March 11, 2019

New Details Emerge About Kolter's Second Downtown St. Pete Tower

March 11, 2019/ Anthony Close

Five weeks ago it was revealed that the Kolter Group, the developers behind ONE St. Petersburg, a recently constructed 41-story condo and hotel project, were planning a second tower in Downtown St. Petersburg, FL. After the success of ONE, which completely sold out over six months before completion, Kolter knew the downtown market had an appetite for more condos. Kolter’s second project is proposed just three blocks south of ONE in the parking lot of the Hilton Bayfront Hotel and directly across from Al Lang Stadium.

New information has surfaced about the project, which is now preliminarily known as Bayfront St. Petersburg. While it was previously announced that the tower would soar 35-stories, include 200 condominiums and ground floor retail, we now know a few more specifics about the total cost, the construction timeline, and what the tower will look like.

February 27, 2019

Mixed-Use High-Rise to Bring Office and Boutique Hotel to Downtown St. Pete

February 27, 2019/ Anthony Close

Another surface parking lot in the Downtown St. Pete core is poised to become a high-rise mixed-use development according to a resolution that will go before the St. Pete City Council on March 7th. The resolution, if approved, will allow negotiations to move forward between the City and The DeNunzio Group, a Cambridge, MA based real estate company, to construct a new public parking garage as part of a new development at the southeast corner of First Avenue N and Fifth Street N.

Last year the Tampa Bay Times reported that the Christ United Methodist Church had entered an agreement to sell its parking lot at 450 1st Avenue N for $5.65 million. At the time, the buyer was disclosed as Miles River Development, a Connecticut based company. They have since backed out of purchasing the site in order to focus on other projects in the area.

This opened up an opportunity for Dustin DeNunzio, who founded The DeNunzio Group back in 2005. His company is currently under contract to buy the downtown lot for $5.3M.

February 25, 2019

SoFresh to Add Healthy Option to Downtown St. Pete Dining Scene

February 25, 2019/ Brian Zucker

With a plethora of grilled cheese, burgers, and pizza in Downtown St. Pete, it’s not always easy to eat healthy — especially if you are in a hurry. A new fast-casual restaurant from Tampa is hoping to change that. SoFresh will be opening this summer on the ground floor of 200 Central Avenue, Downtown St. Pete’s tallest office tower, in a space recently vacated by Subway.

The addition of SoFresh is one of many upgrades the office tower has planned for 2019. “As they embark this year on a multi-million dollar renovation to the building, our leasing team felt that SoFresh would be the perfect addition to the building and Downtown St Pete,” says Wendy Giffin, director at Cushman & Wakefield, the tenant representative.

“SoFresh is locally owned, offers healthy and creative fresh bowls and wraps with pressed juices and smoothies and creates a good mix of dining options with our other two great restaurants at the building, The Mill and the Craft Kafe,” says Giffin.

February 11, 2019

Downtown Developments Feb 2019: Owners of The Galley to Open Cocktail Bar and More!

February 11, 2019/ Brian Zucker

We are trying something new! As many of you are aware, we write a column every month for Green Bench Monthly, a local community magazine. From now on, that column will be available right here on St. Pete Rising AND in print in Green Bench Monthly!

It seems like each time we take a stroll through downtown there are new restaurants and galleries opening and more apartment complexes and condo towers being built. We realize it’s difficult to keep track of everything. Luckily, we’ve done the research, so you don’t have to. Each month we will feature a few of the most exciting new downtown developments that are on the horizon for the Sunshine City.

Want this news first? Be sure to follow us! Most of what we discuss in Downtown Developments has already been posted to either our website, newsletter, Facebook or Instagram. With Downtown Developments, you’ll never miss the latest Downtown St Pete news.

February 07, 2019

Black Crow Coffee Targets Grand Central District for 2nd Location

February 07, 2019/ Meiko Seymour

It didn't take long after opening for Black Crow Coffee to weave itself into the fabric of Downtown St. Pete’s java community. Nestled in an unassuming retail building in Historic Old Northeast, Black Crow has become a space where creatives gather to share their art, where community members sip coffee and chat about the town, and where those trying to escape an office can read, study, work, or dream.

Black Crow's story began back in 2007 when Greg Bauman opened his first coffee concept on Gulf Boulevard in the beach town of Indian Shores, FL. Nestled between the gulf and the intercostal, the appropriately named Indian Shores Coffee Co. found its place in the community. Eight years later, Bauman set out to create more spaces for the community in other parts of Pinellas — which brought him to St. Pete.