A new open-air cocktail bar from the hospitality group behind Forbici Modern Italian is preparing to open in downtown St. Petersburg later this month.

Drift Bar will officially open on Saturday, November 28th, at 155 2nd Avenue North in the courtyard of Sundial, bringing tropical cocktails, casual bar food, and live entertainment to the downtown shopping and dining complex.

The grand opening celebration will begin at 3 p.m. with complimentary bites and the full food and drink menus available for purchase.

DJ Fresh will take the stage at 6 p.m., while the Tampa Bay Lightning's game against the Florida Panthers will be shown on a large screen. No reservations are required.

Drift Bar is a collaboration between Next Level Brands, the Tampa-based hospitality group that opened Forbici Modern Italian at Sundial earlier this year, and Paradise Ventures, which co-owns the complex with Ally Capital Group.

A 380-home apartment and townhome community has been proposed for the eastern side of Derby Lane in north St. Pete, while a later phase calls for demolishing the existing casino building and rebuilding it elsewhere on the property.

The planned redevelopment of the 130-acre site at 10490 Gandy Boulevard North includes residential, commercial, and industrial uses, according to a conceptual plan submitted to Pinellas County in early October.

The proposal follows the April 2025 acquisition of Derby Lane through a merger between St. Petersburg Kennel Club Inc. and Connecticut-based Rally Acquisition Co.

At the time, representatives for the new ownership said they intended to develop the property while continuing its gaming operations, but specific plans had not been disclosed.

Greyhound racing ended at Derby Lane in December 2020 after Florida voters approved a constitutional amendment banning commercial greyhound racing statewide. The facility continues to operate as a gaming venue, offering poker, table games, and simulcast wagering.

More than five years after it was first announced, modern Asian restaurant Kojo is finally ready to welcome diners to downtown St. Pete.

Kojo will soft open Friday, November 13th, at 5 p.m. on the third floor of Central Park, the five-story food hall at 551 Central Avenue.

Reservations for the restaurant are available through Resy.

Unlike the fast-casual food hall downstairs, Kojo will offer a full-service dining experience, seating about 115 guests in its dining room and at the kitchen counter. The restaurant specializes in modern Asian cuisine, drawing on flavors from Japan, China, Korea, and Taiwan.

“Full-service restaurants are really what we have been doing as a company,” Robert Castellon, Director of Operations at Hi Hospitality Group, said in a conversation with St. Pete Rising. “The food hall is our first step in a different direction. We created a format where guests can build their own experience. So it feels awesome to step back into our comfort zone.”

The menu at Kojo offers plenty of options for sharing, including shrimp and pork gyoza, truffled chicken wontons, and crispy chicken wings tossed in a Sichuan soy glaze.

After five years away, The Moon Under Water is reopening on Monday, November 16th, at 5 p.m., bringing its British pub fare, Indian curries, and extensive beer selection to downtown Gulfport.

The restaurant, which operated for more than two decades on Beach Drive in downtown St. Petersburg, has found a new home at 2832 Beach Boulevard South, formerly occupied by The Drunken Taco, which closed in September 2025.

The reopening will bring back longtime favorites, including fish and chips, shepherd’s pie, bangers and mash, and a variety of Indian curries ranging from tikka masala to vindaloo.

The Moon Under Water first opened in 1997 at 332 Beach Drive NE. Founded by Alan and Suzanne Lucas, who moved to St. Pete from Wales, the British Colonial pub operated for nearly 25 years before closing in 2021, when the space was converted into Ceviche.

Beginning this Thursday, visitors to the EDGE District of downtown St. Pete will find original artwork in some unexpected places, including a tattoo shop, a thrift store, and even the St. Petersburg Police Department.

The first Booker Creek Arts Festival kicks off tomorrow and runs through Sunday, with 122 juried works by Florida artists on display at 35 venues across the EDGE District.

Unlike traditional art festivals, there won't be rows of tents or streets closed to traffic. Instead, visitors will explore the neighborhood on foot, stopping inside local businesses to view artwork, vote for their favorite pieces, and purchase original works.

