Clearwater CRA Meeting August 3, 2026: Budget Approvals, Development Agreements, and Director's Report
Clearwater CRA Meeting August 3, 2026: Budget Approvals, Development Agreements, and Director's Report
The City of Clearwater Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) met on August 3, 2026, at 1:00 PM in the Main Library Council Chambers. The meeting covered routine approvals, budget amendments, a business spotlight, two major property development agreements, scheduling of an executive session, and the Director's Report. All votes were unanimous.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of Minutes: The minutes of the July 13, 2026 CRA meeting were approved as submitted.
- Third Quarter Budget Amendments (Downtown CRA): Approved Resolution 26-02, reflecting a net decrease in revenue of $33,976 from Pinellas County, $2,108 from the City of Clearwater, and $577 from the Downtown Development Board, offset by a $125,000 increase in estimated interest earnings. Adjustments included an increase of $125,000 for economic development, $14,967.49 for infrastructure, and a decrease of $33,976 for transportation.
- FY2026-2027 North Greenwood CRA Budget: Approved Resolution 26-05, with total tax increment revenue of $1,205,405 (updated to reflect a rollback millage rate of 5.8773). Funding focuses on affordable housing ($200,000), economic development ($453,030), and improved mobility. Operating expenditures include $34,679 for services, $9,533 for internal services, and $255,279 for shared CRA staff salaries.
- FY2026-2027 Downtown CRA Budget: Approved Resolution 26-04, with total tax increment revenue of $6,710,910. Operating expenditures decreased overall, including $406,214 to the Downtown Development Board, $976,126 for shared staff salaries, $277,120 for two dedicated police officers, $1,995,076 for economic development (city), $84,488 for housing (city), $952,424 for economic development (county), and $2 million for housing (county).
Public Comments & Testimony
No members of the public addressed the board on items not on the agenda or on specific agenda items.
Discussion Items
- Business Spotlight – Soul Sicilian Fusion: The CRA recognized Soul Sicilian Fusion (516 Cleveland Street), a family-operated Italian restaurant opened in 2019 by co-owners Nell O Menza and Natalia Harrison. Council members praised the restaurant's quality and contribution to downtown Clearwater.
- Executive Session Scheduling: The board scheduled a closed executive session for August 20, 2026, at 11:00 AM to discuss active litigation in Crumb vs. CRA (Case No. 2023 CA 8557-CI), pursuant to Section 286.011(8), F.S. The session will include the trustees, CRA Executive Director, and outside counsel, with a court reporter present.
- Agreement with BDP Development Partners LLC (7 Parcels): The CRA approved an agreement for development, purchase, and sale of approximately 3.13 acres (seven CRA-owned parcels) between South Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue and South Washington Avenue, north of Gould Street. The project, by Archway Partners affiliate BDP Development Partners, proposes at least 178 affordable housing units (mixed-income) and at least 3,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space, using Low-Income Housing Tax Credits. The initial phase must include at least 75 units. The developer must obtain all approvals and financing before closing; staff may grant up to three one-year extensions, and the board may grant two additional one-year extensions. Brett Green, president of Archway Partners, noted the project will be permit-ready to improve tax credit competitiveness. Council members expressed support, citing the need for downtown housing and the developer's track record with Clearwater Gardens.
- Agreement with St. Benedict Holdings LLC (Armory Property): The CRA approved the sale of the historic armory property at 706 N. Missouri Avenue to St. Benedict Holdings LLC for $2 million. The proceeds will offset relocation costs for Parks and Recreation. The developer plans to expand the operations of Elmamos Foods (a locally headquartered company) with warehousing, distribution, light manufacturing, corporate offices, and related uses. The agreement requires reasonable best efforts to preserve the historic armory building and includes community benefits: during a 15-year restrictive period, the business will use reasonable efforts to create up to 30 full-time jobs (goal of at least 10 for North Greenwood residents), partner with CareerSource, participate in at least one annual job hiring event with the CRA, and work toward apprenticeships or internships. Council members praised the developer's engagement with the community and the commitments to local hiring and historic preservation. David Habib of St. Benedict Holdings noted the company has already hired two additional employees, has three open positions, and hosted 10 summer interns from local schools.
