Fort Walton Beach Council minutes — 02-12-1991 Regular — reading text

The first step was to do survey, which has been a done in a very professional manner; the next step is to analyze it and find out where to go from here. In answer to the question is the CRA concept. is a CRA the best thing to improve the quality of life in the downtown Fort Walton Beach area, it is the best thing they can think of and know of at this time. He asked Council to allow the Board to continue to function in the way they are and keeping Council informed of What is going on. as they have in the past, and he asked Council' s support and help to funnel citizens input to the Board. Once they have made those decisions and the Board has analyzed it. they will return and, perhaps. say that should be the case; but he thinks they need some time to do that because the citizens deserve it. Mr. deVaux expressed that input is mostly needed from the property owners in the downtown CRA area; if the property owners themselves will not contribute to revitalize downtown, then there is nothing else that can be done. Mr. Stiles agreed and said it needs to be decided what function the downtown area is to perform, certain fundamental questions need to be asked. Mr. deVaux felt the downtown property owners should be asked for input, if they are willing to change and what they are going to contribute; their input is needed the most. Mr. Wyatt said CRA is presently doing research regarding multi- use facilities downtown, and that could have a bigger impact than just the owners of property there; if it is 80, 000 the CRA, that is money well I an $ expense to spent if it creates a new market. He would like to be sure their original focus of trying to determine What is best for the overall picture does not get lost on the focusing of what each owner wants to do. Mr. Maney asked Dr. Walker if he had anything to supplement what Mr. Stiles had said, and if he agreed with everything Mr. Stiles said. Dr. Walker had no disagreement with anything Mr. Stiles had to say and had nothing to add unless there were questions. 284 2- 12- 91 CRA ( CONT . ) Mr. Maney asked if Dr. Walker had asked any graduate students to analyze it as an exercise, and if so. what they had come up with. Dr. Walker replied he had not asked any to do so but he has heard in the department that some of them are doing that as independent projects of their own. Maney thought it would be useful for Mr. the CRA, as well as Council. to have that input because it would be completely and totally objective. Dr. Walker assured him that Mr. Stiles could keep in touch with any such analysis and report them to Council. Mr. Nicholson asked if Mr. Stiles was aware of the members on the CRA who do not support the program; Mr. Rosenbaum implied there are members on the CRA who think it should be abolished. Mr. Stiles answered no. he has not heard. Mr. Nicholson said everyone he has talked to on the CRA were very supportive of the program, and they seem to think the direction they are going is proper, and he is reading that Mr. Rosenbaum is implying to the public that people of the Board itself are not supportive of the CRA and think it should be halted. Mr. Rosenbaum said that is not what he said. Mr. Stiles said he did not understand Mr. Rosenbaum to say that. but if he did. he would have to say he could not substantiate that because his opinion of the Board is that they are a very conscientious, hard working. dedicated group this with of citizens who are going into an open mind trying to find out what is best to do. Mr. Rosenbaum stated, for the record. what he said was he knew of members of the Board who have certain reservations about the continuance of the CRA, he did not say they were not supportive of it; they have done a yeoman' s job on the survey. and he thinks it is a good survey. He said it shows for instance, as he already pointed overwhelming support of consolidation; out, the it they think it should be financed by a bond also shows issue but it does not tell how the bond issue is going to be paid off, and that gives him problems too. Mr. Stiles said, on the question of the bond issue, not to forget what they have are citizen responses to questions, either open ended questions or how do you feel questions; there was no intention to go into great detail. that will come down the road; there is still a lot of analysis to do to figure out what is practical, what is possible, and what the priorities should be. The Mayor remarked that consideration of consol ida tion and the bond issue were not in the motion; the motion is to dissolve the CRA. He sees a Board that has worked as hard, or harder, they have had; and the than any Board reason Mr. Rosenbaum supported disbanding the Council was to get the citizens involved. He expressed bewilderment that now, all of a sudden, less than a year after formation, he is willing to throw it away.  2- 12- 91 285 CRA ( CONT . ) Mr. Rosenbaum said he has never been supportive of the Council serving as CRA, and he has never heretofore suggested dissolving the CRA. He said this group has done a job, but the survey does not come up with super the support they indicated to Council they wanted to see, in his viewpoint. The Mayor said he thought Mr. Rosenbaum