Seafood processing company wants city-owned land to expand in St. Pete
By Breanne Williams
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Mar 22, 2022

Bama Sea Products has submitted a bid to the city of St. Petersburg to purchase a lot adjacent to its current facility on Eighth Avenue South.

The seafood processing company consolidated its operations in 2000 in a 100,000-square-foot facility in St. Petersburg after formerly having a presence at the Pinellas Seafood facility in Bayboro, as well as locations in Alabama and around the Gulf Coast. The bid is part of what appears to be an expansion plan for the company; the proposal details its intention to purchase a collection of individual properties near the current facility.

“Lots 12-17, coupled with these vacated roads, will allow for either the expansion of our 100,000 square feet plant footprint to the east or the addition of a separate, freestanding warehouse facility to support our continued growth,” the proposal reads.

The property is in the South St. Petersburg Community Redevelopment Area, which is entering a new chapter as developers turn their eyes to the city’s southern end due to the downtown core now being relatively built-out. South St. Pete has long been left out of much of the city’s economic boom, and there is a focus on boosting jobs in the area. When a Fortune 500 company announced it was considering St. Pete for its global headquarters, part of the incentives approved by the city council included requirements to hire employees who live within the boundaries of the South St. Petersburg CRA.

The first two lots are on either side of Eighth Avenue, including the property between the current facility and the city-owned site it is seeking to buy. The city-owned site called Lot 16, near 2586 8th Ave. S, is its new focus. According to the proposal to the city, Bama then plans to purchase three other neighboring lots that would allow the facility to expand its campus.