January 13, 2025

Chef Chris Ponte announces opening date for modern Italian restaurant OLIVIA in St. Pete

January 13, 2025/ Veronica Brezina

Tampa Bay's prestigious Chef Chris Ponte has set an opening date for OLIVIA, a modern Italian restaurant coming to downtown St. Pete.

The 5,550-square-foot restaurant, which was announced in March 2023, will open on January 21st on the ground floor of the recently completed 36-story Ascent apartment and hotel tower at 225 1st Avenue North.

OLIVIA’s flagship Tampa location debuted in 2019 in Tampa and has garnered a loyal following for delivering all the authentic flavors of a traditional Italian trattoria with innovative, modern touches from the mind of Chef Ponte, a past nominee for the highly prestigious James Beard Foundation Award.

January 10, 2025

New SunRunner station opens by St. Pete Pier, PSTA launches "After Dark" service

January 10, 2025/ Veronica Brezina

A new SunRunner station has opened in downtown St. Pete, aiming to better connect residents and visitors to the St. Pete Pier District and businesses along Beach Drive.

Friday morning, the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA), Congresswoman Kathy Castor, State Representative Lindsay Cross, St. Petersburg City Councilmembers, and others celebrated the ribbon-cutting for the new station at 150 1st Avenue North.

The 1st Avenue North station, which was completed in six months, is located near popular downtown restaurants and bars such as Who’s on First, Tequila Daisy, and Social Roost.

It's one of over 30 stops along the 10.3-mile bus rapid transit route that debuted in October 2022, linking downtown St. Petersburg to St. Pete Beach via dedicated lanes running along 1st Avenue North and 1st Avenue South.

January 10, 2025

Downtown St. Pete development site near Central Avenue hits the market

January 10, 2025/ Veronica Brezina

A redevelopment site in the heart of downtown St. Petersburg has hit the market.

The property is located one block from Central Avenue at 125 5th Street South and sits across the street from the 46-story Residences at 400 Central building, which is slated to be completed later this year. The parcel currently houses an 11,357-square-foot office building anchored by Wells Fargo Bank.

“This property has generated a lot of interest from developers over the past few years who wanted to redevelop the property into a high-rise tower,” Vector Commercial Real Estate Services Broker Blakemore Kearney said to St. Pete Rising.

January 09, 2025

21-story apartment tower proposed near USF in downtown St. Pete

January 09, 2025/ Veronica Brezina

A local developer has proposed to construct a 21-story, 213-unit apartment building directly across from the University of South Florida in downtown St. Pete.

St. Pete-based real estate company Stadler Development has filed a site plan application with the city for a $67 million tower that is expected to rise on a 0.69-acre property at 446 4th Street South, which is currently home to a 5,000-square-foot commercial building occupied by Fresenius Kidney Care American Dialysis Center.

“This site will deliver the demand for the Innovation District. The whole community, including students and hospital workers, should be well-served by this project,” Stadler Development Managing Partner John Stadler said in a conversation with St. Pete Rising.

January 06, 2025

East Indian street food restaurant Mowgli’s Tiffin debuts in the EDGE District

January 06, 2025/ Veronica Brezina

In a quiet corner of downtown St. Pete in the former Chi-town Beefs and Dogs space, a new Indian restaurant introduces Bengali street food to the Sunshine City.

First-time restaurateur and founder Amita Mukherjee quietly opened Mowgli's Tiffin earlier this week at 165 Doctor Martin Luther King Jr. Street North, bringing kati rolls and other dishes from the streets of Kolkata to the EDGE District.

“Mowgli's Tiffin celebrates the rich tapestry of Bengali culture,” Mukherjee said to St. Pete Rising. “The street food we are making is akin to the delicious bites you’d find on the streets of India.”

The quaint, 540-square-foot restaurant is named after the wild, curious, and adventurous boy named Mowgli from Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book. Additionally, the Indian word tiffin means lunchbox and, in certain parts of India, a light meal or snack eaten anytime between lunch and dinner.

Mukherjee's parents immigrated to the United States from India over 50 years ago. She was raised in St. Pete and says she hasn’t found many restaurants in town serving the Indian dishes she misses from her homeland. In particular, street food holds a special place in her heart, so Mowgli's will serve dishes that remind her of West Bengal in eastern India.