07/15/2019 Community Redevelopment Agency Meeting Minutes July 15, 2019
City of Clearwater
Main Library- Council Chambers
100 N. Osceola Avenue
Clearwater, FL 33755
Meeting Minutes
Monday, July 15, 2019
9:00 AM
Main Library - Council Chambers
Community Redevelopment Agency
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City of Clearwater
Community Redevelopment Agency Meeting Minutes July 15, 2019
Roll Call
Present 5 - Chair George N. Cretekos, Trustee Bob Cundiff, Trustee Hoyt
Hamilton, Trustee David Allbritton, and Trustee Jay Polglaze
Also Present— William B. Horne 11 — City Manager, Micah Maxwell —Assistant City
Manager, Michael Delk - Interim Assistant City Manager, Pamela K. Akin — City
Attorney, Rosemarie Call — City Clerk, Nicole Sprague — Official Records and
Legislative Services Coordinator and Amanda Thompson — CRA Executive Director
To provide continuity for research, items are listed in agenda order although not
necessarily discussed in that order.
1. Call to Order— Chair Cretekos
The meeting was called to order at 9:08 a.m. in Council Chambers at the
Main Library.
2. Approval of Minutes
2.1 Approve the June 3, 2019 CRA Meeting Minutes as submitted in written summation by
the City Clerk.
Trustee Allbritton moved to approve the June 3, 2019 CRA Meeting
Minutes as submitted in written summation by the City Clerk. The
motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously.
3. Citizens to be Heard Regarding Items Not on the Agenda
Bill Jonson said he went to Venice and Bradenton. Venice is a vibrant
city that recently completed a streetscape. He visited the Bradenton
Riverwalk on Saturday and found that there were not a lot of people due
to how large the area was, he noted there were several areas where you
could sit and relax and play areas for children. He questioned how the
Stantec contract, which will be discussed as part of the work session, will
address the experiential objectives of the ULI study and HR&A project.
4. New Business Items
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Community Redevelopment Agency Meeting Minutes July 15, 2019
4.1 Amend the Loan to Grant Agreement with Fourcee LLC d/b/a Blackbrick Tavern and
Kitchen at 432 Cleveland Street to extend the agreement through October 1, 2019 and
authorize the appropriate officials to execute same.
Black Brick Tavern will be a full-service bar and restaurant. They received a
food and drink grant in February 2019 from the Community Redevelopment
Agency with an anticipated opening date of July 1, 2019. Due to various
construction challenges the opening date has been delayed. The grantee has
requested that the grant agreement be amended to extend the opening date to
October 1, 2019. Staff recommends approval of the extension. No other
changes to the terms of the grant are proposed.
In response to a question, CRA Executive Director Amanda Thompson
said the delay was not caused by the City, the grantee requested
additional time.
Trustee Cundiff moved to amend the Loan to Grant Agreement with
Fourcee LLC d/b/a Blackbrick Tavern and Kitchen at 432 Cleveland
Street to extend the agreement through October 1, 2019 and
authorize the appropriate officials to execute same. The motion was
duly seconded and carried unanimously.
4.2 Authorize the CRA Executive Director to prepare an agreement for the development and
sale of the property at 115 South Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue and the adjoining vacant
lot for the purposes identified in RFP 09-19.
The CRA issued Request for Proposal (RFP) 09-19 in November 2018 to
select a qualified applicant for the acquisition and development of the
property located at 115 South Martin Luther King (MLK) Jr. Avenue and
adjoining vacant lot that sits on the NW corner of South Washington and
Pierce Street as a restaurant, microbrewery/winery, or similar use or
attraction that is open nights and weekends. This is a 1+/- acre site located
downtown in the Prospect Lake Character District.
The Downtown Redevelopment Plan encourages the redevelopment of the
building as a microbrewery/winery and/or restaurant to help activate the
area and to provide entertainment and gathering spaces for visitors and
residents expected with the addition of two residential projects that are
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Community Redevelopment Agency Meeting Minutes July 15, 2019
within walking distance for this area.
Proposers were asked to address the following objectives in their
response:
• Reuse of the existing warehouse structure or a proposal for a new
building that meets the Downtown Design Guidelines
• Preservation of existing healthy trees and greenspace to the
maximum extent possible for use as an outdoor dining facility and
neighborhood amenity
• A business use that addresses one or more of the current gaps in
downtown's restaurant/retail market that lacks brewpubs,
microbreweries, winery, small scale music/arts venues, and
full-service restaurants that are open on nights and weekends
• Can support a weekly schedule of programs like yoga, live music,
maker markets, etc.
