Bills clamp down on ‘brownfields’ designations after reports Two bills signed by Gov. Rick Scott within the past week will restrict the designation of “brownfield” redevelopment sites that are eligible for state tax credits. Brownfields are described in state law as property for which development, expansion or reuse may be complicated “by actual or perceived…
Pinellas considers special taxing districts for poor neighborhoods Encouraged by nascent plans for a special taxing district south of downtown St. Petersburg, the Pinellas County Commission is considering using the same method of stoking development in four other low-income areas of the county. East Tarpon Springs, North Greenwood, Highpoint, parts of Lealman, and neighborhoods south…
Downtown site brings strong response for Boynton Beach farmers market settling in at new site BOYNTON BEACH —With the summer approaching, the managers of a fledgling farmers market have high hopes — especially now that they’ve moved from a vacant lot along busy Federal Highway to an intimate city park. “They love the location. It’s…
Outlet center buildings rise on old Palm Beach Mall property Walls are going up on the Palm Beach Outlets, the project replacing the 45-year-old Palm Beach Mall, even as the old mall is still being demolished. After about a million square feet of mall was pulled down, construction crews started on foundations and poured cement…
A ‘downtown’ for Coral Springs? New vision unfolds CORAL SPRINGS—Build a new City Hall — and make it an attraction for a new downtown. Instead of burying canals, turn them into destination places, like the famous San Antonio River Walk where tourists can raft with paddle boats alongside quaint outdoor cafes. And that downtown…
Sarasota Golf Club to be sold, developed into housing SARASOTA – Chris Hatton bought his home in 1998, in part because it had a nice view of the Sarasota Golf Club’s links. But now, the peaceful greens, the palms and the moss-covered oak trees that line the 15th fairway in his backyard will be ripped…
Eliminating one-way streets would revitalize downtown Brooksville The time has come to take back our streets, to take back our town. They were snatched away from us — at least control of them was — at 8 o’clock one evening in March 1993, when the state Department of Transportation abruptly changed the traffic flow on…
Delray Beach’s Federal Highway gets facelift The much awaited face lift of Federal Highway in Delray Beach is about to begin. Almost 11 years after the project was conceived, crews are expected to begin improvements Monday: landscaped medians, decorative street lighting and paver sidewalks along northbound and southbound U.S. 1 from George Bush Boulevard to…
Coral Springs seeks public input on future downtown CORAL SPRINGS— There will be special meetings this week to discuss what the city commission — and the public — envisions for creating a downtown near University Drive and Sample Road. On Wednesday, city staff and members from the Urban Land Institute, a nonprofit land use group,…
Winter Park right to be snobby about counter service Winter Park didn’t become Winter Park by putting up with bourgeois counter service. And it has no intention of starting now. Go ahead, insert your own Winter Park snob joke here. Because this is the same place where you can glance into a passing baby…
City of Frostproof to Revisit CRA, Impact Fees FROSTPROOF | City Council members have decided to set up a workshop in the near future on impact fees and a community redevelopment agency. The last time the Frostproof City Council talked about those two funding mechanisms, the recession hadn’t happened. Now that it’s 2013, the city…
Delray Beach frowns upon too many street festivals It is official: There are too many special events in Delray Beach. Once conceived as a way to attract visitors to downtown shops and restaurants, special events are now viewed as a nuisance keeping regular patrons and Delray residents from visiting businesses downtown. “We don’t need them…
West St. Pete business district gaining steam ST. PETERSBURG – A gateway from the beach onto what’s been called the city’s central business artery isn’t much to look at. There is a small waterfront park, then a broad four-lane strip of asphalt, a few trees, convenience stores, strip centers, a scattering of boutique stores and…
Downtown’s Good Vibes Tampa Tribune – It started out as a circled date on the calendar: May 4. The occasion: the Saturday night performance of “War Horse” at the Straz Center for the Performing Arts. It ended with hailing a late-night cab on Tampa Street. Variations, as it turned out, on a theme. The Tony…
Florida City sells lots for redevelopment in ‘Snakepit’ neighborhood Florida City officials plan to sell 22 lots in a neighborhood known as the “Snakepit” to a developer who will build up to 100 apartments on them. The city’s Community Redevelopment Agency wants to sell the lots, totaling about 5.2 acres, to Blue Heaven Villas…
Another big project in growing Bradenton BRADENTON – Coastal Orthopedics, well-known nationally for its work in sports medicine, is seeking approval to build an office building on a prime piece of land near downtown Bradenton, further enhancing the rejuvenation and image of the area. The business has proposed a 55,000-square-foot medical office on the corner…
Bradenton: Old buildings make way for a new bank BRADENTON – A century ago, the now-busy corner of Manatee Avenue West and 19th Street housed a beekeeping operation that was outside of city limits. Not many people lived in the area when J.J. Wilder cultivated bees at 1915 Manatee Ave. W. The house, built in…
Temple Terrace: Town center developer defaulting on agreement TEMPLE TERRACE – City leaders and a developer of a $150 million downtown district project are having trouble seeing eye-to-eye. While Vlass Temple Terrace officials suggest it may be time to pull out of the project, city leaders said this week they are still waiting for construction…
Bonita bosses pitch to create downtown Community Redevelopment Area The Lee County commission decided Monday to hold a public hearing at an upcoming regular meeting on whether to delegate authority to Bonita Springs to create a downtown Community Redevelopment Area. Bonita officials propose spending $15.6 million to spur business activity — $8.3 million for a…
MainStreet DeLand director leaving It will be a bittersweet parting for Mary Beth Harris, when she leaves her job this summer as executive director of the MainStreet DeLand Association. Harris notified the organization’s board of directors May 3 that her family would be moving to Punta Gorda, after her husband, Ty Harris, accepted a job…
Oviedo moves toward major facelift by creating new urban center By Dave Weber, Orlando Sentinel OVIEDO — Sprawling suburban neighborhoods define Oviedo today, but city officials are looking toward a new, urban image for tomorrow. A well-planned jumble of multi-story commercial and retail buildings would rise in several densely developed city centers. Except for the…