The free, four-day festival spans the EDGE District, which runs along Central Avenue from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Street (9th Street) to 16th Street, and from 1st Avenue North to 1st Avenue South.

Participating locations include Classic Tattoos, TeBella Tea Company, Sans Market, Intermezzo Coffee & Cocktails, CASA Thrift, Ashe Couture, Matter of Fact, COPA, Full Court Classics, the St. Petersburg Police Department, and more.

“The whole idea of this is to promote art and business, and to show how art really is an economic driver for businesses,” said Leslie Curran, festival committee chair, in a conversation with St. Pete Rising.

A new vintage boutique specializing in women's clothing and accessories from the late 1990s and early 2000s is coming to the Grand Central District of St. Pete.

Clique Vintage is expected to open later this month at 2042 Central Avenue, in an 800-square-foot storefront between The St. Pete Barber Shop and Crispy Avenue Cafe.

Behind the boutique is 25-year-old Cammie Peebles, who has spent the past several years selling vintage clothing online and at local markets.

Peebles grew up in Historic Kenwood and remembers visiting the former Haslam's Book Store as a child.

"It's so full circle," Peebles said in a conversation with St. Pete Rising. "If only I knew when I was little that I was going to be opening a store right across the street, I would have thought I was so cool."

Clique Vintage will carry a curated assortment of Y2K fashion, including beaded cami tops, denim mini skirts, silk slip dresses, leather shoulder bags, and kitten heels.

Juici Patties, Jamaica's largest patty restaurant chain, is opening its first St. Petersburg location at 3252 Central Avenue.

The restaurant will occupy an endcap space formerly home to Metro by T-Mobile at Central Plaza, a shopping center next to PSTA’s Grand Central bus terminal.

Interior renovations are underway, with an estimated construction cost of $465,000, according to a permit application filed in October.

The restaurant is expected to open in early 2027.

The St. Pete restaurant is part of the brand’s expansion into the Tampa Bay area. The company recently opened a location near University Square Mall in Tampa.

The chain's story began in Jamaica, where founder Jukie Chin started making beef patties in his mother's kitchen and selling them at his parents' grocery store.

More than six years after the Wagon Wheel Flea Market closed its doors, plans are taking shape to redevelop the sprawling property that was once home to one of Pinellas County's most popular weekend shopping destinations.

Pinellas Park-based Belleair Development Group is under contract to purchase approximately 156 acres at 7801 Park Boulevard North, where the Wagon Wheel and Mustang flea markets operated for more than five decades before closing in 2020.

Christian Yepes, owner of Belleair Development Group alongside his father, Carlos Yepes, confirmed the company is exploring options for a mixed-use development that could bring residential and commercial uses to the largely vacant property.

“We are extremely grateful for the opportunity to develop such a landmark in Pinellas County. We are currently in the midst of due diligence and are exploring mixed-use development options at the site,” Yepes said in a conversation with St. Pete Rising.

The property is currently owned by the family of Hardy Huntley, who founded the Wagon Wheel Flea Market with his wife, Janet, in the 1960s.

A new training center near the EDGE District wants to give runners and cyclists a reason to stick around after their workouts.

Orange Belt Collective is targeting a summer 2027 opening at 1501 Burlington Avenue North, combining endurance-focused fitness spaces with a public café, a grab-and-go market, and an outdoor gathering area.

For founders Michael Rideout and Nathan Stonecipher, the idea grew out of the CRIT Championship Tour, a bicycle race they helped bring to the EDGE District in 2023.

A group ride associated with the event brought hundreds of cyclists from different clubs, bike shops, and generations to Green Bench Brewing, filling Baum Avenue with bikes.

Afterward, people hung around to talk with riders they might otherwise have never met.

For Rideout, it was a welcome departure from the usual routine, when cyclists finish a group ride and head their separate ways.

The City of St. Petersburg has closed a $6.4 million land sale for The Central, a planned $200 million mixed-use development in the EDGE District, completing a property transfer that had held up construction for months.

