Westshore Development News

[HARTride 2012]

Originally Posted by Jasonhouse

^Right... Odds are, one or more of the projects proposed out there will die on the vine.

I'm with you on that.

[Robert.Maddrey]

As some one who works in Westshore I am all for more development, provided its well rounded development. There obviously needs to be more a residential component, once the market allows and there needs to be a wider variety and infrastructure beyond the Imall.

[HARTride 2012]

Originally Posted by Robert.Maddrey

As some one who works in Westshore I am all for more development, provided its well rounded development. There obviously needs to be more a residential component, once the market allows and there needs to be a wider variety and infrastructure beyond the Imall.

Agreed.

[jzquince69]

Originally Posted by TamBay

I, too, would prefer more business in downtown Tampa, but image what the Tampa skyline "could" look like in fifty years when Westshore grows east and merges with projects around UT, which will spread west down Kennedy. Obviously, the tallest buildings will be downtown, but the far-view panoramic from Downtown to Westshore and Rocky Point will be quite impressive.

Westshore is a great asset to Tampa.

If they could get mass transit going, think of the big stops: downtown, Ibor, Westshore, TPA, etc...

Westshore could be the catalyst for a Buckhead-type of development. as mentioned recently, new residential could do the trick.

[HARTride 2012]

Originally Posted by jzquince69

If they could get mass transit going, think of the big stops: downtown, Ibor, Westshore, TPA, etc...

Yeah. The only thing going through WestShore right now...really is HART's Bus Route 30. And thats slated to get cutback b/c budget cuts set off by the property tax reform crap.

[tampamobster21]

I think that Westshore should start to actually build a community with parks and all. I think that it will be better in the long run for attracting more business. I think that Westshore should start to send business to downtown because it seems that Westshore just keeps on needing to expand.

[Robert.Maddrey]

Originally Posted by tampamobster21

I think that Westshore should start to actually build a community with parks and all. I think that it will be better in the long run for attracting more business. I think that Westshore should start to send business to downtown because it seems that Westshore just keeps on needing to expand.

I agree. There is no reason not to develop the area as an all inclusive neighborhood. Provided the infrastructure was there I know it would appeal to both Laura and I.

[emoore625]

People are going to hate me here but the county needs to seriously consider closing Jefferson Highschool and move the students to Robinson, Leto, Plant and Blake. The land Jefferson HS is on is worth so much money and they are always under capacity because most of that land is transitioning from residential to commercial. Hell, move the school by the Stadium.

Hillsborough could sell Jefferson Highschool and build 2 others.

[Robert.Maddrey]

There are two other schools in that cluster as well, Roland Park Middle School (Where I got bussed for 6th grade from Carrollwood....) and Lavoy, which is a school for the mentally handicapped.

[Jasonhouse]

I find it odd that on one hand people say "yes, make Westshore a real urban neighborhood'... And then in the other hand they say "get rid of the schools in Westshore"...

Say what?

[FloridaFuture]

Originally Posted by Jasonhouse

I find it odd that on one hand people say "yes, make Westshore a real urban neighborhood'... And then in the other hand they say "get rid of the schools in Westshore"...

Say what?

Exactly what I was coming in here to post.

If Westshore ever becomes really urban, which will be difficult due to things like Int. Plaza which wasn't built urbanly, then it will become a walkable hood. Walkable including schools.

If you put the school near the stadium, you will guarantee yourself having to drive. Or atleast a longer drive from most parts of Westshore

[FloridaFuture]

Also, if you give the land value argument. Then you may loose functionality, which is the point of most government run-organizations. Also, coming from that angle is encouraging governamt buildings to move out towards cheaper land, which is you guessed it, away from downtown toawards sprawl.

[LuvHighrisers]

Jefferson moved once (it used to be off Columbus) - why not move it again?

[Jasonhouse]

Originally Posted by FloridaFuture

Exactly what I was coming in here to post.

