Major Changes Planned For Cleveland Street

Clearwater city officials and private developers used a May 28 work session to put new detail around the next phase of changes coming to Cleveland Street, the downtown corridor where long-vacant buildings are being renovated for retail, restaurants and entertainment. The presentation to the City Council covered nine properties between Osceola and Myrtle avenues, a proposed family entertainment anchor and the broader redevelopment effort now moving through the 400, 500 and 600 blocks. Council members said they wanted more public visibility into the work as leasing, design and city approvals continue. City materials and local reporting show the corridor changes are unfolding alongside public projects including a new transit center, a 397-space parking garage and roadway upgrades in the surrounding downtown area. ### What did the city actually hear on May 28? The May 28 Clearwater City Council work session was framed as a public update on downtown development, with the Cleveland Street Alliance and city staff describing renovations already completed and projects still in planning. Spectrum News reported the session focused on properties along Cleveland Street between Osceola and Myrtle and on questions about how the redevelopment is being financed and phased. (baynews9.com) Michael Mannino, a Clearwater city council member, said he requested the meeting to bring city leaders, residents, the church and developers together in what he described as an effort toward transparency. During the session, he said downtown was seeing “nearly $100 million in investment on Cleveland Street” and called attention to multiple blocks moving forward at once. ### Which buildings are already done, and which ones are still being worked on? (baynews9.com) The Peoples Bank building at 432 Cleveland, the F.W. Woolworth Co. building at 519 Cleveland and the Telephone Building at 534 Cleveland have completed historic renovations, according to the presentation described by Spectrum News. Those addresses sit within the stretch city officials have highlighted as the most visible early progress in downtown activation. (baynews9.com) Work at 615-621 Cleveland and at 623, 629, 635, 639 and 645 Cleveland is expected to finish later in 2026 or in 2027, Spectrum News reported. Tampa Bay 28 separately reported that the broader plan calls for remodeling more than 40 storefronts across a four-block radius into restaurant, retail and entertainment space over the next several years. ### How big is the private redevelopment plan? Scott Dobbins of Highbridge Commercial Real Estate told city leaders that the Cleveland Street Alliance is leading the revitalization push. (baynews9.com) Tampa Bay 28 reported that Dobbins described a walkable, open-air district centered on dining, shopping and entertainment, and said tenant announcements and openings are expected to begin later in 2026 and continue for three to four years. An 83,000-square-foot EVO Entertainment center has emerged as the proposed anchor project for the corridor, according to Tampa Bay 28. Patch reported in April that the private entertainment project at Cleveland Street and Myrtle Avenue was described as a $50 million development that would include seven movie screens, bowling, laser tag, dining and arcade attractions. (baynews9.com) ### What concerns are city officials raising? Lena Teixeira, a Clearwater city council member, told Tampa Bay 28 she was encouraged by the renovation of abandoned buildings but said she was waiting for “actual occupation” and long-term leases that bring sustained traffic and commerce downtown. Her comments reflected a distinction city officials are making between construction progress and fully operating businesses. (tampabay28.com) Teixeira also said the EVO concept should not be treated as final because, as presented, it would require the vacation of three roads and a city-owned parcel. Alfred Battle, Clearwater’s assistant city manager, told the station the city and the alliance had maintained regular communication and were working to align private plans with city plans. ### How do transit, parking and public projects fit into Cleveland Street’s future? (tampabay28.com) The City of Clearwater’s downtown projects page shows the corridor changes are tied to a wider public buildout. The city is developing a 397-space Osceola parking garage with 12,000 square feet of ground-floor retail, while PSTA, Pinellas County, the Florida Department of Transportation and the city are building a new transit center on South Myrtle Avenue and Court Street. (tampabay28.com) The same city page says the Drew Street repaving project will restripe the area between Osceola and Myrtle into a two-lane roadway with separated bike lanes and new left-turn lanes, with construction anticipated to begin in early 2027. Pinellas County, which is separately seeking a private partner to redevelop 17 downtown properties totaling about 24.5 acres, has said its goals include mixed-use development, walkability and new jobs in downtown Clearwater. (myclearwater.com) ### What happens next for the public? The City of Clearwater says council work sessions and regular council meetings are open to the public at the Main Library at 100 N. Osceola Ave., and agendas and recordings are posted through the city’s meetings portal. The city’s downtown construction page also directs residents and business owners to CRA community construction outreach meetings, downtown newsletters and an online form for construction questions and concerns. (myclearwater.com) June 4 is the next listed date for a regular Clearwater City Council meeting on the city calendar, and the downtown projects page says several Cleveland Street-area construction efforts will continue into 2027. Tenant announcements for renovated Cleveland Street properties are expected to begin later this year, according to Dobbins’ comments to Tampa Bay 28. (myclearwater.com) (myclearwater.com)