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Commission accepts Woodville Sense of Place Plan; asks staff to study grocery incentives and budget awning
Summary
The commission accepted the Woodville Sense of Place Plan, praised staff's outreach to more than 600 residents, approved adding an awning study for a park basketball court to the capital review, and unanimously asked staff to explore incentives and a feasibility study for restoring a grocery store in Woodville (the Food Giant building is for sale).
The Leon County Commission unanimously accepted the Woodville Sense of Place Plan after a staff presentation that highlighted year-long community engagement with more than 600 residents and a set of short- and long-term recommendations to protect Woodville's rural character while encouraging locally scaled economic activity.
Staff presenter Mike summarized the plan: a Woodville Rural Town Center focus area, targeted park investments, community beautification, short-term economic measures to encourage small businesses, and long-term infrastructure projects. Staff said they would also update zoning and land-development regulations to allow small-scale commercial uses while protecting the area's rural character.
Commissioner Proctor asked staff to include a budget discussion item exploring an awning for the Woodville basketball court; staff said it would be a capital project that should be evaluated in the improvements budget. Commissioners also raised concerns about grocery access. An Office of Economic Vitality representative and other staff described options to leverage site selectors, conduct a feasibility analysis and look for grant or incentive tools; staff noted the former Food Giant building is for sale for approximately $600,000 and that the Food Giant lease continues through the end of 2027.
Commissioner Proctor moved to accept the plan and add the awning to the upcoming budget workshop discussion; the motion passed unanimously. The board also unanimously directed staff to bring back an exploratory status report on ways to incentivize a grocery operator to locate in Woodville.
Next steps: zoning-code updates and land-development regulation changes to implement the plan; a capital budget discussion at next week's budget workshop on projects including the awning; and an exploratory feasibility/incentive analysis for grocery recruitment.
