St. Pete’s Grand Central District continues to draw interest from local business owners and developers as demand for commercial space and new housing spreads beyond the downtown core. A recent land sale in the heart of the neighborhood will soon pave the way for the District’s next mixed-use development.

Vertica Commercial Advisors, a subsidiary of Vertica Partners, a Tampa-based real estate advisory and investment firm, has announced the sale of a parcel at the southwest corner of Central Avenue and 28th Street to ASH Developers. The quarter-acre site sold for $740,000, or $70 per square foot. The property also sits in an Opportunity Zone.

Vertica Founding Partners, T. Sean Lance and Max Boehmer, had the exclusive right to sell the property and represented the owners in the transaction. Jessica Dwyer of Klace & Company represented ASH Developers.

“The amount of new development and new tenants to the area is truly transforming the district,” stated Boehmer. “Vertica is also currently under contract with a buyer on the adjacent 0.88-acre site to the south for a residential development which will be closing next quarter, further adding to the growth of the neighborhood.”

ASH Developers, which recently completed a mixed-use development at 2641 Central Avenue, is proposing a five-story, 25,000 square foot building at 2800 Central Avenue that will contain 14 condominium units, including two penthouse units, along with two ground floor commercial spaces fronting Central Avenue.

The building is being designed by St. Pete-based Fraze Design. Each 1,650 square foot unit will contain two bedrooms, a den, and two bathrooms. Penthouse units will have three bedrooms and two and a half bathrooms.

Finishes will be comparable to the previous project at 2641 Central Avenue says Andrew Hunsicker, Principal at ASH Developers, and will include luxury plank flooring, solid core doors, European wood cabinets, and solid surface quartz countertops.

The real gem of 2800 Central Avenue will be the massive 20’x10’ balconies that will adorn each residential unit and front Central Avenue. Penthouse units will have even larger balconies that will feature outdoor kitchens. “You’ll be able to place a couch and a table out there,” explains Hunsicker, “These balconies will provide a lot of outdoor living space.”

Each unit will include an assigned parking space that will be securely located under the building. Each penthouse unit will have two assigned spaces. Pricing for the residential units is expected to begin in the low-$500,000’s.

The retail units will also be for sale, but pricing has yet to be determined. However, the building’s location at a high-profile corner in the Grand Central District will likely generate significant demand.

Just across the street from the project is Driftwood on Central, an 11-unit work-live townhome development at Central Avenue and 29th Street. Driftwood recently broke ground and is already sold out – a sign of the area’s growing popularity.

At St. Pete Rising, we anticipate development in the Grand Central District to continue, with the area capitalizing on its location between the Warehouse Arts District, Historic Kenwood, and downtown St. Pete. In the coming months, we expect to announce more developments coming soon to the neighborhood, which will bring new businesses and residents to the area.

Construction on 2800 Central Avenue is not contingent on pre-sales and a groundbreaking is expected this fall. Completion is slated for the end of 2022.

For more information on 2800 Central Avenue, visit their website.