Downtown St. Pete may see its first significant office development in 12 years
/Downtown St. Pete may get its first new office building in nearly three decades if the city accepts an offer from UPC Insurance to expand it’s headquarter’s to a lot along 1st Avenue South. The city has long discussed offering Jabil this site in an attempt to lure them into building a new corporate headquarters in Downtown St. Pete. However, when Jabil ultimately chose to rebuild and expand its existing office complex in North St. Pete, UPC took notice and began exploring plans of their own.
On July 19, 2018, the City of St. Pete received a letter from UPC Insurance stating their desire and intent to acquire the entire 800 block of 1st Avenue South for the purposes of constructing and occupying a new corporate headquarters.
UPC Insurance currently owns a 42,000 square foot building across the street at 800 2nd Avenue South, which formerly housed the Downtown St. Pete AAA office, as well as a smaller 8,000 square foot building at 724 2nd Avenue South. They also currently lease a parking lot from the city which is adjacent to their 800 2nd Avenue South building.
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Golden Corral is returning to Pinellas County with plans for its first St. Pete restaurant inside the former Hooters at Tyrone Square Mall.
The popular American all-you-eat buffet chain will open at 2250 Tyrone Boulevard, according to plans submitted to the City of St. Petersburg. An opening date has not yet been announced.
The 8,105-square-foot restaurant will take over the building where Hooters operated for 15 years, from 2006 until late 2021. At the time, the chain cited changes in shopping habits and declining mall foot traffic in announcing the closure.
The new Golden Corral will be operated by franchisee Britt Guyer, who owns Golden Corral restaurants in Winter Haven and downtown Tampa. Guyer was not immediately available for comment.