A team of developers has closed on the purchase of a large shopping plaza located at the crossroads of Central Avenue and 34th Street in St. Petersburg’s Union Central District.

St. Pete-based real estate developers Blake Investment Partners and Eastman Equity along with Virginia-based developer Kettler have closed on the Central Plaza Shopping Center at 3365 Central Avenue for $13.3 million.

The three-acre shopping center occupies two city blocks along Central Avenue between 32nd Street and 34th Street. Currently, the retail center has 73,200 leasable square feet and is home to several tenants including a Family Dollar, Hibbett Sports, Citi Trends, and Octapharma Plasma.

The new owners are planning to revitalize the parcel by capitalizing on expiring leases, consolidating the remaining tenants to the western side of the property, and demolishing the eastern half of the shopping center.

The western half of the shopping center, which directly fronts 34th Street, would remain a retail plaza but could potentially be redeveloped in the future.

On the eastern side of the property, a recently released site plan shows a seven-story mixed-use apartment building with 300 to 400 residential units and 17,000 square feet of retail along Central Avenue.

Kettler would take the lead on the multi-family portion of the building while Blake Investment Partners and Eastman Equity will spearhead the vision for the retail.

The plan calls for the parcel to be divided by a new mid-block drive that would separate the new residential building and remaining shopping center. The residential building would feature a 450-space parking garage and resident courtyard along with amenities like a fitness center and club room.

In a conversation with St. Pete Rising, Luke Davis, Chief Investment Officer of Kettler, noted that the details depicted in the recently released site plan are “very fluid and are subject to change.”

“We’re thinking long term and this project is phase one,” says Davis. “This development could potentially be added on to in the future depending on the market.”

The redevelopment would coincide with potential changes to the city’s land development regulations to encourage transit-oriented development along PSTA’s SunRunner bus rapid transit line. The potential zoning changes could come later this year and will allow denser, more flexible development opportunities. The property sits adjacent to a SunRunner bus rapid transit station.

“[A future phase] could just be a continuation of the currently proposed project, or it could be something denser or even an entirely different use,” says Davis. “We will have that flexibility.”

The proposed residential building at 3201 Central Avenue is the latest development proposed for the Union Central District, which was established in 2019 to revitalize the 34th Street corridor in central St. Pete.

Earlier this year, the YMCA of Greater St. Petersburg also selected Blake Investment Partners and Eastman Equity to redevelop a significant 11-acre property at the intersection of 1st Avenue South and 31st Street. The parcel is located just one block south from the group’s recently purchased shopping center.  

Like the proposal for the Central Plaza Shopping Center property, plans for the YMCA property could also include residential units and retail. Given that Blake Investment Partners and Eastman Equity are working on both developments, the uses will likely be complimentary.

Between the three-acre redevelopment of the Central Plaza Shopping Center and the 11-acre YMCA property, there is a lot of opportunity on the horizon for the Union Central District.  

Another real estate development coming to the Union Central District includes the Union Central Townhomes, a 65-unit community being developed by David Weekley Homes on 5th Avenue and 31st Street. Site preparations for that project are underway, and construction could begin later this year.

An expansion of the Burlington Post affordable housing community is also planned which will bring 78 additional units of affordable housing to the neighborhood. The City of St. Petersburg has committed funding to that development and the developers say the project is moving forward.