A century-old downtown St. Petersburg office building that was destroyed by a fallen crane during Hurricane Milton is now back on the market.
Commercial real estate firm JLL is advertising the 1.25-acre property at 490 First Ave. S. as a land redevelopment opportunity.
“The site is ideally positioned for high-rise residential development,” the listing reads. ”The existing vacant office building will be demolished by the seller prior to closing, delivering a shovel-ready opportunity in one of Florida’s fastest-growing urban markets.”
Typically, property owners must get a site plan approved by the city before demolishing a building downtown. But exceptions can be made if a building is in disrepair or condemned, St. Petersburg city development administrator James Corbett previously told the Tampa Bay Times.
The building’s current owner is Atlanta-based Mason Capital Partners. The managing partner, Robert B. Mason, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Billionaire developer John Catsimatidis told the Tampa Bay Times he was interested in buying the property earlier this year. The crane that ultimately destroyed 490 First Ave. S. came crashing down from his building, the neighboring Residences at 400 Central.
The incident forced several longtime tenants, including the Johnson Pope law firm and The Tampa Bay Times, to permanently relocate.
It also prompted a group of insurance companiesthat paid out $10.5 million in claims to sue Castimatidis’ development firm, as well as the crane operator and the general contractor who worked on the Residences at 400 Central.
The insurance companies want the defendants to pay for any damages not covered under the various policies their clients took out. That case is still playing out in Pinellas County circuit court.