California defense contractor pays $3.9 million for Pinellas industrial site

Naples/Fort Myers

Grocery game: A North Carolina developer has bought 3.68-acres next to an Aldi supermarket in Cape Coral. Piedmont Development of Florida, an LLC belonging to Piedmont Properties in Lincolnton, paid $1.85 million for the land. According to Fort Myers’ LQ Commercial, which represented Aldi, the seller, the property is vacant land to the west of the existing grocery store. At one point, the property just off Chiquita Boulevard was marketed as the potential site for a five-building commercial retail center, but it is unclear what the new owner’s plans are. Piedmont did not respond to a request for comment.

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Luxury living: Kolter Urban, a Palm Beach-based real estate development and investment firm, is planning to build a 24-story, 86-unit condominium tower in Estero. The company, which has several luxury projects in the works across the region, says its new tower will be built in the West Bay Club community and have a view of both the Gulf of Mexico and the development’s golf course. Plans call for units at The Island at West Bay Club, as it will be called, to be three and four bedrooms ranging in size from between 3,300 square feet to 3,600 square feet. They’ll come with 10-foot ceilings and full-size windows as well as private access-controlled elevators. There will also be two half-floor, 6,000-square foot penthouses. Prices start at $3.5 million. Construction is expected to begin in the third quarter of next year and finish in late 2026. West Bay is an 870-acre residential community. Of that acreage, 500 acres are wetlands and nature preserve.

Tampa/St. Petersburg

More luxury living: Construction has started on the Related Group’s second Ritz-Carlton Residences building in Tampa. The company is building the 100-unit — 94 condominiums and six villas — complex about a half mile down from where construction is underway at its first Ritz-Carlton branded community in the city. The Miami developer decided on a second tower shortly after the first building, at 3101 Bayshore Blvd., sold out. Construction on Tower II, as its being called, is starting as more than 60% of its units are under contract. Pricing for the units, which will be up to 5,700 square feet, start at $1.7 million. Related did not say how long construction would take. The first tower is expected to be complete early next year.

Getting defensive: Amaratek, a San Diego defense contractor and life sciences company, has bought an industrial site in Dunedin. The company paid $3.9 million for the 33,846-square-foot property at 150 Douglas Ave. Commercial Asset Partners, the New Port Richey commercial real estate firm that represented the California contractor, says Amaratek is currently building out the space and plans to move in early next year. The property was previously a manufacturing facility, so it had many of the electrical and plumbing requirements the company was looking for, says CAP. The build-out will add the rest of what it needs — chemistry labs, a medium-scale chemistry manufacturing space and fencing to secure the yard. Amaratek was founded in 2002 and works with the U.S. Department of Defense, Homeland Security, foreign governments, NGOs and social entrepreneurs. Locally, it works with groups housed at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa. In 2004, it developed a biological system for the neutralization of chemical weapons and delivered a working system to the U.S. Army. It plans to add 20 jobs as part of its expansion.

Sarasota/Manatee

Go east, young man: Manatee County-based Benderson Development is growing again. The company recently bought an 85,000-square-foot retail center in Delray Beach. The new center is at Linton Commons and its tenant mix includes RH Outlet, Guitar Center and AT&T. It is next door to Whole Foods Market. Benderson did not disclose a sales price and Palm Beach County public records have not yet been updated. Earlier this year the prolific local developer bought another property on the state’s east coast, paying $7.1 million for a Publix at 1140 SW 36th Ave. in Pompano Beach. The company says its significantly grown its portfolio over the last few years, with more than $2 billion and more than 10 million square feet in acquisitions. Today, its portfolio includes 800 properties in 41 state and totals 54 million square feet. 

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Hotel bonanza: Illinois-based NexGen Hotels has picked up a new property in Venice. The hotel developer has bought the 83-room Best Western Plus Ambassador Suite at 400 Commercial Court, just off of Jacaranda Court near Interstate 75. The company did not disclose what it paid, but Sarasota County public records show the property sold for $9 million. This was NextGen’s second local hotel purchase in the region in recent weeks. The company announced in late November it had bought the 129-room Holiday Inn St. Petersburg West at 1200 34th St. N. The company didn’t disclose a purchase price for this property either and Pinellas County property records haven’t been updated. The current owner, an Alabama LLC, paid $11.8 million for the property in 2021. NextGen owns 13 hotels and has three more in development. The company also owns several restaurants and retail centers. Both of the local properties will be managed by Genuine Hospitality in St. Louis.

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