Priatek Plaza sale brings $65.75 million

Third Lake Capital LLC, the investment firm controlled by the family that also owns Ashley Furniture, paid $65.75 million for St. Petersburg's tallest building and adjacent land, according to Pinellas County property records.

Third Lake, controlled by Ron Wanek and his family, acquired Priatek Plaza at 200 Central Ave. on June 1 through an entity called Fourteen Re Priatek LLC, records show.

The 28-story, former One Progress Plaza tower, completed in 1990, is 76% leased to the Bank of Tampa, Raymond James, iQor, Merrill Lynch and Trenam law, among others.

Third Lake has hired Cushman & Wakefield Senior Director Barry Hanerfeld and Director Wendy Giffin to lease the 305,370-square-foot building. The brokerage also will manage the property.

Less clear is what the new owner will do with a roughly one-acre lot adjacent to the office tower. Former owner Kucera Properties had considered developing 300 rental apartments, an 80-room boutique hotel and as many as 800 new parking spaces, augmenting the 1,000 the property now contains.

But Third Lake is already quite familiar with St. Petersburg's downtown. The company is the chief equity backer of One St. Petersburg, a 41-story, mixed-use skyscraper the Kolter Group is developing.
When completed later this year, the building will include 253 luxury condos, a 174-room hotel and 17,000 square feet of retail space.