Lakeland - Winter Haven Development News

[HeartofFlorida]

Originally Posted by Lakelander

Dixieland Commerical Corridor Streetscape (South Florida Avenue)

Once again thank you!! Keep it comin'.

[smiley]

There is some good stuff going on, but I have to point something out -

This is not urban - it is an inverted shopping center - the experience might be nicer but the wasted parking land and lack if denisty is still there - as is the vista of parking for people driving by - hopefully the parking will be filled with parking garages and apartments, but I doubt it

[Lakelander]

No doubt, it's definately not not urban. Like most lifestyle centers its a mall without a roof over the interior corridor that's themed to look like a traditional main street. I just posted it as a part of what's going on, on the SW side of Lakeland.

[FlaNatv]

It seems quite possible 20 years from now the parking lot will have parking garages and condos/apartments and more commercial. Hey, Maybe even a light rail stop. Lakeland's got a lot going for it.

[HeartofFlorida]

The City of Lakeland reaches an agreement for the construction of a new hotel at the airport. We'll have to see how this pans out. If constructed, I know it would be completely booked during Sun-N-Fun and Top Gun.

Airport Hilton Lease Agreement Approved

LAKELAND - The on-again, off-again hotel at Lakeland Linder Regional Airport was resurrected Monday when the Lakeland city commissioners approved a lease agreement for a Hilton Garden Inn Hotel.

Commissioners had tried last fall to hammer out the details of a deal with Tom Arnot, a Wisconsin businessman. Arnot wanted to develop about 4 acres just north of the airport terminal and west of Don Emerson Drive. The Federal Aviation Administration rules prevented Arnot from buying the property outright, so a lease was necessary.

The earlier proposed plan was to have a 35-year lease with two five-year options.

But the formula for raising the rent became a sticking point, with commissioners concerned it wouldn't reflect the future value of land in southwest Lakeland and Arnot objecting that the rent would get too high.

Arnot backed out, saying the city had an "extremely high perception of the value and return on that land." As a result, City Attorney Tim McCausland referred to the status of the $12 million, 105-room Hilton Garden Inn Hotel as "on life support."

Monday, the commissioner's key concern - the rent escalator - was resolved.

The lease payment for the first five years is $50,000 per year. For the remainder of the lease, the payment will increase periodically by 2.77 percent of the hotel's gross revenue or 8 percent of the land value set by the Polk County proper- ty appraiser, whichever is greater.

Mayor Buddy Fletcher, who voted against the lease, continued to voice his concerns that the city should be getting more money.

But Commissioner Gow Fields said a hotel at the airport was important.

"Having a successful hotel there means volumes," he said.

Fletcher could not be swayed.

"I'm totally glad we got a hotel," Fletcher said. "I'm just not happy with the contract."

[Lakelander]

Interesting. I wonder if they still plan on trying to attract commercial airlines to the airport and what's the status of those plans.

[HeartofFlorida]

Originally Posted by Lakelander

Interesting. I wonder if they still plan on trying to attract commercial airlines to the airport and what's the status of those plans.

Funny thing, I've heard that for years. I received and email from the former airport director (Charles Gunter) regarding this very issue. I was told that option might be explored in the future - 10-15 years down the road. As for right now, major airport modifications needed to made before the city could even seek approval from the FAA to change status of the airport. There was also the issue of the Sun-N-Fun and what would happen to that event. Personally I think some leaders were looking at the now instead of down the road.

I also remember two things: (1)Recently Lakeland was mentioned as one of the airports in Florida for regional service. I can't remember the name of the company but it's based in Boca Raton. (2)Regional service was eplored between Lakeland and Canada (Can't recal the city but I believe it was near Detroit) but I know that fell through.

[HeartofFlorida]

Originally Posted by Lakelander

Interesting. I wonder if they still plan on trying to attract commercial airlines to the airport and what's the status of those plans.

