Developer changes approach as downtown Largo project lags in financing
By Kathryn Varn
Tampa Bay Times
Published: Nov 17, 2017

LARGO - Driving down West Bay Drive, you may notice some changes to downtown Largo.

A new 29-unit apartment complex on Ridge Road stands finished and ready for residents. South of the complex, land that was formerly home to a community of rundown cottages and the Smokin' Rib Shack restaurant is now a flat plot of dirt and grass, the homes demolished and the restaurant relocated.

The empty lot is now ready for construction to begin next year on the West Bay Lofts project, a pair of buildings on the 500 and 600 blocks of West Bay Drive with 123 apartments and close to 36,000 square feet of commercial space that city officials hope will be a game-changer for the struggling downtown.

While construction on the 600 block portion is slated to start this spring, developer Gary Tave hasn't secured all of the roughly $40 million needed to start the 500 block building and an accompanying parking garage at the same time. Instead, he's taking a phased approach.

"It's tough to be first," he said. "But I remain very confident that this facility will be the catalyst that will encourage others to take a serious look at downtown Largo."

Here's the plan as it stands now: the 600 block will be three stories with 52 units, about 20,500 square feet of commercial space and a surface parking lot with 52 spaces plus handicap parking. The 500 block will have five stories with the remaining units and commercial space plus a parking garage. The project will also include amenities for residents such as a pool and fitness center.

Tave said he plans to either find a partner or partners to finance everything - and possibly build the whole project at once if it happens soon - or use the 600 block building as collateral to draw funding for the rest of the project.

The new plan has some concerned about parking availability and the future of the formerly city-owned 500 block.

"It just kind of concerns me that there won't be any parking for the retail portion of it," said Commissioner Jamie Robinson, who used to manage Largo Feed & Pet Supply downtown. "Does that leave it empty, which then holds them up from building the 500 block?"

Still, commissioners gave the nod to city staff last month to work out new construction and completion dates for the 500 block, which will likely go before them at the Jan. 2 meeting. The new timeline calls for construction to start in June 2019 and finish in February 2021.

If that falls through, the land could end up back in the hands of the city, which owned it for a decade before Tave bought it.

That was a selling point for Commissioner Curtis Holmes, who didn't agree with the city on buying the land in the first place. Holmes is a frequent skeptic of downtown in his belief that it can't thrive with a four-lane, fast-moving road running through it. But he's glad Tave has a different opinion, and he isn't aware of any other interest in the land.

"Look at how long the property lay empty," Holmes said. "I'm not going to sit here as the adversary. I'm going to push to get that done."

As for why the financing hasn't come together, Tave pointed to a few reasons. His project is the first of its scope going up in the area, making it difficult for others to see his vision of a live-work-play downtown. Tave also wants to implement some unconventional building qualities, such as gray-water recycling and a robotic parking garage that can fit four times as many cars as a traditional garage in the same space, he said.

"That causes some concern with a lot of old-school developers and potential partners," he said. "Everybody's got to have their own risk assessment."

One downtown project that has made it through construction is 158 Ridge Apartment Homes, a complex that opened in September. About a third of the 29 units have been leased so far, said Erica Beaumier of Dean & DeWitt Property Management.

The complex is smaller and simpler than Tave's plan, which owner Indrid Agaj attributed to why he didn't run into issues funding the $4 million project. Agaj is hopeful Tave will complete his development, which he believes will improve the area and help his own business.

So is Robinson, despite his concerns.

"I have faith in him," he said. "Hopefully in the next couple years we'll be talking about this and how great it is."

Contact Kathryn Varn at (727) 893-8913 or kvarn@tampabay.com. Follow @kathrynvarn.