January 22, 2020

Medical Marijuana Dispensary Opening in the EDGE District

January 22, 2020/ Anthony Close

Downtown St. Pete’s growing EDGE District is set to gain a new business looking to capitalize on an expanding Florida industry. AltMed LLC, a Florida-based medical marijuana company, is slated to open a MÜV dispensary at 1101 1st Avenue North.

MÜV will offer an extensive selection of medical marijuana products including flower, pre-rolls, a wide range of vaporizer pens, topicals, oral sprays, and more. One of MÜV's more unique products are 72-hour Transdermal Patches, which are simply medicated patches, and Metered Dose Inhalers which feature patent-pending encapsulation technology, basically an inhaler with medical marijuana.

January 20, 2020

Bandit Coffee Opens New Roasting Facility and Celebrates 4th Anniversary

January 20, 2020/ Shannon Gasper

Back in 2016, Joshua and Sarah Weaver opened Bandit Coffee Co inside of a former Porter’s Paints store at 2662 Central Avenue with the goal of fostering community through coffee. Since then, the perfectly curated and minimalistic coffeeshop has become a beloved St. Pete staple for locals and visitors alike.

The coffee menu has always been easy to understand, whether you’re a coffee aficionado or casual drinker. You can get a hot coffee, cold brew coffee, espresso, espresso + milk, a mocha, and a vanilla latte. You won’t find any frappe-cappu-mocha-latte-chinos.

January 17, 2020

Downtown Developments Jan 2020: City Receives $12M Offer for City Block and More!

January 17, 2020/ Brian Zucker

2020 is off to a strong start! Along with the updates below, we had a few new businesses open their doors, including a yoga studio, a candy and soda shop, a salad restaurant, and a bookstore. Also, an old nightclub was demolished to make room for a tower, a developer started scouting the area for their next project and the city released their plans to revitalize The Deuces.

As many of you are aware, we write a column every month called Downtown Developments for Green Bench Monthly, a local community magazine. In the column, we highlight everything coming soon to Downtown St. Pete, including new restaurants, bars, and coffee shops. We also reveal new tower renderings, announce townhome projects, and much more. A few months ago, we started publishing that column right here on St. Pete Rising, in addition to Green Bench Monthly!

January 16, 2020

A Year of Rising: Here’s What’s Planned for Downtown St. Pete in 2020

January 16, 2020/ Anthony Close

Downtown St. Pete finished up the 2010’s decade with incredible momentum and is starting the 2020’s off with what is expected to be another unprecedented year for new development. Between project completions, known ground breakings, and new project announcements, we expect Downtown St. Pete will continue its evolution into a preeminent area to live, work, and play.

One of the most anticipated developments that will be completed in 2020 is the new St. Pete Pier. The 26-acre project is expected to cost over $92 million and will contain five eateries including Doc Ford’s, Pier Teaki, Teak, and the Driftwood Cafe. The new St. Pete Pier will also feature a hanging net sculpture by world-renowned artist Janet Echelman.

January 15, 2020

Former WingHouse on 4th Will be a Rumba Island Bar and Grill

January 15, 2020/ Brian Zucker

After years of sitting vacant, we are finally seeing progress on a new 5,300 SF restaurant coming soon to the site of a former WingHouse at 6445 4th Street North. Construction permits have recently been approved for the build out of Rumba Island Bar and Grill.

Rumba, which has two additional locations in Clearwater and Oldsmar, gives diners a taste of the islands in a laidback tropical atmosphere. Menu items include favorites like the Island-Style Quesadillas and Jerked Smoked Chicken Wings for starters and the signature Rumba Salad with Grouper, Crispy Coconut Shrimp and the Caribbean Pulled Pork for an entree.

January 13, 2020

Brick Street Farms to Construct Cultivation Hub, Increase Production in St. Pete

January 13, 2020/ Brian Zucker

For some reason, I can never keep plants alive. Maybe I don’t water them enough. Or perhaps I water them too much! Could it be the amount of light I expose them to? You know what, it’s probably due to my cats eating the leaves off every plant I’ve ever owned. Either way, I’ve never been able to provide the perfect environment for green life to thrive. And back in 2015, Shannon O’Malley and Brad Doyle were having similar troubles. But for them, the problem was the Florida heat.

Luckily, the couple found a solution to their woes. When they took their plants inside and put lights on them, the plants flourished. Brad and Shannon didn’t know it yet, but this revelation would end up being the seed that would sprout into an agricultural movement in Downtown St. Pete. After extensive research, the duo realized they could use their backgrounds in computer engineering and IT skills to build indoor hydroponic farms.

January 10, 2020

Aerial St Pete: Major Museum Takes Shape, Apartments Rise, and More!

January 10, 2020/ Brian Zucker

It’s a new year and we’d like to introduce a new quarterly column that we’re really excited about — Aerial St. Pete. Each quarter, we’ll be publishing exclusive aerial photography of the most anticipated Downtown St. Pete developments courtesy of our friend Anthony Bove at AB3 Visuals. Along with the photos, we’ll give you the latest details on how construction is progressing at each development site.

January 06, 2020

Chicken Salad Chick Planned for 4th Street in St. Pete

January 06, 2020/ Anthony Close

A fast-growing restaurant chain is planning a new location on St. Pete’s popular 4th Street. Chicken Salad Chick, which was started in 2008 in Auburn, Alabama, will soon open at 1221 4th Street North.

Since being founded by Stacy Brown in 2008, the chain has grown to more than 140 locations in 16 states. The St. Pete restaurant will be owned and operated by local franchise team Paul and Linsay Rohr, who also own a Chicken Salad Chick location in Palm Harbor.

December 30, 2019

Traditional Irish Tavern is Coming Soon from Owners of The Galley

December 30, 2019/ Brian Zucker

St. Petersburg residents are known for being religiously committed to buying local. We take pride in the homegrown businesses that make our neighborhoods such incredible places to live, work and play. However, one of the byproducts of Downtown St Pete’s meteoric growth over the past 5-10 years has been a sharp rise in commercial rents.

Some are concerned that local shops will be priced out of downtown and what has made St. Pete special will fade away. While the city is doing its best to keep St. Pete local, with initiatives such as the Storefront Conservation Corridor Plan, they cannot legally force downtown landowners to rent exclusively to locals.

In the end, the residents and visitors decide who goes and who stays. In essence, we vote with our wallets. And although rising rents have put pressure on local businesses, some have continued to thrive, and others have even expanded.

December 23, 2019

After Icon Central, Related Group Looking for Next Project in St Pete

December 23, 2019/ Brian Zucker

Now that construction is complete on Icon Central, a 15-story 368-unit apartment community in Downtown St. Pete, Jorge Perez, CEO of Related Group, has his sights set on the company’s next project in the Sunshine City.

Prior to his trip to Tampa Bay last week, Mr. Perez had only expressed interest in another Downtown St. Pete project if it was on the water. But his recent trip may have changed his mind.

“While he would love to find a site on the water, after today’s visit, I think he’s going to look everywhere,” says Jessica Suarez, VP of Development. “Mr. Perez is in love with St. Pete. We are absolutely bullish on finding something else here.”