John Albright, president and CEO of Consolidated-Tomoka Land Co., threw out an audacious idea at Monday night’s monthly meeting of the Beachside Redevelopment Committee. “I think a bold move would be to shut down Main Street and make it pedestrian only,” suggested Albright, who serves as vice chair of the temporary committee. Speaking three days…
On October 23, 2017 the public is invited to attend the first of three community meetings that will focus on the City of Tampa’s Community Redevelopment Area (CRA) Strategic Action Plan for the West Tampa CRA. In 2015 the City of Tampa designated the West Tampa Community Redevelopment Area, per Florida statute. The next step…
San Marco Avenue’s look and atmosphere could be changed by a city effort to update the road’s design standards. The street is one of three entry corridors in the city, along with King Street and Anastasia Boulevard. The city adopted design standards for those streets in 2003, and in 2016 the city decided to update…
The Lake Placid Town Council, in a 2-1 vote, agreed to adopt findings from a study that confirms the town has blight in its downtown area. The study, a “finding of necessity,” is one of the steps toward establishing a Community Redevelopment Agency. Councilwoman Debra Worley was absent from the meeting, despite being a proponent…
Hernando Sun More than 220 CRAs operate in Florida. These are local initiatives, authorized under state law, that allow communities to target blighted areas for redevelopment. The money comes from something called “tax incremental financing” – basically, the agency captures any increased tax receipts arising from business growth attributable to its investments in the targeted…
If you follow the Florida Legislature, prepare to hear a lot of criticism about Community Redevelopment Agencies. As you consider these mostly unfounded complaints, I’d ask the people of Fort Pierce to think about a few of the revitalization projects that have been completed in our CRA district: The restored and enlarged Fort Pierce City…
In Tampa’s Channel District, construction cranes swing across the sky. Below, workers in hard hats mill about at the spot off Meridian Avenue and Madison Street where construction on the Channel Club building has reached the halfway point. When it is completed in 2018, the 21-story Channel Club will have 323 apartments and an adjacent Publix, the…
Locals poured into Popovers on Main at 11:37 a.m. The just-opened café went from having one table occupied to a full house within five minutes. Fall leaves, pumpkins and baskets lined all four walls, giving the impression that this little shop was picked up from the Adirondacks at the peak of fall and placed in…
For 33 years the city of Fort Myers’ downtown CRA district has enjoyed a money pot all its own, and officials aim to ensure it stays that way. On Wednesday, Stantec Consulting is expected to recommend the city continue the downtown district until 2046, combining it with neighboring midtown to fund developments in both areas.…
The Beachside Redevelopment Committee dug in deep into the homestead exemption and its effect on code enforcement in the beachside during their meeting on Monday, Sept. 18. “Homestead and the exemption that goes with it is constitutional, which trumps local requirements and local desires to get liens paid,” Volusia County Property Appraiser Larry Bartlett said. The…
The Cascades Project cleared a major hurdle with the Community Redevelopment Agency’s unanimous approval Monday to complete and execute a development agreement with incremental tax rebates. Early project images reveal a colossal mixed-use development unlike anything in Tallahassee’s downtown. It includes a waterfall staircase in the park’s plaza, room for a bakery, a coffee shop,…
MARATHON, Fla. – Today, Governor Rick Scott is meeting with state and local officials in Monroe and Lee Counties to discuss Hurricane Irma response and recovery efforts. The Governor also visited a Hurricane Irma shelter in Monroe County with U.S. Department of Homeland Security Acting Secretary Elaine Duke. Read the updates here.
