- September 7, 2024
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Redevelopment of the Bradenton City Hall property is one step closer to reality, after the city council unanimously approved a master development and purchase agreement July 24 allowing for its sale.
Moving City Hall and the Bradenton Police Department from the waterfront property opens up a critical piece of real estate for revitalization, say city officials. The project, or at least the idea of moving City Hall off the waterfront and replacing it with a mixed-use project goes back decades.
Vias at Bradenton LLC, the buyer, will pay $14.1 million for the property and demolish the structures currently there to build a mixed-use development consisting of residential, hotel and commercial/retail uses, according to the agreement.
L&L Development Group worked with the city on behalf of Vias at Bradenton to come up with the agreement, according to City Administrator Rob Perry. Vias at Bradenton LLC has a West Palm Beach address in state records that traces back to L&L, which, according to its website, was founded in 2021 by New York developer David Levinson. L&L's current portfolio, the website states, includes Coral Grove, a 131-acre mixed-used outdoor town center in Cape Coral and 460 Fern, a luxury apartment and retail tower in West Palm Beach.
”It’s really a transformational project,” Perry says of the Bradenton development. “It’s transformational to the extent of it showcases the showpiece of the city of Bradenton.”
The development plan includes the following:
“The economic impact of it is significant,” Perry tells the Business Observer in a phone interview. An economic study found that construction for the project alone could create $600 million as far as GDP direct and indirect impact for Bradenton over a two-year period, he says.
“Downtown, I think, is our crown jewel as it relates to economic development opportunities," Perry tells the council. "About half the people who come to downtown aren’t from here."
Years in the making, the real estate deal to redevelop the City Hall property will also take time to complete.
“What this contemplates is a two-year period to close,” Perry tells the council before the July 24 vote.
The master development and purchase agreement shows the deal can close no earlier than January 2026 and an April 2026 closing is forecast. Time is needed for the city to conduct an assessment of off-site infrastructure and a capacity study. These in turn will provide the developer with an idea of how much off-site mitigation would cost. The city also needs to conduct surveys for the developer, Perry says.
If the cost of off-site mitigation is too high, the developer has the right to walk away, according to the agreement. If the developer follows through with the purchase, there are stipulations requiring progress at certain intervals.
“I do feel that this project is going to – it will – change our downtown, and change is scary,” Vice Mayor Marianne Barnebey says, noting the project first came up in the 1990s. “You’ve heard me say before that the only thing that likes change is a wet baby. However, I think it is going to help our city in ways that we can’t even see yet, and that’s why I’m going to support it.”
Other members of the council echoed support for the project.
“Florida, we all know, is experiencing growth, and the growth is going to continue to happen. The key is that we plan and we manage it. And I think that this project is going to help us create a place where people can live and work and play,” Councilwoman Jayne Kocher says. "Hopefully it will be sustainable for our families’ quality of life and will help their financial future as well."
Bradenton Mayor Gene Brown says the project will change what Bradenton means to generations, enabling people to see “there’s something I can do down there other than going to a bar only. It’s a downtown that is vibrant but also for all ages to be there.”
The mayor, like Barnebey, notes the project has a long history. Initially, the city put out the call for proposals in 2022 and heard from three developers before moving forward in working with L&L Development Group.
“We have been going through this for several years. It was talked about years before that,” Brown says.
While "we could have waited five months to bring this up," Brown says, "it was important to me to bring it up as soon as it was ready. This is something that has been a long time coming.”
At its July 24 meeting, the council also approved a construction agreement with Bradenton-based NDC Construction for the new headquarters for the Bradenton Police Department.
The $30 to $35 million project will create a police station spanning 50,000–plus square feet, Perry tells the Business Observer.
“We hope to start construction around December of this year,” Perry says by phone, adding it will take 15 to 18 months to complete the project.
As far as where City Hall will go, Perry says, the city is still looking.
“There's a multitude of different properties we’re considering and viable options,” Perry says. “It’s easier to move the City Hall function because most of that is office space” versus the special requirements needed to build a police station.
Says Perry: “We feel pretty comfortable and confident that we’ll be able to find new construction, remodel or other types of occupancy or acquisitions.”
