Today, St. Petersburg has officially picked its developer for its long-anticipated Tropicana Field site.
Mayor Ken Welch has selected The Burg Bid, the proposal from Blake Investment Partners and Miami-based Related Group, to redevelop the 86-acre Historic Gas Plant district. It is the third attempt in six years to remake one of the most coveted development sites in the Southeast.
Led by St. Petersburg native Thompson Whitney Blake, the proposal offers $275 million to purchase 58 acres of the site, the highest land offer among the eight responses the city received, and projects roughly $8.1 billion in total development investment, with the requested public contribution capped at $75 million from the community redevelopment area. Funding comes from Elliott Investment Management, the West Palm Beach-based hedge fund known for stakes in companies like Southwest Airlines and PepsiCo.
The plan centers around a 13-acre park and a museum row anchored by a new Woodson African American Museum and a public art museum holding a permanent collection from international artists. More than 3,600 workforce housing units are projected on and off site over the life of the project, joined by a workforce training and small business success center, a multipurpose indoor-outdoor event venue, a potential outdoor surf and water facility, and a contemplated multimodal transportation hub.