Tina M. Ekblad, AICP

LAND USE PLANNER | LEADERSHIP COACH | PUBLIC SPEAKER

A professional land use planner with over 15 years of experience in land use entitlements and project permitting across Florida. Tina is a community leader, giving her personal time to mentoring and coaching planners and business professionals, and supporting non-profit organizations focused on the arts, environment, and her alma mater - Florida Gulf Coast University (wings up!)


A strategic, detail oriented, and articulate communicator, Tina is a trusted strategic advisor to real estate developers, energy and mineral companies, and government agencies. From an early age, she has enjoyed solving compound puzzles and making others smile through musical theater. As a practicing professional, she combines these skills to provide thoughtful analysis and dynamic presentations of complex issues to promote early engagement, align community expectations, and secure approvals. 

LAND USE AREAS

Balancing development demands with environmental and community priorities, Tina facilitates discussions of complex issues across multi-disciplinary project teams and multiple agencies to develop custom planning solutions. She regularly utilizes her detailed research and straight forward communication skills to identify and articulate multiple paths to project success.  She has a proven track record of securing approvals for complex and contentious projects. 

Mining

Excavation of mineral resources to support construction and agricultural operations must occur where the resource exists. These locations are often places with existing environmental resources and limited development. Tina works with mining organizations to outline land use and entitlement strategies for new approvals and expansion opportunities. Serving as project manager she develops and maintains project schedules across diverse project teams, prepares extensive applications to permit excavation and associated processing, and develops responses to requests for additional information. She regularly facilitates technical conversations with agency review staff to develop compromises and custom solutions addressing identified concerns. Tina distills technical information to develop and deliver effective presentations with the various professionals of the project team to advisory boards and elected officials and secure approvals


Due to the controversial nature of excavation activities, ancillary on-site manufacturing, and off-site logistical storage of material, Tina has provided expert witness testimony for multiple permit challenges and citizen complaints related to excavation, processing and storage of material.

Hospitality

We all love the Florida sunshine and get frustrated with extra visitors at our favorite hang outs. Securing approval for a new resort concept or remodel with expansion for an existing resort brings a unique set of challenges. Coastal regulations related to building height, floodplain, sea turtles and other coastal wildlife, with existing resident frustrations combine to make the permitting process feel like a never ending maze. Tina utilizes her public and private experiences in coastal communities in Florida to manage multi-disciplinary teams and evaluate design compliance with nuanced local, state and federal regulations. Facilitating conversations with residents, agency staff and property owners, Tina is able to promote collaborative solutions that retain community character while modernizing aging resorts. She develops detailed written justifications and dynamic presentations to explain the resort's unique history and changing regulatory requirements that often precipitate the need for redevelopment. Her critical thinking and fast paced decision making have aided several resorts in securing entitlement approvals despite organized public opposition.

Building height, floor area ratio, hotel rooms, beach clubs, parking, and consumption on premise are often contentious singular issues in coastal communities that come together for resort projects. Addressing these issues, Tina has provided expert witness testimony for permit challenges and citizen complaints for new and redeveloped resorts.

Redevelopment

The reuse of property to support population growth promotes the efficient use and management of private property and public facilities. However the available geometry of existing parcels and previous uses is typically not consistent with current development regulations. Tina evaluates former uses, existing site geometry and characteristics to develop a strategy and action plan across multiple permit requirements to implement client objectives. Utilizing her extensive experience she is able to identify additional team members needed early in the process to collaboratively solve design constraints and support requests for flexibility to governing agencies while reducing permitting timelines. Redevelopment projects are often met with resistance from the surrounding community, Tina actively works with various stakeholders to facilitate public meetings, gain valuable input, and identify alternatives to points of opposition. She is accomplished at designing presentations demonstrating to appointed boards and elected officials the proposed development's enhanced compliance with local regulations and policies.

Redevelopment can be associated with strong sentimental perspectives from the community for the previous businesses. As a result, Tina has also provided expert witness testimony for permit challenges and citizen complaints for several redevelopment projects.

Historic Preservation

Preserving and promoting community history and character through restoration and redevelopment with a historic district is a nuanced process with multiple layers of regulations. Tina has developed a detailed understanding of the various types of historic districts and potential conflicts and flexibilities available to balance development demands, enhance community character and outline solutions. She regularly utilizes this expertise to develop strategies to achieve necessary permits while reducing timelines and duplication of effort across multi-disciplinary project teams. As part of the permitting process she organizes public meetings to obtain input, facilitate discussions, and distribute factual information to the community. Tina also prepares clear and concise presentations to appropriately explain project details and demonstrate compliance with historical and land use regulations to historic preservation boards, advisory committees and elected officials.

The demolition of a structure within a historic district is often an emotionally charged decision making process. Tina has provided expert witness testimony during initial public hearings as well as appeals to support demolition and redevelopment requests in historic districts.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Consulting & Public Speaking

Looking to take your career to the next level?

In today's dynamic environment, multi-disciplinary teams with a variety of personalities are needed to achieve project success. Tina assists professionals from across the United States with the communication, strategic thinking, and self awareness skills needed to collaborate with all types of team members and achieve sustaining success.

Strategic Planning | Expert Witness Testimony | Fast Paced Decision Making | Leadership Coaching

Copyright Tina M. Ekblad 2024. All Rights Reserved