The deal was signed on Election Day, November 3rd, the same day Charlie Crist defeated Mayor Ken Welch, transferring portions of the former police headquarters property at 1300 1st Avenue North to entities affiliated with Ellison Development.

The closing clears the way for continued work on the 2.1-acre development, which will include Class A offices, a Marriott Autograph Collection hotel, retail space, 42 workforce apartments, and public gathering spaces.

“This is a big day for The Central and for the EDGE District,” Casey Ellison, president and CEO of Ellison Development, said in a press release. “The excitement surrounding this project has continued to grow, and this milestone brings us one step closer to delivering a destination that will create new opportunities and fresh energy to the neighborhood.”

For nearby businesses and residents, the most visible progress so far has been the 531-space public parking garage, which opened in June 2025 across from Ferg’s Sports Bar.

The sale excludes 400 parking spaces spread across five floors of the garage, matching the number of public spaces promised when the redevelopment proposal was selected in 2019.

The St. Petersburg Housing Authority (SPHA) plans to expand Clearview Park Apartments with a four-story, 47-unit building that would give leasing preference to seniors, while renovating the community’s existing affordable family housing.

The project at 3200 37th Avenue North would bring new apartments to an undeveloped portion of the property and update homes that have served residents for more than four decades.

For SPHA President and CEO Michael Lundy, the decision to pursue senior housing started with the agency’s waiting list.

“We look at the waiting list, and we see a lot of need for elderly housing,” Lundy said in a conversation with St. Pete Rising.

Clearview Park currently has 22 garden-style apartments that were built in 1982 on a 3.12-acre site owned by the housing authority.

Under the proposal, 18 existing apartments would be renovated, while four would be demolished to create road access to the new building. Once complete, the property would have 65 apartments, a net increase of 43.

A former parking lot near Historic Kenwood is now home to Burlington Post II, a 75-unit affordable apartment community for seniors.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held last Wednesday to celebrate the opening.

Every apartment at the five-story building at 3295 Burlington Avenue North is income restricted, and the property must remain affordable for at least 50 years.

For some of its first residents, the move followed rising rents that made their previous homes increasingly difficult to afford.

Tabari Lewis, community manager with Royal American Management, said in a conversation with St. Pete Rising that many residents learned about Burlington Post II through friends, family, and city housing services while searching for a more affordable place to live.

Nordstrom Rack is coming to Seminole City Center, taking over the Sportsman’s Warehouse space as the outdoor retailer prepares to close in January.

The new 32,914-square-foot store is planned for 7967 113th Street North, according to construction bidding documents that identify EMJ Construction as the general contractor.

The project will bring the Seattle-based retailer’s discounted clothing, shoes, accessories, and home goods to the shopping center.

Sportsman’s Warehouse will close January 11th, 2027. The store is currently offering 25% off merchandise, excluding guns, ammunition, and optics.

The departure comes a little more than four years after Sportsman’s Warehouse opened its Seminole location in September 2022. The store sells hunting and fishing equipment, camping supplies, outdoor apparel, and other sporting goods.

At Kava Social Club in Bradenton, the morning coffee crowd and the late-night regulars sometimes arrive just a couple of hours apart.

Students study during the day, remote workers settle in with their laptops, and bartenders stop by after closing out their shifts.

Owner Ryan Bodie says there can still be 15 to 20 people hanging out at 4 a.m. By six, customers are arriving on their way to work.

Now, the business is bringing those around-the-clock hours to Pinellas Park.

Kava Social Club plans to open its second location in January at 9600 66th Street North, formerly home to True Roots Kava Lounge & Smoke Shop.

The 2,100-square-foot space is undergoing a complete interior renovation, including a new tea kitchen.

Once open, it will serve kava, kratom, THC-infused beverages, kombucha, herbal teas, and coffee 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Kava is made from the root of a plant native to the South Pacific, where it has long been shared at social gatherings and ceremonies. People often drink it to relax and unwind, seeking a sense of calm that has helped make kava bars a popular alternative to going out for alcohol.

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.

As The Chattaway’s final afternoon tea reservations filled up, pieces of its English tea room were already being packed away.

