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Outgoing economic development director Tracy Myers highlights downtown, industrial growth and Tulares changing demographics
Summary
Tracy Myers delivered a broad update on downtown revitalization projects, the Zumwalt Park amphitheater, the Tulare Business Innovation Zone, industrial growth in South Tulare and housing pipeline; Myers thanked council and staff and said she will leave the city after 16 years.
Tracy Myers, the citys economic development staff member, delivered a wide-ranging update to the Tulare City Council on Jan. 7 summarizing downtown revitalization, the Zumwalt Park amphitheater, the Tulare Business Innovation Zone, industrial projects in South Tulare, airport opportunities and the citys housing pipeline (item 8.3). Myers also announced her departure after 16 years with the city and thanked council and community partners.
Myers highlighted downtown actions including a new logo/brand, a finalized downtown master plan with implementation measures potentially supported by a property-based improvement district (PBID), and several facade and rehabilitation grants that led to occupied upper-floor housing and new businesses such as Baron's Table and Rancho Brazil Steakhouse. She described the Tulare Business Innovation Zone, expected to house 12–25 startups and a maker space supported by an EDA grant, and noted the International AgriCenter and nearby Page Avenue interchange projects that unlock industrial acreage.
Myers summarized the housing pipeline presented by staff: roughly 1,600 units in the next two years, another 3,000 in two-to-five years and 1,500 in five-to-eight years, and compared city demographics over her tenure: the population grew from about 56,000 to about 73,000; median household income rose from about $37,000 to about $65,000; median home value rose from about $180,000 to about $398,000.
Councilmembers thanked Myers for her service and praised her role in recruiting projects and working with developers. City staff said they will continue implementation of the projects Myers described; staff also noted a forthcoming update on a downtown engineers report on Jan. 21 regarding a possible PBID. Myers said she looked forward to seeing Tulares continued growth.
