BOTA Center, the award-winning, historic office property located at 1570 Boulevard of the Arts in Sarasota’s burgeoning Rosemary District, and a nearby vacant 6,250-square-foot lot have sold for $4.35 million.
The buyer is Kingdom Development BOTA, LLC, a real estate company owned and controlled by local tech entrepreneur John Daniel Lemp. The seller, Howard Davis, spent nearly two years restoring the 17,285-square-foot property prior to listing it in February.
Ian Black, CCIM, and Jag Grewal, CCIM, partners at Ian Black Real Estate, facilitated the transaction.
“This property went under contract only 10 days after going on the market,” said Black. “It speaks to the sentiment that quality real estate in today’s market will find a buyer relatively easily.”
After purchasing the property in 2016, Davis orchestrated a complete renovation of the 60-year-old property that included maintaining the building’s mid-century modern architectural features, restoring nearly 8,000 square feet of original terrazzo flooring, installing all new building systems and configuring the floorplan to accommodate multiple tenants.
The restored BOTA Center has won numerous awards, including the AIA Florida Gulf Coast Honor Award for Historic Preservation & Restoration in 2020 and the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation’s Outstanding Achievement for Adaptive Use in 2018. It is listed in the City of Sarasota’s local register of historic places.
“We see BOTA as the crown jewel of the Rosemary District,” said Lemp, whose Kingdom Development Companies also owns other commercial real estate properties in Sarasota, Lakewood Ranch and beyond. “This is a marquee, award-winning property with long-term upside, in a developing area we’re very excited to be part of, and we’re thrilled to add it to our growing portfolio.”
The property is currently fully leased to four tenants, including Hive Architects, digital marketing firm AdRizer, architect Max Strang and upscale home staging company iStage.
Lemp is the founder of Revcontent, a leading content marketing and native advertising platform. Earlier this month Revcontent announced it had sold a majority stake in the business to a group of institutional investors led by Star Mountain Capital and Capital Dynamics, and will be relocating to new offices at 1515 Fruitville Road, another Kingdom Development property in the Rosemary District.
“As a developer, what excites me is realizing the dream – taking a property from concept to reality, and providing great spaces for my tenants and buyers,” Davis said of BOTA Center. “Five years after buying the building, BOTA Center has been revitalized, is filled with tenants in creative businesses and has been a catalyst for the Rosemary District’s renaissance. I am pleased to give the keys to a local investor who will be a good steward and a positive presence in the neighborhood.”
About Ian Black Real Estate
Ian Black Real Estate (IBRE) is a boutique commercial real estate brokerage firm located in Sarasota, Fla. The firm is one of the largest commercial brokerage firms in Southwest Florida and boasts a deep knowledge of the commercial real estate market in Sarasota and Manatee counties and the surrounding area. For more information, visit ian-black.com.