Transformative projects planned for St. Pete Beach

By Breanne Williams via Tampa Bay Business Journal | July 22, 2022 | Click here to view the original article

St. Pete Beach may soon be undergoing a massive transformation as two large projects prepare to launch.

TradeWinds Island Resorts, which is owned by 1754 Properties, is planning to add a mixed-use project to the existing resort called Next Generation TradeWinds. The resort has operated on the beach for more than 60 years. Less than two miles away, a mixed-use project is expected to bring housing, retail and a restaurant to a long-vacant area.

TradeWinds to expand

Plans for the expansion of TradeWinds include building 33,000 square feet of conference space, 18,000 square feet of street-level retail and 650 new upscale guest rooms.

Other changes include 30-foot-wide direct beach access, three new parking garages, three new swimming pools and a multimillion-dollar stormwater upgrade that will fix the flooding that pools at the entrance of the property. Joe Smith, CEO and founder of 1754 Properties, told the Tampa Bay Business Journal they are also planning to nearly double the size of the sidewalks on Gulf Boulevard.

“We just saw a tremendous demand in the market for upscale accommodations on the beach that don’t really exist today,” Smith previously told the Business Journal.

The focus of the expansion is to create a luxury atmosphere, not on maxing out density. Smith said the proposal is for slightly more than half of what the city’s code permits for the site. There’s a focus on landscaping and unique amenities throughout the property.

The project will be built in phases and is still subject to city approvals. The group held its first official neighborhood meeting on July 14. The expansion will be privately funded and is expected to bring more than $19 million in additional annual tax revenue to the city. It will create approximately 300 new permanent jobs and 500 construction-related jobs.

Corey Landing

Another project located on approximately 4 acres on St. Pete Beach received final approval from city commissioners in March. The more than $100 million mixed-use development will have a public park, 12,000 square feet of retail and commercial space, a 5,000-square-foot restaurant space and 243 Class A residential units.

South Florida-based Ram Realty Advisors is developing the property at the end of Corey Avenue. The restaurant space will be broken down to 3,500 square feet for indoor dining and 1,500 square feet for a patio. The plans show there will be eight Class A transient slips at a dock by the restaurant. The 0.7-acre public park will connect the waterfront restaurant to the mixed-use building.

"If you look at the way this site is positioned, most of the units have these long views looking south down the Bay," Jim Stine, president of Ram Realty Advisors, previously told the Tampa Bay Business Journal. "It's just beautiful open water views. Nothing has been built, there's no new product in that marketplace. I think it's been maybe 30 years since there's been any real development there." The property is vacant, but was once home to the Bay Winds motel, Bay View Heights Apartments and the Leverock’s restaurant.

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ABOUT RAM Ram Realty Advisors LLC acquires and develops retail, multifamily, and mixed-use properties in select high-growth markets throughout the Southeast. The investments are capitalized by Ram-sponsored discretionary private equity funds and institutional co-investment vehicles. Since 1996, Ram has deployed in excess of $3.5 billion of capital. Ram and its predecessor entities were founded in 1978. The company is headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, and has offices in Tampa, Florida; Charlotte and Chapel Hill, North Carolina; and Nashville, Tennessee. www.ramrealestate.com MEDIA CONTACTS: On behalf of Ram Realty Advisors: Kelly Owens Alchemy Communications Group ko@alchemycommgroup.com mobile: 561.222.4958 office: 561.935.9953 ext. 101

Travis Williams Vice President of Development - Central Florida Ram Realty Advisors twilliams@ramrealestate.com