Jebco sweetens its proposal for a taller luxury condo tower with retail and seven below-market rate apartments.
By Ramon Lopez
Original Air Date: August 27, 2025
Host: Luxury developer Jebco is proposing to tear down a 12-story office building in the heart of downtown Sarasota and replace it with a taller tower. They are sweetening the deal with retail space downstairs and seven below-market rate apartments. Ramon Lopez has the details.
Ramon Lopez: If all goes as planned, yet another 18-story mixed-use residential tower will be erected in downtown Sarasota. It will provide more luxury condos for high rollers, plus 42,000 square feet of commercial and office space in the heart of the city.
The as yet no-name condo tower will replace the Zenith building, located at the roundabout intersection known as Five Points, on a two-acre site formed by 1390 Main St. and 40 South Pineapple. That’s effectively the historic center of downtown Sarasota.
The city’s Development Review Committee last week got its first look at the plans to demolish and redevelop the vacant 12-story Zenith building, a remnant of the 1970s building boom. The ambitious project, now known as the Zenith Redevelopment, will also include removal of a four-level parking garage and a two-story office building.
The developer seeks administrative site plan approval for a total of 96 dwellings units, of which seven will be designated “attainable.” This, so the project can take advantage of the city’s affordable and attainable housing bonus density.
The planned building site is split-zoned: Downtown Bayfront, which permits 18 levels, and Downtown Core, which limits building height to ten stories. So, no rezoning is required. The two-story office building will be replaced by three stories for a restaurant, retail stores and parking.
The “attainable” units will be rented at the prevailing rate required to qualify for the bonus density. The condos with a view will start at a whopping $2 million each.
Concern has been voiced over traffic congestion. This, because of the nearby Mira Mar building preservation and restoration, another 18-story condo tower project.
The developer said the project will “serve as a vital connection between downtown and the bayfront, fulfilling a key objective of the Downtown Masterplan.”
Street-level rendering of the proposed tower from the Five Points intersection
Quoting the developer: “By addressing and improving pedestrian connectivity and encouraging active, vital street frontages, the development promotes a walkable, engaging urban experience that will resonate with the overarching goals of Sarasota’s strategic urban framework.”
There were the normal follow-up questions from city staff, requiring a resubmittal to the DRC. Once all the signoffs are achieved, the deal will go to the Director of Development Services for administrative approval. Sarasota city commissioners won’t get a vote on the matter unless there’s a public outcry opposing the multi-million dollar build.
This is Ramon Lopez for WSLR News.
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