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Snell Arcade to begin morphing
By SHARON L. BOND, Neighborhood Times Business Editor
ST. PETERSBURG -- Construction should begin soon on the model condominium in the Snell Arcade, downtown's castlelike office building that is becoming 11 residences. The 1,450-square-foot model residence will be on the fourth floor, said Peter C. Fischbach, who has owned the arcade since 1994. He had hoped to have the model ready this month. "Changing from commercial to residential, that's a tough thing to do code-wise," he said. The city wants the building at 405 Central Ave. upgraded, which Fischbach said he intended to do anyway. "They are getting us to upgrade the whole building, but doing it way early," Fischbach said. The 1928 nine-story building is one of the more prominent landmarks in downtown St. Petersburg. It is on the National Register of Historic Places. Two residences are under contract to be sold, as are three of the commercial spaces on the street level. The residences are priced from the low to mid $300,000 range, except for the penthouse and the third floor space that used to contain a restaurant. The penthouse is two rooms in the building's tower, one on the eighth floor and one on the ninth, and just 496 square feet. It is under contract in the $100,000 range, Fischbach said. The third floor restaurant area, also once a nightclub, is one of the larger spaces and contains many of the architectural features that identify the 1928 neo Mediterranean style of the arcade. That space will go for just under $500,000, Fischbach said. It is not under contract. It was initially, but the buyer backed out, Fischbach said. The commercial spaces under contract are the shops where Bliss, George's Chicken and Frank's Cigars are. The gift shop space is selling for $160,000; the chicken cookery is a little more than $100,000 and the cigar store, $100,000. Fischbach said the sales do not mean the tenants will leave. Buyers of the Bliss and George's Chicken spaces are investors and want their tenants to stay. Late last year Fischbach decided to turn the building into residences and sell the stores on the street level. Earlier he tried to make the offices into work-and-live spaces, but he found that people preferred to just live there. Snell Arcade is being pressure cleaned, and Fischbach said there was less exterior damage than expected. A special coating will be used to fill in the dings.
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
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From the Times South Pinellas desks |
