We talk about new developments in Southwest Florida all the time. But the aspect of re-development, especially in our local municipalities’ older, and perhaps blighted, downtown districts, is just as important to address.
I recently caught up with the Executive Director of the Fort Myers Community Redevelopment Agency, Michele Hylton-Terry, who brought me up to speed with the CRA and some of its current projects.
“The mission of the Fort Myers Redevelopment Agency is to revitalize the blighted underserved older parts of the city. We enhance the business climate through various initiatives,” Hylton-Terry said. “The CRA seeks to improve the overall environment with designated redevelopment areas making them more attractive for investment and growth. We increase property values by revitalizing neighborhoods and improving infrastructure. The CRA aims to increase property values for residents and businesses. And of course, we encourage community participation. The CRA Identifies the areas that need improvement and we go in with the resources and tools that we have that are exclusive to a CRA and ohh boy do they make a difference.”
Read the whole article here.