Central City CRA Rezoning Project

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Overview

In 2010, the City of Fort Lauderdale declared the Middle River-South Middle River-Sunrise Boulevard area blighted and created the Fort Lauderdale Community Redevelopment Agency - Central City Community Redevelopment Area (CRA). The purpose of the CRA is to eliminate slum and blight to promote rehabilitation, conservation, and redevelopment, as outlined in the Central City Community Redevelopment Plan adopted on January 5, 2012.

The Central City CRA area is approximately 344 acres and lies within City Commission Districts 2 and 3. The area is generally bounded by NE 13th Street and NW 16th Street on the north, Sunrise Boulevard on the south, on the west by Powerline Road and I-95, and on the east by the FEC Railway.

The character and uses within the Central City CRA vary widely. The properties fronting Sunrise Boulevard consists primarily of auto-oriented commercial uses, such as strip shopping centers, fast food restaurants, gas stations and small businesses. Home Depot is located in the southeast corner of the district, with the Manor Plaza Shopping Center at the northwest corner of Sunrise Boulevard and Powerline Road. NE 4th Avenue and the eastern portion of NE 13 Street, east of NE 4th Avenue is also commercial, but characterized by small scale neighborhood oriented uses. The majority of the CRA area (not fronting the aforementioned roadways) is residential and is located in the interior of the CRA. It consists of mostly low density single family detached housing, dating from the 1950's and 1960's. There are also concentrations of two-family and small scale multi-family complexes. The eastern portion near the FEC Railway has a concentration of warehouse and light industrial uses. A number of churches and community facilities are located throughout area. The area’s underlying Land Use is reflective of the existing zoning.

The Central City CRA Plan envisions a vibrant community with a successful mix of business and residential uses defined with walk-able streets and quality buildings, through the creation of guidelines that would enhance the pedestrian realm and give clear intent for an active street level and an exceptional public realm experience. Unfortunately, existing regulations make it difficult to develop these desirable projects.

On November 4, 2014 the CRA Board of Commissioners and the Central City Redevelopment Advisory Board (CCRAB) met in a joint workshop to discuss the Advisory Board's desire to move forward with zoning changes for the Central City CRA to encourage new mixed-use development. On March 17, 2015, the CRA Board of Commissioners instructed staff to proceed with the Central City CRA Rezoning Project. The area proposed by the CCRAB for mixed-use zoning includes areas where the existing Land Use includes portions that are commercial and residential and areas zoned for business, median density residential and light industrial uses.

In 2016, the Central City CRA released a Request for Proposals (RFP) to solicit the services of a planning consultant to evaluate the need to amend the City’s Unified Land Development Regulations (ULDR) and/or the City’s Comprehensive Land Use Plan, pursuant to recommendations supported by an extensive public outreach process undertaken for the Central City CRA Rezoning Project.

This webpage contains the project schedule, meeting announcements, and opportunities to provide community feedback.

Please visit the following pages to learn how:

We Welcome Your Input!