STUART, Fla. - Today, the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) announced that Hendry County has been selected to participate in the Competitive Florida Partnership, a community economic development initiative. The Competitive Florida Partnership focuses on improving local economic development activities, particularly in rural areas of the state. DEO will assist Hendry County’s leaders in creating strategic economic development plans that are tailored to the community’s unique assets.

“The Competitive Florida Partnership provides tools and resources to ensure all communities have the support they need to foster economic prosperity and opportunity for their residents,” said Cissy Proctor, Executive Director of the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity. “We are excited to work with Hendry County to harness its assets and create a plan for long-term, sustainable economic growth.”

Located in south central Florida, Hendry County has numerous environmental, educational, health, and infrastructural resources and is seeking to leverage them to create a unified community development strategy. Hendry County is in a Rural Area of Opportunity and has growing opportunities for tourism and business, with 11 million Floridians living within 150 miles.

The Competitive Florida Partnership helps communities value and market local assets and challenges them to set realistic goals for advancing their economic development vision. The three communities announced this week – the City of Frostproof, Hendry County and the City of Stuart – will design and develop innovative strategies that promote partnerships, community design, and a viable local economy. Since its inception in 2013, 13 other communities across the state have participated in the program.

Asset-based economic development is a bottom-up approach that focuses on developing and promoting existing resources to strengthen the local economy. This approach focuses on a community’s tangible and intangible assets and how these can be leveraged into sustainable economic growth and prosperity. DEO works with the selected communities to identify and market unique assets to encourage economic development in each community. 

For more information regarding the Competitive Florida Partnership, please visit: www.floridajobs.org/CompetitiveFlorida.

 

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