City of St. Pete receives four proposals for the redevelopment of the 86-acre Tropicana Field site

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City of St. Pete receives four proposals for the redevelopment of the 86-acre Tropicana Field site

Today was the deadline for developers to respond to the City of St. Petersburg’s request for proposals (RFP) for the 86-acre Tropicana Field site, the home of the stadium where the Tampa Bay Rays play and a vast parking lot.

Earlier this morning, the City announced that they have received four proposals in response to the RFP from the following groups:

  • 50 Plus 1 Sports

  • Hines & Tampa Bay Rays

  • Restoration Associates

  • Sugar Hill Community Partners

"We will review the proposers' plans with a keen eye on their interpretation of affordable and workforce housing; office and meeting space; arts and culture; research, innovation, and education; recreation; open space, healthy and sustainable development; and intentional equity,” said Mayor Welch in a statement to the media.

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Revised plans approved for 14-story mixed-use building at 900 Central Avenue in downtown St. Pete

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Revised plans approved for 14-story mixed-use building at 900 Central Avenue in downtown St. Pete

A 14-story mixed-use development slated for St. Petersburg’s EDGE District has been approved by the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency, subject to a final review of the building plans and the developer’s compliance with any conditions of approval.

The $58.1 million project, known by its address, 900 Central Avenue, will feature 185 apartment residences (21 of which will be workforce housing units), 20 hotel rooms, nearly 10,000 feet of commercial space, a 204-space parking garage, and 224 bicycle parking spaces. The building is expected to reach a height of 150 feet.

The building’s footprint will occupy most of the 0.83-acre site, which is currently home to three buildings, two of which will be demolished, and a 41-space surface parking lot. A variety of businesses — including a nail salon, two law offices, and two fitness studios — are located on the site. Anytime Fitness announced in October that it would be closing in December.

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The Juice Shack to bring cold-press juices, smoothies, and acai bowls to the 600 block in downtown St. Pete

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The Juice Shack to bring cold-press juices, smoothies, and acai bowls to the 600 block in downtown St. Pete

Coming this December to 657 Central Avenue is the Juice Shack, a juice bar that specializes in a wide range of cold-press juices, smoothies, and wellness shots. The spot was previously home to a soap shop called BLU Luxe Island, and before that was Two Fold Bicycle Shop.

The Juice Shack is owned and operated by Victoria Sook and her daughter, Miranda Sook, as well as Aaron Dunlap, and if not for COVID-19 pandemic, the establishment might never have existed. The mother-daughter duo, who originally hail from West Virginia, both worked in the service industry in Nashville when the coronavirus began to spread across the country.

They write on their website that they were working as bartenders and waitresses when the virus started “taking people down left and right.” They had been fans of cold-pressed juice for years and decided to take the plunge and start a business based around it.

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The Glass Noodle, an international noodle house, is coming soon to 600 block of Central Avenue

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The Glass Noodle, an international noodle house, is coming soon to 600 block of Central Avenue

The restaurant group behind Mangosteen on Central Avenue and Green Pagoda at 7900 4th Street North plans to add another St. Petersburg eatery to its portfolio when it opens The Glass Noodle, which will take the place of Doormet at 681 Central Avenue in downtown St. Pete.

Doormet closed its doors earlier this month after over two years in business. In an email to customers, the owners acknowledged that they “have had consistent issues in St. Pete, everything from finding help, to growing the business, to increased food costs, to increased labor costs, high rents, and a general difficulty in reaching residences and getting orders from homes at night.”

There’s no set opening date for The Glass Noodle, but owner Sean Thongsiri says he hopes to have the new restaurant up and running by the end of year.

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Vintage cocktail bar and lounge Lost & Found to debut next month in the Grand Central District

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Vintage cocktail bar and lounge Lost & Found to debut next month in the Grand Central District

I can recall an era when there were such things as VHS tapes, when people made collect calls, when the Rubik’s Cube was the ultimate IQ test.

Now, the entire world is in the palm of our hands. And while there is something incredible about such instantaneous information and interaction, I feel we’ve also lost something crucial – a sense of detachment from the world. A world free of social-media trolling, deep fake videos, and Zoom meetings.

