Category Archives: Redevelopment News

Upcoming Event 6/10: Florida Growth Management in the New Era- A Guide to Understanding Florida’s New Legislation

Florida Growth Management in the New Era- A Guide to Understanding Florida’s New Legislation Akerman, in conjunction with the ULI SE Florida/Caribbean and the Florida Redevelopment Association, will host a discussion on the sweeping changes to Florida’s Growth Management laws, approved by the 2011 Legislature. The Community Planning Act radically alters the comprehensive planning process,…

May 2011 Florida Trend Community Portrait: Partnership of St. Augustinine and St. Johns County

Partnership: St. Augustine and St. Johns County Case Study for Shared Success This case study highlights the Board of County Commissioners long-term commitment to growth as they established Vilano Beach as a Community Redevelopment Area (CRA) with Tax Increment Financing, which allows the CRA to use growth in real property tax revenues to reinvest within…

2011 Growth Management Bill & Conference Committee Report

2011 Growth Management Bill & Conference Committee Report There’s some confusion about which bill actually passed. Below are links to the bill (this is actually the “strike-all” amendment to one of the budget conforming bills and growth management amendments) as well as bullet points describing what is in it (scroll down to “conference Committee summary”…

Dixieland Community Redevelopment: Dixieland Alley Improvement Projects

Dixieland Community Redevelopment: Dixieland Alley Improvement Projects The alleyway system in the Dixieland Redevelopment Area is an important network that, if properly utilized, can provide both vehicular and pedestrian access to businesses, relieving traffic pressure on South Florida Avenue.  City staff initiated an alley survey to consolidate all information regarding alley conditions in the Dixieland CRA. …

What Attaches People to Their Communities?

What Attaches People to Their Communities? What makes a community a desirable place to live? What draws people to stake their future in it? Are communities with more attached residents better off? Gallup and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation launched the Knight Soul of the Community project in 2008 with these questions…

Lakeland CRA: Developers’ Corner – Electric Utility Deposits

Lakeland CRA: Developers’ Corner – Electric Utility Deposits There are many costs involved in opening or moving  a  business or office location.   One of the costs that sometimes catches business owners by surprise is the electric utility deposit necessary to set up service in the new location.  We spoke with David Kus, Assistant General Manager Customer Service, at Lakeland…

Recruiting business is fine, but put a little more love in your city, too

Recruiting business is fine, but put a little more love in your city, too What if economic development groups spent as much time and energy recruiting creative and committed individuals — people who love cities, people who make things happen — as they do trying to relocate corporations? This may sound like heresy to business…

Perspectives on Urban Sustainability

Perspectives on Urban Sustainability Sustainability is the capacity to endure, and the capacity for humanity to endure is being tested on a global scale. Population is exploding and becoming increasingly urbanized. It took more than 10,000 generations for the planet to reach two billion humans in the middle of the last century. But someone born…

LDI recently acquired by Littlejohn Engineering Associates, Inc.

Littlejohn Engineering Associates (LEA), a leading Nashville, TN engineering, planning, environmental services, landscape architectural and survey firm has acquired Land Design Innovations (LDI) of Orlando, FL. LDI specializes in municipal planning, economic and redevelopment services, civil engineering and landscape architecture and has a rich 12 year history of quality service to clients in the municipal…

Legislative News: House and Senate to Restructure Economic Development

House and Senate to Restructure Economic Development Last week was an eventful week in the legislature’s effort to restructure economic development for Florida. Senate bill 2156, the chamber’s bill that creates a new agency to house the state’s job creation apparatus and streamline critical processes was approved by a majority of all senators when it…

Madico Acquisition of Solamatrix Brings Jobs to Pinellas

Madico Acquisition of Solamatrix Brings Jobs to Pinellas Madico‘s recent acquisition of St. Petersburg, Florida manufacturer Solamatrix, Inc. will result in growth for the company and will create over 60 new, high-wage jobs in Pinellas County, while retaining the existing staff of 52 employees.  Rob Comeau, Madico’s Director of Marketing, states, “The acquisition of Solamatrix…

Mapping America: Every City, Every Block (NYTimes)

Mapping America: Every City, Every Block Browse local data from the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, based on samples from 2005 to 2009. Because these figures are based on samples, they are subject to a margin of error, particularly in places with a low population, and are best regarded as estimates.