Pictures of Queen Elizabeth II came off the walls. Cups and saucers were wrapped for the move. Customers came for one last tea service before the restaurant changed hands, and many had the same question for Amanda Kitto: Where would she serve tea next?

At the time, she didn’t have an answer. Now she does.

Violet’s Cuppa Tea plans to open Sunday, November 15th at 5325 Gulfport Boulevard, offering traditional English afternoon tea in a pink building next to The Boulevard Shoppe and across from Habana Cafe.

Owner Amanda Kitto is the youngest daughter of Jillian Frers, whose family operated The Chattaway for decades before selling the south St. Pete restaurant and property in September.

The sale preserved one of the most historic and longest-running restaurants in St. Pete. But while the burgers and garden remained, the new owners converted the English-inspired tea room into additional restaurant seating and discontinued afternoon tea.

Kitto, who began working at The Chattaway at age 14, decided to continue it herself.

After years of holding services in trailers and renting venues for larger gatherings, the Chabad Jewish Center of Greater St. Petersburg has a new downtown home.

The two-story Chabad Center for Jewish Life and Learning at 533 4th Street North brings worship, classes, community meals, and celebrations together in a 14,000-square-foot building with a sanctuary, social hall, classrooms, library, commercial kosher kitchen, and rooftop deck.

Rabbi Alter Korf and his wife, Chaya Korf, celebrated the opening alongside hundreds of community members and supporters at a ribbon-cutting ceremony this past Sunday, October 25th. Programming began in the building in April.

“Today we don’t just mark the completion of the building but celebrate the beginning of a new era,” Rabbi Korf said during the ceremony.

The opening marks a significant change for an organization that has spent more than two decades working out of smaller spaces across St. Petersburg.

Ice & Cream Creamery is bringing small-batch ice cream, hand-spun milkshakes, and more to downtown St. Pete.

The local ice cream chain will open at 648 Central Avenue, formerly home to Brutique, which closed in July after nine years in business.

The new shop will be the eighth location for Ice & Cream Creamery, which has seven existing stores throughout Pinellas County, including two on Clearwater Beach and one each in Madeira Beach, Dunedin, St. Pete Beach, Treasure Island, and Gulfport.

The creamery says its ice cream is made fresh in small batches using locally sourced ingredients, with a selection of 48 flavors.

The flavors lean toward the classics, with options like butter pecan, rocky road, cookies and cream, and mint chip, plus varieties such as red velvet cake, salted caramel peanut, coconut almond fudge, and chocolate fudge brownie.

Other options include Stellar Coffee, pistachio, dulce de leche, and Dreamsicle, which swirls vanilla ice cream with orange sherbet.

A 5.98-acre, partly vacant property in Pinellas Park is slated for redevelopment into a mixed-use project with apartments, retail and office space.

On Tuesday, October 20th, the Pinellas Park City Council approved a major Planned Unit Development (PUD) amendment for a 32-unit, four-story apartment building and an 8,000-square-foot, two-story building with a clubhouse and commercial space at 7725 78th Street North.

The property currently houses a 9,700-square-foot wedding venue and catering establishment, M & N Event Hall, which would remain. To the north and west are vacant commercial properties in unincorporated Pinellas County, formerly the Wagon Wheel Flea Market.

The Morning Sesh, a new coffee shop operating out of a 1965 vintage camper, will begin popping up around St. Pete in late winter or early spring 2027.

The 11-foot blue-and-white trailer will serve espresso drinks, matcha, chai, and dirty sodas at farmers markets, apartment complexes, and other events.

Owners Jenna and Adrian Turpin are also looking into stops at hospitals and hope to eventually organize a run club through the business.

The trailer will carry the motto “made for mornings, built for community,” and the owners hope customers will stick around to chat after picking up their drinks.

Jenna’s currently testing recipes for the menu, including a signature Morning Sesh latte featuring a housemade syrup with brown butter, honey, brown sugar, vanilla bean paste, and flaky sea salt.

