Mississippi investor pays $14.5M for Tampa vacant lot

Naples/Fort Myers

Good to go: Construction has (finally) begun on Bimini Square in Cape Coral. Developers of the long-awaited mixed-used project broke ground Oct. 19. When complete, the development will have 218 residences, 58,000 square feet of nonresidential space along with boat slips and a parking garage. A Lee Health medical facility, waterfront restaurant and retail shops will take up the nonresidential space. The project, which sits on six acres west of Four Freedoms Park in the city, has been in the works for nearly four years and won city approval in February. It was one of several projects former city manager Rob Hernandez said would transform Cape Coral “from Cape Coma to Cape Cool.” One of those other projects was the $103 million mixed-used Cove at 47th development which broke ground last year. Bimini Square is expected to open in 2025.

Pier pressure: A Fort Myers construction company has been picked to do the repairs and the restoration of the fishing pier at Matlacha Community Park. Lee County Commissioners voted recently to award Infinite Construction the contract for the $388,000 FEMA-funded project to repair damage caused by Hurricane Ian last year. Infinite, according to state records and a LinkedIn page, is owned by Paul Kirilinas. According to city officials, the work will include removing and replacing the deck, railings, benches, garbage cans, fish cleaning stations and lighting. The work is expected to start early next year be done by May 1. No work needs to be done to the structure of the pier, which officials say is why the turnaround will be fast. The pier, popular with both local anglers and tourists, was built about 50 years ago and rebuilt in 2020.

Image courtesy of LQ Commercial Real Estate.

Good for the skin: A Naples dermatological practice has bought new office space and will expand. Skin Wellness Physicians paid $2.4 million for a 12,551-square-foot space in the Coastland Professional Center. The building is at 1300 Goodlette Frank Road and the new, second-floor property will allow Skin Wellness to expand its existing space in the building, says LQ Commercial Real Estate. LQ, which has offices in Fort Myers, Naples, Tampa and Orlando and changed its name from LandQuest Commercial earlier this year, represented the seller, Goodlette Holdings. Skin Wellness has two other offices in Southwest Florida, one in East Naples and another in Marco Island. 

Tampa/St. Petersburg

Vacant in Tampa: Mississippi real estate investment firm East Coast Properties has bought a vacant 44-acre parcel off of Tanner Road in Tampa. According to Hillsborough County records, the company paid $14.5 million for the property, near Interstate 75 and Interstate 4. In a note to investors, East Coast says the parcel will “accommodate the future development of three buildings containing approximately 500,000 square feet.” It did not detail what the buildings would be used for. East Coast is no stranger to Tampa or to Florida. On its website the company says it owns more than 4 million square feet in the area, making it the company’s second largest market in the country. The website also shows eight projects underway in the state, including 221,000 square feet at SunCoast Commerce Center 9 and 10 in Fort Myers and the 185,000-square-foot Grand Oaks 4 in Riverview. The Tanner Road property was previously owned by a Dallas LLC with an address matching that of Macfarlan Capital Partners. It paid $2 million for the land May 2022.

Almost there: A Miami developer and Boston private equity firm have topped off the 248-unit apartment complex the entities are building in Pasco County. Mast Capital of Miami and Rockpoint of Boston are building the luxury complex on a 16-acre parcel bought in 2021 for $4.5 million. Work began last year. Texas Capital Bank is providing the construction financing for the project at 5101 Bruce B. Downs Blvd. in Wesley Chapel. The project is expected to be completed next summer. When done, the complex will be made up of three, four-story buildings with elevators. The name Mast Capital should be familiar to Pasco residents. It bought the 480-acre Saddlebrook Resort last year, paying $15 million. It is investing at least $53 million into a redevelopment of that iconic property.

Sarasota/Manatee

Mobile home happenings: The Pines Trailer Park on Bradenton Beach has sold to a local developer. Manatee County property records show the property was bought for $16.25 million by an LLC belonging to Shawn Kaleta named Pines Park Investors. Published reports from the area say the LLC stepped in after mobile home owners on the property were unable to raise money to buy the land themselves. The property was previously owned by The Jackson Partnership LLLP, William A. Jackson and Richard S. Jackson, according to county records. Kaleta, an Anna Maria Island developer and entrepreneur, recently sold his firm Locals Realty to Re/Max Alliance Group. In the late aughts and early 2010s, Kaleta was one of the more prominent builders and developers on Siesta Key and Anna Maria Island. He also had some issues with local officials, for alleged safety concerns and building without permits.

Image via The Reserve at Palmer Ranch Apartments / Facebook

Apartments sold: The Reserve at Palmer Ranch apartments in Sarasota have sold. The 320-unit complex was bought by MLG Capital. According to county property records it paid $70.5 million for the community. The property is at 4110 Winners Circle, just off of McIntosh Road. Berkadia, which arranged the sale and the acquisition financing, did not say how much of the sale price was financed. What it did say is the buyer got a 10-year, fixed rate loan through Freddie Mac. The seller was California-based Strategic Holdings. County property records show it paid $57.6 million for the complex in 2021.

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