No one wants to buy Big Blue.
Tampa’s aging police headquarters, a boxy blue building in the heart of downtown, went up for sale in December with a starting bid of $36 million. But the city’s request for proposals, which closed on Feb. 6, received no responses.
The bid request was the first step toward relocating Tampa’s Police Department, a city news release said last year. The new owner would have been required to lease back the building to the city for one year “for the relocation of the Tampa Police Department operations,” according to the request.
It is not yet clear where the Police Department would relocate, nor how much money a new headquarters would cost.
Roughly two dozen companies, including architects and construction firms, followed the city’s online page for updates on the project. But none submitted proposals to buy the site, which includes the 10-story police building and an adjacent parking garage.
Arian Cora, a procurement analyst for the city, sent an email on Wednesday to more than fifty people and companies including real estate, construction and consulting firms requesting feedback on “what may have prevented participation” in the project.
“Any insight regarding the structure, requirements, timeline, or other terms would be greatly appreciated as we evaluate future solicitations,” Cora wrote.
A city spokesperson did not immediately respond to questions about next steps for the project.
City leaders have long complained about the downtown building at 411 N. Franklin St., purchased for $2.95 million in 1996 under Mayor Dick Greco.
In 2015, Mayor Bob Buckhorn said the building, nicknamed “Big Blue” for the dark tinge of its windows, had “outlived its usefulness” and that he planned to find a replacement.
“It makes no sense for me to put money into a building that’s obsolete,” he said that year.
But in 2018, nearing the end of his second term, Buckhorn said there was “no money” to complete the project.
Three years later, under Mayor Jane Castor, city officials pitched a plan to move the police department to Hanna Avenue in East Tampa, now the site of the $108 million City Center. Some community members protested the move.
Castor said in December that the downtown site “offers a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reimagine a key parcel in the heart of downtown. This is a valuable opportunity in the downtown core to create a community-minded development that will serve Tampa for generations to come.”
At a meeting in December, some Tampa City Council members said they were skeptical of the sale and questioned how the city would afford relocating the Police Department.
“This isn’t just selling something and getting money,” said Council member Lynn Hurtak. “It’s, ‘What do we do with that money? How do we pay for something new when we clearly don’t have the money to pay for something new?’”