Everything seemed simpler back then. Or maybe I’m just reaching the “get off my lawn” stage of life.

While I sometimes find myself decade daydreaming, I won’t have to any longer thanks to a new vintage cocktail bar and lounge coming soon to downtown St. Pete.

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Mason's Famous Lobster Rolls to expand in Florida with downtown St. Pete location

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Mason's Famous Lobster Rolls to expand in Florida with downtown St. Pete location

Mason’s Famous Lobster Rolls plans to open its third eatery in Florida at 501 1st Avenue North, formerly the home of Cottage Café, in downtown St. Pete.

The fast-casual seafood restaurant chain, which was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in Annapolis, Maryland, has locations in Miami and Fort Myers. Its footprint also includes Delaware, Minnesota, North Carolina, South Carolina, Washington, D.C., Texas, Virginia, and Washington State.

In addition to its namesake lobster rolls, the restaurant’s menu also includes shrimp rolls, crab rolls, BLT rolls, New England clam chowder, lobster grilled cheese, lobster mac and cheese, lobster bisque, and salads, as well as Whoopie Pies for dessert.

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Health and wellness businesses lease space at Camden Central in downtown St. Pete

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Health and wellness businesses lease space at Camden Central in downtown St. Pete

Two new businesses that offer health and wellness services are opening on the ground-floor retail level of Camden Central Apartments at 855 Central Avenue in downtown St. Petersburg.

MiniLuxe has leased the space neighboring BurgerFi on Central Avenue.

MiniLuxe specializes in hand, nail, and body care, offering a wide assortment of services, from manicures and pedicures to nail polish, eyebrow shaping, and body hair removal. Customers can choose from getting work done in the studio or having a staff member come to their home.

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New charcuterie concept Graze Craze to open in Grand Central District

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New charcuterie concept Graze Craze to open in Grand Central District

Fans of charcuterie boards and other graze-style shareable foods will want to check out a new food concept opening in mid-December in the heart of downtown St. Petersburg.

Graze Craze, a brand founded in 2018 that began franchising last year, is coming soon to 2220 Central Avenue. It will be owned and operated by Alex Gonzalez, a native of Pensacola Beach and University of West Florida graduate who developed an affinity for cheese plates and charcuterie boards while studying abroad and traveling in Europe.

Gonzalez has been a St. Pete resident since 2011 and plans to open multiple Graze Craze locations in the area.

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A unique event space and gift shop Hostess opens in Grand Central District

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A unique event space and gift shop Hostess opens in Grand Central District

St. Petersburg’s Grand Central District, already full of boutique, independent restaurants, bars, and retail outlets, has attracted another unique business in the form of Hostess, a micro-event space and gift shop set in a 1950s bungalow and created by owners Shelby Pletcher and Michelle Whiting, who cultivated an air of mystery around the establishment prior to its opening this week at 2635 Central Avenue.

“We’ve been very vague about everything thus far,” Pletcher says, “But honestly, it was pretty unintentional. We’ve just been working overtime to get the space ready and didn't have the manpower to devote to marketing. Instead, we decided to soft open first and then launch marketing once images of Hostess were ready.”

Whiting and Pletcher, though, are known quantities. They own a clothing store called Canvas Fashion Gallery that has locations on 4th Street North in St. Pete and in Tampa’s Hyde Park Village. But Hostess, which will offer grab-and-go food, as well as wine and beer, for small gatherings, is a significant departure.

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Sunrise Tacos expands beach presence with an upcoming location on St. Pete Beach

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Sunrise Tacos expands beach presence with an upcoming location on St. Pete Beach

St. Pete Beach is set to get a Sunrise Tacos restaurant when the Treasure Island-based establishment expands southward in early 2023.

The new location will be situated at 455 75th Avenue, the former home of Gayle’s Diner, a St. Pete Beach institution that opened in 1954.

Co-owner Kim Vandebogart says the restaurant should be open sometime in January and that it will feature some sort of tribute to the Kilpatrick family, who owned and operated Gayle’s Diner for decades.

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