Postcard Inn permanently closes on St. Pete Beach, will reopen as The Luce, a Marriott Tribute Portfolio Hotel

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Postcard Inn permanently closes on St. Pete Beach, will reopen as The Luce, a Marriott Tribute Portfolio Hotel

After decades as a popular St. Pete Beach destination, the Postcard Inn has officially closed its doors for good.

The hotel at 6300 Gulf Boulevard, which has remained vacant since last year’s back-to-back hurricanes, will soon be renovated into The Luce, a Marriott Tribute Portfolio hotel scheduled to open next year.

The change marks the end of an era for the resort, originally built in 1957 as the Colonial Gateway Inn and reimagined as the Postcard Inn in 2009.

In 2024, the hotel’s owners proposed an 87-room expansion to the Postcard Inn, but those plans were ultimately abandoned after Hurricanes Helene and Milton caused significant damage.

The LCP Group, which purchased the property in March 2022 for $83 million, is overseeing a full renovation of the nine-acre beachfront resort, working alongside management firm Crescent Hotels & Resorts.

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Celebrity Chef Geoffrey Zakarian to open new restaurant at The Central in downtown St. Pete

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Celebrity Chef Geoffrey Zakarian to open new restaurant at The Central in downtown St. Pete

Internationally recognized chef and TV personality Geoffrey Zakarian will introduce a new restaurant concept at The Central, a new mixed-use development under construction in St. Petersburg’s EDGE District.

Zakarian, known for his modern American cuisine, more than 25 years of leading top kitchens across the country, and appearances on competitive cooking shows, announced on Tuesday the flagship restaurant will be located in the 168-room Central Hotel within the 2.1-acre development at 1301 Central Avenue. The Central Hotel will be part of Marriott’s Autograph Collection.

“St. Petersburg is a city brimming with energy and creativity, and we are thrilled to create a dining experience that captures that spirit,” Zakarian said in a statement.

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$200 million mixed-use project The Central takes shape on Central Avenue in downtown St. Pete

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$200 million mixed-use project The Central takes shape on Central Avenue in downtown St. Pete

The long-awaited mixed-use development in the heart of St. Pete's EDGE District has hit a construction milestone.

Tampa-based Ellison Development is set to cut the ribbon next month, celebrating the completion of a 531-space parking garage at 1301 Central Avenue, a component of The Central development, a 2.1-acre redevelopment of the old St. Pete Police headquarters that will feature a hotel, a trophy office building, retail, workforce housing, and more.  

The project, which broke ground in February 2024, sits directly across the street from Ferg's Sports Bar and Grill and is near The Edge Collective development, a planned live-work-and-play destination anchored by the newly opened Moxy Hotel.

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