A bad reputation is a hard thing to shake. Gainesville has long had a reputation as being unfriendly to business. It hardly matters whether the reputation is fair at this point. Perception is reality. If Gainesville wants to best be able to attract businesses and encourage local entrepreneurs to start businesses, officials must do something…
TAMPA — A tug of war is shaping up between downtown and Ybor City. The prize: A cut of the new property taxes that would be generated by the development of the Gas Worx — a multistory project proposed just north of the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway, next to Channelside Drive. As it stands, a…
DUNEDIN — A developer is moving forward with a hotel project near Honeymoon Island State Park that city officials hope will bring in tourists. The plan: A five-story, 90-room hotel and 4,000-square-foot restaurant will sit at the northeast corner of Causeway Boulevard and Michael Place. The property is being developed by Benedikt Fritzsche and his…
ST. PETERSBURG — A decadeslong wait to redevelop a key block on Central Avenue might be nearing an end after a city commission approved the demolition of most of the historic 89-year-old Union Trust bank building. The redevelopment of the block downtown was a priority for Mayor Rick Kriseman. The developer, Art Village I LLC…
Rules governing signs and new construction in Key West’s Historic District might be getting a revamp. The city’s Historical Architectural Review Commission will tackle possible changes to building standards at a workshop scheduled for 5:30 p.m. today at the Florida Keys Eco-Discovery Center at the Truman Waterfront, at the end of Southard Street. HARC Historic…
The Gulfstream Hotel — long dormant, long a city eyesore — lives, or, at the very least, has a pulse and is poised for a resurgence. After a two-hour discussion, the City Commission by a 3-2 vote on first reading Tuesday night approved a key zoning change that will allow Hudson Holdings to move forward…
One gated Homestead community is a step closer to getting its golf course back — glitzier than ever. On Tuesday night, a majority of the Homestead City Council approved to lend $3.5 million of federal money to mega developer Wayne Rosen to renovate Keys Gate Golf and Country Club. The vote was 4-2, with Jon…
University of Central Florida President John Hitt pitched his proposal for a downtown Orlando campus to local leaders Wednesday and said UCF would again seek approval for the project from the Florida Board of Governors, probably early next year. UCF’s proposal, which is on the tentative Board of Governors’ meeting agenda for January, calls for…
ST. PETERSBURG — A historic downtown bank, vacant for two decades, could become the cornerstone of an eight-story apartment and retail building. The city’s Community Planning and Preservation Commission approved a proposal Tuesday that would preserve the original 1926 Union Trust Co. building at 801 Central Ave. but demolish additions made in 1938 and 1967.…
The event, like the project itself, brought together the academic, the entrepreneurial and the political. The University of South Florida gave a big thank you Tuesday to Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik for donating an acre of land for USF’s new downtown medical school building. “A new chapter for downtown Tampa,” USF president Judy…
After a run of 60 years as a hub of live entertainment in downtown Bradenton, the Riverfront Theatre faced its last act Tuesday when a bulldozer began knocking it to the ground to clear the space for development along the Manatee River. The theater was the longtime home of the Manatee Players, the community theater…
SARASOTA – The owner of the former Sarasota Quay property is taking initial steps toward development. GreenPointe Communities, which paid $27 million for the 14-acre bayfront site last December, expects to submit a formal development plan to the city of Sarasota early next year. The project, called “Sarasota Bayside,” will – for now – retain…
During Monday’s commission meeting, commissioners appointed Vice Mayor Rich O’Brien to serve as mayor for two terms. O’Brien, who was elected as mayor in 2007 and 2012, was nominated Monday by incumbent Mayor Andrea Samuels. He won 3-2 against Commissioner Undine George, who nominated herself after the public voiced their support. Five people addressed the…
A proposed $8.8 million office building in downtown Pensacola is one step closer to reality, but the door may be open for other developers to swoop in onto the property where a local businessman is planning his expansion. Sitting as the Community Redevelopment Agency, Pensacola City Council on Monday approved issuing an invitation for proposals…
Two highly-scrutinized redevelopment projects approved by Naples City Council in the past month are expected only to be the beginning of what’s described as an inevitable makeover to parts of Fifth Avenue South and other business corridors downtown. Spurred by a booming real-estate market, investors are buying up swaths of property and builders are planning…
OLDSMAR – The Oldsmar City Council listened to more information regarding a contract with the University of South Florida School of Architecture and Community Design to update the Town Center Dec. 1. Taryn Sabai, a USF research associate professor and head of the Florida Center for Community Design and Research, provided an overview. The council…
After 10 long years of sitting empty in a key location in Lake Worth, the Gulfstream Hotel, a faded grande dame perched between the town’s raffish downtown and the Intracoastal Waterway, is finally inching toward a renaissance. An approval of a rezoning request by the city’s Historic Resources Preservation Board advances the $60 million project…
LAKELAND — Publix Super Markets confirmed plans this week to build its first store in downtown Tampa. And Cynthia Haffey says she thinks the Lakeland-based grocer would benefit from investing in a downtown location in its own backyard. “I think having a market or grocery store downtown is long overdue,” said Haffey, executive director of…
PORT ST. LUCIE — Enigmatic City Center developer Lily Zhong never has been heard speaking candidly about her grandiose plans for the project. But in testimony earlier this year to the Securities and Exchange Commission, Zhong spilled details such as her ongoing plans for the project, its financing and design and negotiations she claims to…
Maitland’s long-planned pedestrian-friendly downtown district isn’t quite there yet — but the city may have given itself more room to work with. Maitland City Council voted in a special meeting Monday to approve a complicated deal that would extend Independence Lane — the road the city wants to turn into a pedestrian “festival street” —…
Grand Resorts’ list of amenities and solutions for the transformation of Fort Myers Beach’s downtown is staggering: A roundabout at the base of the sky bridge, eliminating a traffic light and enhancing traffic flow; a parking garage, complete with 1,500 stalls and seven elevators; a skywalk over Estero Boulevard, ensuring pedestrian safety; a pedestrian mall…