At one time, the city owned more than 60 acres of land. The philosophy during that time was that by maintaining ownership of the land, the city would control the type of development on the sites. However, I look at it differently. My approach is that by controlling zoning and to some degree the land use, the city can encourage the best development for not only city-owned properties but also for those owned by the private sector. This allows us to attract the right companies and investors to help the city grow in the best way possible. We’ve made changes throughout the city to encourage more investment. One area in particular is the adoption of the Entertainment Overlay District (EOD) along the NW 27th Avenue Corridor. The purpose of the EOD is to encourage various uses, such as movie theaters, hotels, restaurants, retail, commercial and mixed-use opportunities. The $60-million General Obligation Bond (GOB) voted for by city residents has been a tremendous selling point to the private sector looking for opportunities. Once private investors know public investment is being pumped into a community their interest grows, and they are more inclined to invest in the vision regarding those communities. The GOB has sent a positive message to the business and residential communities that the city is willing to take the lead in making investments in its own neighborhoods. This approach has led to attracting more investment opportunities in our city, proving private dollars truly follow public dollars. We have two large tracts of land that are going through a transformation. Both will have a positive impact on our tax revenues for years to come. Finally, we constantly review and restructure the fees that investors pay to the city to ensure they are comparable with other cities. This encourages those who might want to make improvements to their facilities and, of course, for the larger scale developments.
