KISSIMMEE, Fla. – The Kissimmee City Commission is looking for ways to keep the city’s growth on track as they run low on available land for development.
The city is looking at redeveloping properties throughout the city like the old K-Mart on Vine Street to see how properties similar to that one could benefit the needs of the growing city.
“So, the city is pretty much running out of land to develop,” said Craig Holland, director of development services for the City of Kissimmee. “So, we’re switching from new development to redevelopment. So things like the old Kmart of Vine Street might get torn down and apartments and businesses may go there that are multistory and much more intense than they were when it was just the old Kmart.”
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The city will work with GAI consulting to figure out the best way to update land use and transportation elements of the city’s comprehensive plan. Holland said the city only has 700 acres left of undeveloped land and 550 of those acres are already slated for development.
Holland said redevelopment is one of the only options left for the city to continue to grow.
“We have two or three big pieces of land that can still develop that are just undeveloped, and then the rest of it already has something on it that has maybe reached the end of its life cycle or is not being used to the best of its potential,” Holland said. “Like I said, it’s really the only the only thing we have to kind of do unless we just stop altogether, and that’s really not an option.”
However the consultants and the city are looking for a lot of community impact for this project.
“Basically, any kind of feedback is always positive,” Holland said. “So, we want it kind of how they feel the city should grow over the next 10, 15, 20 years, how things currently are going, have we done a good job? Have we made some mistakes? Things like that. And then just what their hopes for long term, and as we grow and as we change as a city.”
The city said they are working on getting the first few meetings scheduled but according to a timeline from GAI, a Public Kickoff Event could take place sometime in March.
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