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Downtown Tampa's office vacancy rate has stabilized at just under 20% through the second quarter, according to various brokerage research reports. A big chunk of that space can be found in a single building.
The eight-story structure formerly known as Mercantile Bank Plaza, at the southwest corner of Ashley Drive and Kennedy Boulevard, is completely empty. Gibraltar Development Corp. of Clearwater bought the building for $9 million in 2007 with designs on replacing it with a 50-story luxury condominium tower.
Three years later, amid a commercial development bust, the 68,000-square-foot building stands empty, its only visible activity being the underground garage now operated by 717 Parking. The building's popular outdoor plaza overlooking the Hillsborough River appears to be maintained, but stacked furniture can be seen through the lobby windows. Also, the building's value has dwindled below $3.3 million, Hillsborough County property records show.
Brokers familiar with the building tell Coffee Talk that Gibraltar is considering re-leasing the building as offices, provided there are any suitable tenants who can take up part or all of the space. Michael Scarfia Jr., Gibraltar's vice president in charge of the building, could not be reached for additional details.
In any case, companies looking for well-located space in downtown Tampa should negotiate their best deal now. Asking rents for Class A space were tracking less than $23 per square foot at midyear.
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