To answer your question, I don't know. Personally I would love to see airlines in the area but at what cost? Is it worth it to move SNF to another city and lose the week's worth of revenue that event generates for the city on a chance that a plan would take off? If airlines did come to Lakeland, would it be cost-effective for residents to travel as opposed to driving to Tampa/Orlando instead? That's a problem here in Tallahassee with airlines coming and going. I've had to drive to Jacksonville a few times just to get reasonable rates out of Florida.

[HeartofFlorida]

Originally Posted by Lakelander

Interesting. I wonder if they still plan on trying to attract commercial airlines to the airport and what's the status of those plans.

The name of the company is Dayjet and it's supposed to be some sort of air taxi. Flights were scheduled to begin in March.
Air Charter Picks Lakeland

Unfortunately, Lakeland's proximity to other area airports may limit the chances of ever retaining adequate commercial serivce. At one point, a carrier by the name of Atlantic Airlines was supposed to take flight out of Lakeland. I don't know what happened with that project as the site is still active and it still lists Lakeland with flights to many southeastern cities. I don't know if it was a hoax or if the company stopped with the plans.

Tampa Int'l - 39 miles west
Orlando Int'l - 45 miles east
St. Pete/Clearwater Int'l - 50 miles west
Sarasota/Bradenton Int'l - 80 miles southwest
Orlando/Sanford Int'l - 81 miles northeast

[Lakelander]

Originally Posted by HeartofFlorida

Funny thing, I've heard that for years. I received and email from the former airport director (Charles Gunter) regarding this very issue. I was told that option might be explored in the future - 10-15 years down the road. As for right now, major airport modifications needed to made before the city could even seek approval from the FAA to change status of the airport. There was also the issue of the Sun-N-Fun and what would happen to that event. Personally I think some leaders were looking at the now instead of down the road.

I also remember two things: (1)Recently Lakeland was mentioned as one of the airports in Florida for regional service. I can't remember the name of the company but it's based in Boca Raton. (2)Regional service was eplored between Lakeland and Canada (Can't recal the city but I believe it was near Detroit) but I know that fell through.

That was Windsor, Ontario. That would have been great for me, because I was in Lakeland and that time and my wife's family lives in Detroit.

[Lakelander]

Originally Posted by HeartofFlorida

The name of the company is Dayjet and it's supposed to be some sort of air taxi. Flights were scheduled to begin in March.
Air Charter Picks Lakeland

Unfortunately, Lakeland's proximity to other area airports may limit the chances of ever retaining adequate commercial serivce. At one point, a carrier by the name of Atlantic Airlines was supposed to take flight out of Lakeland. I don't know what happened with that project as the site is still active and it still lists Lakeland with flights to many southeastern cities. I don't know if it was a hoax or if the company stopped with the plans.

Tampa Int'l - 39 miles west
Orlando Int'l - 45 miles east
St. Pete/Clearwater Int'l - 50 miles west
Sarasota/Bradenton Int'l - 80 miles southwest
Orlando/Sanford Int'l - 81 miles northeast

With Tampa and Orlando's airports being less than an hour's drive of Lakeland in either direction, it seems like a lost cause. However, I've always believed that Lakeland's central location would be ideal for air cargo and distribution hubs. There's plenty of land for major facilities, the runways are long enough and a company could easily run its Central Florida operations out of Polk County, eliminating the need for Tampa and Orlando facilities.

[HeartofFlorida]

Originally Posted by Lakelander

With Tampa and Orlando's airports being less than an hour's drive of Lakeland in either direction, it seems like a lost cause. However, I've always believed that Lakeland's central location would be ideal for air cargo and distribution hubs. There's plenty of land for major facilities, the runways are long enough and a company could easily run its Central Florida operations out of Polk County, eliminating the need for Tampa and Orlando facilities.

This is true. The master plans for the airport call for runway extensions to both 9/27 and 5/23. Below are some of the major modifications that are planned.

