David Farmer to Host Program for Urban Land Institute

On Friday March 14, 2008 I hosted a program for ULI called Deal or No Deal. The purpose of the program was to inform the standing room only crowd about land development potential and how to identify troubled properties before spending money on them. I began the program with some background on legal cases that give weight to planning concepts such as compatibility, concurrency and environmental planning. After covering these principles, we went over the importance of compatible development and how to minimize externalizing impacts to surrounding properties. I offered specific suggestions on how to work with surrounding property owners and what can be done to facilitate a responsible development. Then we discussed concurrency and I used Disney World as an example of this legal requirement. Can you imagine driving to WDW, parking and seeing the wonderful attractions in the distance yet not having a way to get from the parking lot to park itself? I know the example is absurd from a business point of view but it is a good illustration of why it is so important to have infrastructure in place when there is demand for it. Following concurrency I covered environmental issues related to development such as endangered species mitigation, wetland mitigation and water quality requirements for SW Florida.At the end of the program there were many questions so I spent over 30 minutes answering them. It was so much fun talking about what I know and do best. It was also nice to see people with light bulbs over their heads as I covered a subject and it "clicked" with them. I am looking forward to another program as soon as I can find a way to get the word out