Luxury car condo concept revs up in St. Pete

Another new luxury car condo development is in the planning stages for St. Petersburg. 

After Scott Clendening of St. Petersburg Commercial Partners Realty recently announced his plans to build Motocave Tampa Bay – St. Pete’s first-ever car condo community – another development is also in the works. 

Developer Frank Maloney is planning to build Elite Garage Suites, a 48-unit luxury car condo development that combines the comfort of a man cave with the strength and security of a storage vault. 

Elite Garage Suites from Skyway Media on Vimeo.

“This concept is not new to Florida, however, it is new to this area, so I’m excited to bring this unique garage community to St. Petersburg. Several of these projects were built in Florida in the last few years and all of them sold out quickly. We started accepting reservation deposits last year and over 30% of the units are currently reserved,” Maloney said in a release. 

A rendering of the loft area inside one of the units that’s accessible by a staircase.

Maloney and Clendening are well familiar with each other and have communicated about their respective projects. 

“There’s plenty of demand in the market for this,” Maloney told the St. Pete Catalyst. 

Clendening agrees. 

“The concept of secure, luxury auto storage ownership time has come,” Clendening said. “We have a growing community of auto enthusiasts who want a place of their own, yet in proximity with other car guys.” 

The climate-controlled Elite Garage Suites will be located at 2350 20th Ave. North. The units range from 1,265 to 1,650 square feet. Like Motocave Tampa Bay, it will have an option to add a mezzanine that leads to a loft area. 

A rendering of inside one of the units at the Elite Garage Suites showing the loft area.

“When Frank first described this project to me, I immediately understood the appeal of this unique concept. As a business owner, husband, and father, finding a quiet space to decompress is challenging,” Tom Burket, President of P.J. Callaghan Company Inc. that’s acting as the general contractor, said in a release. “When we first met to discuss the project, I told Frank I was a buyer, regardless of whether he chose me as his GC. Thankfully, I’m now both and I can’t wait to break ground and make this project a reality.”

The pre-construction pricing ranges from $249,000 to $324,900 and is limited to the first 24 units. There are eight units still available at this price.

Its amenities will also be similar to Motocave Tampa Bay. It will have a clubhouse with a conference room and outdoor meeting space. There will be a high-pressure wash bay with a vacuum station. 

The clubhouse at the Elite Garage Suites.

Although there are many similarities to the planned 43-unit Motocave Tampa Bay development, there are several main differences – largely, the location and the clientele market they will be geared toward. 

Motocave Tampa Bay will be located at the northeast corner of Interstate 275 and Gandy Boulevard. The 3.75-acre site next to the St. Pete Housing Authority HQ was purchased by Clendening several months ago.  

The site has great accessibility for the South Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater markets. It is also near Jabil Inc. and other Fortune 500 companies. 

Meanwhile, Elite Garage Suites will be on a property across from a Home Depot and along a railroad line. The site is only accessible via a private road with a gated entrance on 20th Avenue North. There’s a single entry and exit at the site. 

It’s an industrial area, but it is close to the Old Northeast submarket. 

Maloney said the 4.5-acre property is very secluded but has visibility from I-275. 

A rendering showing the Elite Garage Suites from an aerial view.

“The residential towers are going up in St. Pete and the storage space is very limited. I have at least four buyers who live in condo towers and needed space,” Maloney said. “The site is 51 feet above sea level – which is one of the highest in St. Pete – that’s what really attracted me. It’s very difficult to find land like that.” 

Elite Garage Suites will have 16-by-16-foot doors so the garage condos can accommodate Class A RVs and offshore boats. 

The units can also withstand winds reaching 160 miles per hour. 

Maloney said his team has secured most of the permits to develop the site. 

He expects to break ground soon and said it may take approximately 11 months to construct the 48 units simultaneously.