BTI sells another tract in Marina District

BTI Partners has notched yet another major sale within its Westshore Marina District project, bringing to 32 the number of acres sold or committed this year within the 54-acre project in South Tampa.

In its latest transaction, BTI has sold a 12-acre tract to Bainbridge Cos., which is planning to build 351 upscale apartments. Bainbridge also owns apartment communities elsewhere in Tampa and in Sarasota and Bradenton.

The $13.2 million sale also brings the total dollar volume of land deals within Westshore Marina District to $40 million, following sales to WCI Communities and the Related Group.

The Bainbridge deal also is significant because it will likely be the final third-party development within the master-planned district. Early next year, BTI intends to begin selling units in Marina Pointe, a series of 16-story condominium towers the Fort Lauderdale-based company will develop.

“We're delighted at the sales but not really surprised by them, either,” says Noah Breakstone, BTI's managing partner.

“Since the end of the recession, there's developed a major need in many cities for the creation of waterfront neighborhoods, so Westshore Marina District is really part of a larger trend.”

Located just off Westshore Boulevard in Tampa, the marina district is slated at build out to contain as many as 1,750 residential units and 240 marina slips, a 200-room hotel, a 1.5-mile waterfront park and other commercial space.

Breakstone says BTI also is formulating plans for as much as 50,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space on a 6-acre tract within the district.