Alachua County's Citizens for Responsible Growth
Receives Community Steward Award

An advocacy group in Alachua County, Citizens for Responsible Growth, received 1000 Friends of Florida’s 2008 Community Steward Award at the October 28 meeting of the Alachua County Board of County Commissioners.  “We are pleased to be honoring CRG for its dedicated citizen activism,” notes 1000 Friends President Charles Pattison, who presented the award.  “In a few short years, CRG has become respected for its public education and advocacy efforts on critical community planning issues facing Alachua County.”

In late 2006, a group of neighbors in an unincorporated area west of Gainesville became concerned about significant proposed changes to the SpringHills DRI.  The project was approved in 1999 with 806,000 square feet of retail; its developers were now seeking several amendments to increase the retail space to 1.56 million square feet.  The group of neighbors, now called the Coalition for Responsible Growth, began a process for countywide engagement on the issue.  It sponsored community forums and presentations, promoted the issue in the print and broadcast media, and used its web site, emails, and presentations to other civic groups to generate awareness. 

County staff estimated it would cost $120 million to widen the roads necessary for the project, with the developer responsible for $58 million of that cost.  A series of consultants retained by CRG outlined numerous other costs to the taxpayers of Alachua County.  In early May of 2007, around 1,200 residents showed up for a public hearing, expressing numerous concerns with the proposed project.  Two days later, the Alachua County commission voted unanimously to deny the SpringHills DRI, upholding the existing Comprehensive Plan. 

Kim Davidson, who assisted with CRG's initiative to educate and organize the public says, "We share this award with the citizens of Alachua County. We saw the entire community come together to defend our comprehensive plan." 

Since that time, CRG has expanded its advocacy efforts to address other issues, including a denial of a proposed development near environmentally sensitive Paynes Prairie. In addition the group continues to follow preliminary discussions for future rapid transit in their community and is researching a second DRI that abuts the SpringHills project.  “CRG had a major, decisive impact with the SpringHills DRI in 2007,” notes Pattison.  “We are pleased the group is continuing to expand its role as a smart growth advocate through its involvement in other key community issues.” 

1000 Friends’ Community Steward Award is presented annually to individuals, organizations, local governments, agencies, and public/private partnerships that have brought about positive and lasting change in the way their community manages growth.  1000 Friends of Florida is also presenting five other awards over the course of 2008.  A statewide nonprofit organization, 1000 Friends was founded in 1986 to serve as Florida’s growth management watchdog. It has been presenting awards for innovative growth management efforts since 1990.