Beach Club owner buys Main Street buildings

Local business owner Chris Brown purchased two Main Street office building for $2.8 million.

The price equated to $102 per leasable square feet. Brown purchased the building at 1718 Main Street for $2 million and the building at 1734 Main Street for $800,000.

IberiaBank anchors the larger, 23,039-square-foot three-story building, at 1718 Main Street. It is 56% vacant and currently houses Lumpkin & Haskins PA, iSystems, NAI Manasota, Blackpoint Realty and a number of others.

The smaller, 4,422-square-foot building is fully leased to Atchley International Realty and Inspirations Salon & Day Spa.

The two building were previously owned by MFC Co. Inc., an affiliate of Northern Trust Bank, which took title to the buildings from Joseph Costello Sr. in August.

“I certainly believe it has upside potential, Brown says. “Part of the reason I bought it was the price per square foot. The two buildings are really in very good condition. The roofs were both replaced the last couple of years and one was replaced in the last 6 months. The aesthetics of the buildings have really been kept up nicely. The only thing I anticipate doing is adding LED light to make it even more attractive to prospective tenants.”

Brown says he also felt the acre site, which has 110 private parking spaces, offered an attractive investment for a potential redevelopment site sometime in the future. Costello had previously proposed a 15-story development on the site, however the approved variance has since expired.

Ashley Bloom and J. Chris Malkin of the statewide office of Sperry Van Ness Florida Commercial Real Estate Advisors handled the transaction.

The new owner has hired the two agents to continue to manage and market the buildings for lease.

Brown is best known as the owner of The Beach Club, The Hub and The Cottage restaurant on Siesta Key.