Sarasota Square apartment project secures financing

A new apartment project in south Sarasota County is expected to break ground in the coming weeks after getting a loan to begin building. Sarasota Square Apartments recently secured construction financing through PNC Bank. The amount of the loan was not immediately available.

Woodfield Development, a company with offices in North Carolina and South Carolina that creates multifamily communities, will use the funds to develop a 355-apartment complex on the site of the former Sarasota Square Mall.

“We are excited to advance Sarasota Square Apartments and begin construction on a community that will play an important role within the broader Sarasota Square redevelopment,” Ryan Studzinski, partner at Woodfield Development, says in a statement. “The Sarasota market continues to demonstrate strong fundamentals driven by population growth, household formation and long-term demand for high-quality housing. This project allows us to deliver a thoughtfully designed residential community within one of the region’s most significant mixed-use destinations."

Sarasota Square Apartments will contain residential units in one five-story building as well as a six-story building. The community will include one, two and three-bedroom apartments from 768 to more than 1,600 square feet. Apartments will feature frameless glass shower enclosures, walk-in closets, in-unit washers and dryers, plank flooring, stainless steel appliances, tile kitchen backsplashes, quartz countertops, smart locks, digital thermostats and gigabit wi-fi connectivity. Some floor plans will have balconies or private patios. 

On 4.5 acres near Sarasota Square Boulevard and 8201 S. Tamiami Trail, the community will include a pool with outdoor entertainment areas, gated parking and electric vehicle charging stations. A clubhouse for residents will contain a fitness center, wellness spa, coworking lounge and golf simulator.

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Maitland-based Charlan Brock Architects is designing Sarasota Square Apartments. Brooks & Freund of Fort Myers is the general contractor and North Carolina-headquartered firm Shelton Taylor + Associates is overseeing interior design.

Already, the developer has invested millions of dollars in the project. Through an LLC, Woodfield Development bought the 4.5-acre parcel for the apartment complex for $18.2 million from Torburn Partners, the Illinois-based commercial real estate investment firm developing the former mall site, in March.

Torburn Partners is redeveloping the nearly 100-acre Sarasota Square site into a mixed-use destination in phases. When complete, it will include about 530,000 square feet of retail, restaurant and commercial space and approximately 1,200 residential units.

Phase one of the redevelopment project calls for 90,000 square feet of commercial space, which is 88% pre-leased, Torburn Partners said in a statement in May. Tenants will include Whole Foods, Homesense, Charles Schwab, Cava, Joe & the Juice, Chipotle Mexican Grill and Warby Parker. Delivery for the first phase of the project is projected for the first quarter of 2027.

After construction begins this summer for Sarasota Square Apartments, the first apartments are expected to be finished in the first quarter of 2028. Completion of Sarasota Square Apartments is projected for the fourth quarter of 2028.

Woodfield Development has completed 74 multifamily communities around the country, has 16 communities currently under construction and is overseeing many others in various stages of entitlement and design, according to a statement. In the region, it has developed Ridley at Waterset apartments in Apollo Beach.