*9/27 (8,500' x 150') 1500' runway extension to 10000', equip with ILS, (9L/27R after 9R/27L constructed)
*5/23 (5,000' x 150') 2000' runway extension to 7,000 ft.
*8/26 new runway 2500 ft.
*9R/27L new runway 3600 ft.

Lakeland Linder Regional Airport Master Plan

[FloridaFuture]

Expanded USF Lakeland closer to reality
Tampa Bay Business Journal - 2:11 PM EST Friday, March 9, 2007

The board of trustees at the University of South Florida has approved the master plan for a second Lakeland campus to be located on Interstate 4 at the northeast corner of Lakeland, along the Polk Parkway. The land for the 500-acre, 1 million-square-foot campus was secured in 2005 from Williams Acquisition Holding Co.

The approval came after a second and final public hearing in Lakeland on Wednesday.


Adding another campus in Lakeland is part of the university's growth plan, Judy Genshaft, USF president, said in a release. USF currently shares a site with Polk Community College.

Next for the project will be negotiation of a campus development agreement with the city of Lakeland, according to the chairman of the site development committee.

USF offers 217 degree programs at the undergraduate, graduate, specialty and doctoral levels, including the doctor of medicine. It has a $1.6 billion annual budget and serves 44,038 students on campuses in Tampa, St. Petersburg, Lakeland and Sarasota-Manatee.

http://tampabay.bizjournals.com/tamp...l?surround=lfn

[Jasonhouse]

Originally Posted by smiley

There is some good stuff going on, but I have to point something out -

This is not urban - it is an inverted shopping center - the experience might be nicer but the wasted parking land and lack if denisty is still there - as is the vista of parking for people driving by - hopefully the parking will be filled with parking garages and apartments, but I doubt it

Yep... No integration whatsoever... Utter shite.

[Lakelander]

Yep, its a mall, not urban infill.

[FloridaFuture]

New Lakeland USF Campus To Get Technical



By BILLY TOWNSEND The Tampa Tribune

Published: Apr 15, 2007

LAKELAND - Marshall Goodman wasn't hired to build a regional branch campus. A University of South Florida "mini-me" for Lakeland doesn't interest him.

Instead, the veteran of California's technology heartland envisions a 16,000-student north Lakeland campus that recruits would-be techies from all over, gives them small classes and cutting-edge equipment and then replicates the tactile, team-oriented demands of the modern technology workplace.

It won't be a place for English majors.

Goodman, the chief executive officer of USF-Lakeland, sees this campus as Florida's first public university specializing in applied technology. Similar private schools include Florida Tech in Brevard County and Embry-Riddle in Daytona Beach.

"People will come to USF-Lakeland to get a very different type of educational experience than other Florida universities or even USF campuses," Goodman said.

The campus stationery may soon reflect that. USF has been test-driving new names in an online survey. Most proposals echo, but expand, the regional aspect of USF-Lakeland. There's USF-Polk, USF-Heartland, USF-East and several others.

But Goodman admits a preference for USF-Polytechnic. That describes the educational style he hopes to bring to the campus.

USF-Lakeland plans to focus its resources on teaching and research in information technology, applied health and biotechnology, manufacturing technology, business and education - with an emphasis on producing math and science teachers.

His chief legislative ally in creating the campus, state Sen. J.D. Alexander, R-Lake Wales, is on board with that concept, as is USF President Judy Genshaft.

All of them see the campus as an extension of the USF brand into the "niche" of applied technology. There's no talk of an independent campus.

In addition to that, though, Goodman and Alexander said they see the new campus as the key to assuring that Polk County is a vital link in the longed-for high-tech corridor between Tampa and Orlando.

Goodman, whose educational background is in political science and economics, has become something of a technology evangelist. He was provost of California's San Jose State University prior to coming to USF. He sees many parallels between Polk County and San Jose, which has transformed from an agricultural community into the home of companies such as Cisco.

