PANAMA CITY BEACH — On Nov. 30, 2000, the Panama City Beach Council created the Panama City Beach Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) and declared the council the governing body of the agency. On June 21, 2001, the council adopted a resolution and created the Front Beach Road Community Redevelopment Area.
It is bounded by the city limits of Panama City Beach on the east and west, the Gulf of Mexico on the south, and on the north along the northerly right of way of U.S. 98.
In August 2001, the City Council adopted a redevelopment plan for 19.8 miles of roads within the CRA. The plan calls for widening streets, enhancing lighting, adding turn lanes and putting in underground utilities.
Some of the CRA projects have been completed and other major ones are still in the planning, engineering and right-of-way acquisition phases.
In 2007, a reconstruction project along Richard Jackson Boulevard was completed.
In 2013, a reconstruction project along a segment of South Thomas Drive in the district was completed. It includes a dedicated transit and bicycle lane on the north side of the roadway, a dedicated bicycle lane on the south side of the roadway, two travel lanes, turn lanes, landscaped medians, a stormwater pond, sidewalks, underground utilities, roadway lighting and landscaping on both sides of the road.
Segment 2 of the Front Beach Road reconstruction project was budgeted for 2015. The project will provide transit and bicycle lanes on both sides of the road, two vehicle lanes with a turn lane and landscaped median, sidewalks, underground utilities and road lighting. Construction of the project is slated to start in 2015.
Design and engineering work has been completed on improving State 79 within the district, from Front Beach Road to Back Beach Road. The project includes four travel lanes and turn lanes, sidewalks, underground utilities, landscaped medians and road lighting.
“In reality, we needed six lanes to answer the congestion we have on Front Beach Road,” said CRA Director John Alaghemand. “But what we’ve done since it’s not realistic to do that is maintain whatever right of way we had and convert it into a dedicated transit and bike lane and also added sidewalks on both sides of the road.”
He said much of the Front Beach Road improvements have not been completed yet. Design work still is being done for improvements to Alf Coleman Road and Clara Avenue, and North Thomas Drive from Front Beach Road to Joan Avenue has been completed.
“We’re hoping to promote people using transit and also walking,” Alaghemand said. “We’re hoping when our visitors come here they will park their cars and start using their bike or walk or use transit. Our goal is to have a bus every 15 minutes at this station.”
Of the $73.7 million the CRA has received thus far, about $22.4 million has not been spent, Alaghemand said.
“About $50 million has been spent on the project,” Alaghemand said. “We’re averaging roughly about $15 million per mile when you include the design, the right of way and construction.”
A $54 million bond was taken out for the CRA, and the city pays about $3.2 million a year in payments from tax increment financing funds.
“In order to initiate the project, we needed some cash on hand,” Alaghemand said.