Other drinks in development include a coconut matcha, an orange-and-vanilla latte, and a salted caramel latte topped with vanilla cold foam. The menu will also include cold brew, chai, and hot chocolate, with oat and almond milk available at no extra charge.

Rosemary House plans to open in early 2027 at 325 1st Street South, on the ground floor of Saltaire, the 35-story condominium tower developed by Kolter Urban and completed in 2023.

The 1,500-square-foot space will feature a retail area near the front windows and a studio toward the back.

Visitors will be able to take a class, browse the shop, or stop in for a purchase without participating in a workout.

“It was really important for us to have a substantial retail component. We want you to feel good outside of the studio too,” one of the founders said in a conversation with St. Pete Rising. “It’s not just a really hard workout, and then you go home and you’re eating fried food.”

The shop will carry products ranging from face wash, deodorant, and sunscreen to candles, laundry detergent, and household cleaners. Supplements and hydration products will also be available.

Two years after Hurricane Helene devastated Willy’s Burgers & Booze, the St. Pete Beach watering hole is preparing for a comeback.

The open-air bar and restaurant at 645 Corey Avenue announced recently that construction is beginning following a lengthy permitting process.

A reopening date has not been announced.

“The road back has been anything but easy,” the business shared on Facebook. “We have spent the past 14 months working through the permitting process, navigating delays and obstacles, and doing everything we can to make this day possible.”

“There have been times when the process felt overwhelming, but we have never lost sight of what Willy’s means to so many people,” the post continued.

Known for its burgers, affordable drinks, and laid-back, beachy atmosphere, Willy’s has been closed since the hurricanes of late 2024.

After months of renovating a former convenience store and fine-tuning recipes, the owners of Kitty’s House of Pizza are getting ready to welcome their first customers next month in St. Pete’s Central Oak Park neighborhood.

The pizzeria at 4059 5th Avenue North will serve scratch-made pies that owners Steve Garrahan and Kurt Drake hope will give nearby residents something to crave.

Garrahan and Drake, the founders of Bright Ice Scoop Shop, first announced the concept in December 2025. Since then, they have been developing a small menu built around familiar flavors with a few unexpected ingredients.

“We want the pizzas to be distinct, but we don’t want them to be weird for the sake of being weird,” Garrahan said in a conversation with St. Pete Rising.

One of the owners’ favorites is the Golden Hour, which contains a creamy pepperoncini pepper white base with mozzarella, housemade sausage, red onions, pepperoncini rings, and roasted red peppers.

Three years after leaving downtown St. Pete, Acropolis Greek Taverna is returning to Central Avenue with its familiar Greek dishes, lively celebrations, and a new underground lounge.

The restaurant will open at 475 Central Avenue, the former home of Concrete Jungle, which closed in January after just over two years in business.

A grand opening is planned for mid-December.

Acropolis previously spent 12 years at 515 Central Avenue before closing in 2023 following a dispute with its landlord.

For Sam Waez, who co-founded Acropolis in 2001, the past three years have been spent looking for a way back to St. Pete.

“This is my backyard. All my people are here, all my friends,” Waez said in a conversation with St. Pete Rising. “I like being here.”

A new pinball bar will open in the EDGE District this winter with a lineup spanning superheroes, dinosaurs, horror movies, and a decades-old machine that helped inspire the business.

The Lucky Flipper is targeting an early December opening at 915 Central Avenue, the former home of Machine Shop Barber Company.

Owner Matthew Scott is building a 1,600-square-foot venue with 16 to 18 pinball machines, 3-6 classic arcade cabinets, and a bar focused on local and Florida-made beer.

Rather than a dark, neon-lit arcade, Scott wants the space to feel bright, approachable, and unmistakably St. Pete. The venue’s branding uses coral and teal colors and a roseate spoonbill, a bird Scott often sees near his Crescent Lake home.

Guests will pay daily admission, currently planned at $14, for unlimited play and the ability to come and go throughout the day.

Scott said he is considering discounted date nights, memberships, military discounts, and other special offers.

A new café named for one of Pinellas County’s noisiest residents is coming soon to Gulfport.