"People thought that 30 years ago San Jose was the city you stopped in on your way to Monterey and Carmel" from San Francisco, Goodman said recently during a presentation to the Polk County Commission. "It can happen here, too. We are in the right spot."

This is a key year for Goodman's vision, the year it could begin in earnest.

USF is hoping for $48 million from the Legislature to begin design and construction on the campus' first building. The total cost is projected at $60 million.

Goodman said he expects a world-class architect to design a signature building, one that cuts a dramatic figure for drivers passing by on nearby Interstate 4.

That building would be the centerpiece of what USF hopes will within a decade or so become a 16,000-student, 500-plus acre campus at the interchange of I-4 and the Polk Parkway in northeast Lakeland.

The land was donated by the Williams Corp. in 2004. The final closing on the donation happened last week. The company plans to build a major residential and community development around the new campus.

Campaigning For Funding
The campus project needs an additional $16 million for a new interchange on the Polk Parkway, which would serve the campus. Goodman has shuttled back and forth to Tallahassee to help Alexander and Sen. Paula Dockery advocate for funding for both the campus and the interchange.

Currently, USF-Lakeland shares a campus on U.S. 98 in southeast Lakeland with Polk Community College. The USF portion serves a little more than 1,000 students.

Officials hope to open the first phase of the new campus in 2009.

Whether that happens depends on legislative wrangling and the pace of development. The state university system's Board of Governors did not ask the Legislature for all of the money USF-Lakeland is looking for, pushing it back instead until 2009-10.

Alexander said he thinks he has secured $10 million for this year and is hopeful he can get more. "We're sure trying. You never give up hope until it's done."

USF officials expect the campus to offer a full four-year curriculum eventually. But until it receives formal approval, it will continue to accept two-year community college graduates under the so-called "two plus two" plan.

USF officials cite Polk County's rapid growth - and the rapid USF-Lakeland enrollment growth - in the past decade in making the case for the campus.

Logistics U
But beyond simply giving 550,000 Polk residents and others in nearby rural counties access to a full-service, four-year university, Goodman said the campus aims to transform the way they live and work.

He already has been meeting with Polk health care providers in the hope of setting up a high-speed wireless health care network in the county.

He also expects to both serve and benefit from Polk's booming logistics and shipping business. During a meeting at the Port of Tampa last week, which focused on the distribution industry in Polk, the chief executive of a large, third-party shipping company in Polk talked about the difficulty he has finding and keeping good employees. He noted that the jobs have become increasingly technical.

Goodman helped establish business "incubators" while at San Jose State. They allow fledgling businesses to set up at a low cost, with access to skilled college labor and equipment. He plans to do the same thing with USF-Lakeland.

He would particularly like to see a chip fabricator set up shop. He envisions manufacturers of increasingly sophisticated radio frequency chips, which assist in accurate inventory management, working with USF-Lakeland to develop and test their products in Polk or the rest of the region.

Alexander, who has fought for a free-standing Polk campus for the bulk of his legislative career, sees the university as a way to serve the educational need that exists locally and to turn Polk into a magnet for smart, motivated people.

"I like the idea of developing excellence in a particular area," Alexander said. "I'd love for people from California to come to Polk County to study here."

Reporter Billy Townsend can be reached at (863) 284-1409 or wtownsend@tampatrib.com.

http://www.tbo.com/news/metro/MGBX0DTXI0F.html

[FloridaFuture]

Lakeland gets first look at I-4 development plans
Tampa Bay Business Journal - 2:16 PM EDT Wednesday, May 9, 2007by Carl Cronan

Burton-Katzman Development Co. has unveiled its plans for up to 600,000 square feet of new commercial buildings along a highly visible section of Interstate 4 just west of Lakeland.

The company wants to build 275,000 square feet of offices, 175,000 square feet of light industrial and 100,000 square feet of "flex" space on a 67-acre tract it purchased last month. Plans for the new Lakeland Professional Park were revealed during the Lakeland Economic Development Council's annual meeting Wednesday at Florida Southern College.


