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CRA authorizes negotiation with developer group, starts 30‑day notice for Glenwood redevelopment; approves SHIP reimbursement
Summary
After discussion with Retail Strategies and local stakeholders, the CRA board directed staff to begin negotiations with Amarin Design Group and affiliates, run a 30‑day notice required by statute, and approved reimbursing SHIP $373,489.59 to enable mixed‑use redevelopment of parcels at MLK and E. 15th Street in Glenwood.
The Panama City CRA board on Jan. 27 moved forward on redevelopment plans for the Downtown North/Glenwood site at the southwest corner of MLK Boulevard and East 15th Street by authorizing staff to negotiate with Amarin Design Group and affiliates and to issue the 30‑day statutory notice required for disposition of CRA property. The board also approved a separate staff recommendation to reimburse the State Housing Initiative Partnership (SHIP) program $373,489.59 for its share of prior parcel acquisitions at the site.
Board members heard a presentation from Retail Strategies, the retail economic development consultant the CRA retained. Retail Strategies recommended pursuing discussions with developers who say they can bring a grocery anchor to the site before issuing a broader RFP, noting that grocers’ expansion decisions are driven by market and financial criteria and that securing an anchor would improve prospects for additional retail. Other board members and community speakers urged an RFP process so the CRA could compare offers and ensure community objectives were met.
Citizen and developer Patty Sunday described conversations with potential investors and said housing components could begin quickly; she cited townhouse plans and costs and said housing construction could start as soon as this summer if legal steps are in place. Staff and board members discussed the difficulties of assembling multiple privately owned parcels to form the full development site and noted an estimate of about $8 million to prepare the site (“move the dirt”). Staff counsel explained legal options for negotiating and disposing of CRA property and confirmed the CRA can begin negotiations while a 30‑day public notice runs; any final transaction would wait until the notice period expires.
The board voted unanimously to authorize staff to start negotiations with Amarin Design Group and associates and to run the 30‑day notice; staff said it would not conclude any final deal until the statutory notice period had run. Separately, the board unanimously approved reimbursing SHIP $373,489.59 to allow reprogramming of those funds for a public‑private redevelopment approach intended to attract a grocery anchor, mixed‑use retail and affordable housing.
Next steps: staff will issue the statutory 30‑day notice, begin negotiations with Amarin Design Group and affiliates, request an appraisal and assemble negotiation terms; staff will return to the CRA board with a draft request for proposals or a negotiated term sheet for final approval after statutory steps are complete.
Votes at a glance: (1) Motion to reimburse SHIP $373,489.59 for parcels at E. 15th and MLK Blvd. passed 5‑0. (2) Motion to authorize staff to begin negotiations with Amarin Design Group and associates and run the 30‑day statutory notice for CRA disposition passed 5‑0.
