LAKELAND – Some skepticism about a $75,000 project to scout locations for a new parking garage downtown didn’t prevent the City Commission from unanimously approving the expenditure Tuesday morning. A parking garage, initially pitched as a way to encourage large employers to expand downtown, is now being spoken of in terms of block-sized redevelopment and…
CRESTVIEW – Economical development may increase with health care consultant and Pensacola Blue Wahoos owner Quint Studer investing up to $35,000 for a revitalization study. Mason-Dixon Polling & Research Inc. of Jacksonville, will conduct research to develop a statement of vision, mission and values for the Hub City, according to Community Redevelopment Agency Director Brenda…
Fort Myers’ Downtown and Midtown neighborhoods will soon see more renovation and redevelopment. At a special meeting on Dec. 12 at City Hall, Fort Myers City Council unanimously approved a pair of projects that will simultaneously move the city into the future while preserving its past. Plans are moving forward on both the downtown hotel…
TAMPA — Two major apartment projects — one in downtown St. Petersburg, the other on the water in Tampa’s Gandy Boulevard area — could start construction next year. The Miami-based Related Group, one of Florida’s leading residential developers, announced Monday that it expects to close next week on the site of a proposed 15-story, 354-unit…
The National New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) Coalition is circulating a public sign-on letter in support of the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC). As you may know, at the tail end of 2015, as part of the PATH Act, the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) was extended for five years through 2019. However, this year,…
Redevelopment is set for a prime downtown location on College Avenue that may include a rooftop terrace overlooking the Florida State University campus. Real estate investors and developers Mike Steiner and Matt McHaffie are restoring a building at 107 W. College Ave. with the hopes of creating a signature mixed-use development. Steiner works for Coldwell Banker Commercial, Hartung…
DADE CITY — A plan is gaining traction to designate a former car dealership near downtown as a brownfield area in order to obtain state economic incentives to clean up the contaminated property. The designation is part of a program administered by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection that seeks to provide economic incentives to…
Holiday Park is expanding as a recreation hub for residents and their four-legged friends. Two new attractions are slated for the east side locale. The YMCA of South Florida plans to construct a new facility to serve the downtown community. And the city of Fort Lauderdale recently broke ground on a dog park. The proposed…
A 68-year-old, two-story apartment complex in Miami’s Little Haiti could be transformed with a zoning proposal allowing towers as tall as 28 stories and up to 5.42 million square feet of development. SPV Realty, managed by Sharon Olson in New York, hired Kobi Karp Architecture to craft a redevelopment plan for its 22.5-acre site at…
Fort Lauderdale, Fla.—Tavistock Development Co. has acquired Fort Lauderdale’s Pier 66 Marina and Hyatt Regency Hotel, a 127-slip mega-yacht marina and a 384-key hotel, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., from the Blackstone Group for $163 million. Hyatt Regency Pier 66 in For Lauderdale, Fla. “Pier 66 has been an iconic waterfront property for decades, in an…
If offering the Shipyards property on East Bay Street for redevelopment was a good idea in 2015, expanding the offer to include the city’s riverfront property from the west boundary of the Shipyards all the way to the west property line of WJCT may be an even better idea. The Downtown Investment Authority board of…
TAMPA — Construction workers have been digging up the roads in downtown Tampa for months, marking the first steps toward building Strategic Property Partners’ $3 billion vision for the redevelopment of Tampa’s urban core. At its peak, nearly 100 workers are replacing old water and sewer pipes under the roads on Channelside Drive, Morgan and…
Fort Myers is one step closer to reaching its high-tech aspirations. And officials are moving fast to help transform the historic railroad depot into a regional technology hub in the heart of the city. During a special meeting on Monday afternoon, the city council voted 5-0 to approve a 40-year lease with the Southwest Florida…
Paper or plastic? It’s an option most shoppers have. But if one Florida house bill passes, that choice will be eliminated for coastal communities. “I think it’s a really good idea,” shopper Barbara Hubbard said. “We are using more and more paper bags and people are also getting the bags they use over and over.” House…
Even though homelessness in America’s cities continues to decline, food banks and pantries are still being stretched thin as the number of people seeking emergency food assistance climbs, according to a survey of mayors from 38 of the nation’s cities. The number of people seeking emergency food assistance increased by an average of 2% in…
The Orange Avenue Apartments may look to be in good condition. But the units are tiny and connected by an out-dated system of lead pipes that often burst when faucets are turned on. Redevelopment is overdue, according to the Tallahassee Housing Authority. Potential developers are being considered to create a master plan to bring new life…
100 of Central Florida’s most influential people weigh in with their own predictions for 2030. Read the predictions here.
Inevitably it seems that rivers are one of two things to a city: either a vital, vibrant artery stitching it historically together (think the Seine through Paris, the Sumida through Tokyo, or the Chicago River through the downtown Windy City), or an industrial, black water pipeline which, decade after decade, sacrifices a thriving, walkable waterfront…
Last year, Port Tampa Bay officials were excited to show off sleek, new designs featuring a $1.7 billion urban vision of a futuristic Channelside in downtown Tampa. Renderings showed 75-story high apartment and condo buildings surrounded by parks and a much bigger cruise terminal. But Thursday, Port Tampa Bay officials unveiled a farther-reaching master plan…
The city of Cocoa could see some serious upgrades in the coming months — not only to its streetscapes, but to its foodie and manufacturing scenes as well. A taco pub, a Texas-style barbecue restaurant, expansive Wal-Mart distribution center and Flying J gas station are among the most prominent additions coming to the city, said…
The Ybor City Development Corporation (YCDC) today announced the launch of a new, redesigned version of its website, www.yborcityonline.com, in addition to its new campaign, “More in Ybor.” The site was created to promote Tampa’s National Historic Landmark District’s growing assets, complimented by a catalog of stunning photographs taken by local photographer Gabriel Burgos. Key…