20 Jul The HBCRA Team Hits the Road!
Dr. Earle explains the importance of architecture and streetscape design in re-creating cities.
Recently, the Hallandale Beach Community Redevelopment Agency’s (HBCRA) Executive Director, Dr. Jeremy Earle took his team on the road to learn about other CRAs in South Florida. The objective of the trip was to learn and gain inspiration from projects underway in different cities across the region. The road trip included West Palm Beach, Delray Beach, Pompano Beach, Dania Beach, as well as the Overtown and Wynwood sections of Miami.
The team was most interested in surveying architecture, street design, and the history of catalytic economic development projects that transformed these cities in the past 10 – 20 years. As Hallandale Beach enters a very prolific phase of redevelopment in the next five years, the HBCRA is planning the rebirth of its Food, Fashion, Art, and Design District (FFADD). The team has an eye out for building one of the most unique and exciting destinations in South Florida: a cultural haven for restaurants, art studios and galleries, and entertainment.
Dr. Earle has organized several such trips for the HBCRA team in the past. They are designed as both information-gathering and inspiration-giving exercises. HBCRA staff gets the opportunity to meet with colleagues in their profession to discuss the challenges facing South Florida cities, while at the same time having the opportunity to walk through different neighborhoods, downtown centers, and streetscapes to consider ideas that can be implemented in Hallandale Beach. Being able to think out of the box is critical for any profession, no less urban planning and community redevelopment where individuals must view every challenge from a variety of different angles.
The HBCRA team discusses ideas on its walking tour of West Palm Beach.
The team was hosted by several experts in the field. They included Kim Briesemeister, co-founder of Redevelopment Management Associates (RMA); Renee Jadusingh, Esq., FRA-RA, Executive Director of Delray Beach CRA; and Nguyen Tran, CRA Director, Pompano Beach. In each case, the experts and their teams were excellent hosts and spent considerable time sharing their experiences and exchanging ideas with the HBCRA. The team has several more tours planned for the year and looks forward to visiting additional cities.