Final plans revealed for St. Pete apartment tower • St Pete Catalyst

Nov 05, 2024

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The development team behind a long-planned, 23-story apartment tower has redesigned the previous project set to take shape across the street from Tropicana Field.

Miami-based commercial real estate investment firms LD&D and Black Salmon, in partnership with IGEQ, recently unveiled final renderings of the $115 million development. The joint venture acquired the .77-acre parcel abutting the Pinellas Trail for $9.05 million in December 2023.

The previous owners, St. Petersburg’s Apogee Real Estate Partners, received approval to build a 23-story tower on the property before the firm’s leadership decided to wind down operations and liquidate assets. Diego Bonet, founder of LD&D, said his group has spent nearly a year discerning project details, and the latest plans represent the culmination of that work.

“These renderings are our vision for the project,” Bonet told the Catalyst. “They are the first renderings we’ve put together. We wanted to make it a little bit more unique.”

The developers will build the project, dubbed Gallery Haus, around an existing facility that houses Vertical Ventures climbing gym and The Lock Up Self Storage. The site at 155 17th St. S. sits between the city’s Edge, Grand Central and Warehouse Arts Districts.

Bonet called the final aesthetic “a lot more industrial in nature” and a “little bit more arts-focused.” He said the name pays homage to the Warehouse Arts District.

LD&D and Black Salmon built the visually similar Wynwood Haus, named after the Miami neighborhood known for its creative community. Bonet said the local project’s architecture would also resemble buildings in the trendy Williamsburg area of Brooklyn, New York.

“We love what’s going on in the Warehouse District,” he added. “It reminds us of what Wynwood used to look like in its infancy. We’re seeing a lot of the same cool restaurants, breweries and galleries pop up, and we wanted to connect our building to that a little bit.”

The development will help activate the Pinellas Trail.

The previously planned 23-story tower would have featured 204 units. Gallery Haus will offer 253. While the apartments are slightly smaller, the amenity space increased to over 10,000 square feet.

Bonet said an indoor-outdoor wellness deck with a pool, sauna, cold plunge tanks and a “very large, very cool” fitness area would sit atop a five-story parking garage. The 23rd floor will feature a tenant lounge and coworking space with “stunning views of the downtown skyline and Tampa Bay.”

The rooftop will also offer an outdoor area with a kitchen. Retail space will front 17th Street and the Pinellas Trail.

Bonet said a 1,000-square-foot coffee shop would connect the building’s lobby with 17th Street. The remaining 4,000 square feet of commercial space will help “activate that part of the Pinellas Trail to make it really come alive and come together.”

Bonet expects to break ground in the second quarter of 2025. He said Gallery Haus should open in the summer of 2027.

Bonet saw immense potential in the proposed mixed-use project before he realized a $6.5 billion redevelopment project would soon take shape across the street. The Tampa Bay Rays and Hines development team will break ground in January on a reimagined Gas Plant District anchored by a new ballpark.

Bonet said his group thought the redevelopment’s approval, which came in July, would put an “amazing cherry on top” of their plans. In September, the project received another boost when city officials approved sweeping zoning changes around the Warehouse Arts District.

The transit-oriented land-use amendments and Target Employment Center overlay will support new housing, employment and commercial opportunities while maintaining the area’s creative character. Bonet said Wynwood underwent a similar transformation about seven years ago that “made it all the more exciting.”

“We just think it’s going to be one of the most exciting neighborhoods in the U.S., to be honest,” Bonet said of the Warehouse Arts District. “It’s such a unique and interesting culture that we just wanted to be part of it.”

The developers will build Gallery Haus around an existing facility.

Billy Miller

November 4, 2024at5:03 pm

Waiting for final plans on new water/sewage treatment plant to service these new builds

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