Northpinellas: Talks build expectations, but little else

CLEARWATER -- Tony Conti has been the proprietor of the Traveler Motel Apartments at Clearwater Beach for 20 years. He has heard a lot of pitches for beach redevelopment in that time, even made a few deals to sell his old 13-room motel to developers and retire.

Nothing has happened.

"We've been promised this and that, and agreed in good faith," Conti said last week. "They always call the deals off. Then a few months later, someone else will come along. If they could revitalize the beach, do something, it would be the best place in Clearwater."

Clearwater officials again are trying to spur redevelopment at Clearwater Beach. They recently unveiled a revitalization plan, dubbed "Beach by Design," that the City Commission appears likely to approve early next year.

Meanwhile, three development groups have separately proposed new condominiums, parking garages and resorts at the beach in response to the city's plan to grant concessions and spend more than $12-million on a beach plan. The City Commission is expected to review the plans Dec. 4.

So far, the developers' proposals have been kicked around primarily in talks with city negotiators, with little opportunity for public comment. But at the beach, it's easy to find a variety of opinions about what the city should do next.

There is concern about how new redevelopment projects will balance the interests of people who live at the beach against those of the people who want to move there -- and the hordes of tourists who jam roads for hours every spring.

The idea of encouraging more development makes some residents uneasy.

"Has anyone looked at the top end, to see how much we can stand out here . . . until we just have total gridlock?" David MacNamee, a north beach resident, asked city officials at a public meeting on the redevelopment ideas last week.

Anne Garris, an outspoken resident who has been critical of the city, complained that redevelopment would simply replace beach services residents depend on with things just for tourists.

"One of the qualities for me is having my beauty parlor here and the hardware store," Garris said. "I think real creativity would have done more with what's here and saved more of what we value on the beach."

But there is also enthusiasm for many of the ideas in "Beach by Design," which call for constructing public parking garages, beautifying Mandalay Avenue and Gulfview Boulevard, building more sidewalks and widening Coronado Drive to ease traffic congestion. Those are just a few of the ideas in the 64-page document.

Longtime beach residents Jack and Jann Spalding praised the city's proposal to create "Beach Walk" along Gulfview Boulevard.

The city project would involve a major beautification and realignment of the road, along with the creation of 25-foot-wide sidewalks and open-air cafes. There would be a trail for pedestrians, bicyclists and rollerskaters to enjoy the beachfront.

"It could be such a unique, open space," Jack Spalding said. "In the rest of the county as you drive along the islands, you can't see the water. It's an urban canyon effect."

"I had a phrase in my mind as I was driving around yesterday," Mrs. Spalding said. "Clearwater Beach should be the jewel in the crown of Clearwater, instead of just a string of costume pearls."

John Doran, an attorney and real estate agent who has been involved with the island's civic association, also supports creating more sidewalks and areas for pedestrians at the beach -- especially along Gulfview, where there are now parking lots.

"We can do an awful lot more by having a beach and not a parking lot," Doran said.

But if parking is someday removed from Gulfview to create a place for people to hang out, residents and business owners alike say the creation of public parking garages is crucial.

On 185 days of the year, there is enough parking at the beach, according to "Beach by Design." The rest of the year, the document says, there is not enough.

To promote redevelopment, the city needs garages with up to 800 more spaces on south beach and 400 more spaces on north beach, according to Charles Siemon, the redevelopment attorney who wrote the beach plan.

Some residents also theorize that garages would help persuade tourists to stop cruising streets looking for spaces -- and cut down on traffic congestion.

If people have a parking garage to go to, they're off the roads more quickly, said Mrs. Spalding.

Some beach business owners think the city should try to encourage more restaurants or clubs, things tourists can do at night. But D. Jannelle Clymer, a real estate agent whose family owns Back Street Seafood and Burgers on Coronado, said the city should also try to keep the beach affordable for families, while adding a little glitz to it.

"Baby boomers, they are in constant search of night life, something to do for their age group," saidClymer. "The beach needs a facelift, a well-thought-out one."

But there are distinct differences of opinion among beach business owners as to what kinds of projects the city should support.

Small motel owners in the area of East Shore Drive who have been offered lucrative deals for their properties by Connecticut-based developer David A. Mack are behind Mack's idea of redeveloping the beach.

Mack proposes to build restaurants, retail shops, condominiums and one or two hotels north of the roundabout, on all of the land from the causeway to the Yacht Basin Apartments on either side of East Shore, as part of a tentative plan submitted to the city recently.

John Pimenidis, owner of the the Koli-Bree Motel, is among those who has a contract to sell his business to Mack's development team. Motel rentals in the area can be found for as little as $150 a week, he said, and many are occupied by transients, not tourists. "My building is 45 or 50 years old," Pimenidis said. "We've come to the point where we can't keep it anymore because the expenses can't keep up with the income. If we redevelop the area, it's good for all Clearwater, because they'll get a lot of property taxes to collect."

Pimenidis said that he was offerred a higher price by another developer, but decided to sign a deal with Mack because the quality of his project seemed so much better.

But other small business owners are disturbed by the fact that Mack's team has asked the city to consider using its powers to condemn land and hand it over for redevelopment if any property owners try to resist selling to him.

Interim City Manager Bill Horne said last week that it is extremely unlikely the city would take any such steps. But some entrepreneurs remain wary.

