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Real Estate Briefs (Sara/Mana edition)
University Groves starts
infrastructure construction
Construction has kicked off on development of the $140-million University Groves project, which wraps around University Health Park, west of University Commons.
Site work has began on the single-family portion of the project, and construction on homes should begin by the second quarter of 2005, says Howard Camp, managing partner on the development side of University Groves Development LLC. Venice-based Fidelity Homes has purchased all 68 of the single-family home lots and is expected to acquire the 79-unit townhome portion of the project as well.
That will be followed by the extension of Shade Avenue and additional infrastructure work on University Parkway and Tuttle Avenue.
iWe are just about to submit final plans for the two three-story 45,000-square-foot office buildings,i says Camp, whois doing the commercial end in a joint project with Dr. Don Harvey, developer of University Health Park.
Running along about 32 acres on the southernmost portion of the development, the developer plans to build 182,200 square feet of commercial space o retail, six restaurants and a bank. The developer also plans 330 condominium units on about 28 acres.
The commercial and office portion will be constructed by W.G. Mills Inc., but the multifamily portion will be built by a subgroup, W.G. Mills Inc. South.
Walker-Whitney plans
8-unit condo on Ringling
Blake Thompson, who purchased and renovated the former Bradenton Commerce building as chairman of acquisitions for a St. Petersburg-based developer, is partnering with Joel Walker of South Carolina to develop an eight-unit condominium development W Penthouses in downtown Sarasota. The partnersi development group is called Walker-Whitney.
The luxury condominiums will be built at 1806 Ringling Blvd. near the intersection of Ringling and Osprey Avenue.
iWe have only had the sign on the site (listing) a Web site for nine days,i Thompson said on Dec. 17. iWe already have three sales.i
Walker-Whitney recently hired Ginny Thompson, director of design and marketing, to design the projects. Says Thompson: iShe is a St. Petersburg (design) icon.i
Units in the 10-story W. Penthouses will be about 4,600 square feet and are priced in the $1.5 million range. The development will also feature 18 parking spaces.
W. Penthouses is the second of three projects planned for the development group. The first development, the eight-unit W. Flats in St. Petersburg, is sold out and construction is set to start in January. W. Penthouses is scheduled to follow in February, and construction on the 56-unit W. Plaza in St. Petersburg is set to begin in mid-March.
Local Sonics franchiser
plans five new drive-ins
McClain Sonics Inc. of Ridgeland, Miss., bought about two acres at 612 E. 10th St., Palmetto from Palmetto Rental Properties Inc. for $540,000. The Palmetto location is one of five sites selected by McClain so far for new Sonic Drive-Ins in 2005.
Halfacre Construction Co. President Jack Cox, general contractor for the developer, says McClain Sonics plans to build restaurants in Wauchula, Apollo Beach, Riverview, Palmetto and North Port. Halfacre is slated to start construction in January on the Riverview store. The Palmetto location will follow in late summer, and the North Port drive-in is scheduled to start in the fall. Each location takes about three months to build.
McClain Sonics, who used the corporate name of Boyz N Burgers LLC for the transaction, mortgaged the Palmetto property to Bank of America for $1.4 million.
McClain Sonics is also looking at a location on Manatee Avenue.
The typical Sonic Drive-In facility features a 1,200-square-foot building, used as a kitchen, about 30 drive-up stalls for ordering food and 10 picnic tables.
Buddy McClain, CEO of McClain Sonics, says that the company typically hires about 75 people for each location.
Sarasota Coastal Credit Union
plans new North Port branch
Sarasota Coastal Credit Union has filed for a permit to open its sixth branch on land at Toledo Blade Boulevard, about 1.5 miles west of Interstate 75. The new 3,500-square-foot bank will be located in the Lakeside Plantation neighborhood and is one of the first new banks in North Port in several years.
Tom Randle, CEO for Sarasota Coastal Credit Union, says the branch will open Oct. 1. Tom Wessel Construction Corp. is the general contractor.
Asked why the bank decided to open a new branch in North Port, Randle pointed to the cityis overall growth, in addition to the growth of the regionis credit union members.
iWe have had members in that area for years,i he says. iEven with the heavy growth in the area, we had never had an acceptable number in the area until recently.i
Randle says Toledo Blade demographics show that 28,000 cars travel the road daily.
iItis like Fruitville Road out there,i Randle says. iWe wanted to get there ahead of the pack. That way we can buy the land before it gets any more expensive. Part of the decision was, eCan we afford to wait?i i
Developer completes purchase
of Palmetto industrial park
Palmetto Industrial Park LLC has closed on the second half of two parcels for a 15.63-acre industrial park on 17th Street E., Palmetto. The company purchased about 10 acres of vacant industrial land from Forristall Enterprises Inc. for $600,427.
In October, Palmetto Industrial Park purchased the first four acres from Forristall Enterprises for $334,573.
Jackson, managing partner of Bradenton-based Earthworks Land Development Inc., says he plans to sell the land in one-acre increments. The development is located near I-75, I-275 and the railroad.
Jacksonis Earthworks Land Development will do the site work, as well as the infrastructure and utilities. Construction is expected to start in early January. Lots are scheduled for closing in May.
