Changing demographics to bring more building to Tamarac

As Tamarac evolves from a retirement community into a family town, city officials are courting developers to build apartments and mixed-use projects to liven up the city that lies nine miles northwest of Fort Lauderdale. One of the places where officials would like to see development is along McNab Road between University Drive and Pine Island Road.

Developers are being encouraged to submit proposed projects with up to 200 market-value apartments, 150,000 square feet of retail and 25,000 to 30,000 square feet of office space.

Tamarac could be attractive to developers. Because demographics are still changing, prices are below those of major neighboring towns, such as Fort Lauderdale or Miami. Central Communities — an investor — bought more than 40 acres for $6.5 million in 2011.

The city has also launched an Request for Proposal to build a charter school. Parks and playgrounds have been refurbished and a program that is supposed to create art in public places has been launched. [Daily Business Review] — Claire Moses