Construction begins on new apartment tower in downtown Tampa

The downtown Tampa skyline will be getting more crowded in coming months as yet another new apartment building grows out of the ground on north Franklin Street between Tyler and Cass streets.

With 362-units, the 23-story apartment building will also have 8,000-square-feet of retail space.

The building by developers Carter of Atlanta includes very dramatic public art, a generous amount of ground floor retail and a full amenity package including a rooftop pool,” says Bob McDonaugh, Economic Opportunity Administrator for the city of Tampa. “It all adds up to a very attractive development, which should be quite successful when it is completed.”

The design team includes DPR Construction and RJT+R Architecture.

The new tower is named Nine15 after its address at 915 Franklin N. St. It joins several other projects in the making including the Arts and Entertainment Residencies (AER) near the Straz Center and The Channel Club at the intersection of Meridian Avenue and East Twiggs Street.

“The city of Tampa is experiencing the same phenomenon that many other cities are experiencing, the flight back to the urban core,” McDonaugh says. “Today, many of the millennials as well as their empty nest parents are deciding that an urban lifestyle is what suits them.”

McDonaugh goes on to say that while there is very little vacancy available in many urban areas, the site for the new tower is where the former Grant Building sat mostly vacant for years, an interesting location because it is the furthest north of the current wave of residential development taking place in downtown Tampa.