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Condominiums …
It's hard to say for sure who is giddier, the developers
who are selling out residential projects in downtown
St. Petersburg before ground is even broken or the
people paying prices that were unimaginable even
three years ago.
Let's call it a tie.
 According
to April 2005 statistics from the city, more than
700 new units have been built downtown since 1998,
with 250 more under construction. But more than
2,800 additional units have been proposed - and
by the time you read this, that number will be six
months out of date.
Parkshore Place is a few months shy of completion
but has been sold out for months. 1010 Central sold
out before the first shovel was turned. And The
Sage, a 112-unit complex now selling reservations
at 419 4th Avenue South, stretches the definition
of downtown even further. Grady Pridgen announced
a lot of new projects in 2004 and '05, including
Bayway Lofts and a mixeduse Central Avenue project
that will incorporate the Florida Sports Hall of
Fame and 360 residential units, leading to some
skepticism about how many of his developments will
come out of the ground.
"Look at what he's come through with already,"
counters Margiotta. "You can't miss Valpak. It is
real. I don't know that 100 percent of his projects
will come out of the ground, but I don't know any
that haven't gone forward yet."
One of the most exciting condominium towers is
Signature Place. If built as planned to 366 feet,
it will be the tallest occupied structure, topping
the former champion, the Bank of America tower,
by a few feet.
 But
the tower's height isn't the main reason people
are buzzing about it. That is occurring because
the design by Perkins+Will architect Ralph Johnson
- one of America's most revered architects - is
breathtaking. The principal residential building
will offer unparalleled waterfront views from every
unit. It looks like nothing ever before constructed
- or imagined - on Florida's west coast.
In addition to Signature's 181 residential condominiums
and 40 loft units, the mixed-use project will also
consist of 55,000 square feet of office condominiums,
17,000 square feet of retail space and a 5,000-square-foot
restaurant.
Signature Place is being developed by Tampa-based
Cantor Development LLC. "It's going to be the signature
building for the city," declares developer Joel
A. Cantor.
What also got jaws flapping was that Cantor spent
the last five years and $7 million renovating BayView
Tower, the office building currently on the site,
into prime office space.
"At first I thought I could build a building next
door," Cantor says. "I said to the city, 'I want
to build a parking garage first. They said, 'Why
build a parking garage with a view of the water?'
'Well,' I said, 'what can I build here?' And they
said, 'Anything.'"
That's when Cantor started thinking bigger. Much
bigger.
He called Johnson at his office in Chicago and
was surprised that the man answered his own phone.
Not only that, but Johnson flew to St. Petersburg
the next day with a team of seven architects.
"It was his advice that we tear down the building
and change the city," Cantor recalls. "He said,
'You can change the city the way Balboa changed
Spain.' I said do what you feel is right. He exceeded
my expectations."
BayView Tower is expected to be demolished by early
2006.
 …
and Hotels
The craziest part of this story is that Signature
Place won't actually be the craziest building in
St. Petersburg, a city with a history of erecting
some of the most consistently unspectacular-looking
towers in any of Florida's major cities.
That honor will go to the appropriately named
Westin Grand Bohemian Hotel and Residences, a hotel
and condominium project soon to rise on the former
site of the Florida International Museum. The Grand
Bohemian is another structure whose dramatic, off-kilter
balcony lines will look like no other in this part
of Florida and will bring distinction to the city's
rapidly evolving skyline.
Richard C. Kessler, president and CEO of Orlando-
based The Kessler Enterprise Inc./The Kessler Collection
is developing the Grand Bohemian in conjunction
with Progress Energy Florida. The condotel - comprising
205 guest rooms and 62 residential units - is scheduled
to break ground in January. It will be a 28-story
tower rising 350 feet on the eastern corner of the
site of the Florida International Museum now being
demolished, next to Progress Energy Florida's new
headquarters.
Amenities will include a fine dining restaurant,
chic lounge, market café, private club, extensive
art gallery, pool and large deck area, health spa
and more than 16,000 square feet of meeting space.
Condo prices will start in the low $400,000s and
occupancy is projected for late October 2007.
Why St. Petersburg?
"It appears the city is committed to the arts,"
says Kessler, who is as known in many circles for
his tastes in art as for his business practices.
He personally acquires the art that decorates his
hotels. "If we're going to bring in high-end groups,
they have to have something to do on their breaks.
The museum program in St. Petersburg is very good.
"We think also that St. Petersburg is well located
for continued growth," he says. "There is nothing
like this in Tampa or anywhere close. The closest
would be The Ritz- Carlton in Sarasota."
Um … what about the city's restored jewel, the
Renaissance Vinoy Resort?
 "The
Vinoy didn't play any part in our decision, pro
or con," says Kessler. "It's an older, historic
building. But what we'll be bringing to the city
is totally different. The Grand Bohemian will be
the 21st century version of the Vinoy, you might
say."
There are other, more conventional hotels either
being completed or in the works:
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The $25-million Hilton St. Petersburg at Carillon
Park opens in December with 217 guest rooms,
15,000 square feet of meeting space, an 8,000-squarefoot
ballroom and an executive boardroom.
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A 79-room Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites
is scheduled to open this fall at the 54th Avenue
N exit at Interstate 275.
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Marriott is renovating the old Pennsylvania
Hotel into a 128-unit Courtyard.
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