City Commission discuss public-private ventures

During Monday’s City Commission meeting, commissioners discussed plans for a State Street parking garage and a “catalyst” project in the Rosemary District.

Commissioners first reviewed four possible concepts for the mixed-use parking project on State Street.
In the first item of business, city planners and representatives from A.D. Morgan, the design-and-build team selected to build the project, presented the concept for the State Street Garage. Initial plans call for 400 parking spaces in the mixed-use project on State Street.

Commissioners also moved forward with an Invitation to Negotiate (ITN) process related to purchase and development of the city-owned property located at 1440 Blvd. of the Arts and 1433 Fifth St. City officials consider the public-private development a catalyst project for the Rosemary District.

In other business, commissioners:
• Continued a public hearing for a rezone of property located on the south side of Hampton Road west of N. Tamiami Trail (U.S. 41) with street addresses of 1174 and 1186 Hampton Road from the Residential Multiple Family 3 zone district to the North Trail (NT) zone district.

Dr. Steve Bedi purchased the site at the corner of N.Tamiami Trail and Hampton Road for $300,000, in December 2011. Bedi is proposing to build an international dermatology clinic that would help patients with skin conditions. Plans for the clinic include 26 suites where patients will stay for one to three weeks. Bedi is seeking a rezone from residential multi-family to North Trail Zone District commercial.

• Directed the city’s parking manager to continue to negotiate with Saunders Family Limited Partnership on the lease of land to use for a public parking lot in Burns Square, and to talk to merchants about contributing to the cost of leasing the parking lot.