Presales boom for downtown St. Pete boutique condos months before groundbreaking
By Breanne Williams
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Jan 13, 2022

The Nolen, a boutique condominium tower coming to downtown St. Petersburg, has sold nearly 50% of its residences months before its anticipated groundbreaking.

The condominium will have 31 residences within a 23-story high rise. The development at 126 Fourth Ave. NE. is steps from The Vinoy Renaissance and North Straub Park.

Contract appointments began in November and were handled by Smith & Associates Real Estate. The land sale and construction financing were finalized in December. According to developer DDA Development, plans for permits will be submitted this month.

“The sales pace has exceeded expectations, which allows for The Nolen to move ahead of schedule and toward construction," Bowen Arnold of DDA Development said in a news release.

The Nolen is one of several residential projects coming to downtown St. Pete this year. Others include The Kolter Group's The Art House, a 42-story condominium tower in the heart of downtown that is expected to break ground this year and Orange Station, a development with five buildings expected to break ground this summer.

Condos at the Nolen start at $1.5 million and amenities include a fitness center, social room with catering kitchen, wellness room, amenity terrace with a pool and spa and a wellness room. The tower is 288 feet and includes a three-story parking structure and 1,260 square feet of ground-floor retail. Electric vehicle charging stations will also be on site.

Part of the developer’s focus for the tower is to maximize privacy for residences. Each unit is designed without shared walls. Floors five through 15 are planned with a total of two units per floor and floors 16 to 23 are planned to have one unit per floor. They also feature private foyers.

Construction is anticipated to begin in the second quarter of 2022. Developers confirmed the condominium will be a more than $50 million project.

“The Nolen has shown there is high demand for downtown living without sacrificing privacy,” David Moyer, director of sales, developer services at Smith & Associates, said in a release. “The fact that there are only 31 residences, each with private entry foyers and no shared interior walls, makes it unique from other new construction offerings."

The Nolen project team includes a variety of local firms including DDA Development, EWI Construction, Backstreets Capital, PLACE Architecture and Melissa Kelly Design Studio.