Tampa Heights Redevelopment

[jonknee]

[AKBTampa]

Drove by this today, the notice on the permit box noted this would be a 30k sq. ft. office building. I don't think this is part of "the heights" project.

[jonknee]

Hmm, that's interesting because the lot is in the middle of where the project is supposed to be and is currently owned by the developers (under the LAND ASSEMBLE LLC shell). Perhaps they are adding an office portion to the project? There have been two large law offices built near by recently, so this could be another.

[Jasonhouse]

Yes, the mix of the project changed some. That occurred a couple months ago, didn't?

[FLHawk]

Could it be the new SE regional offices for Beck Group that was announced not too long ago? That size sounds about right for that.

[AKBTampa]

Could be the case, as all the signs out front are for Beck. Are they involved in "the heights" project? Getting any news on this project has been near impossible!

[FLHawk]

I posted the following article in the "Tampa Heights Development" string back on March 18 -

http://tampabay.bizjournals.com/tampabay/stories/2008/03/17/story3.html?b=1205726400^1604761

Friday, March 14, 2008
Heights project gets a kick start
Construction set to start on anticipated redevelopment
Tampa Bay Business Journal - by Janet Leiser Staff Writer

TAMPA -- One of the area's largest general contractors plans to build its Florida headquarters at the Heights of Tampa -- a 48-acre, $500 million redevelopment project on the Hillsborough River north of downtown.

The Beck Group expects to begin construction this summer on a 45,000-square foot, four-story building at the Heights, near Stetson University's Tampa law campus and the Bush Ross PA law firm.

It will be the first vertical construction project to take place at the sprawling development that has been in the works since at least 1999 when the Tampa City Council designated the area blighted. Back then, the site featured crack houses, dilapidated boarded up houses and industrial brownfields.

"This is going to be a great year for us," said Robert Scharar, president of FCA Corp. FCA manages the Ivy Real Estate Investment Trust, which is helping finance the project.

The Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce also is considering relocating its offices to the building as is a third business, according to reports.

"To us, it shows the commercial market is alive and well in Tampa," said Brian Check, director of real estate for Beck Group's southeastern division, headquartered in Tampa.

Developers expect to obtain all the permits for the project this year and to complete the required engineering work, clearing the way to begin construction of infrastructure and brick streets in 2009. Construction of the river walk and park is also expected to begin this year.

The developers, working under Tampa Heights LLC, also expect to obtain roughly $40 million in bond financing this year.

A pending ruling by the Florida Supreme Court over a bond case in Escambia County has raised far-reaching concerns about financing of major redevelopment efforts across the state and still needs to be resolved. But the current plans can go forward regardless, and, the principals say, real building on the site will be symbolic of the overall project's resiliency.

The first phase won't include residential development, as planned, because of the housing slump. Here, residential units will follow retail.

Last year, Tampa Heights LLC bought out Bank of America (NYSE: BAC), which had land at the site for years, said Scharar, who didn't disclose how much the bank received.

Investors have put up about two-thirds of the $60 million that has been spent so far on the entire project, including the acquisition of the land, which was owned by as many as 150 people, said Scharar.

Another 10 or so parcels, mostly vacant, throughout the site haven't been bought because owners wanted too much or declined to sell, said Development Manager Darren Booth.

"We're not picking up anymore parcels. We don't have to," said Scharar, a Lakeland native and founder of Houston-based FCA.

Building offices
Beck Group executives started talking to Scharar and Bill Bishop, another investor, about the office building six months ago, Check said.

The agreement hasn't been formalized yet, but a handshake agreement exists.

"Everyone agrees there are no barriers to going forward," Check said.

Beck Group will design and construct the building.

The general contractor should complete the building's design this month, and approvals for the design and permits should be obtained this spring.

Beck plans to occupy 15,000 square feet, moving in by mid summer 2009.

It's unclear what role Dallas-based Beck will play in other projects at the development. Beck has a large presence in the Southeast, and internationally.

Check said: "We believe we can offer them a lot of national support."

While commercial projects in Florida and around the country are being delayed or canceled because of the economic slowdown and subprime mortgage crisis, Scharar said the Heights of Tampa is viable and moving forward.

Beck's plans attest to that.

