Local investor group buys former Tech Data building

BUYER: Bay Vista Office LLC (principal: John Gerlach), Clearwater
SELLER: Tech Data Corp.
PROPERTY: 5380 Tech Data Drive and a portion of Bay Vista Drive, Clearwater
PRICE: $7.5 million
PREVIOUS PRICE: $2.55 million, May 1987 and $725,000, September 1993
LAW FIRM ON DEED: Carlton Fields Jordon Burt PA, Tampa

PLANS, DESCRIPTION:
A local investment partnership led by John Gerlach, Colliers International's vice president of land and investment services, purchased the Bay Vista Pavilion for $7.5 million.

The price equated to $54 per rentable square foot. That figure is lower than the two-year average price per square foot for office space ($118) in the Tampa Bay area, according to the CoStar Group.

Located in Bay Vista Business Park, the property features two three-story buildings connected through a two-story atrium lobby. It includes 143,000 square feet of gross space and 138,699 square feet of rentable space. The buildings were previously owned and occupied by I.T. products distributor Tech Data, which sold it and relocated to a nearby building. Tech Data will continue to lease 5,600 square feet in Bay Vista Pavilion.

The two buildings sit in a Verizon SmartPark, which offers pre-wired fast and robust data connections for voice and data.

Gerlach says the owners purchased the property as an investment with the goal of leasing it. They plan to market it primarily to high-tech and/or Web companies and other businesses that could utilize the technology infrastructure and parking, which equates to five spaces per 1,000 square feet.

The asking rate for the space is $21.50 to $22.50 per square foot per month gross.