St. Pete seafood distributor Bama plans major expansion

St. Pete seafood distributor Bama Sea Products is focusing on reducing the fish odor emitting from its current facility, while entering the early planning stages for an expansion. 

Bama Sea Products, which currently runs a 100,000-square-foot facility at 756 28^th St. S. in an industrial park near The Factory, has submitted a proposal to the city to expand its operations.  

Bama Sea Products’ St. Pete location, formerly a cold storage facility. GoogleMaps.

Bama started as a processor and distributor of fresh and frozen shrimp in Alabama. It opened a St. Pete facility in 1990. 

Today, the company works with major retailers such as Costco, Publix, Sysco and meal-kit companies including HelloFresh. It also works with the United States military. With the growth and additional space needed for processing, the company plans to expand its operations to the east by purchasing the property at  2586 8th Ave. S. (Lot 16) from the city. Lot 16 does not have any existing structures, but unauthorized boats and vehicles are parked there. 

The property at 2586 8th Ave. S., also known as Lot 16. GoogleMaps.

Bama is offering the city $10,000 to purchase the site, which it will invest at least $35,000 into to create a deodorizing system, as it has done so at the main facility to reduce the fish odor. 

“The smell from this plant is a shadow of what it used to be as we’ve continued the sanitization process of this plant,” CEO Michael Stephens told the St. Pete Catalyst.

“In March 2021, we first expressed our interest in Lot 16 to the city. Since then, we have incurred significant expenses in mitigating the smell around our property, thereby facilitating further redevelopment within Dome Industrial Park [where Bama is located]. We will continue doing this because we are stakeholders in this community and we try to be a good neighbor,” Stephens and Plant Manager Brian Jackson wrote in their offer letter to the city. 

They noted Bama also intends to purchase lots 17, 12 and 13. If the purchase of lots 12, 13 and/or 17 is unsuccessful, Lot 16 would still allow Bama to move forward. The details on the physical footprint of the proposed expansion were not included.

“We are incredibly busy right now, and we are trying to evolve into a modern food processing facility and need the storage,” Stephens told the Catalyst.  

“We understand that there are many investors watching properties like Lot 16 and vying to take advantage of the current upward volatility in the real estate market. However, we are hopeful and confident that you will see the value in Bama purchasing this property instead of an absentee investor,” Stephens and Jackson wrote. 

As Bama’s offer was made to acquire the city-owned property, the city must open the floor to other parties who may be interested in purchasing the site as well. 

Other parties must submit their proposals by 10 a.m. on April 6. The city prefers the proposals to be submitted via email to Dennis Weber, the real estate coordinator, at dennis.weber@stpete.org.