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06/11/07 New Tropicana Center Development Leads the Way to Establish a Retail Core in Downtown St. Petersburg
On June 6, 2007, the
Environmental Development Commission unanimously approved Tropicana Center ’s site plan to redevelop the city block at 25 2nd Street North as
a mixed-use development consisting of 585 residential units, 151 hotel
rooms and 102,000 sq. ft. of dual floor retail space.
Tropicana Center is a critical project,
desirably needed to bridge the retail stores from Beach Drive, BayWalk, 100
Bay Central and Central Avenue. It provides for a continuous “retail core”
for St. Petersburg’s downtown district.
The redevelopment
project spans an entire city block from Central Avenue and 1st Avenue North to 1st and 2nd Streets North.
Redevelopment of the Tropicana block will revitalize this underutilized
site and will visually link the Mid Core and 100 Bay Central garages
through a shopping galleria.
The city has viewed
this block as one of the most important opportunities for revitalizing the
area adjacent to the waterfront and city’s core. Several developers have
submitted various proposals over the past four years, however none fit the
city-wide renaissance envisioned for the prime block of real estate - until
now. Administration was content to wait for the right project to be
designed, which at a minimum would include two stories of retail space at a
minimum of 100,000 sq. ft. and provide for a well-planned, attractive
pedestrian passage connecting the BayWalk shopping district to the 100 Bay
Central building located between Central and 1st Avenue South.
Tropicana Center consists of a two-phase
development. The 36-story tower (Phase I), located at the west end of the
block, will include 264 residential units, 151 hotel rooms, 400 parking
spaces on four levels, and 46,000 sq. ft. of retail space on two levels.
The 33-story tower (Phase II), located at the east end of the block will
include 321 residential units, 480 parking on four levels and 56,000 square
feet of retail space on two levels. The galleria, which will run continuous
through the middle of the two-towers, will be built during Phase I of
development. The City is requiring the galleria be developed during Phase I
ensuring a pedestrian connection between BayWalk and 100 Bay Central, providing
visibility of the second floor retailers expected to commit to the 46,000
sq. ft. of retail space.
City Administration
believes this project offers an extraordinary public benefit in its street
level design and uses, pedestrian experiences, and architectural features.
Developers Jimmy Aviram and Tibor Hollo were the first to propose a project
that meets the City’s interests and Vision 2020 plan. Ground-breaking for Tropicana Center is expected to begin by the end of the year.
Click
here to
view the city’s downtown project development map (Tropicana Center #51).
Click here to view an architecture rendering
of Tropicana Center’s twin towers and shopping galleria.
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