After Milton dropped a crane on it, the Tampa Bay Times’ former home might be torn down
By Lily Belcher
May 12, 2025 at 5:00 AM EDT
The Tampa Bay Times CEO said the building is uninhabitable and the newspaper is looking for a new home.
A construction crane crashed into the Tampa Bay Times’ office building during Hurricane Milton in October.
Now, the owner of that building wants to tear it down.
Times CEO Conan Gallaty already told his staff they would not return to the building, which the paper has called home for 100 years.
The decision came after the landlord deemed it uninhabitable due to the fact that there’s no power and a gaping hole in the roof.
“Quite frankly, the internal environment was fairly hazardous,” Gallaty said.
The eight-story building, located at 490 First Ave. S. in downtown St. Petersburg, was also home to a juice shop, law firm and defense contractor.
St. Pete spokesperson Samantha Bequer said the owners have had informal conversations with city officials about demolishing the building.
However, in order to tear down a building downtown, it has to be deemed unsafe or there needs to be a plan to redevelop the property. So far, no permits have been filed.
Gallaty said these conversations were not a surprise.
“We knew that there was likely only a matter of time before that building had to be determined to be rebuilt, renovated in some way or taken down completely,” he said.
The future of the building, however, is not set in stone.
"We imagine this is going to be a long process to figure out who's eventually going to put a new structure up and what that structure will be,” Gallaty said.
He said his staff has been allowed to retrieve “business-critical” items, such as employee files.
“Access into the building to do it safely was a challenge,” he said.
Since October, Tampa Bay Times staff have worked remotely or in temporary offices in the area.
But after making the decision to abandon the paper’s historic building, Gallaty said he’s looking for a permanent home.
"We're being open,” he said. “We're thinking this through. We want to get this right."
When asked which side of the bay they'll choose, he said they're keeping their options open. The news organization previously had an office in downtown Tampa on Ashley Drive. According to Creative Loafing, it closed at the beginning of 2024 since it didn't need the office space.
The newspaper moved into the St. Petersburg building in 1924. The Tampa Bay Times sold the building in 2016, but remained a tenant until Hurricane Milton.
The building's owner, Atlanta-based real estate investor Robert Mason, and a manager did not comment at the time of publication.
Now, the owner of that building wants to tear it down.
Times CEO Conan Gallaty already told his staff they would not return to the building, which the paper has called home for 100 years.
The decision came after the landlord deemed it uninhabitable due to the fact that there’s no power and a gaping hole in the roof.
“Quite frankly, the internal environment was fairly hazardous,” Gallaty said.
The eight-story building, located at 490 First Ave. S. in downtown St. Petersburg, was also home to a juice shop, law firm and defense contractor.
St. Pete spokesperson Samantha Bequer said the owners have had informal conversations with city officials about demolishing the building.
However, in order to tear down a building downtown, it has to be deemed unsafe or there needs to be a plan to redevelop the property. So far, no permits have been filed.
Gallaty said these conversations were not a surprise.
“We knew that there was likely only a matter of time before that building had to be determined to be rebuilt, renovated in some way or taken down completely,” he said.
The future of the building, however, is not set in stone.
"We imagine this is going to be a long process to figure out who's eventually going to put a new structure up and what that structure will be,” Gallaty said.
He said his staff has been allowed to retrieve “business-critical” items, such as employee files.
“Access into the building to do it safely was a challenge,” he said.
Since October, Tampa Bay Times staff have worked remotely or in temporary offices in the area.
But after making the decision to abandon the paper’s historic building, Gallaty said he’s looking for a permanent home.
"We're being open,” he said. “We're thinking this through. We want to get this right."
When asked which side of the bay they'll choose, he said they're keeping their options open. The news organization previously had an office in downtown Tampa on Ashley Drive. According to Creative Loafing, it closed at the beginning of 2024 since it didn't need the office space.
The newspaper moved into the St. Petersburg building in 1924. The Tampa Bay Times sold the building in 2016, but remained a tenant until Hurricane Milton.
The building's owner, Atlanta-based real estate investor Robert Mason, and a manager did not comment at the time of publication.