Burton-Katzman paid $13.3 million for the undeveloped site at the northeast corner of I-4 and Kathleen Road in mid-April, and will likely invest millions more dollars before and after its groundbreaking early next year.

Lakeland is in the midst of two boom cities, Tampa and Orlando, making it ideal for long-term commercial development, said Greg Bircz, vice president of regional operations with Burton-Katzman.

"The fundamentals in Florida are very, very strong," Bircz said after the LEDC meeting, attended by approximately 300. As the local economy continues to move toward service and technical bases and away from traditional manufacturing, investment in Lakeland Professional Park will appear more solid, he said.

Burton-Katzman also believes it is taking a sound risk by developing the park as mixed use rather than entirely flex space, which can be used for either office or industrial purposes.

"The safest thing to do would be flex on the whole site," Bircz said.

Burton-Katzman, a privately owned company based in Bingham Farms, Mich., looks to buy more property in Florida for added commercial development. Bircz also discussed another 600,000-square-foot project called Cattlemen Business Park, along Cattlemen Road west of Interstate 75 in Sarasota, on a combination of new and brownfield sites.

In late April, the developer broke ground on two office-condominium buildings totaling 85,000 square feet, called University Professional Park, at the southwest corner of University Parkway and Honore Avenue in Sarasota. The project is slated for completion this fall with an anticipated sellout value of $24 million.

"We've taken our time getting to know the market and met some of the top developers and real estate professionals in the area," Peter Burton, one of Burton-Katzman's principals, stated in a release.

http://tampabay.bizjournals.com/tamp...ml?jst=b_ln_hl

[HeartofFlorida]

Originally Posted by FloridaFuture

Lakeland gets first look at I-4 development plans
Tampa Bay Business Journal - 2:16 PM EDT Wednesday, May 9, 2007by Carl Cronan

Burton-Katzman Development Co. has unveiled its plans for up to 600,000 square feet of new commercial buildings along a highly visible section of Interstate 4 just west of Lakeland.

The company wants to build 275,000 square feet of offices, 175,000 square feet of light industrial and 100,000 square feet of "flex" space on a 67-acre tract it purchased last month. Plans for the new Lakeland Professional Park were revealed during the Lakeland Economic Development Council's annual meeting Wednesday at Florida Southern College.


Burton-Katzman paid $13.3 million for the undeveloped site at the northeast corner of I-4 and Kathleen Road in mid-April, and will likely invest millions more dollars before and after its groundbreaking early next year.

Lakeland is in the midst of two boom cities, Tampa and Orlando, making it ideal for long-term commercial development, said Greg Bircz, vice president of regional operations with Burton-Katzman.

"The fundamentals in Florida are very, very strong," Bircz said after the LEDC meeting, attended by approximately 300. As the local economy continues to move toward service and technical bases and away from traditional manufacturing, investment in Lakeland Professional Park will appear more solid, he said.

Burton-Katzman also believes it is taking a sound risk by developing the park as mixed use rather than entirely flex space, which can be used for either office or industrial purposes.

"The safest thing to do would be flex on the whole site," Bircz said.

Burton-Katzman, a privately owned company based in Bingham Farms, Mich., looks to buy more property in Florida for added commercial development. Bircz also discussed another 600,000-square-foot project called Cattlemen Business Park, along Cattlemen Road west of Interstate 75 in Sarasota, on a combination of new and brownfield sites.

In late April, the developer broke ground on two office-condominium buildings totaling 85,000 square feet, called University Professional Park, at the southwest corner of University Parkway and Honore Avenue in Sarasota. The project is slated for completion this fall with an anticipated sellout value of $24 million.

"We've taken our time getting to know the market and met some of the top developers and real estate professionals in the area," Peter Burton, one of Burton-Katzman's principals, stated in a release.

http://tampabay.bizjournals.com/tamp...ml?jst=b_ln_hl

Below is a picture of the property in question.

