Florida Redevelopment Association Recognition
CRA Murals Project Wins Prestigious 2019 Cultural Enhancement Award
We are proud to announce that the CRA's beautification project, "Art Infusion," consisting of striking wall murals by local artists throughout the District, has been recognized with a Cultural Enhancement Citation in the 2019 Florida Redevelopment Association Awards. We are incredibly grateful for this honor, and appreciate everyone whose dedication and hard work made it possible to win this prestigious FRA award in the Best Capital Projects Beautification category.

Each year, FRA accepts entries for the annual awards from its members in a variety of categories, ranging from annual reports to cultural enhancement. A cross section of Florida redevelopment professionals, individuals and business organizations judge and rank all of the entries and select the winners.
About the Florida Redevelopment Association

 FRA is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to assisting Florida professionals and volunteers in community revitalization efforts. With its mission of “transforming spaces, revitalizing places,” FRA is committed to providing a forum for its more than 300 members to share knowledge and common experiences regarding revitalization opportunities and issues throughout Florida.
Kids on the Beat

Kid Assistant Derron Blake Interviews Riviera Beach Leader, Pastor & Community Advocate, Apostle Teresa Nelson
Apostle Teresa Nelson, Executive Director of Nelson's Outreach Ministry

Apostle Nelson provides outreach services through her Riviera Beach ministry to the people of the CRA District and surrounding communities via worship, concerts, camps, retreats, interventions and more. Her outreach services include: food and clothing distribution; vocational skills training; distribution of school supplies; intervention for domestic violence, alcohol and drug abuse, teen pregnancy; and more.
Kid Assisting is Derron Blake, Junior

 Derron is 8 years old, in the third grade and attends Northboro Elementary Montessori Magnet School. He enjoys spending time with his younger brother and grandparents; the Cub Scouts; playing golf, tennis and Legos; learning about aviation and robotics; and public speaking as a tool for change. His favorite local hangouts are Rafiki Tiki, the Splash Pad and Peanut Island. Derron is particularly interested in Black History. After receiving a copy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s "I Have a Dream" speech from his Sunday school teacher in 2015, the subject was never the same for him again.
Derron, Junior. : What's the biggest way you help people?
Apostle Nelson : Our weekly food distribution on Wednesdays.
 
What can regular people do to help their friends and neighbors?
Just lend a helping hand wherever the need is, and always keep smiling.
 
What is your best advice for a kid growing up in Riviera Beach?
Stay in school. Stay out of trouble. Be positive. Write down your short- and long-term goals. And keep FOCUSED, and you will SUCCEED!
 
How do you spend your free time?
I enjoy sitting outside just relaxing with family and friends, and weekly on Fridays, going out to eat at Cooking From The Heart with Ms. Ann Teague, a small business entrepreneur here in Riviera Beach.
Know a Riviera Beach kid or adult candidate for this column?
We'd love to hear from you.
In Search of Just the Right Contractor

Construction Proposals for the Broadway and Blue Heron Block Redevelopment Due October 21, 2019
Riviera Beach residents and the CRA are anxiously awaiting another iconic beautification project to take shape. This one is at the block where Broadway Avenue and Blue Heron Boulevard intersect. But first, just the right contractor, as detailed in the CRA's Invitation to Bid 2019-05 on the project, must be located and selected.

The project will transform the vacant parcels just west of Broadway between West 27th Street and Blue Heron Boulevard into a public common area featuring an architecturally inspired fountain that welcomes residents and visitors into the Broadway Corridor.

"We are looking forward to getting this highly anticipated improvement underway," says Scott Evans, Interim Executive Director of the Riviera Beach CRA and President of the Riviera Beach Community Development Corporation (CDC). "The Broadway Corridor is a historically significant area of the District and when completed, this beautiful new space and water feature on the northwest corner will stand sentry over this entrance to the block."

The project also encompasses improvements to signage, parking lot reconstruction, landscaping, irrigation, fencing, lighting and safety elements. Contractors are encouraged to take advantage of this huge opportunity and submit their bids by October 21, 2019.
CRA Staff Moving Up the Ladder
Congratulations to our valued team member Sherley Desir who was recently promoted from Senior Administrative Assistant to Office Manager. Sherley, who has been with the CRA for three years, is a true Floridian, and holds a Bachelors Degree in Business Management and a Masters Degree in Healthcare Administration. She is highly qualified, hard working and is the glue that holds the team together.

"Along with my fellow teammates," Sherley says, "I will continue to cultivate what the agency is here for, which is to make Riviera Beach the best place to live, work and play!"

When she's not working, according to Sherley, she enjoys spending quality time with her two children. Please help us welcome Sherley Desir to her new Office Manager position at the Riviera Beach Community Redevelopment Agency!

CRA Items of Interest
Do you need an Ocean Walk Walking Buddy? Call : 561-707-9602

Do you need a Marina Village Walking Buddy? Call : 961-707-9015

Do you see something unsafe or unsightly in the District? Call: 561-693-1171 

The CRA's Next General Meeting is slated for September 25. September Calendar

See the Riviera Beach CRA Website for business opportunities including RFQs, RFPs, ITBs and Letters of Interest