Forest Products seeks
permit for truss plant
Forest Products Supply Inc. officials have filed a site plan to develop a 60,000-square-foot truss manufacturing building at 2955 Whitfield Ave.
iIt should come out of permitting any day now,i says Greg Imerman, manager of special projects. iOur facility in Sarasota is just really tight.i
Aside from the extra space dedicated to manufacturing, Imerman says the facility will be one of the most modern in the state given its level of automation.
iWe hope to double production,i Imerman says
Snavely Development
public/private design
Ohio-based Snavely Development Co., the developers of Summer Cove on Siesta, announced a public/private cooperative effort with Sarasota County to create a new site plan that includes a redesign of the community. Construction is set to begin in the summer of 2005.
iWe think the local community, the (Sarasota) County Commission and the families that have reserved residences will be pleased with our new plans,i says Bryan Nichols, president of residential construction for Snavely Development. iThe new site plan we recently discussed with the committee is a way to keep The Summerhouse purely as a clubhouse. The new design would not change the amount of residences, but it would reduce the plan from three buildings to two buildings and a parking structure. It will include more homes offering bay views.i
The new building in The Summerhouse would be designed in the Sarasota School of Architecture style.
Summer Cove on Siesta will now include one building with nine floors and a second building with five floors, both over enclosed garage parking.
The three- and four-bedroom residences will range in size from 2,100 to 3,700 square feet. Amenities include an enclosed garage parking, a social room, resort-style swimming pool with bay views and adjacent summer kitchen, kayak/canoe launch and fully equipped fitness center. Residences are priced from the $800,000s to over $1 million.
Michael Saunders & Co. of Sarasota is the real estate sales representatives for Summer Cove on Siesta. HKS Architects of Dallas, Texas will design the project.
EtcO
i Schroeder-Manatee Ranch Inc. has agreed to gift about two acres in Lakewood Ranch for a new facility to house both the Manatee Chamber of Commerce and the United Way. The 5,000-square-foot building will be located in the Commerce Park area, just north of Lakewood Ranch High School. The building will replace the Manatee Chamberis present East County facility, which it has occupied for several years. The construction schedule depends on the fund raising efforts of both organizations.
United Way officials say the organization is interested in having a location in Lakewood Ranch to enhance services in eastern Manatee County.
iWe applaud the Manatee Chamber for their confidence in the continued healthy business climate in this community,i says Rex Jensen, president and CEO of SMR. iThey have been in the lead recognizing the strategic importance of this area.i
SMR has a history of working with non-profit institutions to help them find locations in Lakewood Ranch. The company has donated or contributed to parks, schools, the YMCA, the Red Cross and others.
i New York City-based Greenwich Capital Financial Products Inc. bought Jacaranda Plaza at 1687 Tamiami Trail S. from Venice FL Retail LLC for $25.5 million. The Sarasota County property appraiser lists the total square footage of the centers at 95,600.
i Hanover Park Ill.-based Gämmerler US. Corp. bought two lots at 7501 and 7511 Westpark Place in the Gulfcoast Corporate Park of Palmetto from Miller Enterprises Manatee LC for $592,000. An official for Gämmerler says that the land was bought as an investment, but the company might build a facility on the site in the next three to five years. Gämmerler mortgaged the Westpark Place property to Royal American Bank for $608,300.
Gämmerler is a leading manufacturer of inline finishing equipment.
i Anthony and Taya Parodo purchased a 6,000-square-foot warehouse at 2141 Whitfield Park Drive from Walter Loebenberg for $340,000.
iWe have been looking for property in the area for a year-and-a-half,i Taya Parodo says. iIti an investment; we are leasing it to an auto mechanic. Every time a piece would come open it was gone before the sign went up.i
The Parodos mortgaged the property to AmSouth Bank for $290,678.
i Tropex Plant Leafing Inc. filed a site plan to build a 9,900-square-foot packing and shipping facility. Charlie Lenger, owner of Tropex, expects to complete the building by June.
i Sarasotais Kellogg & Kimsey, Inc. was recently awarded two Barnes & Noble tenant finish projects. Both jobs are located in Arizona, one in Phoenix and the other in Gilbert. Each bookstore interior is approximately 25,000 square feet and will be completed in early 2005. Kellogg & Kimsey Inc. has completed more than 150 Barnes & Noble projects nationwide.
i Tampais WRB Enterprises Inc. bought land from Dan Blalock Jr., as trustee, for $2 million. WRB converted Tampais Ybor Square into a mixed-use office and retail development. In residential housing, WRB is a joint-venture partner in various single-family lot developments throughout the Tampa Bay area.
WRB owns a portfolio of real estate holdings, including a 2,000-acre cattle ranch near Dade City and more than 3,000 additional acres of commercial and agricultural properties throughout the southeast United States.
i Hal Gillihan, a sales associate in the Bradenton office of Michael Saunders & Co., set a record sale for Key Royale in November closing on 613 North Point Dr. with selling agent May McNeill for the record price of $1.6 million.
The highest sales price ever recorded for the Key Royale area, the property sold by Gillihan and McNeill is located in North Point Harbour, an exclusive waterfront Holmes Beach community. The home features three bedrooms, bonus room, soaring ceilings, fireplace, caged heated pool and Jacuzzi, plush landscaping, circular brick paver drive and a 73-foot dock on a deep waterway.
i Sarasota County has agreed to purchase 11 acres of environmentally sensitive land on Lemon Bay. The acquisition involved some of the only undeveloped bay shoreline remaining within the county and expands Lemon Bay Park.
The acquisition also provides 565 feet of bay frontage. Purchase price of this joint project between two county offices: the Environmentally Sensitive Lands Protection Program and Parks and Recreation, is $2.6 million.
The property is adjacent to the 196-acre Lemon Bay Park and will provide entry to a previously inaccessible section of the park.
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