[HeartofFlorida]

This story relates to Posner Park near Davenport at the intersection of I-4 and U.S. 27. It just came to mind that 3 Malls will be located on U.S. 27 from Four Corners to Lake Wales. Interesting.

Penney, Target to Anchor New Site

[FloridaFuture]

Crist Mum On Why He Killed Money For USF-Lakeland

By BILLY TOWNSEND The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 26, 2007

LAKELAND - The University of South Florida's new polytechnic branch campus in Polk County is not a "turkey."

Everyone seems to agree on that. USF wants it. The state Board of Governors wants it. It's been in the works since Williams Corp. donated about 500 acres along Interstate 4 in 2004. Even Florida TaxWatch has withdrawn the dreaded scarlet T it hung on the campus, which USF officials envision as the first public polytechnic university in the state.

None of that stopped Gov. Charlie Crist this week from vetoing the $10 million that would have launched construction of the campus this year. USF-Lakeland was the only budgeted project on the Board of Governors recommendation list that was vetoed, according to the governor's office.

On Friday, staffers in his office noted that the $10 million in the final budget far exceeded the less than $2 million for site planning and other preconstruction expenses that the Board of Governors had recommended. The nature of the line-item veto is all-or-nothing. It does not permit a governor to reduce funding. So if Crist objected to the USF money added by Polk legislators, he had to kill all of the funding, they said.

But the staffers stopped short of saying that's what happened, and Crist has not expressed an opinion on the merits of the campus. His office said it could not provide an opinion for this article.

Campus backers say they expect the USF-Lakeland funding to be a top USF priority next year.

But that's not much consolation for state Rep. Seth McKeel, R-Lakeland, who shepherded the USF funding through the House. He blasted the notion that legislators shouldn't add money above what an agency requests for a project.

"To decide we're only going to fulfill bureaucratic agency requests is ridiculous," McKeel said.

He points out that the first phase of the Lakeland campus has long been known as a $60 million project, which the Board of Governors plans to fund over several years. The $10 million was simply an acceleration of money the state already plans to spend, he said.

McKeel and other campus supporters were particularly exasperated by Florida TaxWatch's labeling of the campus as a turkey.

Nobody elects Florida TaxWatch. It's a self-appointed watchdog group, not an arm of government. But its annual roundup of state budget "turkeys," legislative projects with scant government review or dubious statewide benefit, has become powerfully suggestive of what gets funded and what gets vetoed.

A TaxWatch news release said Crist vetoed 68 percent of the turkey projects it had identified this year. That included the USF campus funding.

USF-Lakeland's campus CEO Marshall Goodman said he respects the governor's veto.

"He's the boss, and it was a tough budget year," Goodman said. But he blasted the campus' short-lived turkey status as "intellectually bankrupt." Goodman said the campus plan has been backed by a blizzard of higher education boards and civic groups. Goodman said he personally has given hundreds of speeches about the campus.

TaxWatch spokesman Harvey Bennett said his organization does not delve into the history of projects when researching the budget and compiling the turkey list. The structure of budget appropriations and the Board of Governor's request led TaxWatch to conclude that the Board of Governors had not asked for the campus funding.

When TaxWatch learned that wasn't true, it removed the campus from the turkey list and notified the governor's office, with 24 hours to spare before vetoes were announced, Bennett said.

"We're the turkey hunters; governors are the turkey killers," Bennett said. "Just because it's on the turkey list doesn't mean that it gets vetoed."

Crist's spokesman Thomas Philpot said he did not know whether the governor was aware of the TaxWatch slip. But he and other staffers denied that USF-Lakeland's funding was targeted simply because of its inclusion on the turkey list.

Reporter Billy Townsend can be reached at (863) 284-1409 or wtownsend@tampatrib.com.

http://www.tbo.com/news/metro/MGBEFDSK52F.html