FORT PIERCE — A Vero Beach developer wants to build a 23-unit condo on Indian River Drive next to St. Andrews Episcopal School. The project would be the city’s first major new residential project in decades, Mayor Linda Hudson said. “I’m delighted the developer is seeing the promise of Fort Pierce,” Hudson said. Read full…
Riviera Beach officials voted unanimously Wednesday night to sever ties with the developer of a planned $375 million waterfront project in the city. It’s been nearly two years since Viking Developers and the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency announced the massive mixed-use project, Marina Village. However, Riviera Beach and Viking have been unable to agree on…
Ideas for Apopka’s future were taped across the walls of one of its most historic homes Wednesday, as officials convened in the century-old Highland Manor to do some brainstorming. The job before the City Council: Winnow down these lists of goals, strategies and suggestions so that a cohesive, long-range plan can take shape in coming…
The fate of a proposed headquarters hotel for the soon-to-be-renovated Miami Beach Convention Center now rests with the city’s voters. Miami Beach commissioners on Wednesday unanimously voted to hold a public referendum in March whether the city should lease the land behind The Fillmore Miami Beach at the Jackie Gleason Theater. The lease needs 60…
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…