And space has become tight on Lake Avenue. One family-owned business, now facing retirement, is being courted by five prospective tenants, said Nowak. Lake Worth is a great example of what can happen when a community builds the capacity to help itself, says Michael Busha, director of the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council. First the community needs a vision, says Busha. Then it needs to be able to articulate its goals in words and graphics, an amazing weakness that continues today.
State agencies get on board.
Providing communities with the capacity and infrastructure to accomplish their goals is now widely regarded as a primary route toward sustainability. The Florida Department of Transportation is trying to institutionalize this approach in its Transportation Design for Livable Communities Project. The Department of Community Affairs is disseminating many of the necessary tools via its Sustainable Communities Demonstration Project. Governor Bush points to his Front Porch Florida initiative as embodying these concepts. Perhaps what is needed is a technical assistance swat team, an idea discussed at the New Urbanism in a Sustainable Florida meeting at Seaside in November.