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Former triple-X venue could dispense triple-shot espresso
No tenants are lined up, but the new owner wouldn't mind a certain high-end coffee shop in the rehabbed building - with a drive-through.
By JON WILSON
Published October 1, 2006
ST. PETERSBURG - Sometimes all it takes to drive neighborhood change is a sign. A few months ago, Maryann Lynch, a relentless renovator of old buildings just south of downtown, bought a Fourth Street S bunker that had housed an adult video and book store since 1982. Lynch plans to turn the building into retail space on the first floor and create offices on the second. What got her interested in this particular 48-year-old edifice? "I saw a for-sale sign," said Lynch, who said she owns "34 or 35" other properties, many of them not far from the former adult store. For example, last month she bought Lakeside Colony, an apartment complex a few blocks away. Lynch has been making over buildings for 10 years. She started with the aging Ventnor Apartments at 344 Fourth St. S, tearing off a creaky porch, painting the building pink and installing landscape plants. Neighbors liked the job. Now, many Bartlett Park residents, where both the former adult store and the apartments are situated, are welcoming Lynch's more recent initiatives. They were to have held a block party Saturday afternoon at the former store to paint over the adult signage, trim trees, play games and chow down. Lynch is calling the project "1427" after its Fourth Street S address. She bought the building in April for $500,000, county records show. She said she has gotten approval for a construction loan and expects to begin renovations in December. She expects the job to take about six months. When finished, it will have five retail spaces downstairs and two offices upstairs, where an outdoors deck will also be featured. Lynch plans an awning to dress up what has been a stark front. She said she has no tenants lined up yet. The building is in a commercial and retail area with a carwash and a small strip center nearby. It is close to the Bartlett Park, Roser Park and Old Southeast neighborhoods. Mulling possibilities in her mind last week, Lynch was struck by the idea of a Starbucks coffee shop. There are three on Fourth Street N, but none on the street south of Central. "How about a drive-through?" she mused.
[Last modified September 30, 2006, 22:28:57]
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