A promising plan for redevelopment

Opportunity has bypassed much of south St. Petersburg, leaving many largely African-American neighborhoods coping with unemployment, run-down housing and crime. Now city officials have proposed an innovative tax strategy to fight stagnation with job training and public subsidies for private businesses and property owners. It has the potential to help transform the area, and City…

TAMIAMI TRAIL (14th STREET WEST) REDEVELOPMENT SITE RFQ #2015-01, Bradenton Downtown Development Authority

This Request for Qualifications (RFQ) is issued in accordance with Florida Statutes Section 163.380 by the Bradenton Downtown Development Authority (the “DDA”). The objective of this RFQ process is to ascertain the most qualified interest for the creation of an appropriate and sustainable private, mixed-use redevelopment of properties owned by the DDA. The successful respondent…

Downtown Bonita plans excite and incite

Bonita Springs’ community center was filled with the spirit of civic engagement Tuesday afternoon as a steady stream of residents entered to educate themselves on the proposed downtown improvements project and leave city leaders comments, suggestions and no shortage of concerns. “I think change is difficult. Period,” said Councilman Stephen McIntosh. “We didn’t have a…

Neighbors oppose Inverness CRA

INVERNESS — It’s not just county officials giving the Inverness City Council a hard time about its plans to expand the community redevelopment area (CRA) district. About 20 residents of a neighborhood off Vine Street, near a mobile home park and an orange grove, asked the council at a meeting Tuesday evening to exclude their…

DeLand may add more landscaping downtown

DELAND — City officials are inching closer to deciding how to use $429,000 that became available after a proposed downtown mixed-use development fell through last year. The downtown Community Redevelopment Agency board, made up of the five-member City Commission plus two downtown business owners, met recently and went over the results of a January public meeting…