TAMPA, Fla. — The city of Tampa has gone the extra mile with an innovative way to encourage driveres to slow down at several intersections — ground murals. Some colorful examples include the Pride mural, paintings on Franklin and Twiggs Streets, the Black Lives Matter mural and decorated curb extensions on Ashley Drive. Husband and…
St. Augustine’s City Manager John Regan and Vice Mayor Nancy Sikes-Kline have been recognized for their efforts to maintain local control on a variety of issues. The Florida League of Cities recognized both officials with a 2021 Home Rule Hero Award for their work during the 2021 Legislative Session, according to a city news release. “Sikes-Kline and Regan worked tirelessly…
PERRY, Fla. – Today, Governor Ron DeSantis announced that the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) and Enterprise Florida Inc. (EFI) have awarded several grants totaling more than $30 million to improve infrastructure, community redevelopment and job creation in small and rural Florida communities. $29 million was awarded through the Small Cities Community Development Block Grant…
Fresh off of fireworks and still full of hamburgers and hot dogs, the DeLand City Commission and the Downtown DeLand Community Redevelopment Agency will discuss improving city streets, parks and fields — not housing developments — at meetings Tuesday, July 6. First, the Downtown DeLand CRA will meet to discuss a number of topics, including…
Downtown Winter Garden’s newest building, Plant Street Exchange, is nearly complete and its first occupant, Apricot Lane Boutique, has opened. More retail shops and restaurants, as well as an adjacent City park, will open this summer. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Tanja Gerhartz June 25, 2021 407-947-1720 tgerhartz@cwgdn.com First Shop Opens in New Downtown Plant Street…
The Homestead Community Redevelopment Agency (HCRA) First Time Homebuyer Program is now open. Eligible first-time buyers can receive down payment and/or closing cost assistance of up to $10,000 and current residents of the Community Redevelopment Area (CRA) may receive up to $15,000. “We’re hoping residents will take advantage of this program to help achieve the…
The Riviera Beach Community Redevelopment Agency continues to make the waterfront more accessible to all who live, work and play in the city. The agency will be introducing new MobiChair and MobiMats at the Marina Village on Saturday. The MobiMats, leading from the sidewalk to the beach, will allow those who have mobility challenges to…
Paint the Town, Clearwater’s arts ongoing art project, has entered a new realm of urban arts enjoyment. The city of Clearwater’s Community Redevelopment Agency has joined forces with the University of South Florida’s Access 3D Lab to bring a new dimension to art spaces using advanced 3D digital technologies to bring murals and their stories to life…
Haines City’s CRA invites affiliates and partner agencies to join in a virtual session with renowned Joe Minicozzi, AICP, of Urban3. Mr. Minicozzi’s lecture will discuss community redevelopment and economic growth – “he will challenge your perception of market forces and how they affect the built environment.” Scheduled for June 1, 2021, from 12:00 noon…
WINTER GARDEN, Fla. — In celebration of National Preservation Month, the City is sponsoring a Historic Preservation Photo Contest. The contest is open to all levels of photographers. The top five winners will receive a $100 prize. The best photos will be displayed at an upcoming City-hosted exhibit. To submit photos and view sample list…
Establishing partnerships and assembling a diverse capital stack are key components when financing housing developments, yet financing and technical assistance from the federal government is often overlooked. HUD manages several key finance programs that are integral to affordable housing development in urban areas, and the USDA does the same for rural areas across the country.…
The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity’s (DEO) Rebuild Florida Mitigation Program is now accepting applications and nominations for its Citizen Advisory Committee for Mitigation. Required by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Committee will serve as a liaison between the communities and citizens located in state and HUD-designated Most Impacted and…
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Today, the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity announced that communities impacted by Hurricane Michael will have the opportunity to attend upcoming public workshops and a webinar to provide input on the state’s efforts to access $46.9 million in federal mitigation funding. To access this long-term mitigation funding, the Department will work with state agencies…
An $18 million full-gut rehabilitation and renovation project for Town Park Village No. 1 at 1680 NW 4th Ave. is about to begin. The Southeast Overtown/Park West Community Redevelopment Agency (SEOPW CRA) hosted a commencement ceremony yesterday to mark the occasion. Built in the early 1970s, the HUD Cooperative housing complex has 147 residential units…
The City of Tarpon Springs is excited to announce that the new community engagement platform, Connect Tarpon Springs, has launched! Connect Tarpon Springs is a place for the community to get involved by sharing ideas and feedback on a variety of topics affecting our community! Connect Tarpon Springs allows members of the community to participate and contribute to…
Fort Myers CRA Executive Director Michele Hylton-Terry was recognized by two community organizations for her impact on Southwest Florida. The Cape Coral Community Foundation included Ms. Hylton-Terry on their list of Top 20 Generous Leaders of 2021 in Southwest Florida*. “We asked our leaders to share the names of nonprofit leaders who represent and embody…
Fort Myers, FL. On March 17, the Fort Myers Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) is proud to announce that its new Home Preservation Program will partner with Habitat for Humanity of Lee and Hendry Counties (Habitat). Homeowners with outstanding code violations may qualify to have projects/repairs completed by Habitat. The maximum assistance is $25,000 owner-occupied dwellings…
The Love Local campaign, launched by the City of Winter Garden last fall, continues in 2021 with a line-up of programs and activities to help small businesses recover from financial losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The intent of the Love Local campaign is to build…
The City of Lakeland is using half a million dollars on a project to revitalize the downtown area. Pretty soon you’ll see more murals in Lakeland. On Monday, Lakeland Community Redevelopment Agency launched its Art Infusion Grant program to bring more than 100 murals to businesses in downtown and Dixieland. “Basically a façade improvement on…
We have heard a lot recently about public-private partnerships, most notably in the debate over the redevelopment agreement between Jacksonville and the Jaguars to develop Lot J. Broadly speaking, public-private partnerships or PPPs are collaborations between the public and private sectors to facilitate development projects and build public facilities and infrastructure. A few years ago,…
Fourteen small rural counties and cities recently received grants totaling $348,400 for site preparation projects designed to lure new businesses to the area. The awards are part of Enterprise Florida Inc’s (EFI) Rural Expansion Toolkit initiative to assist rural communities with broad-based economic engagement and capacity building efforts. “Many rural communities throughout the state that…