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SHARON L. BONDRenters in Building I will be given first option to buy, at a discount. Units in Building II are nearly all sold.
ST. PETERSBURG - More condominiums are coming to downtown, but the buildings already exist.
With the filing of paperwork in Tallahassee last week, 137 luxury rental apartments in Building I of the Madison complex are beginning their conversion to condominiums. Prices on these one-, two- and three-bedroom units range from $109,900 to $400,000.
The Madison apartments opened in 2002, two five-story buildings on two blocks bounded by First and Third streets S and Fourth Avenue S and Delmar Terrace. Rental prices ranged from $850 to $1,745 per month with extra charges for higher floors and better views.
Building II converted to condominiums in September, and 90 percent of its units have sold.
A second phase of the Madison including 250 apartments was announced in 2001. However, Zom Development Inc. of Orlando, which built Buildings I and II, did not exercise its option on the property so the project did not go forward.
Converting to condominiums was driven by the market, said David Hooks, a real estate publicist in Clearwater speaking for Zom.
"The market wasn't that strong for that many more (rental) units," Hooks said. "There is a market there" for condominiums. "On the strength of the success of (selling) Building II, bringing Building I to the market made a lot of sense."
Downtown St. Petersburg has become a virtual condominium construction zone in the past five years. In addition to six condo towers now occupied, two more condo projects are beginning construction and two more are on the drawing boards. In addition, a number of downtown buildings such as the Snell Arcade, Detroit Hotel and Carlton Towers are being converted to condominiums.
Condos don't suit everyone, though. Some moved to the Madison because it was a rental complex.
Al Crook is one Madison resident who says he will not buy his apartment on the fourth floor in Building I. He moved from a condo he owned on Isla del Sol. He wanted to live downtown and get out of condo ownership.
Crook is 68. He said a lot of people his age had the same idea about moving to downtown St. Petersburg. And as he did, they moved into the Madison when it first opened. Few of them are left, he said.
"I wanted to stay downtown. I had good reasons to be downtown. This has really shattered my dreams," Crook said. He looked forward to using the trolleys to get around to museums and shopping downtown. He was so delighted with the Madison two years ago that Zom residents pointed to him as a model tenant.
He and his wife, Donna, were looking at apartments in Tampa when they heard about the Madison in 2002. They moved in almost as soon as the apartments were finished.
Now, he doesn't know what they will do or where they will go, just that they will not move into another Zom project. Their lease expires in August.
Zom sold Building I to Zom Residential Services Inc., which will market the units, Hooks said.
Zom said 99 percent of Building I is rented. Leases will be honored, as state law requires. Residents will be given first option to buy their units and prices will be discounted for 45 days for them, Hooks said. During that time, Zom will keep a list of nonresidents interested in buying units that come available.
The Madison includes covered parking, a fitness center, club room, courtyards and a party room. It has 62 one-bedroom, one-bath units with prices ranging from $109,900 to $201,900. Prices on the 55 two-bedroom, two-bath units range from $165,900 to $289,900. Eight three-bedroom, two-bath units are going for $279,900 to $400,000 and the 12 two-bedroom, 21/2-bath townhomes, $244,900 to $279,900.
Homeowners association fees will range from $158 to $394 per month, which includes the water bill and groundskeeping.
"No. 1 has better water views," Hooks said.