Developer Buys Long-Vacant Retail Floor in Clearwater

CLEARWATER — A Latvian real estate developer has been buying up vacant storefronts in downtown Clearwater, and he’s making plans to fill them. Daniels Ikajevs, who lives in a penthouse in the Water’s Edge condominium tower overlooking Clearwater Harbor, recently bought the tower’s 10,000-square-foot ground-floor retail space for $875,000. That space has been empty for…

Enhancements Budgeted for Downtown Square

Ocala’s downtown square soon will be touched up with a Brick City flair. Kathy Crile, the city’s parks and recreation director, told City Council members during a presentation Tuesday that the downtown square looks “a little dated” and outlined plans to spend $265,000 to make changes to the city’s public centerpiece. Crile said $114,000 was…

Redevelopment Study Shows Investment Return of 20X

New analysis finds it took only $19 million public dollars to generate approximately $371 million in private investment. A new study examining the effect of government Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) investment in several Florida municipalities has found that for every single dollar spent by a CRA on redevelopment, that same area benefited from twenty additional…

Lake Worth NSP is NDC Finalist

Lake Worth NSP is NDC Finalist LAKE WORTH CRA NSP-2 CONSORTIUM SELECTED AS FINALIST FOR NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL PROJECT AWARD LAKE WORTH, FL. — Late last week, the National Development Council (NDC) officially announced the semi-finalists for the NDC Academy 2013 Awards. The Lake Worth Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP-2) Consortium is one of six semi-finalists…

Dade City Main Street group closes its doors

DADE CITY – Downtown Dade City Main Street closed its doors this week after more than 25 years of operation promoting the historic downtown district. The organization that had as its goal improving the appearance and economic stability of downtown Dade City had suffered a financial decline since 2007, said Downtown Dade City Main Street…

Lynn Haven reviews CRA’s year

LYNN HAVEN — The Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) in Lynn Haven is recovering from the impact of the nation’s economic slump, according to Mayor Walter Kelley. Acting as the CRA board, city commissioners approved the annual fiscal report during Tuesday’s meeting. Documents show the city’s CRA fund balance was $896,155 in tax increment funds. Total…

Downtown Melbourne Hyatt plans crumble

MELBOURNE — After a fruitless seven-year quest, Peter Flotz has abandoned his ambitious plan to build a luxury Mediterranean-styled condominium tower or a Hyatt Place hotel in the heart of the historic downtown. These $20-million-plus projects would have injected dozens of high-income households — or up to 100 new jobs — directly into the downtown economy.…