The Planning Advisory Board on Aug. 20 voted to find the Downtown Community Redevelopment Area master plan update consistent with the City of Kissimmee Comprehensive Plan, clearing the way for the CRA to present the update to the City Commission.

The board’s recommendation followed a presentation by Mayer Singleton, CRA manager, and Laura Martinez of Inspire Placemaking, the consultant team hired to prepare the update. Martinez told the board the update adds a new “enhanced public safety” action point, merges the prior public-realm and connectivity items into a single mobility-and-wayfinding objective, and refreshes maps, demographic data and TIF projections.

The update responds to changes since the last plan revision in 2020 and to public input gathered during workshops and a site tour, Martinez said. “The purpose of this plan update is to update it for the current conditions of the downtown area as well as add priorities that relate to public safety,” Maya Singleton said in opening remarks.

Why it matters: the CRA plan is the legal blueprint that authorizes the CRA to collect and spend tax increment financing (TIF) funds and to undertake redevelopment projects. Martinez said the consultant team found more than 120 acres of vacant land inside the CRA, and that lingering perceptions of safety — despite measurable improvements since 2020 — are constraining activity in downtown.

What was updated: the draft keeps the plan’s four-point structure but merges two prior points into a unified mobility and wayfinding objective and inserts an enhanced public-safety action point. Public engagement held July 15 produced requests for improved lighting, park enhancements (including dog or skate/bike parks), better bike/ped connections, public restrooms, and place-making to pull visitors between downtown and the marina. Martinez said the plan adds flexible guidance rather than prescriptive diagrams so CRA staff retain implementation flexibility.

Board discussion and next steps: board members asked for small clarifications (one member asked staff to check language referencing a recent corridor study). Martinez and Singleton said staff will accept suggested edits during a short revision window; the team intends to return to the City Commission on Sept. 3. The board then moved to find the draft consistent with the comprehensive plan; the motion was made by Alex (Planning Advisory Board member) and seconded by Linda (board member). The board approved by voice vote.

What remains: staff and the consultant asked the public and board members to submit any scrivener edits quickly so they can be incorporated before the City Commission hearing. The update will be subject to the standard public-review and adoption steps at commission level.