Hot on the heels of announcing a 22-story apartment building in downtown St. Pete, news of another just west of it broke Tuesday morning. According to the pro-St. Pete development news site St. Pete Rising, the NRP Group is planning to build a nine-story luxury apartment building on the block between Second and Third avenues south, and Fourth and Fifth streets.
The property is a parking lot across the street from the Tampa Bay Times.
Plans for the new development include an eight-story facility with 366 luxury apartments. The ninth floor will be used as an amenity deck. The apartments will wrap around an internal parking garage for residents with another 200 spaces reserved for Times employees.
The NRP Group also developed the neighboring Beacon 430. That 326-unit building sold for $84.5 million in September, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
That recent sale gives apartment developers faith in a downtown residential boom some worry the city can’t sustain. According to St. Pete Rising, there are more than 2,000 units either proposed or already under construction.
St. Pete is attracting residents through its walkable city model and booming downtown. Shopping, dining, and nightlife are already well-established in downtown and outlying communities such as the Edge District, Grand Central, and the Deuces. With the increase in residential properties, other amenities are following. A second Publix is planned for the Edge District.
The latest announced development is expected to break ground within a month with move-ins expected in September 2017.
More apartments and residential units could still be coming to the downtown area. If a deal between the city and the Tampa Bay Rays is approved, the city is expected to begin developing the more than 80 acres of land occupied by Tropicana Field parking as soon as possible. That will include mixed-use development including retail, commercial, and residential.
