Awards & Accolades

Department accreditations

Communications Division: Certificate of Excellence, Florida Municipal Communications Association (FMCA)

Finance Department: Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting, Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA)

Fire Rescue District: Commission on Accreditation of Ambulance Services; Fire Accreditation (pending)

Parks & Recreation Department: Commission for Accreditation of Parks & Recreation Agencies (CAPRA),National Recreation & Park Association

Police Department: Quadruple Excelsior Accredited, Commission for Florida Law Enforcement; Certificate of Excellence, FMCA

Department of Public Works: American Public Works Association certified

Utilities Department: ISO 55001 asset management standards (pending)

2025 Awards

Florida PEDReady Gold Tier, North Port Fire Rescue

Distinguished Budget Presentation Award, Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA), Finance Department

Gold Certification for Best Wellness Employer, Wellness Workdays, Human Resources Department

First Place, Blue Pencil & Gold Screen Award, National Association of Government Communicators (NAGC), for Community Engagement Event (North Port University), Communications Division

Outstanding Award, Florida Municipal Communicators Association (FMCA) for Podcast ("Voices of North Port"), Communications Division

Outstanding Award, FMCA, for Marketing Campaign Produced In House (Accela online permitting launch), Communications Division

Communicator of the Year - FMCA, Police Department (Brittany Kammerer)

Earle B. Phelps Award, Runner-Up - Florida Water Environmental Association, Utilities Department

2025 Command Officer of the Year, Florida Police Chiefs Association, Deputy Police Chief Chris Morales

2025 Accolades

No. 36 on list of Leading Metro Locations, Area Development Magazine

No. 20 on list of America's Most Changed Cities, GoodMigrations

2024 Awards

Dispatcher of the Year - Florida Police Chiefs Association, Police Department (Mandy Lorenz)

William B. Berger Outstanding Chief Executive of the Year Award - Florida Police Chiefs Association, Police Department (Todd Garrison)

Civilian of the Year – Southwest Florida Police Chiefs Association, Police Department (Scott D. Proeun)

Outstanding Command Officer of the Year – Southwest Florida Police Chiefs Association, Police Department (Christopher Morales)

Outstanding Law Enforcement Chief Executive of the Year – Southwest Florida Police Chiefs Association, Police Department (Todd Garrison)

Digital Cities Survey Award Winner, Government Technology, Information Technology Department

Gold Well-being Works Better Scorecard, American Heart Association, Human Resources Department

Silver Circle Savvy Award, City-County Communications & Marketing Association (3CMA) for Overall Website, Communications Division

Distinguished Budget Presentation Award, Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA), Finance Department

Outstanding Award - Florida Municipal Communicators Association (FMCA) for FY23 Annual Report, Communications Division

Outstanding Award - FMCA for 2024 Communications Strategy, Communications Division

Golden Image Award - Florida Public Relations Association, for Digital Tools - Website, Communications Division

National Gold Medal Award Program Finalist - Excellence in Park and Recreation Management from the American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration, Parks & Recreation Department

Workplace Well-Being Award - Aetna, Human Resources Department

The Bell Seal in Workplace Mental Health - Mental Health of America, Human Resources Department

SUNsational Award, 1st Place - Florida Festivals & Events Association (FFEA) for annual Impact Report, Parks and Recreation Department

SUNsational Award, 2nd Place - FFEA for “Go Green with Parks” initiative, Parks and Recreation Department

SUNsational Award, 2nd Place - FFEA for Woofstock promotional flyer, Parks and Recreation Department

SUNsational Award, 2nd Place - FFEA for Event Safety/Risk Management Plan for the Poinsettia Parade & Festival, Parks and Recreation Department

Silver Circle Award, Savvy Awards - City-County Communications & Marketing Association (3CMA) for Overall Website, Communications Division

2024 Accolades

No. 2 on list of best Florida cities to move to, ConsumerAffairs

No. 2 on the list of best places to live in Florida, ConsumerAffairs

No. 67 on list of most livable cities in the US (top city in Florida), RentCafe

No. 3 on list of best cities to retire in Florida, Retirement Living

No. 1 on list of Up-and-Coming Small Cities, The Hill

No. 1 on list of Up-and-Coming Cities for the Upper Class to Live in 2024, Yahoo Finance

No. 7 on list of 15 Most Affordable and Safe Small Cities, MoneyGeek

No. 1 on list of Most Up and Coming Small Cities in the U.S., MoneyGeek

No. 21 on The South's Best Cities on the Rise 2024, Southern Living

No. 1 fastest-growing U.S. city on LinkedIn Workforce Report for January 2024

No. 9 on list of Top 10 Master-Planned Communities for 2023 Sales (Wellen Park), RCLCO

No. 13 on list of Top U.S. Growth Cities of 2023, U-Haul

No. 1 fastest-growing city in Florida, Insider Monkey

2023 Awards

First Place - Wyland National Mayor's Challenge for Water Conservation

Gold Award - Aetna Workplace Well-being 

Gold Winner Award - Bell Seal for Workplace Mental Health 

Distinguished Budget Presentation Award - GFOA for FY22-23 budget

First Place - Children's Program: MONDA Swim from Florida Festival & Events Association (FFEA)

First Place - Best Web Resource for NorthPortFL.gov/Alerts from the Florida Municipal Communicators Association

Top Ranking - Counsilman-Hunsaker Aquatic Examiner Services for the North Port Aquatic Center

Second Place - Granicus Digital Government Award in "Community Engagement" category for Hurricane Ian response

2023 Accolades

No. 2 Fastest-Growing U.S. City, Quicken Loans

No. 7 fastest-growing U.S. city in 2023 Metro Rankings, Business Facilities

No. 1 fastest-growing U.S. city on LinkedIn Workforce Report for December 2023

No. 10 on list of Best U.S. Metros to Start a Business in High-Growth Sectors (No. 1 in Healthcare & Social Assistance), The Credit Review

No. 1 U.S. city in tech job growth, The Brookings Institution

No. 1 U.S. city on 2023 Talent Attraction Scorecard, Lightcast

No. 6 on list of Top 10 Metros Homebuyers Are Moving Into, by Net Inflow, Redfin