SouthWood is a planned community in Tallahassee, Florida. The community is sited on the southeast side. the community is located in the State of Florida Capital Circle Office Complex, Florida State University School, and John Paul II Catholic High School.
The 8,700 acres (3,500 ha) development was controversial. It was planned by Southwood Properties, the development subsidiary of the St. Joe Paper Company. [1] It was canceled in 1989 after the Florida Department of Community Affairs (DCA) required 40% affordable housing. [2] A new plan for the project, developed by St. Joe/Arvida, was approved by the city in 1999 [3] and later by the DCA.[ citation needed ]
SouthWood is part of the Capital Region Community Development District, a local, special purpose government entity authorized by Chapter 190 of the Florida Statutes, and created by the Florida Land and Water Adjudicatory Commission as an alternative method of planning, acquiring, operating and maintaining community-wide improvements in planned communities. A CDD provides the "solution" to Florida’s need to provide valuable community infrastructure generated by growth, ultimately without overburdening other governments and their taxpaying residents. Community Development Districts represent a major advancement in Florida’s effort to manage its growth. This allows a developer to establish higher construction standards, meanwhile providing a long-term solution to the operation and maintenance of community facilities.
The Capital Region Community Development District is organized like other local governments in Florida, in that the legislative body is composed of a five-member board known as the Board of Supervisors. The Board establishes District policy. The Board, by law, must hire a District Administrator and District Counsel. Staff members use the same formalities as a County Administrator and County Attorney. The Board, through review of advertised Requests for Qualifications, ranks and selects a District Engineer to address the District's engineering needs. District Administration staff and the District Attorney administer the operations of the District and implement the Board’s policies and contracts.
Tallahassee is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2022, the estimated population was 201,731, making it the eighth-most populous city in the state of Florida. It is the principal city of the Tallahassee, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, which itself had an estimated population of 390,992 as of 2022. Tallahassee is the largest city in the Florida Big Bend and Florida Panhandle regions.
Hillsborough County is a county located in the west-central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. In the 2020 census, the population was 1,459,762, making it the fourth-most populous county in Florida and the most populous county outside the Miami metropolitan area. A 2021 estimate has the population of Hillsborough County at 1,512,070 people with a yearly growth rate of 1.34%, which itself is greater than the populations of 12 states according to their 2019 population estimates. Its county seat and largest city is Tampa. Hillsborough County is part of the Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Leon County is a county in the Panhandle of the U.S. state of Florida. It was named after the Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León. As of the 2020 census, the population was 292,198.
The Supreme Court of Florida is the highest court in the U.S. state of Florida. It consists of seven justices—one of whom serves as Chief Justice. Six members are chosen from six districts around the state to foster geographic diversity, and one is selected at large.
The government of Florida is established and operated according to the Constitution of Florida and is composed of three branches of government: the executive branch consisting of the governor of Florida and the other elected and appointed constitutional officers; the legislative branch, the Florida Legislature, consisting of the Senate and House; and the judicial branch consisting of the Supreme Court of Florida and lower courts. The state also allows direct participation of the electorate by initiative, referendum, and ratification.
Regional Planning Councils (RPCs) are quasi-governmental organizations that, up until 2010, were designated by Florida law (Ch. 186, Florida Statutes) to address problems and plan solutions that are of greater-than-local concern or scope, and are to be recognized by local governments as one of the means to provide input into state policy development. With regard to transportation-related issues, RPCs are empowered to provide technical assistance to local governments on growth management matters; coordinate land development and transportation policies in a manner that fosters region-wide transportation systems; review local government comprehensive plan amendments, evaluation/appraisal reports, and Developments of Regional Impacts for consistency with state and regional plans; and, review the plans of independent transportation authorities and metropolitan planning organizations to identify inconsistencies between those plans and applicable local government plans. RPCs are a type of Regional planning organization, specific to the state of Florida. Since 2010, RPCs have evolved beyond growth management activities to serve their local governments across a variety of program areas, including economic development, environmental planning, emergency preparedness, disaster resiliency, GIS/technology services, housing, and transportation.
Stetson University College of Law, founded in 1900 and part of Stetson University, is Florida's first law school. Originally located near the university's main campus in DeLand, Florida, the law school moved in 1954 to Gulfport, Florida. The law school occupies a historic 1920s resort hotel, the Rolyat Hotel, designed by Richard Kiehnel. The College of Law is accredited by the American Bar Association and has been a member of the Association of American Law Schools since 1931. The college also has a campus in Tampa, Florida that shares space with a working court, Florida's Second District Court of Appeal.
