Everyone has an opinion about the redevelopment of the Historic Gas Plant. That said, almost everyone agrees that St. Petersburg needs a win. The Gas Plant development, in many ways, dictates how St. Pete’s future will unfold.
My partners and our team — The Burg Bid — are committed to the city and to our role as developer. The Urban Land Institute or any selected consultants engaged to ensure the best team and proposal are selected will get nothing but full collaboration and cooperation from us. For those of you that haven’t read through the 100s of pages of data and details yet, here’s what sets our proposal apart.
Visionary panel: We invited 22 (and growing) community organizations to opine, collaborate, critique and meet with us on a regular and ongoing basis. These organizations deserve to have an iterative conversation with the developer. There is no reason for a “check-the-box” support letter on a dynamic project that will span multiple mayoral administrations.
Highest valuation: We value the site at $405 million, representing the highest valuation of any proposal. This is higher than the city’s last appraisal.
Unprecedented affordability: We are proposing 3,600+ income-restricted housing units — nearly double what other proposals offer.
Cultural restoration: At our heart of our plan sits Museum Row, anchored by the Woodson African American Museum of Florida, creating a true regional cultural destination.
Economic opportunity: Through the “Collaboratorium,” we will create a dedicated hub for small business success and workforce training, connecting local talent directly to jobs.
Largest new city park in over a century: Residents will have use of 15 acres of new parks and a new amphitheater for music and concerts.
If you are reading this, you are doing your homework. Please ask these questions about each bidder as you consider the future of the Gas Plant District: “Does the bidder have a track record of executing real estate developments at this scale?” and “Whereexactly is the capital coming from?”
We have completed developments of this scale. Blake Investment Partners brings deep local knowledge coupled with meaningful scale: 200+ projects completed, 25,000+ residential lots delivered as well as dozens of holdings here in St. Pete. We’ve also assembled something rare: world-class expertise at every level. Related Group is one of the largest developers in Florida, with over 100,000 residences built and managed since 1979 and 12,000 units currently in its development pipeline. Greystar brings unprecedented multifamily apartment expertise, with $320 billion in real estate assets under management globally, 1.1 million-plus units managed worldwide, and $36 billion in completed development projects, operating at a scale few can match.
Our construction partners include the most recognizable and capable names in the business — Skanska, Gilbane and KAST. Supporting them are top-tier architects and engineers — WJ Architects, Zyscovich, Wade Trim, Stantec and Langan. This is a blend of local firms with deep roots and relationships in St. Petersburg and international placemakers known for land planning. This is the team that turns vision into reality.
Let’s be direct: Some proposals were submitted by teams who have never delivered a real estate project. Ever. A project of this size and importance is not the time for on-the-job training. Our Burg Bid team’s deep knowledge of the city and its people, as well as our capability to execute at this scale and sophistication are not idle claims — they are our track record. We’ve been here, building here, investing here.
The Burg Bid is backed by flexible and discretionary capital with the ability to take on long term projects. This financial capacity matters because complex urban developments inevitably face challenges and changes to budgets or scopes. The city needs a development team with the resources and resilience to push through.
To the other bidders: I am proud to be in your company. Your time and investment proves you love this city as much as we do. If the mayor selects our bid and the City Council approves it, I want to invite you to collaborate with us. The same goes for the real estate professionals throughout the region that chose not to bid for any reason; there is room for you in a deal of this size. We want the smartest people who love St. Pete helping us bring our shared vision to reality.
Finally, for the best interest of the city, my team will not announce or make public any negotiations with health or educational institutions until after a section as there is no reason to have them getting tugged back and forth between teams in the news. I must assume these critical participants in the future of our city are welcome to be a part of any winning team’s plan.
Thompson Whitney Blake, a St. Petersburg native, is the CEO of private equity firm Blake Investment Partners.