BAY COUNTY, Fla. ( WMBB ) – For the last two months, a working group made up of Bay County, Panama City Beach, and Front Beach Road CRA members have been negotiating new CRA terms that will make everyone happy.
Last Thursday night, beach council members unanimously approved the new agreement.
“That’s what I love about Bay County. We all get together and we pull together. It’s not Panama City Beach versus Bay County. What’s good for Bay County is good for Panama City Beach and what’s good for this beach is good for Bay County and I think this deal really accomplishes that,” WARD 2 Ethan Register said.
Community redevelopment areas, or CRA’s allow cities to collect county property taxes from blighted areas, keep the money, and then make improvements.
Panama City Beach has used millions of CRA dollars to make improvements on Front Beach Road. Many counties across Florida have complained about the process, leading state lawmakers to put the length of these agreements back into the hands of the voters.
In 2020, before the new guidelines went into effect, Panama City Beach City Council members voted to extend the CRA until 2049.
Bay County commissioners were not happy, even blaming the beach CRA for the need to raise property taxes last year.
The new agreement caps the Front Beach Road CRA’s tax collections to no more than 30 million a year, calculated on a fixed millage rate of 4.43 mills.
That will return an estimated $2.3 billion back to the county through 2049.
“This agreement allows for all of the projects that the Front Beach CRA has budgeted to construct over that 25 years to be completed and provides enough revenue in that time frame for other expenses that the CRA may deem as necessary as allowed by Florida statute,” County Manager Bob Majka said.
In the last two years, the craze has pulled in about $24 million a year. The working group estimates they won’t reach the $30 million annual limit until 2028 or 2029.
The agreement also allows for an annual 1% increase to account for inflation, not to exceed $37 million in the first 9 years of the new agreement.
County commissioners still have to approve the new agreement. Majka is recommending approval when it comes up at next month’s commission meeting.
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