10-year, $1.58 million lease deal for downtown Sarasota spa space

Naples/Fort Myers

Industrious industrial: An 83,500-square-foot industrial property has sold in Naples for $17 million. The property, bought by an LLC with a suburban Chicago address, is at 4110-4120 Enterprise Ave. Fort Myers-based commercial real estate firm LSI Cos. brokered the deal. The firm says this is first time the property has changed hands since the previous owner, Naples Industrial Estates, built it in 2000. As for the buyer, the address listed in the state’s Division of Corporation’s database matches that of Venture One Real Estate. Venture One is based in Rosemont, Illinois, and has an office in Miami. It owns at least one other property in Florida, a 61,950-square-foot industrial building in Clearwater. 

Inside inside baseball: The way properties are developed in Southwest Florida is changing. In its end-of-year newsletter, the Real Estate Investment Society, a local industry group, laid out the new rules localities in the area have adopted — or are adopting. Most observers agreed that after Hurricane Ian in 2022, building guidelines and rules had to change to better prepare for future storms and to manage the rebuild. There is also the reality of rapid growth in the area and the need to adjust for the demand it's putting on communities. Here is what REIS reported is happening:

• Cape Coral is removing development caps for all retail, office and warehousing square footage in the Pine Island Road district. The cap on hotel rooms is also being removed and the cap on residential units increased. The approved Plan amendment now goes to the state for review, then back to the city council for an adoption hearing in January or February.
• Fort Myers has approved an ordinance amending the land development code, including establishing two new zoning categories. The Commercial Intensive Non-Residential zoning district would clarify the zoning process for strictly commercial developments. A new multifamily zoning district would allow 25 units per acre in Traditional Community and Corridor Commercial Future Land Use classifications.
• Lee County commissioners approved amending the Captiva Community Plan to remove the restriction on rebuilding or redeveloping within one– and two-story building heights. (REIS says the decision was criticized by local organizations and the state “for using resiliency as an excuse for setting a basis for increasing density.” In response, legislation has been written to create the Captiva Island Conservation Area which, REIS says, would prohibit rebuilding nonconforming structures damaged by natural disasters without a reduction in use, density, intensity, size or square footage of the damaged buildings.)
• Sanibel approved an amendment to the Land Development Code to increase the maximum allowable building height for new construction along with changes to the angle of light calculations on roof lines, “which effectively allows for larger buildings,” REIS says. 

Tampa/St. Petersburg

Courtesy image

Hotel happening: Tampa-based hospitality group Mainsail Lodging & Development has opened a new hotel in Georgia. The property is a 193-room boutique hotel named Trilith Guesthouse. It is in Fayetteville, a city south of Atlanta. Mainsail, in a news release, says the property will be part of Marriott's portfolio of independent hotels. Trilith has an interactive culinary studio, 17,000 square feet of event space and apartment-style residences. Mainsail was founded in 1998 and, according to its portfolio online, owns 19 properties — including a restaurant and an amphitheater.

Cuba Libre: A South Florida chain of Cuban bakeries has opened a new shop in Tampa, its first on the state’s west coast and No. 15 overall. CAO Bakery is at 7616 W. Hillsborough Ave. on the site where the eatery Pollo Supremo operated until last year. CAO was founded in 2015 by Carlos De Varona and Tony Cao. It carries made-to-order breakfast and sandwiches along with traditional Cuban pastries and deserts. The company is opening two more Miami locations soon and is looking for franchisees to grow its operation in other parts of the state, including Naples. The Tampa restaurant, which is open 24 hours, is company owned.

Sarasota/Manatee

Courtesy image

Investor steps in: A suburban Washington, D.C. investment firm is putting $11.1 million into the construction of a new apartment complex in Venice. Chevy Chase, Maryland-based FCP says its preferred equity in the project was made through its Structured Investments platform to help finance the community. The money is going toward the construction of the 216-unit complex at 1000 Jacaranda Blvd. Work on the yet-to-be named complex has begun and the first units should be available by the middle of next year. The total cost of the project was not disclosed. FCP was founded in 1999 and says it has invested in or financed more than $12.9 billion in assets since. To date, it has invested $687 million of capital through the fund. South Carolina-based Middle Street Partners is developing the complex.

Spa day: Woodhouse Spa has signed a lease for space at the Courthouse Centre office building in Sarasota. The spa chain signed a 10-year lease in the building at 1999 Ringling Blvd. — near where Ringling intersects with Washington Boulevard and Main Street — that’s worth $1.58 million. The lease is for 6,330 square feet. SVN Commercial Advisory Group, which represented the landlord and announced the deal, says the franchisee plans to “tailor the space to its needs.” That includes demolishing the interior to make way for the buildout. Woodhouse is a national spa chain specializing in luxury spa treatments. It has locations in Naples and St. Petersburg.

If you have news, notes or tips you want to pass along, contact [email protected]. Or you can text or call 727-371-6944.