The owner of City Marketplace, consisting of 5.42 acres in downtown Punta Gorda, amended plans to conform with the city’s new land development regulations. The proposal goes to the city’s Development Review Committee on April 25.
If plans are approved, City Council will decide whether to allow the project, made up of a hotel, residential units, commercial property and 617 parking spaces, to move forward.
On April 2, Council deemed the application sufficient for DRC submittal purposes, bringing City Marketplace a step closer to development after the acreage, formerly home to buildings and a strip mall built in the 1960s, was destroyed by Hurricane Charley in 2004.
Owner PGI Marketplace LLC listed the property for $12 million in January and retained the engineering firm of Atwell to represent the project.
Previously, Geis Construction proposed a densely populated multipurpose development and asked the city to revise its zoning codes.
Geis presented its proposal at an August 2022 Planning Commission meeting, and the commission did not approve moving the project forward for City Council review. One of the criticisms of the project was it called for too much density and wouldn’t provide enough parking.
Since then, the city’s Land Development Regulations were updated and adopted in 2023, and City Marketplace plans also were changed to comply with the new LDRs.
Geis withdrew its planned development application the following month, according to Team Punta Gorda, a citizens group that developed the 2005 Citizens Master Plan that shaped much of what is seen in the city today.
Since then, the city’s Land Development Regulations changed as did plans for the City Marketplace project.
Ashley Bloom, of SVN Commercial Partners, confirmed the property is still for sale for $12 million and the owner seeks to have the plans approved by city government before the final transaction.
He said several parties are currently interested in buying the parcel.
Punta Gorda Code Official Rachel Barry said the project includes 270 residential units, a three-story, 60-room hotel and a little more than 72,000 square feet of commercial space.
Changes in the plans include setting aside 0.31 acres for a public open space and adding more parking spaces — 617, when 613 are required under the city’s LDRs.
The on-site parking garage will have several levels.
The property’s owner hired Texas-based Humphreys & Partners Architects to create a plan for a mixed-use development that would blend residential, retail and hospitality for a live-work-play environment, SVN officials said.
Over the last two decades, the land has been leased for entertainment events and parking before the city built a free parking garage.
Structures destroyed by Hurricane Charley were torn down and many officials and residents called the vacant land an eyesore and a blight in a city that has since had a rebirth with new businesses, restaurants, hotels and homes.
City Marketplace is bordered by northbound U.S. 41, Marion Avenue, Taylor Street, Harborside Avenue and Retta Esplanade.
Among the feedback residents provided over the years was the desire for a local market on the site, such as a Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods Market, a variety of shops and stores and green space.
The next Development Review Committee meets April 25, when officials will decide whether to approve the project and forward their recommendation to Council.