• Utilizes or reconfigures the existing parking on site and works
towards a shared parking agreement with adjacent parking sites
• Updated streetscape and bike/pedestrian amenities
• Illustrates an understanding of how to attract Clearwater residents
and visitors from Clearwater Beach to this destination
• Creates a destination worthy brand for downtown Clearwater
The RFP received one response, from Hop Daddy, LLC, to open a
micro-brewery with an adjoining beer garden. The reviewing committee
agreed that the proposal met the minimum qualifications and that the CRA
Executive Director should work with the applicant to further develop the
proposal. Since the application was reviewed in February 2019, CRA staff
has worked with the applicant to develop a proposal that fulfills the goals of
the Downtown Redevelopment Plan.
Staff recommends that the Trustees authorize the CRA Executive Director
to prepare an agreement for the development and sale of the property for
the purposes identified in RFP 09-19.
APPROPRIATION CODE AND AMOUNT:
The CRA has funding in Downtown Redevelopment, Fagade Improvements and
Streetscape Improvements project funds. Specific funding amounts and funds
will be identified as part of the final development agreement.
HopDaddy Brewery President/CEO Bryan Borosky and Co-founder Jeff
Moran provided a PowerPoint presentation.
In response to questions, CRA Executive Director Amanda Thompson
said early last year the CRA approved a land exchange for the
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Community Redevelopment Agency Meeting Minutes July 15, 2019
multi-space parking lot adjacent to the Nolen, which will be available to
HopDaddy Brewery for their immediate parking needs. Staff will be
working with the developers of the redevelopment property to the south to
build additional public parking. HopDaddy would purchase the property
from the CRA for$600,000; the CRA would provide HopDaddy$500,000.
She said the CRA is acting as the lender, requiring the applicant to pay
the purchase price over ten years. Ms. Thompson said all CRA funds are
limited to the exterior building improvements and site improvements. If
the business fails to open in 18 months, the property reverts back to the
CRA. Should the business close during the agreement, the CRA will hold
title on the property.
Trustee Hamilton moved to authorize the CRA Executive Director to
prepare an agreement for the development and sale of the property
at 115 South Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue and the adjoining vacant
lot for the purposes identified in RFP 09-19. The motion was duly
seconded and carried unanimously.
4.3 Approve a grant agreement with 1100 Cleveland, LLC, in the amount of$400,000, for
street view improvements as part of the 1100 APEX mixed use development and
authorize the appropriate officials to execute same.
APEX 1100 is a mixed use building currently under construction at 1100
Cleveland Street. The site is located within the Clearwater Downtown
Redevelopment Plan (CDRP) area in the Prospect Lake Character
District. Glenstar Properties purchased the property in late 2016 after the
building sat vacant in a blighted condition since 2009. 1100 Cleveland LLC
applied for a building permit on August 30, 2017 for the adaptive reuse of a
15-story mixed-use redevelopment project including 134 residential
apartment units, 202-space parking garage, approximately 5,000 square
feet of commercial/restaurant/retail space and amenities such as a heated
pool, 24-hour fitness room, a chef's kitchen and various amenities for pets.
The Developer has requested an incentive in the amount of$400,000 in the
form of a grant to assist with the cost of aesthetically enhancing the
first-floor fagade of the building. These improvements will add to the
pedestrian experience in the public realm via enhanced treatment of the
low-rise stucco around the building's perimeter, landscaping on the North,
South and West side, sidewalk pavers for right-of-way improvements on
Cleveland Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue, signage, railings for
the commercial facades, awnings, and a living wall at the parking deck
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ramp. The total costs of these improvements are estimated at $470,456.
The Developer has secured two restaurant leases for the ground floor
commercial space contingent on the Developer providing $400,000 to the
tenants for interior buildout for the restaurants. The restaurants are Billy
Brick's Pizza and Egg Jam Cafe. The CRA incentive funds will allow the
Developer to construct higher quality exterior improvements, beyond
minimum code requirements, to secure the restaurant leases and create an
attractive outdoor dining environment.
The 1100 Apex project directly promotes goals and objectives of the 2018
Clearwater Downtown Redevelopment Plan, specifically:
People Goal (page 46) - Downtown shall be a place that attracts
residents, visitors, businesses and their employees and enable the
development of community. The City shall encourage a vibrant and active
public realm, recreation and entertainment opportunities and support the
community and neighborhoods.
Objective 1E: Maintain Cleveland Street as Downtown's Main Street which
is valued for its historic character and pedestrian scale.
Objective 1G: Continue to utilize a variety of incentives to encourage the
construction of new residential uses to locate Downtown.
Accessibility Goal (page 46) - Downtown will have a connected network
with mobility choices.
Objective 28: Strengthen Cleveland Street, Osceola and Ft. Harrison
Avenues as local, pedestrian oriented streets. Identify other local streets to
be reinvigorated with active ground floor uses.
Urban Design Goal (page 48) - Downtown will be a dynamic built
environment of dense and livable patterns and active and attractive streets
through quality urban design and architecture.
Objective 4D: Encourage renovation, restoration and reuse of existing
historic structures to maintain the character of Downtown's neighborhoods.
