Federal prosecutors close another chapter on troubled condo project The Arbors

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By Margie Manning A Miami attorney is at least the fourth person to plead guilty to charges stemming from a troubled real estate project in Carrollwood.

Rashmi Airan-Pace pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire, mail and bank fraud in connection with the purchase of The Arbors, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida.

The Arbors was an apartment complex at 3939 Ehrlich Road in Tampa that co-conspirators planned to buy and convert to condo units, financing their plan… Read More

Source:: TBBJ Real Estate

Raymond James, JPMorgan Chase help fund affordable apartments in Largo

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By Margie Manning Housing Trust Group has closed on the financing of Whispering Palms Apartments, a $12.4 million, 63-unit affordable housing community in Largo.

Money to build the project came, in part, from the Raymond James Tax Credit Fund, equity raised from the purchase of Florida Housing Finance Corp. low-income housing tax credits, a press release said. JPMorgan Chase and First Housing Development Corp. provided construction and permanent debt, and the Pinellas County HOME Investment Partnership also provided… Read More

Source:: TBBJ Real Estate

5 things to know about Vinik’s billion-dollar vision (Video)

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By Ashley Gurbal Kritzer It’s a lot to take in: Nearly 3 million square feet of new commercial development, totaling more than $1 billion in development costs, in downtown Tampa over the next five to seven years.

Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik unveiled his vision for the land he’s acquired in downtown Tampa on Wednesday. He controls about 40 acres — 30 owned and 10 leased, about 25 of which are part of the development at this point — around Amalie Arena, under his holding company Strategic Property Partners.

Here’s… Read More

Source:: TBBJ Real Estate

Dream big and take this advice from Russell Wilson’s dad: ‘Why not you?’

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By John Nemo I still remember the terror in my heart as I approached a woman with the most beautiful blonde hair and blue eyes I’d ever seen.

For all the talk and false bravado that goes on among young males in locker rooms and elsewhere, I had zero self-confidence when it came to asking out girls. I’d struggled with self-hatred and low self-esteem my entire life, especially around women.

And here, on the dance floor inside a smoky blues bar, just a few months after I’d turned 21 years old, I was approaching… Read More

Source:: TBBJ Real Estate

​Sneak peek: Vinik previews plans for Hillsborough commissioners

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By Ashley Gurbal Kritzer Tampa Bay Lightning Owner Jeff Vinik gave the Hillsborough County Commissioners a sneak peek of his billion-dollar development plans Wednesday morning.

“What we’re going to show this morning is a vision plan,” Vinik told the board. “I wouldn’t call it a master plan. This is our vision of what’s going to be in place in five to seven years.”

The full reveal will be made at 11 a.m., but here’s what we know after the commissioners presentation:

3 million square feet of new development 5,000 new parking… Read More

Source:: TBBJ Real Estate

First Look: The Bourgeois Pig in Seminole Heights, opening Friday

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By Eric Snider Lysa and Michael Bozel have developed The Bourgeois Pig restaurant because it never occurred to them that they couldn’t.

“I’m a huge risk taker,” Lysa Bozel said, sitting in the nearly-completed interior of their house-turned-eatery on Nebraska Avenue in Seminole Heights, two miles north of the district’s trendy, if small, restaurant row. The stretch, between Sligh Avenue and Bird Street, is crowded with used car lots, small motels and light industrial businesses, but that doesn’t deter the Bozels.… Read More

Source:: TBBJ Real Estate

Creative Recycling Systems tops most-searched TBBJ terms in 2014

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By Pam Huff This story is part of Year in Review, which looks back at the biggest news, most influential newsmakers and top photos of 2014. Read more Year in Review articles here.

Our coverage of lawsuits involving Creative Recycling Systems in Tampa and the company’s eventual filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy put the company on top of the TBBJ’s 2014 most-searched terms.

The following are some of the most-searched terms internally on the TBBJ website in 2014, broken down by companies, people, industries and… Read More

Source:: TBBJ Real Estate

5 things to start the day: Florida anticipates $1B surplus, Bondi asks court to intervene on gay marriage, Riverwalk delayed

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By Salem Solomon The latest revenue estimates made by Florida state economists project a surplus of nearly $1 billion. The economists increased their estimates by $622 million due to increased consumer confidence and dropping gas prices, the Tampa Bay Times said. The total budget surplus is now projected to be $958 million. Chief state economist Amy Baker said the lower prices at the pump could translate into increased spending and increased sales tax revenue this holiday season.

Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi… Read More

Source:: TBBJ Real Estate

From downtown Jacksonville to downtown Tampa: One reporter’s look back at 2014

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By Ashley Gurbal Kritzer This story is part of Year in Review, which looks back at the biggest news, most influential newsmakers and top photos of 2014. Read more Year in Review articles here.

In most cities, a big part of covering commercial real estate is covering the urban core.

I moved from the Jacksonville Business Journal to the Tampa Bay Business Journal mid-way through 2014 but kept my focus on commercial real estate — and urban renewal efforts.

Click through the slideshow for a look back at some of the biggest… Read More

Source:: TBBJ Real Estate

Home builders’ index slips, but housing still on ‘slow march to normal’

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By Kent Hoover Home builders’ confidence in the market for new single-family homes fell by one point in December after a four-point jump in November.

The Housing Market Index slipped to 57 — still a good enough number to show that “we are in a slow march to normal,” said David Crowe, chief economist for the National Association of Home Builders.

“As we head into 2015, the housing market should continue to recover at a steady, gradual pace.”

NAHB compiles the HMI based on monthly surveys of home builders about… Read More

Source:: TBBJ Real Estate