If Westshore ever becomes really urban, which will be difficult due to things like Int. Plaza which wasn't built urbanly, then it will become a walkable hood. Walkable including schools.

If you put the school near the stadium, you will guarantee yourself having to drive. Or at least a longer drive from most parts of Westshore

Not just that, but there is significant population growth coming to the overall south/west Tampa area for the next 10-20 years. The last thing the school district needs to do is limit its options when it will probably need a new school or two as it is.



However, I do think that some creativity could be used, and school sites could easily be found nearby... And politically, it could be quite the crusade for the right kind of leader, since moving those schools could kill all kinds of adult businesses (especially in Drew Park and along Dale Mabry near Boy Scout, for example, which both happen to be the only places nearby where large parcels could possibly be assembled for something like a school without breaking the bank.)... lol

[Robert.Maddrey]

Everyone also seems to have neglected the existence of Carver City located right in there with the school complex. In my opinion, if the area were to become and urban neighborhood, the thing to do with those schools is not to demolish them, but rather redevelop them in a model similar to what they did with Blake. Build a 4 or 5 story Jefferson, complete with a parking garage, which will greatly reduce the school's footprint and integrate it in with Roland Park Middle school, then take some of the reclaimed land and build an elementary school and a park. Then you would have a nice multiuse community/educational complex in the heart of things.

[HARTride 2012]

Originally Posted by Robert.Maddrey

Everyone also seems to have neglected the existence of Carver City located right in there with the school complex. In my opinion, if the area were to become and urban neighborhood, the thing to do with those schools is not to demolish them, but rather redevelop them in a model similar to what they did with Blake. Build a 4 or 5 story Jefferson, complete with a parking garage, which will greatly reduce the school's footprint and integrate it in with Roland Park Middle school, then take some of the reclaimed land and build an elementary school and a park. Then you would have a nice multiuse community/educational complex in the heart of things.

That's a creative idea right there. Why move Jefferson now when it could be vertically expanded later. Sure the school may be under capacity now, but that's also the case with Robinson (my alma mater btw). Expanding Jefferson down the road when capacity does increase would be better than moving the school elsewhere an possibly put it somewhere where it can't expand at all. On top of that there is barely enough room near the stadium to put the school. I don't know what's happening with the rest of the land that Tampa Bay Center sat on. I think the entire parcel is owned by the Glazers and I'm not sure if they are going to give it back to the city/county. Fat chance if it is.

[FloridaFuture]

West Shore Defies Building Blahs
By MICHAEL SASSO, The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 19, 2007

TAMPA - Florida's economy has started to reel from a glut of houses and a halt in residential construction. In Tampa's booming West Shore district, though, someone didn't get the memo.

Tonight, Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. will seek a zoning change from the Tampa City Council for its massive 1.6 million-square-foot MetWest International office and retail project. Plans filed with the city show a sprawling campus along Tampa's Boy Scout Boulevard with 10 new buildings, including a hotel and shopping complex.

That's just the start of things. There are at least six other projects in the West Shore district that could bring more than 2 million square feet of office space to the area, records show.

Get ready for more traffic, too.

According to one industry formula, each 1,000 square feet of office space can accommodate four workers. So an extra 2 million square feet could bring 8,000 workers to the area - and that's not counting additional traffic from new condos and stores under development.

Russ Sampson, an executive vice president at the Colliers Arnold real estate firm, said developers and banks today are smarter than in the past, when office gluts caused some developers to go bankrupt. Some developers will wait until the market is ready before proceeding, and other developers will drop their projects altogether.

Still, if too many offices open in a short span, 'it will be a bloodbath,' he said.

MetLife's $200 million project, called MetWest International, may be the most ambitious. The company will tear down its sprawling two-story building at 4100 W. Boy Scout Blvd. but keep its 11-story One Metrocenter building next door.

Elements of the project include:

•Three office buildings. Set in the rear of the property, each building would be 10 stories and have 250,000 square feet of space, for a total of 750,000 square feet of offices.

