TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) is inviting rural Florida communities to submit proposals for the Competitive Florida Partnership, which provides technical assistance and support to rural areas looking to improve their communities through economic development projects. Communities qualifying for the program include all rural Florida counties and their municipalities, or rural municipalities in an urban county.

DEO Executive Director Cissy Proctor said, “The Competitive Florida Partnership allows DEO to lend our expert community planners to rural communities to help improve business recruitment and retention efforts and their residents’ quality of life. The program helps participants harness their community’s unique resources to develop new and exciting economic development tools, while also networking with other small Florida communities to share ideas and experiences.”

The Competitive Florida Partnership provides grant funding and staff support in the first year of the program. In year two, communities continue to receive technical assistance from DEO and may be eligible for additional grants.

The Competitive Florida Partnership began in 2013 to help rural communities meet their goals with expert support and additional resources that may be otherwise unavailable. The program works to unite many different community organizations to develop a strategic vision for the future of a community, and then execute a project based on the community’s existing resources and needs. Thirteen communities have participated in the Competitive Florida Partnership. Past program participants have included the City of Port St. Joe, DeSoto County, the Town of White Springs and Putnam County.

Proposals must be received by the department by May 2, 2016. For more details on the requirements of the grant program, visit 2016-17 Competitive Florida Partnership Opportunity. 


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