Redevelopment staff outlines Campbell Hotel purchase and mixed‑use plans for Midtown parcels

Michelle Tolliver, Midtown redevelopment project manager, told the board the city recently acquired three parcels that include the former Campbell Hotel, an adjacent parking lot and a vacant lot just east of the hotel. She said the plan for the hotel site is to demolish the existing structure and build a three‑ to four‑story mixed‑use building with retail on the ground floor and apartments above; the top level would include an open courtyard rather than a roofed floor.

Tolliver also described a separate set of parcels at the corner of Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune Boulevard where the city envisions two two‑story buildings with retail at street level and two‑bedroom, two‑bath apartments above, plus townhomes facing DeSoto Street stretching back from the boulevard. She said the laundromat parcel closing had not been finalized and that the Campbell Hotel closing occurred in early November.

Tolliver said staff are seeking partners and additional funding, noting purchasing‑office capacity constraints after a recent resignation. She said Midtown staff attended the 2024 Florida Redevelopment Association conference in Tampa, where staff toured multifamily redevelopment and community centers, and that she and a colleague earned redevelopment administrator certification.

Tolliver also announced Hurricane Milton grant assistance for homeowners, renters and small businesses affected by the storm. “$9,000 is the max that the homeowner and the renter can take advantage of, and the small business owner can take advantage of up to $5,000,” she said, and added paper application copies were available in the lobby.

Board members asked when visible construction would begin; Tolliver said she could not provide a firm dirt‑turn date because some closings and procurement steps remain and outside partners with greater funding capacity will likely be necessary.