Economic Development District (EDD)


Staff Contact:

Patrick O'Neil
Senior Planner
4000 Gateway Centre Blvd.
Suite 100
Pinellas Park, Florida 33782
Phone: (727)570-5151 ext. 31 Fax: (727)570-5118

Tampa Bay Economic Development District (Edd)

About the Tampa Bay EDD

The Tampa Bay Region is designated as an Economic Development District by the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA). The EDD is comprised of the four counties that make up the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council (Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco, and Pinellas, and all municipalities therein). The staff of the Regional Planning Council acts as the administrative arm of the EDD. The EDD must provide an annual report of the economic development activities in the region by the end of April each year. This is accomplished with the cooperation of the economic development departments/staff within each county and municipality, as well as other economic development practitioners. These economic development partners provide updated information about their respective initiatives to the EDD staff.

As part of the Tampa Bay EDD, local governments in the district are eligible for an additional 5% bonus under EDA-funded programs for construction projects (i.e, 55% federal participation instead of 50%). This designation also relieves annual reporting of county-adopted Comprehensive Economic Development Strategies (CEDS) which are now covered under the regional Tampa Bay CEDS. EDD designation also increases access to additional federal funding such as for disaster preparedness and recovery, brownfield mitigation, and revolving loan funds.


The primary functions of the EDD are (but are not limited to):


  • Prepare and maintain the Tampa Bay Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS)
  • Assist with the implementation strategies identified in the CEDS
  • Provide technical assistance to local governments and economic development organizations on their economic development activities, programs, and grant applications

The CEDS is updated every five years through a comprehensive planning process that addresses the needs of the entire region. EDD staff ensure that groups representing all socioeconomic segments of the Tampa Bay region are invited to participate in the CEDS update process.


The latest edition of the Tampa Bay CEDS was adopted on November 12, 2012 by the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council. The Tampa Bay CEDS is available for download (PDF) by clicking here. The CEDS was created with guidance from the CEDS Steering Committee. The Steering Committee member list is located here. The current CEDS project list is located here.

 

Under Florida law, e-mail addresses are public records. If you do not want your e-mail address released in response to a public records request, do not send electronic mail to this entity. Instead, contact this office by phone by calling (727) 570-5151 or in writing to 4000 Gateway Centre Blvd., Suite 100, Pinellas Park, Florida 33782. Copyright © 2012 Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council. All Rights Reserved.