YMCA selects local developers for transformative project in St. Pete
By Breanne Williams
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Jan 13, 2023

The YMCA of Greater St. Petersburg has selected a development partner to redevelop the Jim and Heather Gills YMCA campus on First Avenue South.

The group has chosen to work with the joint venture between St. Petersburg-based Eastman Equity, led by Jonathan Daou, and St. Pete-based Blake Investment Partners, led by Blake Whitney Thompson. The YMCA will work with the team to “strategically envision the eastern portion of the property to include a proposed mixed residential and retail development,” according to a release.

The YMCA plans to find additional partners to “address community needs such as affordable housing and health care services” as it explores redeveloping the site’s west end.

David Jezek, president and CEO of YMCA of Greater St. Petersburg, said that just over 20 years ago, the YMCA was the catalyst for redevelopment” in the area. Now they have the opportunity to use the site once again to launch a transformation.

“This project will allow us to give the Jim and Heather Gills facility a major facelift, creating more space, enhancing amenities, expanding youth and adult programming, and improving accessible parking, all while maintaining outdoor field space for children and families,” Jezek said in a release. “We also want to be involved in meeting other critical needs of the community, such as affordable housing and access to health care services, by making some of our west-end property available for redevelopment.”

Five teams met with a YMCA committee in October 2022 to present their proposals for the site. Thompson told the Tampa Bay Business Journal they were the only local development team of the finalists. The property is 11.47 acres.

“The invitation to participate in this process was humbling,” Thompson said in a release. “The YMCA management and board undertook an institutional search and brought in some of the best developers in the country. I am very proud that our collaborative proposal, our track record and our very deep roots to this city contributed to our team being selected.”

Daou has developed much of the Edge district, and Thompson has invested in the Grand Central district. In the last decade, they have made more than 50 investments in St. Petersburg real estate. The duo is also investing in other parts of the Union Central district, which they told the Business Journal is on the cusp of a significant transformation.

Thompson and Daou plan to create a themed “node” around the YMCA. Their plans detail a health and wellness-focused neighborhood that would include a mix of commercial and residential. The commercial spaces would match the theme of the community and would include stores like athletic shops or plant-based restaurants.

“This opportunity to make a new destination for health, wellness and the businesses that tie into that mindset is something that gets us motivated,” Daou said in a release. “This partnership gives us the chance to build an entirely new retail and residential destination.”

The development team is comprised of Thompson, Daou, Tim Clemmons of Place Architecture, Jenny Miers as AIA principal, David Flanagan of Kimley-Horn as master planner, Mat Walker of George F. Young as civil engineer, Kelly Rayburn of Greystar as property manager and Kristine Retetagos of Kast Construction as general contractor.

The YMCA will present a plan to its board of directors later this year.