Plans to widen U.S. 90 through downtown Milton are supposed to ease traffic, accommodate Santa Rosa County’s population growth over the last decades, and make way for future growth in the north Santa Rosa town. Santa Rosa County’s population has grown 42 percent from 2000 to 2015 according to data from the Pensacola Metro Dashboard.…
DetailsThe director of the Bradenton Downtown Development Authority will resign before the end of the year. David Gustafson has served as director for over four years. In a statement, Gustafson says, “I can’t thank the Mayor/City Council/DDA Board enough for the opportunity they have provided me. Together we have put the City of Bradenton on…
DetailsA neighborhood in the heart of Gainesville needs to be revived, but city officials shouldn’t stop there. The Stephen Foster neighborhood should be a highly sought-after place to live, given its proximity to downtown and the University of Florida campus. But as efforts to clean up the polluted Koppers Superfund site bordering the neighborhood have…
DetailsThe Gainesville Housing Authority will host a neighborhood workshop to discuss the proposed Woodland Park redevelopment project and receive comments from residents. The workshop will take place at 6 p.m. Monday at the Gainesville Housing Authority office at 1900 SE Fourth St. Housing residents and the community are being invited. Pamela Davis, executive director of…
DetailsEstero wants a village center, more walkability and mixed use, and a proposed development in the heart of the village could make some of those wishes come true. At Tuesday evening’s Planning and Zoning Board meeting, residents and board members were presented with an update to a project called Via Coconut Urban Place, a proposed…
DetailsOne of the city’s long-stated goals has been to spur residential development in the downtown core, and the effort has been wildly successful. Of course, all those people have to eat. A pair of popular restaurants are demonstrating that the city center is a pretty good place to serve up food as well. Both Ulele,…
DetailsA front-end loader started demolition on Friday morning of an abandoned house on the site of a proposed Hard Rock Hotel and Café, a sign that construction could soon begin. Dust from concrete, tile, bricks and wood billowed as the machine dug into the old house on the oceanfront 10-acre lot just south of Sun…
DetailsAs a longtime downtown business owner and resident, I recognize the challenges we have doing business in this part of town. Downtown businesses, residents and patrons face two significant challenges: parking and safety. Both of these are primarily problems of perception. The safety issue stems from isolated incidents that have been perceived to be the…
DetailsThe Bartow Community Redevelopment Agency board has approved a $1 million budget for the 2015-16 fiscal year, including about $130,000 for the demolition, rehabilitation and construction of buildings, mostly houses. Board members said they hope to kickstart an affordable housing program and have something tangible to show for their efforts this year. Now that the…
DetailsWhen it comes to Volusia County’s biggest, most-anticipated economic projects, it’s hard for observers not to be like restless children in the back seat of the family car on a cross-country trip, repeatedly asking, “Are we there yet?” So much promise, so little payoff. Therefore, the recent announcement by Westin Hotels & Resorts that it…
DetailsHarbourside Place, the $150 million entertainment center that has brought both praise and ridicule to Jupiter, was honored Wednesday night by South Florida urban planners. “See? I told you. Harbourside Place is a true urban project that brings substantial public benefit to the community,” said Nick Mastroianni, the president of Allied Capital & Development told…
DetailsSince Art Basel established itself in Miami Beach in 2002, Magic City residents have become accustomed to contemplating art everywhere. They have also learned to coexist with it in all its expressions. Now, a dozen established Miami artists have painted the walls and murals on business buildings in Hialeah, Little Haiti, Little Havana and Wynwood.…
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