Expanding & Attracting New Business: The Hallandale Beach CRA Has Innovative Programs To Assist You

The City of Hallandale Beach has been ranked as Platinum City by the Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance in which they have adopted a streamlined permitting ordinance and are available to assist in fast tracking your permit. The CRA staff continue to work diligently to improve the HBCRA’s overall business climate and market Hallandale Beach as an excellent location for business, shopping, dining and entertainment. Over the years the Hallandale Beach CRA has created many innovative programs, here are some that might help you with your current business or maybe give you the entrepreneurial spirit to start your own.

Commercial Business Grant Program
The Commercial Business Grant Program program is designed to accelerate the expansion of existing businesses and the attraction of new start-up businesses in the CRA, with an emphasis on attracting the availability of new goods/services, creating job opportunities, and improving the quality of life in the CRA. The program guarantees a portion of the loan to reduce borrower equity requirements and/or reduce interest rates. It also subsidizes a portion of the monthly interest cost to provide a lower effective interest rate to the borrower.

Interior Renovation Grant Program
The Commercial Interior Renovation Grant (CIRG) is an incentive program available to businesses throughout the Community Redevelopment Area. Throughout the CRA there are also Priority Areas of focus in which have varying levels of funding availability. The goal of the program is to eliminate functional obsolescence, remove deterioration, and improve the “energy efficiency” of existing buildings in the CRA, with an emphasis on bringing these buildings up to current building codes and making them more viable for occupancy.

Economic Development Incentives Program
The goal of the Economic Development Incentives program is to accelerate the attraction of new major businesses within the CRA and to reduce the risk of developing/constructing speculative commercial space in the CRA.

Director Cash/Job Creation Program: The Direct Cash/Job Creation incentive is an incentive program paid solely by the HBCRA. Through this program HBCRA may provide direct cash payments of up to $2,000 per new Job created, to a maximum of $200,000, to companies starting, relocating, or expanding within the CRA.

Qualified Target Industry (QTI) Tax Refund Incentive: The QTI Refund Incentive Program is a tax refund program wherein eligible companies may receive refunds of taxes paid to the State of Florida on corporate income, sales, and insurance premiums, as well as certain other taxes paid to the State of Florida.

Neighborhood Amenity Incentive Program
The Neighborhood Amenity Incentive program is designed to accelerate the availability of desirable goods and services needed by residents, businesses, and employees in the CRA.

Facade Improvement Grant
The Commercial Facade Improvement Grant Program (CFIG) is an incentive program available to businesses throughout the Community Redevelopment Area. Throughout the CRA there are also Priority Areas of focus in which they have varying levels of funding availability. The goal of the program is to eliminate functional obsolescence, remove deterioration, and update the exteriors of existing buildings, with an emphasis on improving the viability of healthy retail uses and generally increasing the “curb appeal” of the business corridors in the CRA. View the featured video for the CFIG: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OdOexTDThq4

Commercial Business Mural Program
The Hallandale Beach Community Redevelopment Agency (HBCRA) Commercial Business Mural Program goal is to curate contemporary outdoor murals at key locations to enhance and enrich the existing cultural fabric of our community to attract more art related activities, increase business retention and events. A mural is defined as a large-scale artwork, painting or mosaic applied to or mounted directly to an exterior surface of a building, construction fence or other structure and that is visible to the public right-of-way. Its primary intent is to be artistic in nature, rather than purely information, creative signage or commercial signage. A mural shall not indicate or describe in narrative, the form of commercial activity that happens inside a building. All proposed murals containing and signage elements, will be directed to apply to the Planning and Zoning Department. Priority will be given to the FADD District based on the direction given from the HBCRA Board.

Fashion, Art and Design District Priority Area Incentives
The Fashion, Art and Design District (FADD) has been deemed a Priority Area (designation allows the CRA to create incentives that are specifically designed to implement the objectives outlined in the application) for the purposes of promoting the renovation of building facades, and encouraging the development of such uses including but not limited to: Microbreweries/ Wine Bars, Specialty Coffee shops, Trendy urban restaurants, Specialty Donut shops, Family oriented restaurants, Music Venues and Art Galleries.

A Success Story
Icebox Cafe, a culinary community leader on Miami Beach for more than two decades along with investment from the Hallandale Beach CRA opened a location in Hallandale Beach in October of 2020. The restaurant is located at 219 NE 3rd Street in the (FADD) Fashion Arts and Design District, it has been a big success and draw to the area.

The Hallandale Beach Community Redevelopment Agency (HBCRA) made a large investment into making Ice Box possible, and in doing so Ice Box was able to acquire that location to attract even more customers. The HBCRA and Ice Box partnership has benefited the City of Hallandale Beach in many ways.

Property Tax Reimbursement Program
The Property Tax Reimbursement program was created to eliminate functional obsolescence, remove deterioration, update existing buildings, and encourage new investment/development with an emphasis on enhancing the overall CRA, improving the quality of existing buildings within the CRA, and attracting new construction to the CRA. All properties within the CRA are eligible including all commercial, multifamily, or mixed-use (residential/commercial) buildings with uses permitted by applicable land use codes or approved conditional uses that have had substantial capital improvements or new construction.

Commercial Kitchen Grant Program
The Commercial Kitchen Grant (CKG) is an incentive program to encourage restaurant development within the Fashion, Art and Design District (FADD), and along Foster Road. The HBCRA desires to improve the operating efficiency of existing restaurants in the CRA and attract new restaurants to the CRA, with an emphasis on creating a dining destination within the City. Funding priorities for the CKG will apply specifically to the following types of businesses: Microbreweries/ Wine Bars, Specialty Coffee shops, Trendy urban restaurants (including health food), Specialty Donut shops and Family oriented restaurants.

Commercial Signage Grant Program
The Hallandale Beach Community Redevelopment Agency (HBCRA) Commercial Signage Grant Program (CSGP) is an incentive program available to businesses throughout the Community Redevelopment Area. The goal of the program is to eliminate functional obsolescence, remove deterioration, and update the exteriors of existing buildings, with an emphasis on improving the viability of healthy retail uses and generally increasing the “curb appeal” of the business corridors in the CRA.

Property Tax Reimbursement
The Hallandale Beach Community Redevelopment Agency (HBCRA) Commercial Signage Grant Program (CSGP) is an incentive program available to businesses throughout the Community Redevelopment Area. The goal of the program is to eliminate functional obsolescence, remove deterioration, and update the exteriors of existing buildings, with an emphasis on improving the viability of healthy retail uses and generally increasing the “curb appeal” of the business corridors in the CRA.

Commercial Film Incentive Grant Program
The Hallandale Beach Community Redevelopment Agency (HBCRA) Commercial Film Incentive Program is designed to promote economic development; attract more film producers to the city and by extension motivate more investors to open business in the City of Hallandale Beach.

Tenant Lease Surety / Tenant Rent Subsidy
Accelerate the attraction of new start-up businesses and reduce the vacancy of commercial space in the CRA, with an emphasis on energizing ground-floor space and creating job opportunities in the CRA. An additional objective is to reduce the risk of developing / constructing speculative commercial space in the CRA.

To locate possible investment property and development sites within the Hallandale Beach Community Redevelopment Zone, view the map at: https://cohbcra.org/cra-maps/

To determine if you qualify for any of these programs and to apply visit: https://cohbcra.org/programs/business-programs-incentives/ or call: (954) 457-2228.