Strategic Property Partners, LLC (“SPP”), a Tampa-based real estate development firm, marked an important milestone for Water Street Tampa, the visionary 50-plus-acre downtown mixed-use development, with the groundbreaking of the project’s first residential building, 815 Water Street. The dual-tower building, located at the intersection of Channelside Drive and Water Street, the heart and spine of the neighborhood, will offer future residents an exceptional downtown location with an unmatched walkable, urban lifestyle, and it will offer visitors new food, grocery and shopping options and an improved gateway to Tampa Riverwalk. The groundbreaking for 815 Water Street was held at the site on Thursday, November 8, 2018 at 9 a.m.
“We are excited to begin construction on the first of many homes in the Water Street Tampa neighborhood, each providing an elevated lifestyle experience and opportunity to live along the waterfront in downtown Tampa,” said James Nozar, CEO of SPP. “815 Water Street fills an important need in the neighborhood, providing a diverse array of rental homes and neighborhood retail amenities designed to foster residents’ sense of wellbeing and connection to nature. With building entrances on the Tampa Riverwalk and the tree-lined Water Street, residents will be adjacent to multiple pedestrian-friendly corridors activated by neighborhood shopping, dining and entertainment options, all within steps of their front door.”
Expected to open in late 2020, the building’s two towers will rise 21 and 26 stories and comprise 420 rental residences over 35,000 square feet of ground-floor retail. Featuring a striking façade that is punctuated with expansive private apartment terraces, the building is designed inside and out to maximize natural light and encourage residents to interact with the outdoors. Sweeping views of the Tampa skyline and historic Hillsborough Bay will be enjoyed from every home. Both towers provide distinct amenity spaces for residents, including an outdoor pool, fitness center, community kitchen, bar, and club lounge situated on the roof levels.
“815 Water Street will be distinguished by the level of intentionality that went into its design, from the diversity of homes, including large three-bedroom apartments offering wrap-around, floor-to-ceiling windows and balconies that are uncommon within the Tampa Bay market, to its pair of expansive rooftop amenity terraces overlooking the waterfront. 815 Water Street is truly mixed-use to the extent that while it is ultimately a residential offering, a focus on a strong ground-floor retail experience was a primary consideration, ensuring that it was interwoven into the fabric of the building and the Water Street Tampa neighborhood,” said Rebecca Snyder, SVP of Residential Development at SPP.
Designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates (KPF), 815 Water Street is the world-renowned architecture firm’s first-ever project in Tampa and fifth in the state of Florida. Cecconi Simone, an award-winning, Toronto-based interior design firm best known for its exquisite residential and hospitality design, has designed the interiors of 815 Water Street.
Water Street Tampa’s masterplan has been designed to incorporate and promote wellness and lush green spaces, and 815 Water Street is a perfect example of how these concepts can translate to an enhanced quality of life. In addition to private terraces in each of the 420 residences, the building also features a beautifully landscaped green roof with lush plantings, designed by Miami-based landscape architect Raymond Jungles, Inc. Jungles is also designing the improved eastern gateway to the Tampa Riverwalk, situated along Beneficial Drive. SPP is currently working in partnership with the University of South Florida’s Graphicstudio to secure a stunning piece of public artwork to welcome residents and visitors.
A 25,000-square-foot grocery store will be situated along Channelside Drive. Servicing Water Street Tampa and the surrounding neighborhoods, the grocer is sure to be a welcome amenity and convenience for residents, visitors, workers, students and faculty at USF’s Morsani College of Medicine. SPP has not yet disclosed which grocer has been selected.
Residents at 815 Water Street will open their doors to an abundance of neighborhood amenities, including the Tampa Riverwalk, Amalie Arena, Tampa Bay History Center, Florida Aquarium, and the soon-to-open Sparkman Wharf, Tampa’s only outdoor food hall and waterfront park that will be home to a sprawling biergarten called Fermented Reality and ten new restaurant concepts from the city’s top chefs.
815 Water Street represents the fourth of ten groundbreakings at Water Street Tampa over the next year. These buildings join the University of South Florida’s Morsani College of Medicine and Health Heart Institute, which broke ground in Fall 2017 and will host a topping out ceremony on November 14, 2018.
Over 23,000 people will live in, work in, visit and explore Water Street Tampa every day once it is complete. Approximately 3,500 new residences, including for-sale condominiums and rental apartments, will be built in total. The first phase of construction will see approximately 1,300 new rental apartments and 42 for-sale condominiums built, as well as the first new downtown office towers in nearly 25 years, two new hotels, including the JW Marriott Tampa and the Tampa EDITION Hotel & Residences by Ian Schrager, and approximately 50 new neighborhood-oriented retailers and restaurants.
For additional information on 815 Water Street and Water Street Tampa, please visit www.waterstreettampa.com.