Two 44-story towers planned for Hilton Bayfront site in downtown St. Pete
/Two 44-story condo towers will rise on the site of the existing Hilton Bayfront hotel in downtown St. Pete | Kolter Urban
Plans have been revealed for two 44-story condominium towers at the site of the Hilton St. Petersburg Bayfront, in what would be one of the largest condo developments ever proposed for downtown St. Pete.
Delray Beach-based Kolter Urban recently circulated a site plan application to neighborhood and business associations outlining a $325 million redevelopment of the hotel property at 333 1st Street South.
If built as proposed, the towers would rise up to 509 feet. Only two existing or planned towers in St. Petersburg would be taller: the 515-foot Residences at 400 Central and the 539-foot Waldorf Astoria Residences planned at 150 2nd Avenue South.
The two new towers, which have been designed by 10 Design, would tie for the city’s third-tallest buildings, ahead of the 450-foot Art House and ONE St. Petersburg towers and the 408-foot Saltaire.
The proposal calls for 325 condo units, 17,988 square feet of commercial space, and a 519-space parking garage.
Kolter would also make 207 spaces in the adjacent Saltaire garage available to residents, for a total of 726 parking spaces.
The Hilton St. Petersburg Bayfront in 2020, with the 35-story Saltaire condo tower under construction to the north | CoStar
The project has been rumored to carry Ritz-Carlton Residences branding, although Kolter has not announced an affiliation. Kolter is currently building the 20-story, 78-residence Ritz-Carlton Residences Sarasota Bay, which is expected to be delivered later this year.
The two towers would replace the existing 15-story Hilton hotel on a 3.01-acre site at the northeast corner of 2nd Street South and 4th Avenue South.
Plans show one tower oriented toward 1st Street South and the other toward the corner of 2nd Street South and 4th Avenue South.
The application lists 1.32 million square feet of proposed building area, compared with about 344,000 square feet at the existing hotel.
Kolter is seeking approval for a 7.0 floor-area ratio, or FAR, a measure of development intensity based on a building’s total floor area relative to the site.
The application says vehicle and pedestrian access would be provided from 1st Street South, 2nd Street South, and 4th Avenue South.
Site Plan for Kolter’s twin 44-story towers in downtown St. Pete | Kolter Urban
Kolter bought the Hilton Bayfront earlier this year for $96 million, after completing Saltaire on the hotel’s former parking lot in 2023. The company had previously said it intended to eventually redevelop the 1970s-era hotel with a taller residential project but had not released a height, unit count, or design.
The two-tower project would add to Kolter’s growing downtown St. Petersburg portfolio. The company completed ONE St. Petersburg in 2019, a 41-story tower with 253 condominiums and a Hyatt Place hotel; Saltaire in 2023, with 192 condominiums; and Art House earlier this year, a 42-story tower with 244 condominiums.
Kolter also has approval for a 21-story, 62-unit condominium tower at the former Fit2Run site along 2nd Street North, across from Sundial.
Outside the city, Kolter is also planning Water Club St. Pete Beach, a waterfront condominium project at the eastern end of Corey Avenue. The latest plans call for 129 condominiums in two eight-story buildings, along with retail and restaurant space, a public park, a marina, and waterfront access.
The new downtown St. Pete project would have more residences than any of the city’s completed condominium towers, including the 301-unit Residences at 400 Central. The 50-story Waldorf Astoria Residences will have 163 condominiums, along with office and retail space.
No project name, unit pricing, construction timeline, or hotel closure date has been announced.
