By REID TUCKER
The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity’s daylong asset mapping excursion to DeFuniak Springs started at one of the historical city’s most history-making features: its Tesla supercharging station.
Representatives of state and federal agencies from FDEO to the Division of Historical Resources to the U.S. Department of Agriculture came to DeFuniak on Tuesday morning to talk to business owners, local officials and residents at various economically, culturally or, yes, historically significant sites around the city. The 32-member-strong party from Tallahassee and Washington organized into five groups before dispersing to check out the 27 locations identified as being of crucial importance to the city’s future economic development. But before they could really get started, the first and biggest of the groups were the captive audience of Telsa Model S owner Dave Steere, of Panama City Beach, who couldn’t say enough about his all-electric super sedan or DeFuniak Springs.
“It’s basically a huge smart phone on wheels,” Steere said. “As an electrical engineer, this car is an incredible piece of technology. As a car guy, it’s just a hoot to drive – an absolute blast. Me and other owners in the Panhandle are thrilled to know that there is a charging station [in DeFuniak Springs]. Having one so close by makes it easier to go on trips.”
Tesla Motors got on the agenda at a DeFuniak Springs City Council meeting in the summer of 2014, and, after a few more visits and presentations to the board, demonstrated the positive economic benefit of having a supercharging station be part of the city’s infrastructure. Those predictions turned out to be true, as the station was constructed at no cost to the city, which has its utility bill paid for by Tesla, not to mention that DeFuniak’s is the only one in northwest Florida, the next-nearest stations being located in Tallahasse and Mobile, Ala. The station – which enables Tesla owners to fully recharge their cars’ batteries in about an hour free of charge – is located in the historic district on the corner of Baldwin Avenue and 10th Street. It regularly attracts well-heeled visitors to DeFuniak who otherwise might not ever come downtown.
The Community Asset Mapping project also took the state and federal reps on tours of places like the Chautauqua Hall of Brotherhood, Goff’s Ready to Wear, Walton High School and our very own DeFuniak Herald offices. These visits, conducted throughout the day, will eventually result in a report detailing suggestions on how community leaders and local government can build on the resources DeFuniak Springs already has when it comes to formulating a marketing scheme to go along with a 10-year comprehensive plan.
DeFuniak Springs was one of three Florida municipal governments, and the only one in the Panhandle, to receive $40,000 per year for two years from FDOE in the form of a Competitive Florida Partnership grant, which enables participation in asset mapping and the ongoing Community Conversation series. The combination of those two programs – the mapping-out of existing community assets and the third-party officiated town-hall discussions about economic development for the city – often reveal strengths that local government isn’t always aware of, said DeFuniak Springs grant writer Robert McKnight, who administrates the city’s Competitive Florida grant process.
“It’s good to have outsiders come in and give us a fresh perspective on things,” he said. “We wanted to have them come to DeFuniak, talk to people, and get an idea of how each business or site contributes to our local economy. When we know that we can better figure out how to brand ourselves and how to leverage those assets to achieve future economic development.”