Cape Canaveral hopes to launch space-themed CRA

From Florida Today: Cape Canaveral hopes to launch space-themed CRA
CAPE CANAVERAL — Space exploration and the arrival of NASA are intertwined with the history of this 1.9-square-mile beachside city, which celebrates its 50th birthday in 2013.

Unfortunately, many of Cape Canaveral’s homes and commercial buildings date to the dawn of the space program, City Manager David Greene said — particularly the non-waterfront properties.

That’s why Greene and others want to create a community redevelopment district across roughly half the city, or 600 out of 1,200 acres, along the State Road A1A corridor.

The goal: Try to stimulate economic growth by capturing tax-increment financing for street improvements and infrastructure upgrades. Someday, Greene hopes the distrct will resemble a space-themed Baldwin Park, an upscale neighborhood in Orlando, or Celebration.

“By and large, those areas of the city are very dated. We want to create a very strong brand and a strong sense of place for Cape Canaveral, a strong identity,” Greene said.

“Missiles and rockets have been launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station since the ’50s. We just need to clearly recognize our place in the world — and present ourselves accordingly,” he said.

An Orlando consulting firm is drafting an initial report that will delineate proposed borders and state a legal case for creating a district and a community redevelopment agency to oversee it. Barry Brown, planning and development director, hopes this document will go to the Cape Canaveral City Council next month.

Cape Canaveral is 93 percent developed, Brown said. Much of this construction occurred from the 1950s to ’70s, he said — and “it’s got a well-worn look.”

To try to spur new construction, Brown proposes these CRA-related steps:

Rezone about 300 acres along State Road A1A (from where North Atlantic Avenue splits to Port Canaveral) and ease restrictions on the city’s 45-foot building-height limit, parking, landscaping and architectural-design standards.

Join Florida’s state-funded brownfield program, which offers developers fiscal incentives for job creation and cleanup of potentially contaminated sites.

Offer mixed-use development, which blends residential and commercial uses at the same site — such as a storefront with second-floor apartments.

Earlier this month, voters in neighboring Cocoa Beach approved mixed-use development across 24 downtown square blocks to try to rejuvenate vacant shops and closed restaurants.

Cocoa Beach officials created a CRA in 2009. West Melbourne leaders are in the process, and Merritt Island officials are expanding their CRAs.

In Cape Canaveral, the Columbia Commercial Complex on A1A is roughly half-vacant. One of the tenants is Whiskerz Pet Grooming and Boarding, and owner Valkyrie Flores grimaced while describing the appearance of some of the surrounding properties.

“The better we can make Cape Canaveral look, the better the economy we can get. If it looks trashy, nobody’s going to want to move here,” Flores said while clipping Chewbacca, a black-and-white shih tzu.

“Get this place looking good, and bring in more tourists,” she said.