Reflection Tops Out, Stands
Tall Over Mirror Lake
September 15th, 2023
Author: Veronica Brezina
The following article was published by The Catalyst. To access the full article, click here.
Panoramic views of Mirror Lake and downtown awed visitors to an upper floor of the 18-story Reflection tower Friday morning. The Sunshine Skyway Bridge was visible on the horizon.
Veteran real estate developer Fred Hemmer, president of HP Capital, alongside team members from The DeNunzio Group and Tampa-based general contracting firm Kast Construction, hoisted a ceremonial beam, celebrating the topping out of the luxury condominium building west of downtown.
The topping out signifies that all of the floors have been poured in the 88-unit luxury building underway at 8th Street and 3rd Avenue North.
The property was previously used as a parking lot for the Lyceum, an event venue now being used for worship services by BridgePoint Church.
The group purchased the site in a $4.95 million deal in 2022. Simultaneously, New York-based ACRES Capital Corp., a leading commercial real estate middle-market lender, provided a $73.375 million loan to fund the project.
“We started the building before Covid hit, and we were in the planning process. It slowed a lot of things down,” Hemmer said.
The team grappled with the national chokeholds in the supply chain and securing construction bids on time. Hemmer said the team had to use funding reserves and unorthodox strategies to push the project forward.
“Construction costs have gone through the roof, but we luckily started ours on time before they really jumped up,” he said.
The executive team said roughly 200 contractors, including 120 subcontractors, are on site. Construction is now over 50% complete.
“When we first got approval, we didn’t really have much resistance from the community. Theoretically, we are not building on the lake. We are building half a block from it,” said HP Capital Group partner Angelo Cappelli.
The original plans called for 81 units; the team added seven more. The largest condos are 2,285 square feet, and pricing begins in the $500,000s. They will feature floor-to-ceiling windows and terrace-style balconies.
To date, 57 of the units have sold, Hemmer said. The majority of the sold units will be on the top three floors.
The building, constructed to withstand a Category 4 hurricane, will have 12,000-square-foot amenity center with a pool, spa, clubhouse, outdoor kitchen and fitness center.
Naples-based Rock Star Pools will buildout the resort-style pool and hot tub.
“It’s a stainless-steel pool, which is very unique. Next month, they are going to be raising the pieces. It’s all prefabricated steel,” Cappelli said.
Hemmer said a local restaurant group will operate a rooftop bar, which will cater to residents only.
There are two ground floor retail spaces – one along 8th Street and another facing 3rd Avenue.
“We have interested parties and are talking with [operators of] a medical spa, a coffee shop and a sandwich shop. We are trying to figure out what will be a right mix,” Cappelli said.
The development team also includes architect firm DAG, Kimley Horn as the civil engineer, Keller Williams Commercial Development Services as the listing broker, Power Design on the electrical engineer, and Clear ph Design for the branding and interior design.
