GI Consultants resumes Palatka CRA redevelopment plan, targets completion by September

GI Consultants told the Palatka Community Redevelopment Agency that work on the CRA redevelopment plan has resumed after a December pause and that the team expects to finish the update by the end of September.

Tom Kohler of GI Consultants said the firm and staff revised the scope but kept the substantive tasks: a citywide assessment and evaluation, regulatory and program reviews, socioeconomic and physical analyses, and a draft plan for staff and CRA review. "Our goal is to have it all completed by the end of September," Kohler said.

Claudia Ray, GI's project manager for the update, described a four‑phase process that marries data analysis and focused engagement. The phases are initiation; assessment and evaluation (including inventories and a partial characteristics analysis); drafting (vision, goals, objectives, actions and site maps); and plan adoption, which will include coordination with financial and legal staff. Ray said the team plans targeted focus groups for residents, business owners and school representatives and will schedule separate CRA workshops outside regular CRA meetings so commissioners have an hour to review material without other agenda time pressures.

Commissioners asked how the updated timeline differs from the earlier schedule; consultants said the new timeline moves the final deliverable by a few months but increases hands‑on engagement with staff and stakeholders. Ray said the team will present an assessment and a slide presentation in a dedicated workshop and will provide supporting visuals, including conceptual catalyst‑site renderings, to illustrate possible projects.

City staff will coordinate biweekly check‑ins with the consultant team and provide draft materials to commissioners in advance of workshop sessions. No formal vote was required at the presentation; the CRA confirmed it wants the consultants to proceed with the revised scope and timeline.