17-story apartment building is planned for Echelon City Center in St. Pete’s Gateway area

A new residential tower has been proposed for Echelon City Center in St. Pete’s Gateway area.

Echelon City Center is a master-planned mixed-use development being built by Echelon, a St. Petersburg-based real estate company. Announced in the early 2000s, the community will have residential units, office space, a hotel, and ground-floor retail. However, plans for the development have changed over time.

The proposed 17-story tower is planned for a 1.88-acre site, dubbed “Site 9”, that sits between two recently completed multifamily developments – Waterview and Axio at Carillon.

Exterior promenades with café seating will activate the space and overlook a 0.4-acre park. Photo: ARC3

Waterview is a 15-story development at 100 Main Street that features 226 units while Axio at Carillon is a five-story building with 298 units. Both opened in 2021 and sold after completion for $100 million and $90.9 million, respectively.

The Site 9 apartment building was designed by ARC3 Architecture and will feature 176 units. It will reach a height of 187 feet. When complete the building will become one of the tallest in St. Petersburg outside of downtown. KAST Construction is serving as the general contractor for the project

The project will have 16,350 square feet of ground floor retail. Photo: ARC3

The ground floor of the building will consist of a residential lobby along with 16,350 square feet of retail and restaurant space. Exterior promenades with café seating will activate the space and overlook a 0.4-acre park.

Floors two though six will feature structured parking with 325 spaces, sufficient for both the residential units as well as the retail space. The garage will also have 12 electric vehicle charging stations. Floors 7 through 15 will feature one- and two-bedroom apartments while floors 16 and 17 will have eight large townhome units.

A top floor amenity deck will feature a pool with views of the St. Pete skyline in the far distance. Photo: ARC3

The top floor will also have resident amenities including a large club room, conference and work areas, a fitness center, and an outdoor pool deck offering views of the downtown St. Pete skyline in the distance.

The proposed apartment building is expected to break ground later this year.

Once complete, Echelon City Center will be home to at least 700 residential units and nearly 30,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space along with a freestanding Publix grocery store and several retail outparcel buildings.

The mixed-use development is located in the Carillon Office Park near several of St. Pete’s largest employers including Raymond James, Franklin Templeton Investments, Transamerica, PSCU, and HSN (Home Shopping Network).