•Retail plaza. A site plan shows six retail-restaurant buildings in the front of the property, about 74,000 square feet. Company spokesman Chris Breslin said the company can't yet discuss what stores might lease space there.

•Hotel. The east side of the property would have a 270-room 'upscale' hotel with conference rooms and catering facilities, Breslin said. He couldn't discuss potential hotel brands.

The project also would have 254 apartments for rent.

Breslin said the project's first phase is scheduled to open by late summer 2009. The company will go before the city council tonight to seek zoning for the project.

The existing MetLife property is filled with stately oak and other trees, especially in the front and west of the property. The company is seeking a waiver from the city that would allow it to remove many of the trees for the new development, according to documents filed with the city.

The MetLife project has been wrapped up in an investigation by the Tampa Police Department of developer payments to neighborhood associations. MetLife doesn't appear to be a target of the investigation; rather, a community group is accused of improperly offering to support the rezoning of the MetLife property in exchange for a payoff.

Sampson, of Colliers Arnold, said there's a bit of a race to develop office buildings before the market is saturated. Overall, the West Shore area is a huge area for offices, with more than 11.4 million square feet of office space, according to the Westshore Alliance, an association of West Shore-area businesses.

Relatively few office buildings have been built in recent years, however. That has caused vacancy rates to plummet to 8 percent, according to Colliers Arnold. By comparison, the Tampa Bay area in general has a 10 percent vacancy rate. Downtown Tampa, which has lost a few big office tenants in recent years, including the Carlton Fields law firm, has a 13.1 percent vacancy rate.

Meanwhile, office rents have shot up to a level normally paid by retailers.

'There have been a few leases that have cracked $30 per square foot, which is a first,' said Ron Rotella, executive director of the Westshore Alliance.

Keeping track of all of the new projects is tough, but real estate experts mentioned at least six in addition to MetWest International. Some may not come to fruition.

They are:
a fourth Corporate Center at International Plaza, by Crescent Resources;
a 600,000-square-foot, two-building project called Cornerstone Plaza, also by Crescent Resources;
a second Highwoods Bay Center project on West Shore's waterfront;
and a massive office-hotel-retail complex called Tampa Bay 1 at Cypress Street and Dale Mabry Highway, by The Bromley Cos.

Sampson said Eola Capital of Orlando and America's Capital Partners of Miami both have office projects planned for the Cypress Street area. Neither company returned calls for details.

Where will developers find enough companies to fill their new office buildings? For now, everyone is assuming Florida's growth will continue.

'Once a week I get a call from Michigan from a company that wants to come here, because the Michigan economy is dead and Florida is growing,' Sampson said.

Reporter Michael Sasso can be reached at (813) 259-7865 or msasso@tampatrib.com.

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2007/jul...hs/?news-money

[Jasonhouse]

Seems like they didn't mention some of the larger projects in that part of town...


I wonder what happened with the redevelopment of fountain square...

and the huge office/retail/hotel complex across the street from the airport?

and what happened to the proposal to knock down Days Inn, Bennigan's and other parcels off of Dale Mabry to redevelop that into 5 x 15 story mixed-use buildings?

or the project to redevelop the 'Century' dealerships at Dale Mabry and MLK into a mixed-use office complex/hotel/retail complex? Surely something is going on there, because Century is just about done building the dealerships it needs to move.

Or HCC's mixed-use project for its land fronting Dale Mabry?

[FloridaFuture]

and what happened to the proposal to knock down Days Inn, Bennigan's and other parcels off of Dale Mabry to redevelop that into 5 x 15 story mixed-use buildings?

I'm pretty sure there was an article (biz journal) a few months back saying that project is on hold indefinitley due to the market. I'm not sure if the article was ever posted here or not.

and the huge office/retail/hotel complex across the street from the airport?

Avion Park? I think gorundwork has already begun. Actually I may be going by Airport on my way to Int. Plaza today so I may be able to check it out.

I don't know about the other projects you mentioned.

[smiley]

Actually, if I am not mistaken, they have already started work on some structure