Two-story retail building planned for former gas station site in the Grand Central District
/
A Citgo gas station on the corner of Central Avenue and 28th Street is set to be redeveloped into a new retail destination.
Clearwater-based general contractor Build America Luxury Homes has submitted plans to demolish the 1957-built station and replace it with a two-story, 13,500-square-foot retail building at 2801 Central Avenue, next to Cheeky’s Fish & Raw Bar.
“We are experienced in taking old, rundown, or neglected places and turning them into community assets,” said Qemal Hasanbelli, owner of Build America Luxury Homes and BA Construction, in a conversation with St. Pete Rising.
Hasanbelli purchased the 0.22-acre lot in December 2023 for $1.75 million.
Designed by Oldsmar-based ArchEvoke Studio LLC, the building would accommodate multiple retailers and restaurants, bringing new business opportunities to this stretch of the Grand Central District.
Read More
A 31-acre office property along McCann Lake has received preliminary approval for what would become the largest apartment community in Pinellas Park, with 552 units, including at least 221 affordable apartments.
City staff approved the preliminary site plan on September 30th for 10222 MCI Drive in the Gateway Centre Business Park.
The two-phase development would replace an office campus with nine four-story apartment buildings, two clubhouses, pickleball courts, and 847 parking spaces.
The apartment proposal relies on Florida’s Live Local Act, which allows residential development on the industrially zoned property, provided that at least 40% of the apartments, or at least 221 units, are reserved for households earning at or below 120% of the area median income for a minimum of 30 years.
The remaining 331 apartments would be leased at market rates.
Plans call for apartments ranging from studios to three-bedroom units. All nine residential buildings would rise four stories, with a maximum height of 50 feet.