Daytona Beach has several impressive commercial developments in the works that have the power to transform the local economy unlike anything it has seen in generations. But until the city eradicates the blight that has plagued the beachside area the effect will be like serving a roasted Thanksgiving turkey with Cheetos and Fritos. Thankfully, one…
NEW SMYRNA BEACH — Plans for a 146-room oceanfront hotel took a hit when the Planning and Zoning Board turned down three requests from developers needed to build the project. First, the board voted unanimously Monday to deny a request by developers of the SpringHill Suites by Marriott to move the city’s coastal construction setback…
NEW PORT RICHEY — The city is poised to cut the red tape for bars, restaurants and nonprofit groups looking to serve alcohol during downtown events. For months, the New Port Richey City Council has been debating changes to its ordinance regulating alcohol consumption on city property. During a work session last week, the council…
Once upon a distant time, the village center of old Coconut Grove was so anything-goes mellow that a blind man — folk-rock star Jose Feliciano, to be specific — could pedal a bicycle a short way down the street without fear of running into anything. That was long ago, during a near-mythical age when hippies,…
TAMPA — Many Hillsborough County neighborhoods continue to be victimized by illegal dumping, overgrown lots and dilapidated houses. When conditions like these persist, experts say, crime proliferates and a general sense of hopelessness overcomes a community. Hillsborough’s Code Enforcement Department is launching new initiatives aimed at attacking blighted conditions quickly before they worsen. Assistant County…
The city of Sanford plans to team with a developer with the hope of turning a stagnant pocket near the Lake Monroe waterfront into a vibrant area filled with homes, restaurants, shops and a hotel. The plan is part of a push to spark development along Sanford’s scenic waterfront and also to sell off a…
The job of reviving downtown Clearwater is so big that it’s hard to know where to start. It has now been five months since a panel of outside experts with the Urban Land Institute presented the city with a slew of far-reaching recommendations for its downtown. That time lag has downtown boosters champing at the…
SARASOTA – Tatyana Sharoubim may be in her third trimester, but that doesn’t deter the 28–year-old mom-to-be from wearing heeled wedges and thigh-high boots to work every day. “We sell a lot of shoes just because our clients see us wearing them,” said Sharoubim, the owner of T. Georgiano’s Shoe Salon, an upscale boutique at…
Downtown Orlando’s recent rebirth is exciting – and bittersweet — for entrepreneur Bob Snow, who brought the area to life in the ’70s with Church Street Station. “It was singers and dancers and red hot girls and jugglers and bag pipe players, and about 25 buses on a Saturday night,” Snow reminisces. “We had Col.…
The Bo Diddley Community Plaza will undergo significant renovations next year, which means the Union Street Farmers Market and other events typically held there must find new homes downtown until the plaza reopens. Construction on the plaza is expected to begin by March and will probably take a year to complete, said Sarah Vidal-Finn, manager…
Jacksonville University is taking visible steps to expand its riverfront Arlington campus. The private school will demolish 10 buildings at the former Boys’ Home Association Inc. property it bought immediately south of its campus. The home closed several years ago. Those buildings sit on the 38.6-acre site that JU acquired in June for $3.3 million.…
SEBRING — Decades ago, Sadie Kahn, who along with her husband, Mike Kahn, were pioneer residents of Sebring, allowed the city to use a small plot of land near the Nan-ces-o-wee Hotel as a park area, provided that it was maintained. “They didn’t take care of it very well,” recalled Marvin Kahn, a son of…
