Water Street Tampa unveils video showing downtown's transformation

TAMPA — Water Street Tampa, the sweeping, 50-plus acre redevelopment project in Tampa's urban core, has unveiled new images and video of what the downtown district will look like upon completion.

Strategic Property Partners, the real estate firm backed by Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik and Bill Gates' Cascade Investment, hired more than a dozen architect and design firms to create the aesthetics of the Water Street Tampa district.

SPP released a conceptual illustration video Tuesday that shows overhead and street-level views of what the new $3 billion development, which will have 3,500 new residences and 13 acres of new parks, will look like when it's done nearly a decade from now.

Previous Coverage: Finally, Jeff Vinik's vision has a name: Water Street Tampa

SPP is working with nine architectural firms and three interior design firms on the project, according to a press release. These teams, which have "deep-routed passion and experience working to create interesting buildings and places around existing local context," are made up of Florida-based and global firms, the release said. Some have never worked in Tampa before — like CookFox Architects, Morris Adjmi Architects, Olson Kundig, Kohn Pederson Fox Associates, and Pickard Chilton. Others have local ties — like Gensler, Alfonso Architects, NBWW and Baker Barrios.

Water Street Tampa plans to include: two hotels with over 650 rooms combined, one of which will become Tampa's first five-star hotel, and an additional four-star hotel across the street from the Tampa Marriott Waterside Hotel & Marina; more than two million square feet of office space, and the first office towers to be built in Tampa in 25 years; 3,500 new apartments and condos in brand new buildings; and more than 1 million square feet of retail, restaurant and entertainment space to be built over the next 10 years.

In addition, the University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine and Heart Institute will be built in downtown Tampa, as will an adjacent office building to house health-related businesses.

SPP estimates that 23,000 people will live, work, and visit Water Street Tampa every day.

Contact Justine Griffin at jgriffin@tampabay.com or (727) 893-8467. Follow @SunBizGriffin.

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Architects& Designers:

• CookFox Architects - Two buildings; office and residential over retail.

• Morris Adjmi Architects - Three buildings; 157-key 5-star hotel, luxury condominiums, apartments and retail.

• Olson Kundig - One building; office over retail.

• Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates (KPF) - Two buildings; condominiums and apartments over retail.

• Gensler - Two buildings; office over retail.

• Alfonso Architects – Redevelopment vision for Channelside; residential and waterfront retail, and a new public park on the Riverwalk.

• Nichols Brosch Wurst Wolfe & Associates - One building; 500-key 4-star hotel

• Pickard Chilton - Three buildings; office and residential over retail.

• Baker Barrios - One building; central cooling facility and infrastructure.

• Roman & Williams - Interior design for the new five-star hotel and associated condominiums, in a building designed by Morris Adjmi.

• Cecconi Simone –Interiors for the condominium and apartment residences in the buildings designed by KPF.

• Champalimaud –Interiors for the new four-star hotel designed by NBWW.