Board and Committee Vacancies

The AHAC was established per Section 420.9076, Florida Statutes, as required for the State Housing Initiative Partnership (SHIP) program.  Administered by Florida Housing, the SHIP Program provides funds to counties to finance and preserve affordable housing based on the locally adopted Local Housing Assistance Plan (LHAP).  The program targets very-low, low, and moderate-income families.

The AHAC has the responsibility to review the established policies and procedures, ordinances, land development regulations, and adopted comprehensive plan and recommends specific actions or initiatives to encourage or facilitate affordable housing.  In addition, the AHAC identifies incentives that are pertinent to affordable housing and serves as an information resource to help improve affordable housing feasibility.

Annually, the AHAC recommends specific actions or initiatives to encourage or facilitate affordable housing in a report to the Board of County Commissioners. The annual AHAC recommendation report includes proposed affordable housing incentive strategies and a review of previously recommended strategies. The Board then considers adopting the strategy recommendations to amend the Leon County LHAP which is required to be eligible for SHIP funds.

The advisory committee may perform other duties as requested, including:

1. The provision of mentoring services to affordable housing partners including developers, banking institutions, employers, and others to identify available incentives, assist with applications for funding requests, and develop partnerships between various parties.
2. The creation of best practices for the development of affordable housing in the community.

Conducts hearings on appeals and variances for the City of Tallahassee and Leon County.  BOAA members are required to review the staff reports on the requested appeals and variances cases, conduct hearings in order to make findings of fact and, with the assistance of the BOAA attorney, make conclusions of law to make a determination on the requested appeal or variance.

Appeals: Certain decisions made by City or County officials are appealable to the BOAA. For example, an applicant for a proposed development may appeal a decision made by a County official to apply a particular parking standard to the proposed development. The BOAA is responsible for conducting the hearings and making a final decision on the appeals.  

Variances: Variances to the City and County’s Land Development Codes may be granted under certain circumstances. The BOAA is responsible for conducting hearings on variances and determining whether the variance meets the applicable requirements. The BOAA will be required to consider factors such as whether the variance would be contrary to the public interest. For example, an applicant may request a variance on a minimum setback requirement. 

The BOAA is supported with staff of the Leon County Department of Development Support and Environmental Management and the City of Tallahassee's Growth Management Department.  The BOAA receives legal advice from its own attorney.

• To provide and maintain in the County such preventive, developmental, treatment and rehabilitative services for children as the council determines are needed for the general welfare of the County.
• To provide such other services for all children as the Council determines are needed for the general welfare of the County.
• To allocate and provide funds for other agencies in the County which are operated for the benefit of children, provided they are not under the exclusive jurisdiction of the public school system.
• To collect information and statistical data and to conduct research, which will be helpful to the Council and the County in deciding the needs of children in the County.
• To consult with other agencies dedicated to the welfare of children, to the end that the overlapping of services will be prevented.
• To lease or buy such real estate, equipment, and personal property and to construct such buildings as are needed to execute the foregoing powers and functions, provided that no such purchases shall be made or building done unless paid for with cash on hand or secured by funds deposited in financial institutions. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to authorize the district to issue bonds of any nature, nor shall the district have the power to require the imposition of any bond by the Board of County Commissioners.
• To employ, pay, and provide benefits for any part-time or full-time personnel needed to execute the foregoing powers and duties.

• Stimulating greater awareness and appreciation of the importance of the arts.
• Encouraging and facilitating greater and more efficient use of governmental and private resources for the development and support of the arts.
• Encouraging and facilitating opportunities for citizens to participate in artistic activities.
• Promoting the development of resident artists, art institutions, community organizations sponsoring art activities and audiences.
• Surveying and assessing the needs of the arts, artists, art institutions, community organizations sponsoring arts activities, and citizens relating to the arts.
• Supporting and facilitating the preservation and growth of the state's artistic resources.
• Contracting for artistic services, performances and exhibits.
• Developing a center or complex of physical facilities for the use of the arts.
• Providing financial and technical assistance to artists, arts institutions and audiences.
• and otherwise serving the citizens in the realm of the arts.

In 2022, the Leon County Sheriff's Office, in collaboration with Leon County Government, the City of Tallahassee, and Leon County Schools, created the Tallahassee-Leon County Council on the Status of Men & Boys with the following vision and mission.

VISION:

The Council on the Status of Men and Boys is committed to preserving life by preventing homicides and non-fatal shootings in Leon County. By providing support and services to the men and boys who are most at risk and addressing the underlying causes of violence, the council’s efforts will improve the overall quality of life for the individuals and neighborhoods impacted by violent crime.

MISSION:

     The mission of the Tallahassee-Leon County Council on the Status of Men and Boys is to: 

• Unify existing agencies, organizations, and individuals to coordinate resources, funding, and services under a multi-disciplinary plan for reducing homicides and non-fatal shootings in Leon County.
• Assess individual risk and implement prevention and intervention plans for the Leon County men and boys at the greatest risk of becoming a victim or perpetrator of violence. Plans will be both evidence-based and community informed. 
• Establish specific goals and objectives to address the disparities and challenges men and boys experience in violence, criminal justice, education, employment, and health.
• Continuously evaluate the results of prevention and intervention efforts and conduct further research and analysis of the homicides and non-fatal shootings occurring in Leon County.

 The Steering Committee will perform the following tasks:

• Conduct quarterly meetings with agencies funded by the County, City, CSC, UWBB, and Big Bend Continuum of Care (CoC) to become familiar with the services available to support residents and how the services are accessed and delivered (CoC provides support services to homeless individuals and families in the Big Bend region). 
• Conduct quarterly meetings with neighborhood stakeholders to gather information on the human services needs of residents and disseminate information about the available services through frequent community contacts such as churches, HOAs, youth sports team coaches, barber shops, beauty salons, Title I school counselors, etc.
• Gather feedback from residents to assist the County, City, CSC and UWBB in developing recommendations for consideration by the respective Boards to improve the residents’ access to information and services thereby reducing or eliminating barriers to basic services that support economic prosperity.
• Assist County, City, CSC, and UWBB staff in planning and implementing programs and events that engage neighborhood leaders and stakeholders to raise awareness of available resources to the community. 
• Participate in the review of Community Human Services Partnership (CHSP) outcome measures and provide feedback on programmatic success and challenges of funded programs to improve outcomes for residents that utilize human services agencies. 
• Participate in the development and implementation of diversity, economic, and inclusionary training for CHSP agencies to improve cultural sensitivity and awareness to expand access and delivery of human services to residents in the targeted neighborhoods.