Developers Vying For Historic Gas Plant District Project Share Plans

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — Hundreds gathered at The Coliseum Wednesday night to hear from the four development teams vying to redevelop an 86-acre portion of the Historic Gas Plant District — including Tropicana Field — pitch their projects.

In a new request for proposals to reimagine the area, the city received proposals to reimagine the area from 50 Plus 1 Sports, Hines & Tampa Bay Rays, Restoration Associates, and Sugar Hill Community Partners in early December.

Each developer gave a 20-minute presentation on their submission before the packed crowd of residents, business owners and city leaders.

• Also Read: Historic Gas Plant District Redevelopment: Public Input Sought By City

Mayor Ken Welch will announce his choice from the four submissions at his State of the City address at the end of January. At the start of the process, he asked those submitting proposals to focus on affordable and workplace housing, as well as intentional equitable development, arts and culture, sustainable development, open spaces, and baseball.

The mayor requested about 17 acres remain available for a new stadium in hopes of enticing the Tampa Bay Rays to stay in St. Petersburg.

Sugar Hill Community Partners

Sugar Hill, one of two finalists during former Mayor Rick Kriseman’s original request for proposals in the district’s redevelopment, kicked off the evening of presentations. The group is led by California-based JMA Ventures.

The developers say 50 percent of the residential units that would be built if their plan is chosen — more than 2,600 units — will be designated for affordable and workplace housing units.

“It’s not affordable housing or economic development. It’s affordable housing and economic development,” one member of the Sugar Hill team said. “It’s both. It’s both because we’re talking about people in our community, who are the very most important people to our economic engine. We’re talking about nurses and first responders, teachers, and hospitality and service workers. … So, 2,600 is a lofty goal, but we’ve put together a team that we feel, and we know, can achieve it.”

This workforce housing will fit seamlessly into Sugar Hill’s plan for a mixed-used neighborhood.

Their plan also includes space for a new African American history museum, the renovation of Campbell Park and a new nonprofit endowment that is projected to generate more than $60 million for the community – including $20 million to renovate and redevelop affordable single-family homes and funds to support local minority-owned businesses.

Sugar Hill’s full proposal can be found here.

Restoration Associates

Led by RGA Design based in Tampa, the Gas Plant Restoration Associates group includes four local at-risk development specialists, as well as local philanthropists and community stakeholders.

This development team proposes options for a new stadium — both a $1.5 billion stadium with a retractable dome and a $600 million renovation of the current stadium — depending on how much money for the project is available.

At the heart of both options is creating a more fan-friendly experience, including driving and parking. The Restoration Associates plan calls for an intermodal center with more than 6,800 parking spaces to replace I-175 — a center that is both pedestrian- and eco-friendly that can also address traffic needs.

Similar to Universal Studios or Tampa International Airport, fans will be transported from this intermodal center to the stadium, one member of the development team said Wednesday night.

“I don’t think we want to walk around for half a mile with no amenity package available,” he said. “What’s really going to change the fan experience? Is it really just the stadium? Opening it up? Reconfiguring (it)? No, it’s the experience of driving.”

Their proposal also calls for building between 2,800 and 3,800 “attainable residential units to result in a mixed-income, diverse community,” dedication to job training and opportunities, 5 percent of the net proceeds — projected to be about $100 million — dispersed throughout the community, and more than 5,000 self-storage units built in the area.

Restoration Associate’s full proposal can be found here.

Hines & Tampa Bay Rays

With their lease at Tropicana Field expiring in 2027, the Tampa Bay Rays have partnered with the Houston-based developer to present their vision for the district and the stadium’s redevelopment.

In their proposal, the team said its “committed to creating a vibrant, city-defining mixed-use village surrounding a state-of-the-art new ballpark for the Rays.”

The proposed ballpark, which the team said would be completed by 2028, has a fixed-roof and will be available for entertainment and community events.

Under this plan, 5,728 residential units will be built in the area. Of these, 1,459, including 600 off-site units, will be affordable and workforce. That represents about 23 percent of the total housing units included in this plan.

The plan also calls for the development of the 16th Street corridor with a grocery store, business incubators, and nonprofit spaces all connecting to South St. Petersburg and the Pinellas Trail; space for the Woodson African American Museum; and the Booker Creek Greenway, a north-south connector. Developers will also spend $500 million to target minority-, small- and women-owned businesses.

The annual impact from this development is projected to be $1.4 billion and will create 5,500 jobs that generate $656 million in wages in Pinellas County, one speaker from the team said.

The full proposal from Hines & Tampa Bay Rays can be found here.

50 Plus 1 Sports

Touting itself as 100 percent minority owned, the 50 Plus 1 plan claims that no money will be required from the city to develop its plan for the 86 acres. It will also offer an $8.9 billion revenue share to the city that will be disbursed during the first 60 years.

“With all the costs associated with (the) COVID-19 pandemic and everything that’s going on, taxpayers are not gonna want to fund billionaire’s ballparks, NFL stadiums, NBA stadiums,” managing partner Monti Valrie said. “So, I put together a plan that basically said, 'I would go on to find partners in the investment community, and I will come to different owners — NFL, NBA, Major League Baseball — and I will plan that I will pay for the stadium, and in return, I will take the land around the stadium and we will develop that land and we will share in the revenue.'”

He also said he would put $800 million toward a new stadium. Additionally, his plan calls for 50 percent affordable housing of all the onsite residential units that will be built.

During the development, construction and management of the project, Valrie also pledged that no less than 50 percent of the consulting teams and businesses he works with will be minority-, women- or veteran-owned.

He’ll also create a $10 million fund to support job training and career development in the area.

The full proposal from 50 Plus 1 can be found here.

Feedback Sought on Proposals

Through Jan. 23, the city is asking for feedback on the four submissions proposed by 50 Plus One, Hines & Tampa Bay Rays, Restoration Associates, and Sugar Hill Community Partners.

Residents can share their thoughts on the proposals through an online form at www.stpete.org/gasplant.

Proposal summaries and renderings will be available to review in person at the following locations Jan. 5-23:

• Campbell Park Recreation Center, 601 14th Street S.
• Childs Park Recreation & Fitness Center, 4301 13th Ave. S.
• J.W. Cate Recreation Center, 5801 22nd Ave. N.
• South Branch Library, 2300 Roy Hannah Drive S.
• Enoch Davis Center, 1111 18th Ave. S.
• North Branch Library, 861 70th Ave. N.

Feedback can also be provided at these locations either online or in a paper format.