Done Deals is a weekly column by St. Pete Rising spotlighting recent real estate market insight and significant deals happening in the Sunshine City and beyond. The following information is sourced from public records and trusted intel.

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Land purchased for 264-unit affordable housing project

An investor has acquired multiple industrial buildings near St. Petersburg’s Warehouse Arts District that will be demolished to make way for a new affordable housing development.

Dr. Richard Wilkes, a local veterinarian, and Tom Gaffney, who recently purchased The Factory, sold the 6.9-acre property on Fairfield Avenue between 31st and 34th Street for $6.18 million to Mirror Lake Reflection LLC.

The purchasing LLC is tied to former Sen. Jeff Brandes, who is an investor in the newly completed 18-story Reflection condo tower on Mirror Lake.

HP Capital Group, the development team behind Reflection, will redevelop the nearly seven-acre property into a 264-unit affordable and workforce housing complex dubbed Fairfield Apartments.

Tibbetts Lumber, which previously occupied the site, was founded by Brandes’ grandfather, Linton Tibbetts. Tibbetts Lumber is currently based in Clearwater.

Site demolition is expected to commence in the coming month.

Fairfield Apartments will consist of workforce apartments in three buildings with 74 one-bedroom units, 163 two-bedroom units, and 27 three-bedroom units.

The majority of the units, 144, will be reserved for household earning 120% of the area’s median income (AMI) while 67 units will be slated for those earning 80% or lower of the AMI and the remaining 53 units will be reserved for residents earning 50% or below the AMI.

The site will also front the Pinellas Trail and have 345 parking spaces and 278 bicycle parking spaces.

The property is zoned Industrial Traditional (IT), which typically does not allow for the development of housing; however, affordable housing is permissible thanks to Florida House Bill 1339, which allows local municipalities to “approve the development of housing that is affordable, as defined in s.430.004, on any parcel zoned for residential, commercial, or industrial use.”

House Bill 1339 was a precursor to SB 102, also known as the Live Local Act, that more broadly allows affordable housing projects in commercial areas.  

Fairfield Apartments will be the first project to utilize that process in St. Petersburg, paving the way for the redevelopment of a site that otherwise would not allow housing.  

The project is estimated to cost $87.8 million to construct and will be financed using several sources.

KAST Construction is serving as the general contractor.

For the property purchase, the buyer took out a $3.5 million loan from Hancock Whitney Bank.

Barbers and Beers expands to St. Pete

A barbershop where customers can relax with a beer and watch sports while getting a fresh haircut is expanding to St. Pete's Grand Central District.

Barbers and Beers, which has an existing barbershop in Dunnellon, will open a St. Pete storefront at 2619 Central Avenue next to the URBAN Brew and BBQ restaurant.

An opening date has not been announced, but a "coming soon" sign is on the door.

The business will offer other services, including men's facials and nose waxes.

Old Northeast home lists

A 1920s renovated Craftsman home in St. Pete's Old Northeast neighborhood has been listed for sale.

The 1,672-square-foot, three-bedroom home at 116 15th Avenue NE has nine-foot ceilings, a living room with a gas fireplace, a sunroom, and French doors that connect to the outdoor entertainment area.

The 0.11-acre property is described as blending “period charm with the modern updates" as the original oak and pine wood floors are throughout the home, which has been renovated and features PGT hurricane impact windows.

The landscaped backyard features a pool and lounge area.

An alley provides access to the garage, which just received a new impact door.

The home is listed for $1.29 million. 

Sharon Kantner with Smith & Associates is the listing agent.

New retail tenants debut at Moxy Hotel in downtown St. Pete

New tenants have opened at the newly opened Moxy Hotel by Marriott in St. Pete's EDGE District.

[solidcore] Pilates studio and Floyd’s Barbershop recently opened on the ground floor of the 163-key hotel at 1234 Central Avenue.

Other businesses in the hotel include Rose’s Coffee Bar, located in the lobby, and Sparrow, a 4,000-square-foot restaurant and bar with a 1960s retro vibe featuring Asian-inspired cuisine and craft cocktails. Sparrow is expected to open this fall. 

The hotel anchors PTM Partner’s EDGE Collective development, a new walkable 500,000-square-foot mixed-use destination in the burgeoning EDGE District.

Phase I contains the Moxy Hotel and the redevelopment of the adjacent 1246 Central Avenue building, which will feature 16,000 square feet of Class A office space and the recently announced Bosphorous Turkish Cuisine on the ground floor.

Phase II will include a 20-story tower with 360 apartment units, 24,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space, and a 356-space parking garage.

Spectrum opens new call center in Largo

Spectrum is opening a new call center in Largo where it will bring 700 new jobs.  

The new residential inbound sales center at 6451 126th Avenue North will host a grand opening later this year.

The 83,200-square-foot building, built in 2013, is across from major employers such as Honeywell Aerospace Technologies and a Leaders Furniture Distribution Center.

Today, Spectrum, owned by parent company Charter Communications, has over 100,000 employees serving nearly 32 million customers in 41 states.

The company has kicked off the hiring process at the new local center. Available jobs can be found here.