Still, the project is about nine to 12 months behind schedule, partly because of the delays in acquiring property as well as the slowing economy.

There have been some recent changes in the equity positions and management of the project.

Scharar recently brought in Ike Monty, president of Dallas-based Investment Builders Inc., as a partner.

Scharar said the project would benefit from Monty's expertise on multifamily developments.

In fact, affordable workplace apartments are likely to be one of the first projects built. Construction might start on that phase in 2009 or 2010, Scharar said.

However, he doesn't expect to build condo towers, even when the housing market rebounds.

"The world doesn't need another bunch of condos," said Scharar. "I don't want to see towers all over the place."

jleiser@bizjournals.com | 813.342.2468

[jonknee]

Well that explains it. Excited to see the design.

[FloridaFuture]

Tampa Heights' Master Plan Topic Of Thursday Meeting
The Tampa Tribune
Published: July 9, 2008

TAMPA HEIGHTS - The Tampa Heights Stewardship Team wants to discuss the neighborhood plan adopted by the city council in 2003, including which goals have been achieved and which remain outstanding.

The group is hosting meetings at 6 p.m. Thursday and Tuesday at the Hillsborough County Bar Foundation, 1610 Tampa St. It wants to gather information to hold a town hall meeting with Mayor Pam Iorio.

The neighborhood plan, which was produced by residents and the Hillsborough Planning Commission, is a blueprint for the community's development.

It places an emphasis on single-family housing and the creation of parks and a town center, as well as forming a cultural arts district and making Tampa Street and Florida Avenue two-way streets.

The team oversees the plan's implementation.

To read the plan, go to the Tampa Heights Neighborhood Association Web site at www.tampaheights.org and click on "master plan."

For information on the meeting, call Vivian Salaga, the team's president, at (813) 223-1948.

Jose Patino Girona

http://southtampa2.tbo.com/content/2...sday-mee/?news

[FloridaFuture]

It places an emphasis on single-family housing

Don't they realize that downtown is right there? They need to be building denser then single family. I wouldn't worry to much considering The Heights is a lot of multi family and will probably be how the distrct slowly turns out if/when built.

[smiley]

The two waying ofr Florida and Tampa couldn't be dummer for the health of downtown - but Iorio is blind to the reality that the city is not made of villages.

[dpw1983]

Tampa and Florida both travel well because they ARE one-way.
What, some arrogant business owners hope converting to two-way will increase their revenue?

It sure doesn't seem to help Nebraska at all.

[DShenise]

I think the tranny hookers are more of the problem on Nebraska.

[Jasonhouse]

I strongly agree that two-waying those streets will be a big mistake. There's no transit, so roads are all we've got. Cutting road capacity on roads already clogged during the rushes is pretty damn dumb.

[gstolze]

Oneway-streets are a relic of the automobile-only time. The only purpose is to let them drive as fast through the streets as possible. Pedestrians were unwanted. That is against the concept of urbanity.

[smiley]

IF I am not mistaken, isn't Manhattan mostly one way streets. Cant get much more urban than that. It is not whether it is one way or not that gets people walking, its what is on the street to attract people to walking. In fact, it is easier to cross a one way street because the cars are only coming from one direction.

This is just another planner fetish that is counterintuitive.

[smiley]

You need to be able to move people around somehow - two one way raods is a pretty small prive to pay - not to mention that a lane in either road could easily be made light rail and the are made more urban

[jonknee]

Originally Posted by gstolze

Oneway-streets are a relic of the automobile-only time. The only purpose is to let them drive as fast through the streets as possible. Pedestrians were unwanted. That is against the concept of urbanity.

I much prefer to ride a bike on a one-way road. And crossing streets on foot.

[dpw1983]

I agree, crossing a one-way street is definately less hectic than crossing a two-way.

Instead of making Tampa and Florida two way, they should consider adding a divided pedestrian/bicycle lane to each. St. Petersburg recently added such a lane to 1st Avenue South and 1st Avenue North. They feature a median divider and landscaping. Those avenues function in much the same way Tampa and Florida do currently.

http://www.stpete.org/bicycle/docs/bikemapbrochure.pdf

http://www.stpete.org/stpete/citytrailsfall2005.pdf

[JBrisco]

Or maybe they should hire a real Urban Planner.