"This is private property," said Michael Preston, better known as "Frenchy," the founder of the beach's trio of Frenchy's seafood restaurants.

"We have three restaurants, a seafood company, rental property and offices that it's taken us 20 years to build up," Preston said. "Everything I own looks very nice. . . . So my situation is a little different than these other people who may have one building that's not doing real good.

"I'd personally like to see this area get fixed up, but not if it's going to have to be certain pieces where only a couple people can do it," he said.

Of the three current proposals, Preston favors building a Marriott resort hotel on Third Street and Gulfview. He said the project is a reasonable proposal that does not involve condemning land, but still promises to improve the beach.

Billy Day, owner of the East Shore Resort in the area, said he's not signing any deals just yet to sell the property on which he spent about $1-million on renovations a few years ago. But if an offer is good enough, he says he will consider it.

"We have a very viable business," Day said. "I don't want to block progress, but as long as the facts about a project are so sketchy, I think it's difficult to make any intelligent decisions about it."

Day believes the numerous redevelopment proposals over the years have created a "false economy" on the beach, inflating the value of land prices. And, he said, many people won't invest money for improvements in their motels because they're hoping to sell for a huge profit someday.

"We're at a point in time now where we've talked about redevelopment, and there's been numerous proposals and dreams," Day said. "But I think now, people either need to do something and move forward, or they need to put these ideas on the back burner and try to regenerate the area as it is."

Beach redevelopment proposals

The city of Clearwater recently unveiled a new redevelopment plan for Clearwater Beach, "Beach by Design." The plan, to be approved by the City Commission in the next few months, advocates constructing public parking garages, creating two large resorts, beautifying Mandalay Avenue and Gulfview Boulevard, building more sidewalks and widening Coronado Drive. Boca Raton-based redevelopment lawyer Charles Siemon, who wrote "Beach by Design," also has negotiated with the following three developers who have proposed beach projects.

* * *

PROPOSAL: Plan by developer David A. Mack

SCOPE: Mack's team wants the exclusive rights to work with the city to redevelop the beach. Phase one includes a 1,500-space parking garage and condominium on south beach. Phase two calls for a hotel, a village of low-rise condos, restaurants, shops and a public boardwalk on several blocks along East Shore Drive. Phase three is a high-rise condominium. Phase four is a major resort.

WHO'S BEHIND IT: Connecticut-based developer David A. Mack is the lead developer. His attorney is Tim Johnson of Clearwater. Joanne Hiller & Associates of Island Estates is their real estate firm. Beach resident Dana Sjostedt has interests in the deal. A real estate investment fund, Greenfield Partners of Connecticut, is providing financing.

COST TO TAXPAYERS: Undetermined. Initial proposal was to charge $3-million in annual rent to the city for the garage. Also, they want the city to give them East Shore Drive and potentially condemn land if property owners refuse to sell. Finally, the city would allow them to build 400 more hotel rooms than currently allowed.

VALUE OF DEVELOPMENT: Could top $400-million, according to Hiller & Associates.

TIME LINE: They want City Commission approval by the end of January, because of deadlines to close on land deals.

GEE-WHIZ FACT: Johnson says this is the biggest redevelopment project the city has ever contemplated.

* * *

PROPOSAL: Marriott Seashell Resort

SCOPE: The most detailed deal so far, the Seashell would tout a 250-room Marriott resort, a 1,000-car garage with up to 700 public spaces, and up to 50,000 square feet of new restaurants and shops. It would flank Third Street fronting Gulfview Boulevard.

WHO'S BEHIND IT: Clearwater lawyer Bill Kimpton put the land together. He is working with hotel-condo developer Jae Heinberg of Tampa and Dunedin-based planner Richard Gehring. Marriott International would run the resort.

COST TO TAXPAYERS: The city would pay $17,900 for each parking space provided to the public. That's a $12.5-million price tag if all 700 spaces are purchased. The city could recoup that money with parking revenue. The city also would give over Third Street and spend unspecified millions to beautify Gulfview Boulevard. The city also would allow them to build more hotel rooms than permitted.

VALUE OF DEVELOPMENT: Up to $75-million.

TIME LINE: Developers wanted commissioners to approve their deal's concepts last week. They refused, so the hope is for by January.

GEE-WHIZ FACT: The developers claim the city would make money off the deal. Each year, after the city paid annual operating and debt costs of about $1-million, the city would still make $724,000 in yearly profits.

* * *

PROPOSAL: A new resort by hotelier Tony Markopoulos

SCOPE: Markopoulos proposes to build a 500-room, five-star resort on about 3 acres he owns on south beach, including the Days Inn. In addition to hotel parking, he would build 400 parking spaces open to the public at no cost to the city. He declines to release further details.

WHO'S BEHIND IT: Markopoulos' family business, which operates 230 rooms in various motels, and unnamed investors. He has not yet landed a national hotel affiliation.

COST TO TAXPAYERS: First Street has to be moved or given to him for the project. He needs permission to build above existing caps.

VALUE OF DEVELOPMENT: Perhaps $100-million.

TIME LINE: He wants to talk about it again with the city this week and imposes no deadline.

GEE-WHIZ FACT: Unlike the other developers, Markopoulos actually owns much of the land he would like to build upon and claims to have the largest tract on south beach.

-- Sources: Project plans, interviews with Clearwater officials and developers

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