Maximo Marina in South St. Pete is on the market
By Ashley Gurbal Kritzer
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Nov 6, 2014

The Chicago investors who acquired Maximo Marina in the wake of the Great Recession have put the property on the market.

The 582-slip marina, 45 acres of land - 34 of which are submerged - and a 32,000-square-foot commercial building in at 4801 37th St. S. in South St. Petersburg are being marketed for sale by Byron Moger, executive director of capital markets with Cushman & Wakefield of Florida Inc. in Tampa.

Moger declined to identify the seller, other than to say it was a "financial investor" who acquired a bank note on the property. Pinellas County property records show that Bixby Bridge Capital, based in suburban Chicago, took title to the marina in 2009.

Maximo Marina, like most large commercial properties, isn't being marketed with an asking price. Moger said he expects to call for offers and identify a buyer by the end of the year, and that a deal could close in the first quarter.

The marina is being marketed to boat dealers and developers, who may see potential for new construction on the 11 acres the property includes, Moger said. Bixby has completed the renovation of two of the docks on the property, but the others will likely need to be renovated by the new owner.

"The zoning is wide open," he said, "and with the appropriate permits you could build almost anything there. It's a real opportunity for a creative developer."

The marina has the depth and space to accommodate boats up to 100 feet, and the submerged land includes the basin and channel leading out to open water.

"This has some of the best access to the Gulf of Mexico of any marina on the West Coast of Florida," he said.

Ashley Gurbal Kritzer is a reporter for the Tampa Bay Business Journal.