aimee Craig Carlson, a representative of political action committee Citizens for Lower Taxes and a Stronger Economy, said Amendment 4 burdens taxpayers by forcing them to vote on "technical" land use changes and hamper job creation in a recession.
"All of these land use changes would clutter out ballots with as many as 300 items," Carlson said. "It's a messy, unpredictable business."
DEDC members like Lynn Goldman, a coordinator for McFatter Technical School, voiced concerns about how residents would bother following local land development issues.
"I'd like to believe residents pay attention at the local and state level," Goldman said. "We're trying to develop sustainable communities and this amendment doesn't help."
The council meets at noon every third Tuesday at Nova Southeastern University's Terry Building, 3200 S. University Drive in Davie. Call 954-797-2087, or visit http://www.davieedc.org.
