Tarpon Springs contractor buys Wells Fargo office building in Dunedin

BUYER: 2494 Bayshore Boulevard LLC (principal: Joseph Kokolakis), Tarpon Springs
SELLER: First States Investors HFS LP
PROPERTY: 2494 Bayshore Blvd., Dunedin
PRICE: $1.05 million

PREVIOUS PRICE: $1.37 million, November 2004

PLANS, DESCRIPTION: Joseph Kokolakis, president of the Tarpon Springs-based general contracting firm J. Kokolakis Contracting Inc., purchased a 37,970-square-foot office building south of Curlew Road for $1.05 million.

The price equated to $28 per square foot. That figure is lower than the two-year average price per square foot for retail space ($146) in the Tampa Bay area, according to the CoStar Group.

Accounting for the low sale price, the center was just 27% occupied at the time of the sale. Wells Fargo, which occupies 10,500 square feet, anchors the multi-tenant building.

Kokolakis has retained an architect to design a renovation of the second floor. He eventually plans to improve the bottom level as well and the entire building façade. He hopes to have the project done by late spring and expects to market it to medical or technology companies.

J. Kokolakis Contracting Inc. will be handling all the construction work.

“I live in Dunedin; this is my bank branch. So I saw the value there,” Kokolakis says. “Plus it has close to 4 acres that wrap around a Walgreens that isn't a part of the property.”

Melanie Jackson of Colliers International Tampa Bay represented the seller, First States Investors HFS LP. The building was sold using Auction.com.