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EDGE District project’s new name invokes St. Pete history
Edge Central Development Partners, the joint venture planning an office, residential and retail project at the site of the former St. Petersburg Police headquarters, has unveiled a new name and new design for the development.
The project will be called Orange Station at the Edge, a name that recalls the Orange Belt Railway that made its first stop in St. Petersburg in 1888 at a temporary depot just blocks from the site at 1300 1st Ave. N. in the EDGE District where the development will be built.
Orange Station at the Edge will include 100,000 square feet of new office space – a vital component in a city that is lacking Class A office space to attract and retain businesses, some City Council members said when they approved a lease and development agreement with Edge Central Development Partners in August.
A site plan shows the nine-story office building on the east side of the project.
The Orange Station office tower will have common meeting space, open air balconies with views of the downtown St. Pete skyline and adaptable workspace.
There also will be 56 urban condominium residences on the south side of the project, along Central Avenue, and 30 workforce apartments on the north side of the project along 1st Avenue North. The site plan shows 20,000 square feet of retail space in the condo and office towers.
The buildings will surround a public plaza with outdoor cafes. A tribute to the Courageous 12, the St. Petersburg police officers who fought an historic civil rights battle, will be in the public plaza, and the SunRunner bus rapid transit line connecting downtown with St. Pete Beach will have a stop at the site.
A 400-space public parking garage with a six-story green wall with foliage will be located mid-block.
The project reflects the vitality of the surrounding EDGE District, said architect Tim Clemmons of Place Architecture.
Its name invokes a much older time in St. Petersburg’s history, however.
Slide courtesy of Edge Central Development Partners
“We were surprised and excited to learn about the historical significance of this part of downtown St. Pete,” said Jay Miller of J Square Developers in St. Petersburg, one of the project partners. “Orange Station perfectly captures what this project will bring to downtown and the Edge District.”
Other partners in the joint venture are Tampa-based DDA Development, led by Bowen Arnold and John Schilling, and Craig Sher and Will Conroy of St. Petersburg-based Backstreets Capital LLC.
Clemmons and Wendy Giffin, an office leasing specialist with Cushman and Wakefield, also are on the project team.
Site preparation and demolition will begin in 2021, with project completion expected in 2023.
DGE Central will pay $6.4 million to buy the old police station property, with up to a $1 million discount to cover demolition costs. The city will buy 400 spaces for public use for $8 million, and will provide a $2 million loan to cover the gap between what it costs to build the workforce apartments and the rent that will be collected on them.
