Richman Group Plans $45M Apt. Community on Industrial Park Site

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor

The Richman Group of Florida unveiled plans for a $45 million luxury apartment community named Gateway Centre. To be located on the 40-acre site of a former industrial park, the four-story complex will rise on Gandy Boulevard. The site was purchased by The Richman Group last month from flea-market magnate Hardy Huntley.

According to Tampa Bay Times, Winter Park-based Douglas Partners had similar plans for the property, but as the deal failed to materialize, the owner started seeking new investors for the Pinellas County property.

Gateway Centre will consist of 432 units sized between 870 and 1,500 square feet, featuring nine-foot ceilings and granite countertops, with rents ranging from $1,000 to $1,800 per month. Amenities will include a clubhouse, an outdoor kitchen, tennis courts and a nature trail.

Developer The Richman Group will break ground on the project next year. Plans call for a 2014 opening date, when the first phase of the Gateway Centre—consisting of 320 units—is scheduled for completion.

No multifamily projects were delivered in the Tampa-St. Petersburg metro area in 2011. By contrast, Marcus & Millichap predicts that market-rate rental inventory will expand by 1 percent during 2012 with the completion of 1,500 units. Also this year, permitting remains on track to increase by more than 50 percent to 3,600 units of multifamily housing. According to the same report, approximately 2,000 units were under construction at the end of the second quarter, representing a potential 1.3 percent increase in market-rate stock. The total includes 344-unit second phase of the Circle at Crosstown in the Brandon/Plant City submarket, which broke ground in the second quarter. Projects containing 1,500 rentals will come online in the metro during 2012, including more than 1,000 units in Hillsborough County.

Chart courtesy of Marcus & Millichap