Nanday Café will open at 3107 Beach Boulevard South, the former home of GulfPerk Coffee Bar. The locally owned café will serve coffee, breakfast, and lunch, according to its website.

GulfPerk remained closed after sustaining extensive damage during Hurricane Helene in late 2024 and announced in July that it would not reopen after three years in business.

The café’s name comes from the loud-mouthed nanday parakeets frequently seen, and heard, around Pinellas County. The green birds have become something of an unofficial mascot of the area.

Native to South America, nanday parakeets first appeared outside captivity in St. Petersburg in 1969.

A new sensory play studio designed for young children will open in Pinellas Park next month.

Willow & Wonder will celebrate its grand opening Sunday, November 1st, at 6541 44th Street North, Unit 6004, near the recently opened Sprowls Horizon Sports Park.

The 1,700-square-foot studio is designed for children ages 0 to 7 and will offer a lower-stimulation alternative to traditional indoor playgrounds.

During 90-minute open-play sessions, children can move at their own pace between a play area, rotating sensory stations, and an art studio.

Each visit will include themed sensory bins and a process-art activity, and children will leave with a craft.

The woodland-themed studio will contain a collection of custom-made wood furnishings, including a play cottage, mud kitchen, dollhouse, children’s tables and chairs, and a crawler area for infants.

A vacant site across from Lealman Elementary School will become a permanently affordable townhome community for 26 local families.

Habitat for Humanity Tampa Bay Gulfside and local officials gathered Thursday at 4000 58th Avenue North to mark the start of infrastructure work for Lealman Heights, a two-story townhome development at the corner of 58th Avenue North and 40th Street North.

The 26 townhomes are part of a broader 57-home Habitat community in Lealman, which will also include 31 single-family homes now under construction.

“Lealman Heights represents more than the construction of new homes,” Mike Sutton, president and CEO of Habitat for Humanity Tampa Bay Gulfside, said at the groundbreaking. “It represents opportunity, stability, and a brighter future for local families who have worked hard and dreamed of the chance to own a home in the community they love.”

The 26 townhomes will each span 1,500 square feet and include three bedrooms and a garage. The homes will be priced between $240,000 and $280,000, based on a buyer’s income.

High Point Engineering and G2 Design are leading the project team.

Habitat expects vertical construction to begin in summer 2027.

A beachfront property known for its pink cottage-style villas on St. Pete Beach could be replaced with a six-story, 34-room resort under plans recently presented to neighboring condominium owners.

Kevin Bowden, who owns the Miramar Beach Resort on St. Pete Beach and the Cambria Hotel in Madeira Beach, is proposing to redevelop the 0.89-acre Beach Haven Villas property at 4980 Gulf Boulevard.

The property is in St. Pete Beach’s Large Resort District, which allows up to 50 hotel rooms per acre.

Bowden purchased Beach Haven Villas for approximately $6.24 million in January 2025.

The 1949-built hotel temporarily closed after Hurricanes Helene and Milton damaged several units. It has since reopened following repairs but does not meet current FEMA requirements.

Under the proposed plan, the existing 18-unit hotel, pool, and parking area would be demolished for a new 34-room boutique resort with covered parking at ground level, four floors of guest rooms, a restaurant and bar overlooking the Gulf of Mexico, and an open-air, covered rooftop lounge.

Pre-leasing is now underway at 3rd & 3rd, a 33-story apartment tower expected to welcome its first residents in mid-December in downtown St. Petersburg.

The 262-unit building is located at 235 3rd Street South across from the Publix-anchored University Village shopping center. Third Lake Partners, along with St. Pete-based developer Echelon, are developing the project.

KAST Construction broke ground on the tower about two years ago.

3rd & 3rd will include one-, two-, three-, and four-bedroom residences, including three four-bedroom penthouses, along with a 330-space parking garage and approximately 15,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space.

One-bedrooms are currently priced from $2,730 to $3,075 a month, while two-bedroom residences start at $4,570 and three-bedroom units start at $8,585.

The development is already 20% reserved, according to Echelon Senior Vice President of Development Cody LeClair.