Business View Civil & Municipal | Volume 2, Issue 11

19 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 2, ISSUE 11 ASSOC I AT ION OF FLOR IDA COMMUNI TY DEVELOPERS (AFCD) largest development companies in the state, and we’ve grown exponentially over those 37 years. “Our association as a whole is vibrant, it continues to grow as the number of developers grows to meet the needs of our increasing population in Florida, which is one of the fastest growing states in the U.S. We’ve come a long way –AFCD has been a leader over more than three decades on growth management policy, land use, and environmental sustainability by working with our state regulatory agencies, but also working with our partners in the Florida legislature to plan, and develop, and create policies around smart growth. And how we can support the natural resources we have, while also supporting the continued growth of our state, population-wise.” BVM: How would you describe the AFCD membership? Pierce: “Our members are predominately BVM: How and why was AFCD established and what is the current mandate? Pierce: “The Association of Florida Community Developers was founded in 1984 by a group of attorneys that represented large landowners and did a lot of land use and growth management policy within their portfolio of clients. At that time, there was a growing void and a need for advocacy and representation for developers in Florida. With the large population boom, there was a need for companies to be coming together, networking, finding a common ground on a number of important issues that affected them. “Back then, Florida as a state, the legislature and our statutes didn’t really provide for a policy framework around growth. So as more people were moving to Florida and more developer companies were trying to meet the demands of those new residents, there was a group of people in Tallahassee that came together to form AFCD. It started with about seven of the