The Chelsea St. Pete, beloved coffee shop in the Warehouse Arts district, to close
By Breanne Williams
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Jun 11, 2024

The Chelsea St. Pete, a beloved coffee shop in St. Pete’s Warehouse Arts district, will soon close its doors.

The coffee shop opened in May 2021 at 2462 Fifth Ave. S and has been a catalyst for growth in the district. It was inspired by owner Teresa Chalkley’s days as a student in the Chelsea neighborhood in Manhattan. The company announced on June 9 it would close after three years.

“This is a bittersweet moment,” Chalkley told the Tampa Bay Business Journal. “Besides the coffee shop, I have been working with the Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation headquartered at The Factory, and now I have an opportunity to join them full time. I will miss the wonderful Chelsea community so much but look forward to doing my part to conserve wild Florida.”

The Chelsea’s last day open will be June 16. The company will also be selling some of its furniture and art.

When she was first drawn to this portion of the Warehouse Arts district, Chalkley said there were no other businesses, other than Puckett’s Store Fixtures, on the block. Puckett’s has since relocated, and over the course of the last three years, the area has seen several new businesses move in.

As demand has grown, so have the rents. She said the supply costs for The Chelsea have continued to increase as well. When the opportunity came to step into a full-time position with the Florida Wildlife Corridor, she said the timing was right. She said a new tenant is already lined up to fill her space, though she doesn't know who it is.

“We did really well for three years, and I think the neighborhood really embraced us, but things have been a little slow this past year,” Chalkley said. “In just the past three years, this neighborhood has really grown around me. It was deserted blocks when I moved in and now, I see lots and lots of people moving in.”

In the 1990s and early 2000s, Chalkley owned multiple successful retail shops before transitioning to office work during the recession. When the pandemic hit, she said she decided to downsize her house and use the proceeds to open The Chelsea.

She’d always wanted to create a meeting place, something that would become a staple in the neighborhood. Coffee, she said, could be the foundation around which she could build that vision. She loved the arts community in the district, and their customers were “people from all ages and all walks of life.”

She prioritized inclusivity at The Chelsea and said whether she was supporting LGBTQ+ rights or Black Lives Matter, she made sure her business embraced her community.

And that embrace, she said, was returned. Many of her employees have been there since day one and the customers know her and her staff by name. Her regulars became part of their family, and she said while it is sad they’re closing, it feels like “such an amazing accomplishment.

“We’ve had so much joy and so much fun here,” Chalkley said. “The Chelsea will always be a fond memory for me."