I’m a big supporter of walkable cities. I truly believe that we are happier and healthier when we can get outside in the fresh air and explore our neighborhoods. You also feel much more connected to a city, and specifically with the people, when you can traverse a city on foot, bike, skateboard, or scooter. It’s easier to develop a sense of place. A sense of belonging.

The event, called ‘Halloween on Central’, will showcase a vision for what a car-free Central Avenue could look like for locals, businesses, and visitors to enjoy. Attendees can stroll and roll along nearly 2 miles of the city’s largest open spaces and experience the heart of St. Pete from a unique perspective that will allow them to rediscover their favorite local businesses and interact with the community in fun, healthy ways.

An apartment complex on Central Avenue in downtown St. Pete has sold for $149.6 million.

According to Pinellas County property records, the 368-unit Icon Central luxury apartments sold on August 25th to Houston-based Camden Property Trust. The property will be renamed Camden Central.

By late afternoon on August 25th, signage started to go up reflecting the new ownership. A letter was also sent to all residents.

Camden owns and operates over 59,000 apartment units across 165 communities around the United States. Camden Central marks the company’s eighth apartment complex in the Tampa Bay region.

Housing affordability is one of the biggest discussions being had in St. Pete right now (especially given tomorrow’s mayoral election. Go vote!). Tackling the steep increase in the cost of housing is no easy task. It’s a complex issue with complicated solutions, and frankly a discussion that merits its own article. But to put it simply, we are experiencing a supply and demand issue right now. There are more people looking to live here and not enough houses for them to live in. That imbalance is pushing prices up.

The reality is that the market will never produce housing that is affordable to many low-income members of our community. For these families, housing must be subsidized in order for them to afford a place to live. And last Thursday, two new affordable housing developments inched closer to reality thanks to approvals from St. Pete City Council.

Downtown will soon be home to St. Pete’s first ‘selfie studio’, a new type of entertainment venue that features a variety of interactive art exhibits specifically designed to snap fun shots of you and your friends.

The first selfie studio opened in New York back in 2009. After much success, the owners franchised the business and expanded all over the world. Today, selfie studios are most popular in parts of Asia, such as Hong Kong, Beijing, and Shanghai. But the movement is also gaining traction in American cities, like Washington DC, Los Angeles, Miami, and now St. Pete.

The Social Warehouse will be housed in a 3,700 square foot space next to Red Mesa Cantina at 237 2nd Avenue South in downtown St. Pete. Customers will pay a general admission fee of $30 per hour to have access to the studio’s 11-13 themed walls that will change seasonally. Montana Massa and Joshua Sims of Vector Commercial Real Estate represented the landlord in the deal.