Century Moves Forward With CRA, Schedules Public Meeting

February 8, 2018

The Town of Century is moving forward through the process of creating a Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA)

The town previously declared a portion of Century as “blighted” as part of the process to form the CRA.

Once the CRA is in place and operating, it will work to improve conditions within the area. As property tax values rise, most of the increase is funneled back into the redevelopment area for further improvements.

The CRA area is 510 acres, bounded by Jefferson Avenue to the south, Jefferson Avenue to the east, State Road 4 to the north and the centerline of North Century Boulevard to the west. It also extends north on the east side of North Century Boulevard to include commercial properties up to, and including, the former Burger King. Click here for a detailed map (pdf).

Essentially, CRAs use redevelopment funds within a deteriorating area to transform it into one that again contributes to the overall health of a community. The money can roll over year to year, up to a 40-year life for a CRA.

“It’s not going to take some years before you build that money up,” town consultant Debbie Nickles said. “It’s not going to be overnight.”

CRA funds can be used for a variety of public purposes, including items specified in the agency’s redevelopment plan, planning and surveys, acquisition of real property, affordable housing development and community policing innovations.

In establishing the CRA, the Century council found that the area is blighted, with a predominance of deteriorated or dilapidated housing in the area. Nearly half of the homes in the area were scored as dilapidated and in need of rehabilitation or reconstruction.

The median value of an owner-occupied home in Century is $40,000, compared to the Escambia County median housing value of $81,700. The average median household income in the Century area is $24,583, compared to the Escambia County’s median household income of $46,001.

The first of three CRA public meetings will be held on Tuesday, February 20 from 4-6 p.m. at the Century Business Center, with a formal presentation at 4:00. Refreshments will be served.

Comments

One Response to “Century Moves Forward With CRA, Schedules Public Meeting”

  1. Chelleepea on February 8th, 2018 6:07 pm

    I hope these funds are used wisely and that they keep in mind we already have a lot of empty buildings that can be utilized for certain projects/business. If we re-purpose these buildings we can save the CRA money for other projects down the line.

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News