SouthState Bank leaving Midtown for downtown Tampa
By Ashley Gurbal Kritzer
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: May 29, 2024

SouthState Bank has landed signage rights on an office tower in downtown Tampa, where it will open a regional headquarters in early 2025.

Winter Haven-based SouthState said Wednesday that it has signed a lease for 17,000 square feet on the 29th floor of the 31-story Rivergate Tower, Tampa’s iconic cylindrical limestone tower. The new lease means SouthState will leave Midtown Tampa, where it was the first tenant to commit to office tower Midtown West in 2020. SouthState leased 10,000 square feet in Midtown West.

In the Tampa Bay market, a 17,000-square-foot office lease is considered large. The vast majority of office leases in this market are under 10,000 square feet. SouthState is a growing company: The bank recently announced the $2 billion acquisition of Independent Bank Group, which will allow it to enter the Texas market.

“I’m thrilled that SouthState will be part of the downtown Tampa skyline, with our name atop the iconic Rivergate Tower,” Angel Gonzalez, SouthState West Florida region division president, said in a statement.

Roxanne Kemph and Kelley Matheson of CBRE Group Inc. represented the building’s owner, Miami-based Banyan Street Capital. Mike Griffin of Savills represented SouthState.

“We are extremely pleased to expand our relationship with SouthState Bank and to have their name adorn this celebrated Tampa icon,” Zac Gruber, president of office at Banyan Street Capital, said in a statement. “SouthState Bank also leases space with building signage at 20 North Orange, another Banyan Street Capital building in downtown Orlando.”

SouthState’s move goes against a trend of companies leaving Tampa’s central business district for mixed-use developments like Midtown, Water Street Tampa and The Heights. Tampa Electric Co. and Peoples Gas will leave the urban core for Midtown Tampa when its office condominium in Midtown East is completed.