On track

On track

As energy and land costs rise, the Gulf

Coast is looking more seriously at transit, and real estate firms are paying attention.

When Tampa real estate broker and executive Ray Sandelli flies to the Atlanta office of CB Richard Ellis, he never hails a cab or rents a car after his flight arrives.

Sandelli takes the light rail train, which drops him two blocks from his office.

Tampa land broker Bill Eshenbaugh is selling an apartment site in Salt Lake City and the selling point is that it is in walking distance of a light rail station.

When Tampa real estate attorney Ron Weaver visits Orlando, he knows there is a transit station two blocks east of the basketball arena.

But when all three come home, they can't take advantage of the same thing in the Tampa Bay area or use it in their real estate work. But that situation may change.

As energy and land prices rise, and the economy limits buying power, the Tampa Bay area is looking more seriously at mass transit. And real estate companies are preparing and anticipating new development opportunities.

Transit will be part of a Tampa Bay Partnership seminar Oct. 31. But instead of debating the merits or flaws of transit, the seminar will focus on real estate. A number of local real estate executives are attending.

"Mass transit will come to Tampa Bay in the next 20 years (hopefully sooner)," says Russ Sampson, executive vice president with Colliers Arnold. "Those train routes will be like new roads. The stations will be magnets for new commercial development."

Some of the routes, along U.S. 41 from Lutz to the University of South Florida, have been identified. The bay area has created a regional transportation group, but Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio is pushing for faster development of a light-rail train.

Randy Simmons, chairman of R.R. Simmons Construction in Tampa, says mass transit corridors have strong real estate potential, but the issue will be which ones have sufficient ridership to make sense for development.

Using Atlanta as a model, development at the downtown, midtown and Buckhead nodes is great, but the intermediate stops are marginal, Simmons says. There may need to be business nodes and several residential nodes separating them, he says.

Charlotte's transit system has been successful because it has a strong downtown and is far more urban than the Tampa Bay area, Simmons says.

The main challenge for transit will be funding, Sandelli says. But the Florida Legislature has passed laws giving developers tax breaks and other financial incentives to build in and around transit stations. Those include exemptions on developments of regional impact (DRIs).

Another challenge will be dealing with different land owners. A lot of land has been sold in bay area the last couple of years, so different parcels would have to be assembled.

- Dave Szymanski

Test case

One of the criticisms of mass transit in Florida is that no one will ride it.

To test that theory, Gulf Coast Tampa Bay Editor Dave Szymanski boarded Hartline busses during morning rush hour and off rush hour in the morning and afternoon three times on three different weekdays this month in Hillsborough County, along U.S. 41 in Lutz, on Dale Mabry Highway in Carrollwood and along Florida Avenue in North Tampa.

His finding: The buses were 75% to 90% full at all times. At some times, riders were standing because most of the seats were full. The buses arrived on time. And the Marion Street transit station downtown provided food, drinks and staff to help people pick up connecting buses, some of which go to Pinellas County.