St. Petersburg Investment Opportunities near Tropicana

[Darius Ogloza]

Hey, Tampa Bay Area people!  We are SF Bay Area investors who own Gulf front property south of the Tampa-St. Petersburg metro (Charlotte County) and frequently spend time in St. Petersburg while down that way.   We are looking to increase our investment footprint and are particularly interested in and around the Tropicana field area of St. Pete, which last we looked in 2019 seemed to be growing into a really hip hot spot.  Referrals to local real estate agents and property management firms who farm this area and have band width to take on new clients would be greatly appreciated.  Also welcome thoughts on the general area, future development, red flags.  Thanks in advance.  

[Jeff Copeland]

Thanks for the kind words guys!

@Darius Ogloza - The area around the Trop does present some interesting possibilities. The main one, ironically, is the team relocating (which has been discussed for years), the stadium being demolished, and the site being redeveloped: http://www.stpete.org/city_initiatives/tropicana_field_conceptual_master_plan/ - which would make the surrounding area a very interesting long term play. 

That being said, there isn't a lot of real estate to be had in the immediate vicinity. The area to the East is fully developed (downtown St Pete), the area immediately to the West is mostly light industrial, and the area to the South is cut off by I-175 and Campbell Park (and has historically been a lower income/higher crime demographic).

The Grand Central and Edge districts along Central Ave to the West are desirable areas and red hot as far as real estate investing goes, as are Historic Kenwood to the West, and the entire 4th St/16th St corridor to the north. So there's not a lot of untapped potential, so to speak. 

There is a lot of condo development taking place nearby downtown, but that's not typically what individual investors are looking for. 

Don't get me wrong; St Pete and the greater Tampa Bay area are a great market to invest in. But Tropicana Field is not necessarily the anchor.