The California Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) is a department within the California Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency. DCA's stated mission is to serve the interests of California's consumers by ensuring a standard of professionalism in key industries and promoting informed consumer practices. The DCA provides the public with information on safe consumer practices, in an effort to protect the public from unscrupulous or unqualified people who promote deceptive products or services.
The history of Tallahassee, Florida, much like the history of Leon County, dates back to the settlement of the Americas. Beginning in the 16th century, the region was colonized by Europeans, becoming part of Spanish Florida. In 1819, the Adams–Onís Treaty ceded Spanish Florida, including modern-day Tallahassee, to the United States. Tallahassee became a city and the state capital of Florida in 1821; the American takeover led to the settlements' rapid expansion as growing numbers of cotton plantations began to spring up nearby, increasing Tallahassees' population significantly.
The Wisconsin Department of Administration (DOA) is an agency of the Wisconsin state government which provides a range of services and programs, from operations, technology, and logistical support for the state, to assistance programs for low-income homes, to state gaming. The department's services to other state agencies and offices include personnel management, payroll, accounting systems, technology solutions, and legal services. The Department is central to the state budget process, advising the Governor and state agencies on their budget submissions and analyzing solutions to fiscal problems. The Department also administers state information systems, procurement policies and contracts, fleet transportation, and risk management, and oversees buildings owned and leased by the state, facilities planning projects, and the Wisconsin Capitol Police. The Department also administers the state's compensation plan, which includes the pay and benefit administration for most state employees.
Ion Voltaire Sancho was an elected official who served Leon County, Florida, as Supervisor of Elections for 28 years, from 1989 to 2017. During his time in office, he was admired for his integrity as a voter advocate and elections expert, and became nationally known for his role in the Florida presidential election recount of 2000. He was also known for his appearance in the 2006 investigative documentary Hacking Democracy.
Springtime Tallahassee is an annual event held on either the last Saturday in March or the first Saturday in April in Tallahassee, Florida, United States celebrating Tallahassee's history and culture.
Innovation Park is the location of the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, the Applied Superconductivity Center, Danfoss Turbocor and related advanced research facilities. The Leon County Research and Development Authority's Innovation Park is located near the campuses of Florida State University, Florida A&M University and Tallahassee Community College in Tallahassee, Florida.
Florida State University Panama City is located 100 miles (160 km) from the Tallahassee campus in Panama City, Florida. Established in 1982, the campus serves more than 4,000 students supported by 20 bachelor's and 9 graduate degree programs on campus and online.
The James Madison Institute (JMI) is a free market American think tank headquartered in Tallahassee, Florida in the United States. It is a member of the State Policy Network. The organization's stated mission is "to tether the Sunshine State to the wisdom of free-market capitalism, limited government, the rule of law, economic liberty, and the principles that have made our nation great."
George Stephen LeMieux is an American former politician who was a United States Senator from Florida from 2009 to 2011. He is chairman of the Florida-based law firm of Gunster Yoakley & Stewart and was chief of staff to Governor Charlie Crist. He was the Deputy Florida Attorney General and is credited with spearheading Crist's successful campaign for governor. In 2009, Crist appointed LeMieux as U.S. Senator to replace Mel Martínez, who resigned.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) is a state-wide investigative law enforcement agency within the state of Florida. The department formally coordinates eight boards, councils, and commissions. FDLE's duties, responsibilities, and procedures are mandated through Chapter 943, Florida Statutes, and Chapter 11, Florida Administrative Code. FDLE is headed by a commissioner who reports to the Florida Cabinet, which is composed of the governor, the attorney general, the chief financial officer, and the commissioner of agriculture. The commissioner is appointed to his position by the governor and cabinet and confirmed by the Florida Senate.
Michelle Rehwinkel Vasilinda is an American politician and lawyer from Florida. She is a former member of the Florida House of Representatives, in which she represented the 9th District, which includes most of Leon County, from 2008 to 2016. In addition to her legislative career, Rehwinkel Vasilinda is an attorney and has been a professor of Legal Studies and Applied Ethics at Tallahassee Community College since 1989.