Denholtz office renovations paying dividends in Tampa, St. Petersburg

Denholtz Associates has spent in excess of $10 million to upgrade its office buildings in downtown Tampa and St. Petersburg, and it appears that those investments are beginning to pay off.

Last month, the company signed Taylor Media Corp., owner of the Penny Hoarder personal finance website, to a lease for 22,682 square feet in its 490 First Ave. building, in St. Petersburg.

Taylor will occupy the entire eighth floor of the eight-story office building beginning in the fall, along with a rooftop space. Denholtz was represented in the transaction by Cushman & Wakefield's Mercedes Angell, while Sarah Parker of Profound Properties LLC negotiated on behalf of Taylor.

That deal occurred on the heels of the Tampa Bay Times' decision to renew its commitment, through 2032, for 113,000 square feet in the 240,000-square-foot property.

Together, the leases bring the occupancy at 490 First Ave. to 57%, says Kristine Hurlbut, Denholtz' senior vice president of leasing.

Both leases comes as Denholtz, a New Jersey-based developer and investor that also owns property in Orlando and Winter Park, is upgrading and renovating the building's lobby and HVAC systems and installing a new cafe and outdoor seating.

In Tampa, the company has leased ground-floor space to Empire Office Inc. at 1000 N. Ashley Ave., for a new showroom. Empire's 6,054-square-foot deal brings the building to 74% committed.

The 10-story, 180,000-square-foot property also is occupied by the Tampa Bay Times, the U.S. Census Bureau, Genesis Engineering and Dewberry.

The Empire lease also coincides with a $2 million renovation aimed at modernizing the Times building's lobby and elevators, which also includes a new conference center for tenants, a cafe and fitness center.

“Both buildings needed renovations, and we knew that and went into buying them with that in mind,” Hurlbut says. “We're bringing both projects into this millennium, and when we're done, both are going to be phenomenal.”