Deal of the Year

Pinellas County Economic Development Awarded Urban Deal of the Year Award by Florida Economic Development Council for Employment Sites Program Project, Brooker Creek South

Pictured (from left to right): Dr. Cynthia Johnson, Director, Cindy Margiotta, Division Director, DeDe Haggerty, Business Assistant Specialist 3, and Suzanne Christman, Division Director.

ORLANDO, FLA – Pinellas County Economic Development was announced as the recipient of the prestigious Urban Deal of the Year Award for the Brooker Creek South project at the Florida Economic Development Council’s Foundation Conference Awards in Orlando on Tues., May 9. The Florida Economic Development Council is Florida’s primary resource for economic development-related policy development, education, and networking. The Urban Deal of the Year Award recognizes economic development organizations for outstanding achievement in the location/expansion of business in the state of Florida, that meets community economic development goals and involves significant community program support in an urban area. 

Brooker Creek South represents a milestone project for Pinellas County Economic Development as it was the first industrial building supported in part by Pinellas County’s Employment Sites Program. The 130,000-square-foot tilt-wall industrial building was completed in September 2022 in Oldsmar’s thriving industrial market and is home to tenants Edmund Optics, Future Development and Design, and Belac’s Chromalloy. 

Dr. Cynthia Johnson, Director of Pinellas County Economic Development, stated, “It’s an honor that Pinellas County Economic Development has been selected for the Urban Deal of the Year Award for Brooker Creek South. Having adequate, modern, industrial and Class A office space has such a profound impact on local economic development and attracting companies. It took a program like the Employment Sites Program to help businesses and developers like Harrod Properties, Inc. overcome market constraints to open facilities like Brooker Creek South, where businesses can expand their operations, and retain and grow their workforce for industry needs of today and tomorrow.”

The Employment Sites Program (ESP) is a commitment by the Pinellas County Commission of over $90 million in funding from Penny for Pinellas for countywide investments into economic development projects. ESP helps to fund, in part, construction and redevelopment of industrial and Class A office buildings to build the next generation of modern properties essential for business growth and expansion. In the first two years of the Employment Sites Program, eighteen projects have been approved by the Pinellas County Commission, with a commitment of over $23.5 million in funding and resulting in an increase of 1,095,693 square feet of Class A office and industrial space across Pinellas County.  To learn more about Pinellas County’s ESP, visit www.pced.org/ESP.

Pinellas County – The Ideal Business Climate

Pinellas County Economic Development (PCED) works with existing businesses to encourage expansion and seeks to attract new companies with high-wage careers to Central Florida’s Gulf Coast. Through investment tools, professional courses and business counseling sessions, trade missions to open new markets, as well as local, regional and statewide partnerships, PCED fosters a pro-business climate in Pinellas County, Florida.

Pinellas County Economic Development
The EpiCenter, 13805 58th Street North, Suite 1-200
Clearwater, Florida 33760

(727) 464-7332 direct
(888) 759-5627 outside of Florida
(727) 464-7053 fax

EconDev@PinellasCounty.org