Star of the show

A large and high-tech new business incubator is in the works for downtown St. Petersburg.

The project is in its infancy stages. But Pinellas Economic Development Director Mike Meidel says the center, when it opens, could house a combination of manufacturing, bioscience and tech startups, among other businesses. The 45,000-square-foot building, with a planned location at the southwest corner of 11th Avenue South and Fourth Street South, will also be home to 3-D printers and other high-tech gadgets, Meidel anticipates.

It's expected to cost up to $14 million to build, and funding will come from a variety of state and local sources. Construction on the incubator, if all the funding possibilities come through, could begin by July 2017. “We want to make this the cornerstone of the innovation district in downtown St. Petersburg,” Meidel tells Coffee Talk. “The demand is there.”