Austin Center's value largely flat from 2015 purchase

In buying the five-building Austin Center office complex in Tampa’s Westshore district, Ally Capital Group paid just slightly more than the previous owner in early 2015, property records show.

Ally, a Tampa investment firm led by commercial real estate brokerage firm Franklin Street CEO Andrew Wright, paid $28.96 million for the roughly 299,000-square-foot complex, at 1111-1411 N. Westshore Blvd.

That was just $507,000, or 1.8%, more than seller Redstone Commercial paid for the 10.4-acre property four years ago.

“Redstone purchased the property with a vision to redevelop Austin Center, but this opportunity presented itself and made sense for all parties,” says Jonathan Levy, Redstone’s managing partner. 

Ally Capital says it plans a series of upgrades to Austin Center, which was completed in phases from 1967 to 1975 and is today adjacent to the International Plaza mall and in close proximity to Tampa International Airport.

As part of the acquisition, Franklin Street also plans to relocate its headquarters to 22,000 square feet of the complex next month, a shift that will affect about 100 employees.