SARASOTA – One of the most ambitious real estate developments planned for Southwest Florida during the mid-2000s housing boom is moving forward again, the most telltale sign of recovery since the local economy slumped seven years ago. Kolter Group LLC’s plan to resurrect its 18-story Grand Sarasotan luxury condominium project — albeit with a new name…
On June 17, the Fernandina Beach Community Redevelopment Agency Advisory Board (CRAAB) met for a “debriefing” after a work session with the City Commission and Carol Westmoreland, executive director of the Florida Redevelopment Association. Individuals attending the Monday afternoon meeting were board members Mike Zaffaroni (chair), Andrew Curtin, Lou Goldman, Debra Stephenson, Marla McDaniel, and representatives from…
TEMPLE TERRACE — City attorney Mark Connolly said it may take several meetings between city representatives and the developer to come to a resolution over Downtown Temple Terrace, presumably on how the partners can end their business arrangement without a court fight. Vlass Temple Terrace and the city agreed in a first meeting held two…
Seven parcels of land on Whitehall Street. Four lots on Wallace Street. Seven lots on Cedar Street. Three on South Street. Three on Fulton Street. These are just some of the 53 parcels of city-owned land in Midtown that city officials want to put on the market, with some lots selling for as low $1,951…
The honeymoon is over. At a Delray Beach City Commission meeting Tuesday, accusations flew after city officials in a 3-2 vote blocked the nomination of former Mayor Woody McDuffie to the Community Redevelopment Agency board. The battle was divided among seniority lines, with commissioners who are serving their last term pitted against those who took office in…
TEMPLE TERRACE – Mayor Frank Chillura spent three days in New York City this week, networking with business executives in an effort to bring more economic development to town. The economic development mission to the Big Apple was organized and funded by the Tampa Hillsborough Economic Development Corp., a partnership funded by public and private…
TEMPLE TERRACE – Two weeks after a meeting to discuss the future of the Temple Terrace Downtown Redevelopment District project, neither side will talk about what was accomplished. Officials from the city’s three-member committee and representatives of the developer, Vlass Temple Terrace, signed a confidentiality agreement, banning them from speaking publicly about the details of…
DELAND — After besting 11 other applicants for the job, D. Wayne Carter today will take the reins as the new executive director of the MainStreet DeLand Association. Carter succeeds Mary Beth Harris, who in early May announced her intention to step down to move to southwest Florida with her family. Harris’ last day on…
DESTIN — Councilwoman Sandy Trammell says the city has a “parking issue,” and revisiting open deck seating at businesses such as restaurants may be a good place to start. “We have no standard for any outdoor seating as it is,” Trammell said at a City Council meeting last week. “This isn’t going to affect anyone…
Landscaping, renovations will revitalize historic Manatee courthouse BRADENTON — New landscaping and other renovations will transform the grounds of Manatee County’s historic courthouse and integrate it with other improvements in downtown Bradenton. The project calls for war memorials that have long graced the courthouse grounds to be moved to its east side, sandwiched between the…
Boynton Beach CRA nixes Internet plan BOYNTON BEACH — The city wants to make the Internet available to everyone, especially those who can’t afford it. But a step toward that failed last week, mostly because of the price tag. The city and the city’s community redevelopment agency had proposed an ambitious plan that would have…
Fifth Ave. Business Improvement District seeks tax increase to pay for marketing, events Organizers of the Fifth Avenue South Business Improvement District want to up the assessment rate on property owners to pay for events, marketing and a salary bump for its leader. What do city leaders and business owners think of the proposal? [Read…
Billion Dollar Baby Like a fortress in an asphalt desert, the dated and underused Miami Beach Convention Center defines a dead zone at the heart of one of America’s most vibrant urban places. As Miami Beach embarks on an ambitious push to overhaul the convention center and develop the surrounding sea of parking lots, it’s…
Revelations about downtown project builder leave Clearwater wondering CLEARWATER — City officials were blindsided last week when they learned that Richard Zahn, until recently head of Prospect Real Estate Group, a firm picked to build a key project downtown, had pleaded guilty to corruption charges in South Carolina. On Friday, as the Tampa Bay Times was…
Largo considers downtown development incentives LARGO — For more than a decade, the city has been trying to transform the West Bay Drive area into a bustling downtown district. The sluggish economy of recent years certainly hasn’t helped. Now that the economy is starting to pick up, Largo officials are preparing to offer businesses and…
STRAFFORD, Vt. — LOST amid the Supreme Court’s high-profile decisions on affirmative action, voting rights and same-sex marriage was another ruling that may turn out to have a profound impact on American society. The court handed down a decision on Tuesday that, in the words of Justice Elena Kagan, will “work a revolution in land-use…
$1.5M available in CRA as NSB program winds down NEW SMYRNA BEACH — While the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency won’t sunset for another two years, signs are evident in the next fiscal budget that it’s in the home stretch. The nearly $1.57 million proposed CRA spending plan for fiscal 2013-14 has no money budgeted for…
Another downtown Sarasota condominium proposed SARASOTA – A new condominium project proposed for Golden Gate Point marks the second multifamily residential development planned downtown this year, a sign of developers’ renewed confidence in Southwest Florida. Demand from retiring baby boomers and a dwindling supply of available units has spurred interest in luxury condos not seen since…
Talking turkey about CRAs in Florida and Fernandina Beach The Fernandina Beach City Commission, acting as the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA), and its advisory board (CRAAB) came together on June 13, 2013 for a work session intended to de-mystify CRAs and discuss issues related specifically to the Fernandina Beach waterfront CRA. The session was led…
Rural Economic Development Boot Camp A follow-up to the Rural Study findings presented to the regions, the Rural Economic Development Boot Camp is intended to complement the activities undertaken by local and regional economic development organizations. The event features keynote presentations by Governor Rick Scott, Secretary of Commerce Gray Swoope, DEO Director Jesse Panuccio, and…
Two years later, Main Street debate persists It’s shortly after 5 on a weekday afternoon in downtown Gainesville, and traffic on Main Street is stacked up to the north and to the south of University Avenue. Northbound traffic stretches down to South Fourth Avenue. The tail end of the line of southbound traffic is back…