The idea has been that by growing business in this defined area, the single-family neighborhoods many of us moved here to experience will remain very much as they are. And the Plantation City Council and I recently solidified protections to those neighborhoods by approving a “no flex,” ordinance, meaning it would be very difficult to add density to existing neighborhoods.

The city has conducted studies over the years on how to best develop midtown. In 2002, the council approved one master plan, under the leadership of Mayor Rae Carole Armstrong. The 2016 council did another study under Mayor Diane Veltri Bendekovic and many of the policies and guidelines created then are still being implemented today.

The state has recently stepped in to fast-track more development, bypassing local government approvals, through what is called the Live Local Act. Many states nationwide, led by both political parties, have adopted similar bills in an attempt to create affordable housing, more quickly to address housing crisis.

Another challenge is that home prices are so high young professionals have no chance of affording them, although they want to live in Plantation. So Midtown has always been envisioned as a collection of communities, such as Plantation Walk, with rents costly enough to facilitate quality living, with food and beverage options nearby. Without the population of those in new communities, popular restaurants can’t be built here.

The city’s Multimodal Master Transportation Plan includes projects that will make Midtown more walkable, bikeable and less car-dependent. We’re also keeping an eye on the Broward Metropolitan Planning Organization and Broward County plans for the major roadways in the district.

Although people may not be familiar with the name, the city and businesses have been working together to create Plantation Midtown for more than four decades. Our county is growing at a very fast pace, but we have been constantly planning how to handle inevitable changes in how people are living – while still keeping much of the traditional lifestyle that attracted many of us to Plantation. We’re glad Freebee is part of the next step, and long-term see it as an important transportation option.

I invite you to learn more about Midtown via Plantation.org, and I invite you to attend our Midtown Board meetings, whether or not you’re a Midtown resident or business owner. We’re happy to have that dialogue.