In this week's Tampa Bay Business Journal segment, editor Alexis Muellner discusses demand for custom homes is pushing up lot prices in the region's hottest neighborhoods, how Tampa could be an outpost for transportation tech companies, and new details about the Seminole Hard Rock Casino's upcoming $8 million restaurant.
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There is good news if you are a Bay Area homeowner wanting the value of your home to increase.
The demand for custom homes is driving up lot prices in the hot neighborhoods like South Tampa, Snell Isle and the Sarasota waterfront. Prices in those areas have doubled since the end of the recession in 2008.
Alexis says the demand for customized houses is mainly being driven by out-of-town buyers who are relocating to the Tampa Bay area and local homeowners seeking to "upgrade."
The increasing lot prices are good for local governments who are seeing collections from property taxes rise. The bad news is for prospective homeowners who may be priced out of neighborhoods they would like to live in.
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The City of Tampa received a rare grant this week. Florida Senator Bill Nelson announced the city is getting $17 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Connected Vehicle Pilot Program.
The money will be used to automate and synchronize numerous signals in Tampa and connect drivers and their smartphones with the new system. The program is designed to make streets and highways safer for commuters, reducing congestion, and lower emissions.
Some of the money will be used to automate HART's MetroRapid bus line from downtown Tampa to Telcom Park off Fletcher Avenue near I-75.
From a business standpoint, the grant could be an economic driver. Transportation technology companies may see the grant as an opportunity for growth and may expand or relocate to the Bay Area.
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Foodies cannot wait for the new Grey Salt restaurant to open at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Tampa.
Chef Marc Murphy, known for his appearances as a judge on Food Network's "Chopped," is partnering with the Seminole Hard Rock to open the Mediterranean grill restaurant in November.
Grey Salt is replacing the all-American Green Room restaurant.
Murphy and the Hard Rock are spending $8 million to open the 250-seat restaurant. Last week the casino held a job fair to fill 130 positions for the new restaurant.
Some of the dishes Grey Salt is planning to serve include grilled Gulf shrimp spiedini with charred lemon, scallion and spicy lamb, and tzatziki grilled flatbread.
Sounds delicious!
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For more information on these stories, click on the video player, go to youtu.be/g-828n-Sr5I or pick up this week's Tampa Bay Business Journal available on newsstands and online.
