Title
GTEC Area: Master Plan & Phase 1 Development Update and Developer Selection (B)
Explanation
The largest undertaking of the Eastside Redevelopment area is the redevelopment of the 13.6-acre Gainesville Technology Enterprise Center (GTEC) area and the 15-acre former Kennedy Homes site. The sites are located within a quarter mile of each other, about one mile from downtown Gainesville and two miles from the University of Florida.
The GTEC Area Master Plan subject area is located between SE Hawthorne Road to the north, SE 8th Ave to the south, SE 20th Street to the west and SE 24th Street to the east. In 2011, CRA staff developed in-house conceptual master plan for the GTEC area. The conceptual master plan created an office and retail focused mixed-use development, aiming to retain GTEC graduate companies in East Gainesville and attract additional economic activity to the area. The plan leveraged on GTEC's tangible resources and human capital, took advantage of the site constraints and natural resources, and enhanced site connectivity with the existing urban fabric, communities and resources. The plan was presented to the Eastside Redevelopment Area Advisory Board and to the CRA Board in 2011, and was well accepted. This plan served as the basis of design for the current Master Plan design.
In December 2013, CRA was granted a Partial Release of two mortgages encumbering unimproved sections of the GTEC parcels, making the land available for future redevelopment. The same month, CRA contracted JB Professional Group Inc. (JBPro) for surveying services for the City of Gainesville owned parcels in the GTEC Area (tax parcels no. 11339-0-0, 11340-0-0, and 11341-0-0). The survey was completed and submitted to the CRA in January 2014. Also in December 2013, CRA contracted Brown & Cullen Inc. (BCI) for civil engineering services for the GTEC Area Master Plan Project. BCI was also contracted to provide landscape architecture, geotechnical engineering and environmental consulting services for the project, via sub-consultants to BCI. A joint kick-off stakeholder meeting for the GTEC Area Master Plan and the Kennedy Homes projects was held in December 2013. In February 2014, a 30% Conceptual GTEC Area Master Plan was presented to the public and approved by the CRA Board. In addition to the design and community outreach efforts, CRA has been working with developers and companies to create private sector partnerships for building construction for companies interested in relocating to the master plan development area. In March, CRA Staff issued an RFP seeking qualified developers interested in constructing buildings to house office, commercial, wet-lab, retail uses on the GTEC Area parcels 11340-0-0 and 11341-0-0, about 9.3 acres of the total master plan area, located east of SE 21st Street. The same month, the CRA Board approved a Phase 1 Construction Documents contract proposal from JBPro for Civil Engineering services for an infrastructure design project to support redevelopment on parcels no. 11340-0-0 and 11341-0-0. The contract also included landscape architecture, electrical engineering, traffic engineering and environmental consulting services for the project, via sub-consultants to JBPro. A 60% Preliminary Master Plan was submitted to the CRA in March and is being presented to the public and CRA Boards in April. A 100% Final Master Plan document is scheduled for June and will be presented to the Eastside Redevelopment District Advisory Board and to the CRA Board.
The conceptual master plan creates an expanded business center, aiming to retain GTEC graduate companies in East Gainesville and attract additional economic activity to the area. In addition to the design and community outreach efforts, the CRA has been working with developers and companies with the goal of creating private sector partnerships for building construction within the expanded GTEC campus. The CRA issued an RFP seeking qualified developers interested in constructing buildings to house office, commercial, wet-lab, retail and other complimentary uses on the GTEC Area parcels 11340-0-0 and 11341-0-0. A total of four proposals were received from the following development firms and were ranked as follows: 1). Signet Development 2). Concept Companies 3). Gateway Development Services 4) NP International. All four firms have significant development experience and all were considered responsive and qualified.
Fiscal Note
None at this time
Recommendation
CRA Executive Director to CRA Board: 1) Approve the GTEC Area 60% Preliminary Master Plan as presented; 2) Approve ranking of respondents to the GTEC Area RFP; 3) Allow top-ranked proposer to select first site(s) and bring back proposal(s) for specific site(s) within 21 days; 4) Proceed in order of ranking to allow other respondents to bring forth proposal(s) for specific site(s) that remain available; and 5) Return to CRA Board and City Commission for any needed approvals