Places This Week: Hotel Zamora sells for $35M; Motocave construction

A weekly roundup of local real estate deals.

The Hotel Zamora on St. Pete Beach sells 

The Hotel Zamora, known for its rooftop lounge and spa on St. Pete Beach, has sold in a $34.65 million deal. 

Devanand Mangar, owner of the upscale Spanish-Mediterranean-designed hotel, has sold the property to George Sherman of Minneapolis-based development and property management firm Sherman Associates. 

The Hotel Zamora. Facebook image.

The 67,262-square-foot hotel at 3701 Gulf Blvd. sits on over an acre of property and offers a five-slip marina with kayak and paddleboard rentals, a 360-degree rooftop entertainment area, restaurants, a whirlpool spa and a large swimming pool. 

The Hotel Zamora’s rooftop lounge. Facebook image.

When the 72-room resort opened in 2014, it was the first hotel built in St. Pete Beach in more than two decades.

The site itself has a long history. It was once the site of condominium project that faced bankruptcy. Mangar initially had a minority stake in the property and helped flip it into the hotel it is today. 

Mangar said he didn’t intend on selling the resort; however, Sherman, which Mangar previously formed a relationship with via a potential land deal in Ruskin, approached Mangar with the offer. 

“We never advertised the property,” Mangar said. “But I do want to get back to practicing medicine, it’s my calling, and with Mangar’s vision, the stars aligned.” 

Mangar, who practiced medicine at Tampa General Hospital for over 30 years, said Sherman may likely upgrade rooms and the lobby of the hotel. 

Sherman took out a $28.5 million mortgage loan from Midwestone Bank for the hotel purchase. 

According to Sherman Associates’ website, this would be the first Florida hotel in its portfolio. However, Sherman has a strong track record of making additional investments in communities where it has a presence. 

UPC’s HQ building may list 

United Property and Casualty Insurance Company, known as UPC Insurance, recently announced it would withdraw its personal line businesses from Florida among other states, which would likely result in the company selling its HQ building in St. Petersburg. 

UPC’s headquarters. File photo.

Earlier this year, United sold several of its parcels in St. Petersburg across from its headquarters at 800 2nd Ave. S.to an LLC connected to the St. Pete-based Moyer Law Group, in a $4.2 million deal.

UPC has not responded to a request for comments regarding the future of its HQ building; however, the topic on its HQ building as well as property its leasing from the city surfaced during a Wednesday Community Benefits Advisory Committee meeting.

The conversation emerged as the CBAC was discussing the failed Moffitt Cancer Center and TPA Group proposal to purchase the 800 Block, which included a portion of property UPC leases from the city.

UPC once considered moving its HQ to the site. 

City staff members said when UPC does decide to sell its HQ and exits its lease for the nearby city-owned site, the city would regain control of the leased property.  

Developers secure permits for Motocave 

The developers behind Motocave, coined as Pinellas County’s first car condo community, have secured building permits and site work is expected to commence next month, the development team announced this week. 

A rendering of the Motocave Tampa Bay development. Courtesy of DDA Development.

The St. Pete Catalyst was the first to report on the project that is taking shape at 2051 Gandy Blvd. in St. Petersburg. Motocave will be built on 3.75 acres on the northeast corner of Interstate I-275 and Gandy Boulevard. 

The concept was created by prominent real estate developers Bowen Arnold of Tampa-based DDA Development, Scott Clendening of St. Petersburg Commercial Partners Realty, and Matt Mosk of Largo-based Mosk Development Co., one of the largest industrial and commercial developers in Pinellas County.

At completion, it will feature a total of 43 car condominium units in five buildings, totaling approximately 55,000 square feet. The units will range from 918-1,591 square feet and are customizable.  

The team said 40% of the units have sold. 

The project is being financed by Valley Bank, which has a longstanding relationship with Motocave partners Mosk, Arnold and John Schilling.

“The car condo space is an emerging asset class with several recently completed successful projects throughout the state. This is an exciting opportunity for us as banking partners to be part of one of the first projects in the Tampa Bay area,” Trey Korhn, first senior vice president and commercial real estate division head for Valley Bank, said in a news release. “However, it is the track record of success with these longtime clients and the chance to partner with them on this opportunity that truly makes it so appealing.”

Construction is expected to take roughly 12 months.

Berkadia arranges fractured condo deal 

Berkadia has secured a $27.69 million loan for the acquisition of 161 out of 248 units at Harbourtowne at Country Woods, a fractured condominium community in Palm Harbor.

The borrower was New York multifamily real estate developer ESG Kullen.

“ESG Kullen was able to capitalize on their successful track record in the fractured condo space and identify a highly desirable fractured condo community in a high growth market, with a significant asset level of upside opportunities,” Managing Director Christopher Apone of Berkadia Miami said in the firm’s announcement. “Their long-term experience in this asset space, and the Florida markets, provided an array of debt options with a bank execution that offered the best combination of flexibility and leverage, while also bringing a highly competitive interest rate versus traditional debt fund lenders.”

The community at 1697 Nantucket Court has units that average from 675 to 1,300 square feet. 

New hotel in the works for Clearwater

Plans have been filed for a new waterfront hotel in Clearwater. 

The project, dubbed Harbor View Resort and Marina, is being developed by Clearwater investor Huijun Yang.

The project entails building a contemporary hotel condominium with an on-site restaurant, tiki bar, pool and boat slips at 411 East Shore Drive. 

The Harbor View Resort and Marina site in Clearwater. GoogleMaps.

The four-parcel site is currently used as a parking lot and features a pond, which will be demolished, according to a stormwater application. 

The units at the future resort-condo start at $430,000 and the owners of the condos will be able to use it as their vacation home for up to 90 days per year, according to the project’s website. 

The developer is working with Waterfront Realty. 

St. Pete’s Granda Gates sells 

The Granada Gates apartment complex at 450 76th Ave. N. has sold for $12 million. 

EJB Granda Gates LLC has sold lots 79 through 99 to Tampa-based Villadova Holdings. 

The buyer took out a $13.87 million mortgage loan from Lake Michigan Credit Union.