Good News From Florida’s CRAs

TAMPA — The owners of Channelside Bay Plaza sought a federal judge’s approval last week for a speedy sale of the faded downtown mall to the Tampa Port Authority. A former suitor is saying not so fast. Liberty Channelside LLC, which tried and failed to buy the mall last year, asked the judge to block…

SEBRING – The Sebring Community Redevelopment Agency is to announce the arrival of several new and expanding businesses in Downtown Sebring in the past few months. – Cake Wanted, 10 N. Ridgewood Drive, is Downtown Sebring’s newest bakery featuring custom cakes and cupcakes owned by Brandi Gonzalez. – Heartland Band Supply, 209 Circle Park Drive,…

Delray Beach launched a new form of free downtown transportation in July, bright red, white and blue trolleys that circulate from Atlantic Avenue to Ocean Boulevard. But for some city officials and residents, the newly-painted vehicles that replaced the outdated, run down mini-bus service aren’t as charming as they appear. While the trolleys save the city…

LAKE PLACID – The Town of Lake Placid will take the initial step to start a Community Redevelopment Agency, but council was split on how to initiate the effort. Councilman Ray Royce said it may cost $75,000 to $80,000 to start a CRA. He suggested having the Central Florida Planning Agency seek grant money to…

The Escambia County Commission voted Thursday night to approve the Cantonment Redevelopment Plan — a plan designed to address issues that need major improvement in a distressed area of Cantonment. Just under 2,000 people live in the Cantonment Redevelopment Area in 533 family households.  The median household income is $28,291, far below the Escambia County…

TAMARAC— In a modified version of a plan that created a public relations nightmare more than six years ago, the city plans to charge businesses a tax to raise millions of dollars for Tamarac Village. But this time, it’s the businesses that aren’t even here yet who will foot the bill. The city commission will vote Jan. 22…

PANAMA CITY — Planning board members Monday approved a development plan that would put more condo units at a beachfront motel, but they tabled a request some members feared might allow developers to install a low-income housing project in the heart of the struggling area. With some hesitation about the lack of specificity in the…

If you want to park in downtown Delray Beach, you may have to pay for it. At Tuesday’s meeting, the commission will consider a proposal for charging for parking in downtown garages and on downtown streets, places that are mostly free. The rates would vary depending on how close people want to park to the main…

The Community Redevelopment Agency gave the final green light this morning to provide $816,709 for the renovation of a historic building in Cascades Park. The panel made up of members of the Tallahassee City and Leon County commissions voted 7-1 in favor of making the entire sum of money available for renovation of the brick…

NEW SMYRNA BEACH — While the city’s current Community Redevelopment Agency provides grants for residents to fix up their homes, it hasn’t been much use to some residents in the Historic Westside neighborhood who can’t afford to put up the matching funds needed to be eligible for the program. That needs to change in the city’s…

Broward County commissioners will help determine the fate of a prime piece of beachfront land. The property is the Pompano Beach pier parking lot. The city and its Community Redevelopment Agency propose a commercial complex, including a hotel, on the public land. The County Commission must first change the land use designation on the 5.4…

2014 City Cultural Diversity Awards Application Available The application for the 2014 City Cultural Diversity Awards and additional information is now available online. Please note the new requirement that all projects must be sent via PDF only. The deadline for submission is Friday, January 31, 2014. Visit the website for full details. The award winners…

DEBARY — With an eye toward speeding up development near the new SunRail station, the City Council this week established a brownfield area over the objections of at least one landowner. A 4-1 council vote Wednesday reflected the majority support for the brownfield, an area designated for redevelopment after having real or perceived contamination. Brownfields…

NEW SMYRNA BEACH — The city’s 65-year old central fire station on Faulkner Street, seemingly slated for obsolescence, could be redeveloped for new homes and businesses. Jack White, a partner with White Challis Redevelopment Co., said he’d like to reuse the building at 103 Faulkner St. as part of the company’s proposed downtown housing development…

If you want to park in downtown Delray Beach, you may have to pay for it. At Tuesday’s meeting, the commission will consider a proposal for charging for parking in downtown garages and on downtown streets, places that are mostly free. The rates would vary depending on how close people want to park to the…

SAFETY HARBOR — The Jolley Trolley’s brass rails and wooden benches could soon signal a boon to Safety Harbor businesses. After nearly 18 months of planning and negotiating, an eight-month pilot program to bring a trolley to downtown Safety Harbor will start Feb. 1. “I think it’s more of a business morale boost to see…

We have come so far but have so far to go. Sometimes the cliches are true. That is the best description to describe the city’s Operation Urban Blight. Huge amounts of trash and debris have been collected. It’s as if a tropical storm has hit the city except this blight happens year round. Since October…

Broward County is turning off the tap of property tax dollars that for decades have flowed into blighted communities. In the face of objection from cities all over Broward that have Community Redevelopment Agencies, Broward commissioners voted Tuesday to make clear their intention: When these CRAs expire over the next five to 18 years, they…

Coral Gables Business Improvement District bids farewell to Executive Director Search for replacement begins immediately November 11, 2013, Coral Gables, Florida—The Business Improvement District (BID) of Coral Gables says farewell to Executive Director, Mari Gallet, after nine years in the post. Ms. Gallet will depart in January, having started her own business consulting firm. The…

“Ghost” of Keith London haunts Hallandale Beach Mayor Cooper A tiff between Hallandale Beach Mayor Joy Cooper and Commissioner Michele Lazarow has Cooper hearing voices. And those voices, she thinks, are coming from Cooper’s political enemy, former Hallandale Beach Commissioner Keith London. Cooper says it’s clear Lazarow is in league with London. The mayor and Lazarow are…