- December 13, 2025
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Leasing opens for waterfront apartment in waterfront development
The apartment community at Bimini Square, a long-awaited development in Cape Coral, is nearly open. The building’s developers have opened leasing on the five-story, 198-unit residential component of the community, which is set to open in the fall. Available apartments include studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom units with “introductory” monthly rates starting in the $1,600s. Bimini Square is a mixed-use waterfront development on six acres west of Four Freedoms Park in the city. Along with the apartment community, it will feature 58,000 square feet of space with a marina and two onsite restaurants — House of Omelets and Bimini Basin Seafood & Cocktails, along with a two-story Lee Health outpatient clinic and office. The development will also have a six-story parking garage. The project had been in the works for about four years before winning city approval February 2023 and beginning construction that October that year.
Public hearing set for controversial resort rezoning
The owners of the South Seas resort — and those opposing it — will go before Lee County Commissioners Aug. 6 after a county Hearing Examiner recommended approval of a zoning application for the nearly $1 billion redevelopment July 11. The ownership group wants to build 435 hotel rooms across two hotels on the property. The north hotel, which is replacing the former Harborside Hotel, will have 225 rooms. The south hotel will have 210 rooms and replace the former conference center. Plans also call for 193 multifamily residential units. To allow for this, the owners are looking to rezone 120.5-acres of the property from residential multifamily, marine commercial and two-family conservation to mixed use planned development. Those opposed to the plans argue that increasing building heights and density will alter the character of Captiva. WS SSIR Holdings, a joint ownership group which includes Timbers Co, Wheelock Street Capital and The Ronto Group, bought the 330-acre South Seas Island Resort (as it was then known) in 2021 for $50.38 million. It closed on the sale 364 days before Hurricane Ian hit the area, causing extensive damage and creating new regulatory requirements. (South Seas lost 22 support structures, including the hotel, housekeeping facilities, offices, tennis courts and maintenance facilities in the storm.)
Affordable house development starts construction
Habitat for Humanity of Tampa Bay Hillsborough officially broke ground last week on a 23-home affordable housing community in Brandon. The community is on Windhorst Road just off Parsons Avenue in the Tampa suburb. The houses in the project are being built with a resiliency feature: hurricane shutters. Habitat says Verizon provided the funding for the shutters and is also sponsoring a house for a woman and her two sons who lost their home in Hurricane Helene last year. Windhorst Commons, the development, is for people with incomes at or below 80% of the Area Median Income. It is being built with $1.4 million from Hillsborough County, which also provided $600,000 for infrastructure costs. The first home is expected to be completed in six months, with the entire neighborhood scheduled to be built by the end of 2026.
Naples luxury developers goes north for upcoming project
Stock Development, the Naples developer, says it is planning an “exceptional residential experience” for a piece of property it bought in Tampa last week. The $40 million purchase is of an existing building at 601 N. Ashley Drive in the city’s downtown. Keith Gelder, president of land development for Stock, says in an email that the company is expanding into Tampa as part of strategy “to build on our momentum along Florida’s West Coast.” Stock is well-known luxury developer in the region. It is currently building the Ritz-Carlton Residences in Naples, a five-building complex sitting on six acres. The project is over 80% sold with more than $500 million in sales, Gelder says. It is on track for occupancy in 2026. As for Stock’s plans in Tampa, details will be shared as planning progresses, he says. Stock Development posted $462 million in revenue in 2024.
Apartment complex sells for nearly $60 million
Bridgewater Grand, a 300-unit Lakeland multifamily community, has sold for $57.37 million. The property at 5546 Autumn Ridge Road was bought by the Connecticut real estate private equity investment firm Hamilton Point Investments. Berkadia, which brokered the deal, says it closed July 10 and that the community was 95% occupied. (The company declined to share the sale price, which was available in Polk County property records.) The previous owner, TrimCor, paid $2.5 million for the then-vacant land in 2019. It began construction in 2020. The three-story, garden-style apartment community off of State Route 33 sits on 31 acres and includes one-, two-, and three-bedroom units ranging from 1,219 square feet to 1,853 square feet. Two- and three-bedroom units make up 92% of the unit mix. According to apartments.com, monthly rents range from $1,635 to $1,985. Hamilton Point has bought more than150 properties for over $3.8 billion since it was founded in 2009. This is its fifth community in Florida, the first in the region. Berkadia’s David Etchison, Cole Whitaker, Jason Stanton and Mary Beale represented TrimCor in the deal.
Joint venture lends LA developer nearly $18 million
The Los Angeles owners of a Polk County apartment complex have obtained a $17.66 million loan on the community. The mezzanine loan is on the 384-unit Lynwind Apartments in Davenport. Terms for the financing were not disclosed. The Latigo Group-owned community is between Lake Wilson Road and Grey Heron Boulevard. It was completed in 2023 and sits on 26.6 acres. The gated community is made up of one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom units and is 91% occupied. Latigo is a residential, mixed-use real estate development and investment company. It currently owns five properties in Florida, including the 455-unit The Hadley in Cape Coral and the 303-unit Fiori in Naples. The Atlanta-based ECI Group, along with its partners in a joint venture, Smith Hill Capital and InterVest, provided the financing. It was the first investment for the joint venture.
Homebuilder, industrial property owner secure financing
Largo Capital in Sarasota has arranged the financing for five single-family home to be built in Manatee County’s Cortez. The houses, being built by Pearl Homes, are part of Hunter’s Point, an 86-unit residential resort community. The 18-month loan is for $4.34 million and features interest-only payments for the full term. The three-story detached homes will be three bedrooms and include a two-car garage and a private plunge pool. Largo previously financed six other houses in the development. Largo also arranged the financing for a fully occupied industrial and retail portfolio in Sarasota. The $3.75 million 10-year loan comes with a 5-year fixed rate, 25-year amortization and no prepayment penalty. The borrower is a Miami LLC. The properties are two adjacent industrial buildings totaling 17,000 square feet at 2155 19th St. The standalone 5,000-square-foot retail building is at 4571 Clark Road. Both loans were arranged by Largo’s Ian Fitzgerald.
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