Good News From Florida’s CRAs

The guiding document for Lincolnville’s redevelopment is heading for an update, and that could translate to new or expanded programs in the community. What happens with the Lincolnville Redevelopment Plan depends on Florida statutes, public input and the will of the Lincolnville Community Redevelopment Area steering committee. The plan guides the committee’s actions in making…

TAMPA — Developers envisioned a bustling entertainment and dining district on the edge of downtown Tampa when Channelside Bay Plaza opened 15 years ago. Built along Tampa’s seaport, there wasn’t anything like it downtown. The $49 million outdoor complex was meant to be a hang-out spot for locals and also serve tourists who stayed in…

Recalling our key note speaker last year, I thought that you would enjoy the video below regarding another Barcelona creation…. a ‘superblock’; providing more pedestrian spaces.  It’s a short video and worth the time if you like out-of-the-box ideas for future redevelopment projects. YouTube: Barcelona Superblocks

North Miami’s community redevelopment agency, once heavily criticized for using the bulk of its funds for salaries and administrative costs with little done to benefit the community, was given new life Tuesday via the Miami-Dade County Commission. During the regular meeting, commissioners voted unanimously and without comment to reauthorize the CRA for 29 years. North…

A dozen giant street-art murals, some up to 150 feet wide, by 12 artists, will be on view at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla., when the venue opens to the public for the first regular home game of the Miami Dolphins’ season on Sunday. The project, which has been kept under wraps…

TAMPA — In the years to come, downtown Tampa streets will be lined with retail storefronts. The city will have at least two grocery stores, more than a half-dozen parks and will be home to two more urban hotels. While plans to redevelop downtown Tampa are still years in the making, the local real estate…

You can find huge red and white letters spelling “I Amsterdam” near the rear of the Dutch city’s Rijksmuseum. In Atlanta, 8-foot multicolored characters tell you’re in Midtown. By late 2017, Tallahassee will build on the oversized letter trend by welcoming a life-size monument of the #IHeartTally hashtag to the area of South Monroe Street…

A Moderncities.com comparison of 1943 and 2016 aerials illustrating the impact of expressways penetrating through various Jacksonville neighborhoods and districts. Read full article

The original plan for a mural on the ocean-facing wall of Fat Kahuna’s Beachside Grille in Cocoa Beach called for a shark. However, Cocoa Beach, which provides matching funds for murals and other artistic beautification efforts, nixed the shark idea. While the city did want a beach/ocean motif, sharks were not the image Cocoa Beach…

LAKELAND — Claudia Tritton and other members of the Lakeland Economic Development Council recently met with some of the city’s largest employers. Part of the LEDC’s mission is to generate jobs and capital investment by attracting companies to the area and helping existing businesses expand. Tritton said one of the biggest takeaways from those recent…

Development at the current pace could gobble up too much of Florida’s farmland and natural areas over the next half century, according to a report released Thursday. Suburbia threatens to cover nearly double the amount of land now claimed by neighborhoods and shopping centers, according to the Florida 2070 report. The study calls for allowing…

A local developer bought an Orlando Publix-anchored shopping plaza and now plans to invest millions in upgrades. Williamsburg Downs Investors LLC, an entity of Maitland-based Equinox Development Properties Inc., bought the Williamsburg Downs Publix-anchored plaza at 5350 Central Florida Pkwy. for nearly $14 million on Sept. 12. The plaza is less than 2 miles east…

Jacksonville has well-documented blight issues: so well documented, in fact, there was a city council special committee to deal with that issue alone. Though legislation was passed earlier in 2016 regarding the city’s inventory of 436 tax-reverted parcels, the reality is that the number of properties with active liens on them dwarf that. Liens can…

The Zona Village mixed-use project would bring apartments, retail, restaurants and office space near the South Florida Education Center multi-campus hub in Davie. Broward Collage, Florida Atlantic University, Nova Southeastern University, University of Florida and McFatter Technical College all have campuses in the area, so it’s a prime location to serve students, faculty and college…

The groundbreaking was a decade in the making. On Tuesday, a boxed frame collected ceremonial concrete that was churned and smoothed. The inaugural foundation symbolizes the start of construction of Care Point Health and Wellness Center, which will stretch along an entire city block at South Monroe and Adams streets and Magnolia Drive. For the…

Boca Raton City Councilman Scott Singer filed Sept. 8 to run for his own seat, putting to rest rumors he might run for mayor against Mayor Susan Haynie, who has the chance to run again. Candidates have until January to file for the March 14 Municipal Election in Boca Raton. No one else has filed…

Proposals are due Friday afternoon for a prime piece of city-owned real estate in the heart of downtown Tampa. The city has requested proposals for a surface parking lot at 405 E. Kennedy Blvd — a 1-acre city block that is north of Jackson Street, east of Florida Avenue, south of Kennedy Boulevard and west…

Miami’s Historic and Environmental Preservation Board wants the Coconut Grove Playhouse, empty and unused since closing 10 years ago, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, citing its authentic design and associated standards for the designation in a resolution scheduled for a hearing Sept. 9 in City Hall. In January 2014, Miami-Dade won state…

TAMPA —  The transformation of the southern edge of downtown Tampa has started. Barricades up in downtown Tampa in Channelside area Expect detours initially for next 18 to 24 months Downtown Tampa Grid – News and information on the Channelside project From street layouts to sidewalks to lighting, work has started on reforming the street…