DOWNTOWN TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — The Greater Frenchtown-Southside Citizens' Advisory Committee will gather for its first meeting of 2026 Mon onday, discussing new rules and programs and weighing funding requests.
- The committee has a $12.4 million dollar budget for 2026. That amount includes leftover funds from prior years.
- In 2026, the committee is prioritizing support for local businesses, public infrastructure projects, and affordable housing, according to CRA Executive Director Stephen Cox.
- Watch the video below for more details on these agenda items.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
The Greater Frenchtown-Southside committee is pushing new goals for 2026 and continuing some from 2025.
I’m Brieanna Smith in the Downtown Tallahassee neighborhood, learning what could be in store for neighbors living in the Greater Frenchtown-Southside community.
The CRA’s Greater Frenchtown-Southside Citizens' Advisory Committee is preparing for its first meeting of the year Monday.
On the agenda, this time—
Making property improvements simpler by updating its grant programs rules for the FACE, CPIP and NCAP grants.
If approved, businesses could have new items covered under the grants and would no longer have to sign a mortgage with the CRA for grants worth more than $100,000 dollars.
Housing developers seeking money from the agency would be required to prove the housing is affordable.
Homeowners in need of a paint job can get up to $5,000 to paint and pressure wash their homes.
It’s a new proposed program called the Residential Exterior Painting Program for people who live in or own a single-family home or duplex.
The agency is only taking the first 40 applicants starting in April.
A $30,000 request from Knight Creative Communities Institute and SoMo Walls could create eight giant murals between Oakland Avenue and East Harrison Street.
Once completed, the murals would be publicly accessible 24/7 to the community.
CRA Executive Director Stephen Cox says agenda items seek to further its goals for 2026.
“Many of our goals overlap. We want to support businesses through renovation, so we have funding for small-scale renovation projects. We are looking to identify public infrastructure projects that we can provide assistance on, and then, we are always looking to provide affordable housing units within the district,” he said.
That meeting will start at 6 p.m. Monday at the Smith-Williams Service Center’s community room, where the committee will also pick its new chair and co-chair.
In Downtown Tallahassee, Brieanna Smith, ABC 27.
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