- Director's Report: CRA Executive Director Jesus Nino presented updates on downtown and North Greenwood projects. Downtown highlights: AECOM will develop a cohesive vision for the 400/500 blocks with two public workshops on August 25, 2026 (2:00-3:30 PM and 5:30-7:00 PM at the library); the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council is updating the downtown CRA plan to remove outdated language; the Osceola Parking Garage will go vertical starting August 15, 2026; a bid for the 600 block of Cleveland Street was issued July 29, 2026; the People's Bank clock unveiling on July 25, 2026 attracted over 3,000 attendees; Streetlight Taco will be a tenant at 432 Cleveland Street; new businesses include Newbo (soft food bakery) at 420 Cleveland Street and The Dream Space at 1196 Cleveland Street; the Ballard Hotel and The Bluffs construction continue; a call for artists for a signature sculpture at Coachman Park with a budget of $200,000-$250,000 is open until September 30, 2026. North Greenwood highlights: CAC meetings continue; a mural was installed at 400 N. Fort Harrison Avenue (Let's Go Carding) and 1045 N. Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue (Early Head Start Center); the North Ward event on July 30, 2026 featured tours with over 351 waivers signed; the next CAC meeting is September 2, 2026 at 5:30 PM at the North Greenwood Recreation Center.
Key Outcomes
- All resolutions and motions passed unanimously.
- Approved Resolution 26-02 (Third Quarter Budget Amendments, Downtown CRA).
- Approved Resolution 26-05 (FY2026-2027 North Greenwood CRA Budget).
- Approved Resolution 26-04 (FY2026-2027 Downtown CRA Budget).
- Scheduled executive session for August 20, 2026 at 11:00 AM.
- Approved development agreement with BDP Development Partners for 7 parcels (affordable housing project).
- Approved development agreement with St. Benedict Holdings for the armory property, including Resolution 26-06.
- Acknowledged the Director's Report and upcoming workshops and events.
Meeting Transcript
This time we'll call an order the August 3, 2026 meeting of the City of Clearwater Community Redevelopment Agency. Move to item two on the agenda. Approve the minutes of the July 13, 2026 CRA meeting. So moved. All those in favor? Move to item three on the agenda. Are there any citizens to be heard today on items that are not on today's community redevelopment agency agenda? Seeing none, we'll move item four point one. Good afternoon, everyone. Located at five sixteen Cleveland Street in downtown Clearwater, Soul Sicilian Fusion has become a destination for Italian cuisine and warm hospitality. Since opening in two thousand nineteen, co-owners Nell O Menza and Natalia Harrison have built a family operated restaurant that offers residents and visitors a wealthy desserts and gelato. Every meal is thoughtfully prepared, creating a memorable experience that has earned the restaurant a loyal following. Customer can expect uh first of all great food, great wine, great ambience. We make everything here is fresh, lots of stuff, of course, homemade, all sales made in a house. Thank you. Congratulations. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Yeah, that's good. All right. And three two one. Three, two, one. And connected you two together closer. Okay. Really nice. All right. And then I'll just addition you on the drive road right here. There we go. All right. Everyone over here. Three, two, one. Three, two, one. Perfect. Thank you. Thank you very much. Of course, we just have to do that. Yeah, we invite you to say a few words. No, I just want to say thank you very much for all your support. Well, if you, ma'am, if you could, if you go to the microphone, yeah. We'll make sure everybody hears you. So thank you very much for all your support, your help. I know it's been uh wonderful seven years, and we will be very happy to continue to serve food in this wonderful downtown of Clearwater. Yeah. Thank you so much. Yeah, and we wanna we want to thank you too, because uh this isn't a um new restaurant. This you've you've been there and endured ups and downs, and and uh I think the fact that you've succeeded over time has to do with uh not just the quality of the food and service, but uh the quality of the two of you and uh you brought um uh an expertise and uh a touch, uh very classy touch to downtown Clearwater that our citizens greatly appreciate. That's thank you for which has led to the success of your business. So thank you for uh doing what you do and making downtown clearwater great. Thank you. Thank you.
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