2017 Conference

This year’s conference will be in Sarasota, Florida on October 18-20, 2017. Mark your calendar, and make sure you are on our email contact list to get regular updates.

Hotel, Conference Registration, and Agenda

Conference Registration. The conference registration fee is $275 early, $350 regular, and $75 student. The deadline for early registration has been extended to September 30. Click this link to go to the registration site.

Hotel. The conference will be held at the Hyatt Regency Sarasota, 1000 Boulevard of the Arts, Sarasota, FL 34236. The hotel conference rate is $165 per night ($184.80 with taxes and fees). To make a room reservation at the conference rate, click here. As of 9/18, there were a few room-nights available at the conference rate.

Program. The theme of this year’s conference is “Impact Fees and Infrastructure Finance: Back to Basics in a Changing World.” The conference will start with a reception Wednesday evening. Sessions will take place all day Thursday, and on Friday until 2 pm. Activities are being planned for Friday afternoon and evening. The latest conference program and speaker bios are available.

NEW – we now are offering an AICP ethics session.
NEW – we are also sponsoring a Planning Officials Training Workshop on Wednesday morning and afternoon prior to the GIC conference. It will be from 8:30 am – 4:00 pm at the Center for Architecture, University of Florida CityLab, 265 Orange Avenue, Sarasota, FL 34236. Attendees will receive 6 AICP credit hours. Registration is free for GIC conference registrants. For others, registration will be $25 until 9/18, $35 until 9/30, and $45 thereafter. Contact Jerry Murphy to reserve a place. For additional details, check the conference program.

Meals. The registration fee includes a Wednesday evening reception, breakfast and lunch on Thursday and Friday, and Thursday evening dinner at a nearby restaurant.

Transportation. For those who will drive to the conference, a hotel reservation at the Hyatt comes with complimentary self-parking (and free wi-fi). For those flying into the Sarasota airport (SRQ), a 4-mile, 12-minute taxi ride costs about $15, and there is a convenient non-transfer bus ride that takes about 25 minutes (10-minute walk plus 15-minute ride).

Ride-Sharing. The other alternative for those coming from out of state is to fly to Tampa (1 hour) or Orlando (2 hours) and rent a car. Some attendees are being reimbursed for expenses by the public agency they work for, but won’t get reimbursed for a car rental. If you need a ride, or are willing to offer a ride if schedules coincide, please reply to the post about ride-sharing on our Facebook page, with details on airport, arrival/departure days and times, and some way to contact you (if you don’t want to put your phone number or email address online, send it to GIC Secretary Clancy Mullen and reference him as your contact).

Planning credits. All sessions have been approved by the American Planning Association for AICP certification maintenance credit. A participant can earn up to 11.25 credit hours, including 1.25 law credits and 1.25 ethics credits. Those attending the pre-event Florida Planning Officials training can earn an additional 6 credit hours.

Future of GIC Blog

We are trying to rethink the role of our organization as a resource for impact fee professionals, particularly those in the public sector. We believe we need to move beyond just sponsoring an annual conference if we are to remain relevant to the needs of impact fee professionals. We also need new energy from more people, whether as official Board members or serving on an advisory committee. We have started a blog with some initial thoughts on where we might start this process. Please click on the “Blog” tab at the top of this page and reply with your ideas and/or interest in being part of the discussion.

Board of Directors Election, Committees

Four positions on the GIC Board of Directors are up for election at this year’s conference. None of the incumbents are not running for reelection. We need to fill these positions, and we need new energy on the Board as we rethink the role of our organization. The Board election will take place at the annual membership meeting at the Sarasota conference in October. We would also like to solicit non-Board members to join committees to help plan next year’s conference (2018 Conference Committee) and to help us rethink the role of our organization (Organizational Change Committee). If you are interested in serving on the Board, and/or participating as a committee member, contact GIC Secretary Clancy Mullen.

2018 Conference

Next year’s conference will be in Arizona, probably in the Phoenix area. If you would like to participate in planning the conference, contact GIC secretary Clancy Mullen. We are also scheduling a meeting during the conference where those interested can discuss it.

Past Conferences

Go to the “Conferences” tab at the top of the page to access information about the 2016 and prior conferences, including agendas, presentations, handouts, and photos.

Email List

If you would like to receive updates by e-mail, contact GIC secretary Clancy Mullen to get on our e-mail list. You can also send him an e-mail to get off the contact list.

Listserve

For information on how to join our listserve and participate in the dialogue on infrastructure finance issues, click here.

Organization History

GIC evolved out of annual informal get-togethers of impact fee administrators in Florida that began in the late 1990s. Initially called the Impact Fee Roundtable, it grew from afternoon gatherings in local government offices to a two-day conference held in a rented venue. The first conference to be held outside of Florida was in Phoenix in 2002, when the name was changed to the National Impact Fee Roundtable. By this time, it had become apparent that a formal organization was required to oversee the annual conference. The National Impact Fee Roundtable was incorporated as a non-profit organization in 2004. The founding board members were Tyson Smith (chair), Charlene Gabriel (vice-chair), Clancy Mullen (secretary), Jerry Murphy (treasurer), Rachel Arnold, Deborah Galardi, Pedro Leon, Doug Frost, and Joe Colgan. In recognition of a growing interest in expanding the scope beyond the subject of impact fees, the name was changed to Growth & Infrastructure Consortium in 2010.