As part of the 1100 Apex mixed use redevelopment, the enhanced first
floor building treatment and right-of-way improvements will aesthetically
improve the area, add to the pedestrian experience and provide a
connection between the existing Cleveland Street Streetscape, the
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Community Redevelopment Agency Meeting Minutes July 15, 2019
Downtown Core Character District and the transition to the Prospect Lake
Character District. Providing pedestrian friendly amenities and supporting
restaurants uses are critical to retaining and attracting residents as well as
encouraging new housing development, a primary focus area of the CRA's
18-month strategy.
The 2018 CDRP contains an adopted evaluation framework for all
incentive requests and the 1100 Apex project meets the criteria set forth in
the plan. It is compliant with federal, state and local laws, it is aligned with
the Vision and Goals of the 2018 Downtown Redevelopment Plan, the
project has been attempted to by two previous developers without an
incentive, the return on investment will be seen by the surrounding
merchants who have goods and services that the residents of these
apartments will use, the residents will add to the vibrancy of the area and
attend events and activities that are held in the downtown and lastly, the
public infrastructure and utilities have already been upgraded to support the
proposed use.
The majority of the CRA's annual funding is allocated to capital
improvement projects and existing grant programs. Staff recommends
approval of this grant in an amount not to exceed $400,000. There are
funds available in the Downtown Redevelopment Fund for this grant.
APPROPRIATION CODE AND AMOUNT:
Funds are available in CRA capital improvement project, 94714, Downtown
Redevelopment.
Developer Larry Debb said the 1100 Cleveland project is within a month
of occupancy, 15 leases have been signed to date. Since the item was
originally presented to the CRA, the following changes have occurred: 1)
the tenant amenity requirements have increased dramatically, requiring
an outdoor theater, putting green, billiards table, grill, hot tub, pool and
interior health club, yoga room, fitness on demand room, free office
space, conference room facilities, indoor theater, dog washing facility,
dog walking area and gourmet kitchen for tenant use, and 2) the two retail
spaces, an Italian restaurant and a bakery, have required additional
upgrades that include additional lighting, pavers, furniture, landscaping
and new storefronts.
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Community Redevelopment Agency Meeting Minutes July 15, 2019
In response to a question, Mr. Debb said the proposed bakery will be
approximately 1,000 sq. ft. and the restaurant will be approximately 3,000
sq. ft. CRA Executive Director Amanda Thompson said there has been a
huge labor shortage in construction, which have impacted the cost of
materials and the project's original timeline. If the request is not
approved, the applicant will only be able to complete the project to meet
minimum city code standards. She said the grant funds would allow the
applicant to provide a higher level of quality in the streetscape and the
first floor building fagade. All CRA funds will be used for outdoor
improvements.
One individual spoke in opposition.
In response to a concern, it was stated that the CRA's objective is to
enhance its defined area by reinvesting tax dollars from that area into
that area.
In response to a question, Ms. Thompson said staff will be issuing two
Request for Proposals for tax credit housing projects for low to moderate
income and mixed income rental apartments. Unlike most communities,
Clearwater lacks market rate rental housing projects. she said the Nolen
is the only market rate project in the CRA.
Trustee Polglaze moved to approve a grant agreement with 1100
Cleveland, LLC, in the amount of$400,000, for street view
improvements as part of the 1100 APEX mixed use development
and authorize the appropriate officials to execute same. The motion
was duly seconded and carried unanimously.
4.4 Amend the Loan to Grant Agreement with Tequilas Mexican Grill and Cantina LLC at 422
Cleveland Street to extend the agreement through October 1, 2019 and authorize the
appropriate officials to execute same.
Tequilas Mexican Grill and Cantina will be a full-service bar and restaurant. They
received a food and drink grant in February 2019 from the Community
Redevelopment Agency with an anticipated opening date of July 1, 2019. Due to
various construction challenges the opening date has been delayed. The
grantee has requested that the grant agreement be amended to extend the
opening date to October 1, 2019. Staff recommends approval of the extension.
No other changes to the terms of the grant are proposed.
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City of Clearwater
Community Redevelopment Agency
Meeting Minutes July 15, 2019
Trustee Cundiff moved to Amend the Loan to Grant Agreement with
Tequilas Mexican Grill and Cantina LLC at 422 Cleveland Street to
extend the agreement through October 1, 2019 and authorize the
appropriate officials to execute same. The motion was duly
seconded and carried unanimously.
5. Director's Report
Executive Director Amanda Thompson said the Downtown is an
opportunity zone and highlighted in the Invest Tampa Bay industry book
and requested those interested in investing in Downtown to contact her.
She encouraged those interested in the CRA's food and tenant grant
program to visit DowntownClearwater.com for information. The Dreams of
Dali exhibition closed on June 30; over 4,200 individuals visited the
exhibition over 6 months. Staff is working with USF's 3D Open Access
Lab to develop augmented reality applications for the murals throughout
Downtown.
6. Adjourn
The meeting adjourned at 9:49 a.m.
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