A developer has filed plans for a 29-story apartment building in Downtown Tampa at the site of First Presbyterian Chruch.
The congregation voted to sell to Property Markets Group earlier this year. The church has sat at the corner of East Zack Street and Florida Avenue since 1922, but the block is prime real estate as Tampa's downtown experiences a high-rise building boom.
PMG has said little about its plan for the site, but last week it filed a permit request with the city’s planning department. PMG would preserve the sanctuary building and build a tower of “co-living” apartments on the rest of the block.
PMG has rolled out the concept in Miami and Chicago. “Most apartment buildings near downtown are overly expensive and dull, filled with people who don’t know their neighbors,” PMG’s Ryan Shear told Multi-Housing News in 2018. “We create spaces and event programming that spur social interaction while using technology to make life easy.”
Renters pay for a private bedroom and bathroom and share living quarters with other tenants. The building would also include shops and co-working space.
PMG says its buildings offer the same amenities as high-end apartments, but at an affordable price. Units at its Miami property start at around $1,500 a month (average rent for a one bedroom in Downtown Miami is about $1,900 a month).
PMG’s Tampa plan will now go through a review process, including public comment. Meanwhile, First Presbyterian continues to meet at its nearly century old downtown home. Pastor Fitz Connor said in a recent Facebook video that the congregation will likely leave the property sometime next year.
