April 28, 2020

Two New Businesses Announced for Artistry Apartments on St. Pete's Central Avenue

April 28, 2020/ Brianna Rodriguez

If you’ve driven down Central Avenue recently, you’d notice that the Grand Central District is teeming with new development. Over the next few months multiple developments are expected to wrap up including: 1701 Central, Vantage Lofts, TRU by Hilton, and Artistry Apartments. In total over 700 new apartments will soon join the district along with 132 new hotel rooms.

These added residents and guests will increase the need for more restaurants and services in the area. Thankfully, each of these developments has ground floor retail, more than 60,000 square feet in total, which will add to the vibrancy of the area.

At Artistry, which is located at 1601 Central Avenue, leases were recently signed for two of the retail units. Each of the businesses is expected to open by the end of the year.

April 21, 2020

New Townhomes Proposed for 8th Street in Downtown St. Pete

April 21, 2020/ Anthony Close

In a sign of confidence in the St. Pete market, a veteran real estate developer is launching a townhome development on 8th Street North in Downtown St. Pete. Located at Burlington Avenue and 8th Street, just a block from Mirror Lake, the project will be appropriately named the 8th Street Townhomes.

The development is being led by investor George Gower, who developed townhomes on Fareham Place near Beach Drive in the late 1990’s. At the time, developing new residential units in Downtown St. Pete was pretty rare. In a recent call with St. Pete Rising, Gower describes Downtown St. Pete in the 1990’s as “sleepy” and says his Fareham Place project was “one of the first new residential developments in downtown in 15 years.”

April 13, 2020

35-story Saltaire condo tower breaks ground in Downtown St. Pete

April 13, 2020/ Anthony Close

Amid the fanfare of the coronavirus pandemic, a significant project in Downtown St. Pete has taken steps toward becoming a reality. Saltaire, a 35-story condominium tower proposed for 300 1st Street South, recently announced it has broken ground on the site of the former parking lot of the Hilton St. Petersburg Bayfront Hotel.

Back in October 2019, Ashford Hospitality Trust, the owner of the Hilton Bayfront, sold the hotel’s 1.65 acre parking lot to KT St. Pete Bayfront, LLC for $17.5 million. KT St. Pete Bayfront, LLC is controlled by the Palm Beach County real estate development firm Kolter Group which is developing Saltaire.

March 12, 2020

Par Bar, a mini golf bar, tees off soon in the Grand Central District

March 12, 2020/ Brian Zucker

My favorite golf course is in my hometown of Fort Myers, Florida. I’ve probably played the course hundreds of times and I don’t think I’ve ever been able to shoot lower than an 85. It’s not a PGA Tour course, I’m just not much of a golfer. I’m talking about Castle Golf, a medieval-themed miniature golf course.

From the time you enter the castle gates (aka the parking lot), you’re swept up in a spellbinding mystery as you make your way over the lagoon, through the forest and fog, to the castle under the stars.

I used to have so much fun mini golfing, but I haven’t been in years. Mostly because I’m not a kid anymore, but also because St. Petersburg, FL doesn’t have any mini golf courses. However, that may soon change thanks to Marcel Gruber and Kurt Campagna.

March 09, 2020

The Spice and Tea Exchange is coming soon to Sundial St Pete

March 09, 2020/ Brian Zucker

The Spice & Tea Exchange has just signed a lease at Sundial St. Pete. They will be moving into 230 1st Street South, previously occupied to the Rowdies and Rays Team Store on the first floor of the shopping center.

“This is one of the last prime spots left in Sundial, we are so happy to have such a great shop in our center” said Bill Edwards, Owner of Sundial.

The Spice & Tea Exchange is known for offering an extensive selection of exotic teas, spices, exclusive seasonings, salts, and naturally-flavored sugars. Their diverse assortment of goods is guaranteed to kick your senses into high gear as you explore all they have to offer.

March 06, 2020

St. Pete approves new park under I-375 and MLK Jr Street in Historic Uptown

March 06, 2020/ Anthony Close

Amid the rapid growth and development of Downtown St. Pete there is often concern about the preservation of green space and public amenities. While the City of St. Petersburg boasts a vast network of over 150 public parks, there are fewer open spaces in Downtown St. Pete’s western neighborhoods like the EDGE District or along Dr. MLK Jr Street. However, that may soon change thanks to a handful of proactive community members who spoke up about the dearth of public green space in the area.

Last week, St. Pete’s City Council voted to authorize $450,000 for the creation of a new city park on a patch of underutilized land situated under an I-375 overpass at the corner of 5th Avenue North and Dr. MLK Jr Street North.

February 24, 2020

Indie Movie Theater Coming Soon to Downtown St. Pete

February 24, 2020/ Brian Zucker

A few weeks ago, a South Korean film titled Parasite won Best Picture at The Oscars. It was the first time a foreign-language film won the Academy’s most prestigious honor in it’s 92 year history.

Although the award-winning film slowly rolled out to US theaters starting last October, it never hit screens in St. Pete until this month. Parasite had a traditional art house platform release in the United States. And guess how many art house cinemas we have in St. Pete? Zero.

To be honest, the only reason why the film eventually opened in St. Pete theaters at all is because it swept the Academy Awards. The reality is that Tampa Bay routinely misses out on small-scale movies because the area lacks indie movie theaters.

February 13, 2020

Three Story Food Hall Coming to Former Dome Grill Space on Central Ave

February 13, 2020/ Brianna Rodriguez

A new food hall on Central Avenue is in the works, which will serve as a central hub for local health-conscious foodies and culinary experts alike.

What was most recently the Dome Grill at 551 Central Avenue, will soon undergo a 24,000 square foot renovation into Central Park Food Hall. The project is expected to open summer 2021.

The building was purchased in June 2018 by Mark and Natalia Levey. The owners plan to keep some of the historical elements of the building while also adding in modern architecture.

February 12, 2020

Downtown Developments Feb 2020: A Handful of Restaurants Announced for St Pete and More!

February 12, 2020/ Brian Zucker

There’s never a dull moment in Downtown St. Petersburg! Along with the updates below, we had a few new businesses open their doors, including an athletic facility, a barbershop and a leasing office. Also, an urban farm and a coffee shop announced expansions. Lastly, we were in a magazine, we launched a new aerial photography column, and we looked ahead to 2020.

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!

February 11, 2020

Affordable Townhomes Proposed South of Downtown St. Pete

February 11, 2020/ Anthony Close

One of the critiques of all of the housing developments being constructed in Downtown St. Pete is that much of it isn’t affordable for households making the area median income, which in St. Pete equates to about $58,000. With a few exceptions, most of the new residential units being built downtown are priced over $500,000, a figure that’s simply not attainable for many families.

The reason cheaper units aren’t being built isn’t because there’s not a market for them. There are a number of variables that go into pricing new residential units. Prices are largely a product of construction costs and land prices, among other factors. Since construction costs have increased nationally, as have land prices in Downtown St. Pete, this has led to increasing costs to build residential units in the downtown area.