Dave Thompson, a development associate with Wood Partners, tells GlobeSt.com his company "isn't ready yet" to disclose either the development cost of the project or the price of the land because the dirt deal hasn't closed.

However, area industrial brokers familiar with the Downtown submarket tell GlobeSt.com the condo component will probably have an estimated hard construction cost of $150,000 per unit and the retail about $85 per sf. That would place the so-far unnamed enterprise in the $75-million bracket, brokers tell GlobeSt.com. "It looks to me like a $100-million job at least," says one Downtown retail broker who asked for anonymity because he may be representing clients later in the project.Thompson tells GlobeSt.com his company is "trying to get 33 stories" approved by the city. Elected officials are expected to make their final vote on the project in March. Meanwhile, Wood is demolishing the four buildings that previously housed the Maas Brothers department store headquarters. The development site is between Franklin and Zack streets, and Tampa and Twiggs streets.

"The high-rise residential tower will add to the vitality of Franklin Street," Thompson says. "It will return this block of Downtown back to a period when it served as the center of activity for the entire city." The Preston Partnership of Atlanta, which designed the 32-story SkyPoint condominium community under construction in Tampa, is designing Wood's newest project. Preston has designed all of Wood Partners' high-rise developments.

Thompson says the City of Tampa agreed to issue the demolition permit for the Maas Brothers site after the project received a favorable vote from the Historic Preservation Commission on Nov. 29. "The buildings have sentimental value for some Tampa residents but none of the structures ever received local or national historic designation," Thompson says.

He adds his firm "felt there was no cost-effective solution for salvaging the structures while utilizing the space in a manner consistent with the master plan for Downtown revitalization."