FORT WALTON BEACH — Bring up public parking in the downtown shopping district and you’re likely to get an earful. Bottom line? Folks want more of it. The city recently agreed to study the parking issue across the entire Community Redevelopment Agency footprint – something that hasn’t happened since 2007. “A lot has happened in…
Widowed and 84 years old, Julia Minors, and her puppy, Coco, had no one to complete even the most trivial repairs on their home until Minors heard about a paint voucher program from a friend. Minors’ home received renovations to her house at little cost through Partnership for Paint, a program sponsored by Gainesville’s Community…
PANAMA CITY — The Downtown Improvement Board (DIB) selected a new director Wednesday, but the public won’t know the name of the new administrator until the vetting process is complete. DIB Chairman Jim Hayden said the position has been offered and the top candidate has accepted the job. The new director will be announced at…
SARASOTA – Some local business owners and chain stores are flocking to University Parkway and Interstate 75 to be a part of the buzz surrounding the new Mall at University Town Center. Others want to avoid it completely. The only certainty is that Southwest Florida’s retail scene is undergoing a potentially seismic shift. How downtown…
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced on Monday, Sept. 29, the award of $61,130 to the City of Live Oak Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) for a project to strengthen and expand the Live Oak Farmers Market through training and outreach. The grant was gifted through the Farmers Market Promotion Program (FMPP), and it…
TAMPA — Bill Gates’ riches will help fuel Jeff Vinik’s vision. An investment fund controlled by Microsoft’s billionaire founder will help finance the Tampa Bay Lightning owner’s ambitious plan to build a massive entertainment, office, residential and retail district around the Amalie Arena. “This has the potential to be a billion-dollar development,” said Vinik’s top…
TAMPA — After nine years without any movement, the idea of a residential tower on downtown’s N Franklin Street is getting new life. Carter & Associates, an Atlanta-based national real estate developer, is considering building a 23-story tower with 375 apartments or condominiums. The tower would go up on the 1-acre block bordered by N…
Land clearing is continuing on the Kolter Group’s project to build twin 19-story buildings on the Intracoastal Waterway called Water Club, across from the Benjamin School about a mile south of PGA Boulevard. Plans for the seven-acre parcel include 74 condos in each building, which will have parking on the bottom floor. Twenty townhouses are…
AVON PARK – Some look at it as a way to spruce up the streets, liven up the storefronts, bring beauty and vibrancy to neighborhoods and make town overall more appealing. But others look at it as a vice to possibly decrease home values, even to the point big developers could come in and buy…
BOCA RATON — Downtown Boca Raton’s first hotel is going to rise higher than most of Boca’s buildings, the City Council decided Monday. The 12-story Hyatt Place Hotel Boca Raton is expected to break ground in March. Councilwoman Constance Scott called the 200-room hotel the missing piece of the downtown puzzle. “I am very excited…
University of Central Florida President John Hitt made it official Tuesday, announcing to community and business leaders that UCF will push to build a campus in downtown Orlando that could ultimately cost as much as $200 million. UCF has been studying the idea of a downtown campus at the Creative Village — where the city’s…
LAKELAND | Officials at The Lakeland Center are looking for developers to build a second hotel at the complex to meet the growing demand for lodging in Lakeland and to attract larger conventions. Mike LaPan, executive director of The Lakeland Center, said Hyatt Place’s 127 rooms are not enough to entice larger events, and the…
NEW SMYRNA BEACH — “Excitement is building!” reads the sign that was slated to be put up Sunday on what has been a largely dormant piece of property in the heart of the city’s downtown. It heralds a project by White Redevelopment Co. called Tabby House that will see up to 18 homes built on about…
Fruitland Park city commissioners and City Planner Greg Beliveau couldn’t see eye-to-eye last week when it came to commercial design standards on County Road 466A or dressing up Berckman Street, the city’s main boulevard. During a workshop called by Mayor Chris Bell, Beliveau presented the board with some commercial design standards he developed eight years…
Although plans to turn the Gainesville Gas Co.’s 32-acre former home into the city’s version of Central Park date back more than a decade, the project has been constantly evolving — as has its budget and completion date. The Gainesville Community Redevelopment Agency took on the project around 2009, although the idea for Depot Park…
BOYNTON BEACH — To prevent further confusion or another possible setback in a project, the Boynton Beach Community Redevelopment Agency board adopted a new cone of silence, a policy that makes clear to whom it’s appropriate for board members to speak with while developers compete for projects. Confusion over the former cone of silence policy…
Title: Neighborhood Enterprise Division Manager – Escambia County, Florida Organization: Escambia County Board of County Commissioners Salary: $68,036.80 – $78,249.60 Annually Date Posted: 09/15/14 Closing Date: 09/29/2014 City: Pensacola County: Escambia County, FL Type of Position: Full-Time Education Requirement: Bachelor’s in Community Development, Public Administration, or Business Administration Experience Requirement: Five years of managerial experience…
Leesburg has approved a temporary waiver of municipal impact fees to encourage redevelopment in certain areas of the city. City commissioners unanimously agreed Monday night to waive impact fees for new businesses moving into and refurbishing existing structures within Leesburg’s three community redevelopment areas. The waiver covers utility, police, fire and recreation impact fees for qualifying businesses…
Kenya Young flashed a wide smile and raised her arms high in the air Monday afternoon to celebrate her family’s new apartment as they aim for the American dream of owning a home. “We get to move in on Friday!” said the 35-year-old mother of four, who found out three weeks ago that her family…
LAKE WORTH — A bright mural nearing completion downtown — featuring an owl, members of a native tribe and booming speakers — had onlookers talking Sunday. “I love it,” said Leslee Scruggs, who lives in Lake Worth, as she snapped shots with her camera phone. “I didn’t realize it was happening. Usually you have to…
LAKE WORTH — Downtown Lake Worth is getting more color. Over the weekend, three sleek murals were decked on the walls of retail buildings on Lucerne Avenue during the Going-A-Wall live-painting event. It featured live music, food trucks and several paint-covered artists in action. On one wall, the side of Bruce Webber’s Art Gallery building,…