G3 Development bids to take on parking garage, mixed-use project in downtown Sanford

A local family-run development company that has projects underway in downtown Mount Dora, Eustis, and Wildwood is now looking to bring a parking garage with apartments and retail space to city-owned land in downtown Sanford.

Mount Dora-based G3 Development submitted the only proposal in response to an RFP issued by Sanford that aims to redevelop the property where Monroe Hall currently sits near the shore of Lake Monroe.

The city, which has seen a lot of its downtown parking lots swallowed by new development in recent years, opened the door to bids from the private sector for a mixed-use parking structure in mid-January. The bidding process closed Monday.

After receiving the lone bid, the city has 30 days to decide if it wants to move forward with G3 Development or pursue other options for the site.

“Our next step will be evaluating G3′s proposal and we will have a committee look over that,” Chase Keiser, Sanford’s purchasing coordinator, said in an email. “Should be done in 30 days or less.”

The concept presented to the city can not be made public at this time. Jake Guenther, project manager with G3 Development, told GrowthSpotter that the company has been targeting public/ private partnerships like this lately.

In November, the development team was tabbed by the city of Wildwood to build a parking garage with 180 spaces and 8,000 square feet of restaurant space in its downtown corridor at a former rail yard near City Hall along the west side of Main Street. That came as a result of an RFP.

Renderings of the project show an outdoor gathering plaza, space for live music, and a rooftop dining element on the building’s second floor.

In September, the city of Eustis selected G3 Development to bring new life to a vacant 4.8-acre site that once housed Florida Hospital Waterman. Plans are still being worked out between the city and the developer.

Sanford stated in its RFP documents that it wants to see a four-level structure comprising roughly 225,000 square feet that includes a mix of residential and retail, with a structured parking facility containing roughly 425 spaces.

“We love Sanford and are super excited about this,” Guenther said in a phone call. “It’s an awesome downtown. We think there’s a ton of potential and that’s why we responded to this. We have kind of been responding to projects like this throughout Central Florida.”

The project is intended to provide public parking for downtown visitors, as well as parking associated with the on-site retail and residential elements, the city said in its request for proposals.

The city asks that the new parking structure be made of concrete and is able to handle wind speeds up to 139 miles per hour. But they also expect an attractive exterior with balconies for the residential units.

If a development company needs more room for the project, it has the option of relocating Monroe Hall to adjacent land to the east, next to the Sanford museum.

Monroe Hall was built in 1943 as a United Service Organizations (USO) due to the presence of U.S. Naval personnel at the Sanford Naval Air Station.

The building was shared by the USO and the Chamber of Commerce until the Navy left Sanford in 1969. The building was occupied by the Chamber of Commerce until 2019 when the Chamber moved. The building is now used for community events and was renamed Monroe Hall in recognition of Camp Monroe, established in 1836 near this site by the U.S. Army.

The building consists of an office area, a conference room, and a large open meeting area.

The city is open to suggestions for the property.

“We really want the development community to tell us what would work best on this property,” the city’s assistant manager Craig Radzak told GrowthSpotter in February “We want a public/private partnership to help us build this garage.”

Guenther said the company, if awarded the bid, would work with the city and the community to roll out the right product.

“We do ultimately have a plan, but just because we have a plan it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the right plan” he said. “We definitely want to make sure we get community input to make sure it’s a plan that everybody in Sanford can get behind. We hope to be the company that gets to work on this with the city of Sanford.”

In addition to projects in the pipeline for Eustis and Wildwood, G3 Development has been particularly active in downtown Mount Dora.

[ Local developer has big plans for downtown Mount Dora ]

Several years ago, the company developed space at the corner of N Baker Street and E 3rd Avenue that became the home for Steamroller Animation, a growing game and video animation studio. The 14,000-square-foot site, known as the 301 building, also includes housing, a sushi restaurant and a fitness studio.

G3 Development is currently working to expand the footprint of the 301 building with a three-story addition totaling 7,500 square feet.

G3 is also bringing a popular Sanford restaurant its second location in Mount Dora. Guenther said that they are building out a 5,400-square-foot space on Baker Street that will eventually be home to The Yardery. It will include a rooftop bar.

Other projects in the pipeline include a 59-unit apartment community just outside downtown Mount Dora and a new Mount Dora Center for the Arts, which will move into a 4,600-square-foot building around the corner from its current spot on Fifth Avenue across from Donnelly Park.

Guenther said construction should begin on The Yardery, the center for the arts, and the building 301 extension in the coming months. He’s hopeful the apartment project will break ground by year’s end.

“We are still fully intent on getting that (apartment project) rocking and rolling, it’s just about making sure we have all of our ducks in a row,” he said.

The company’s past work includes several healthcare assets in Lake County. G3 built the Lakeview Center medical office across from the Waterman Hospital site, a free-standing emergency room for Orlando Heath South Lake Hospital, and South Lake Hospital’s SkyTop View Rehabilitation Center.

Have a tip about Central Florida development? Contact me at (407)-800-1161 or dwyatt@GrowthSpotter.com, or tweet me at @DustinWyattGS. Follow GrowthSpotter on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.