Pinellas County (Downtown Clearwater) Large Mixed-Use Development Project - Request for Negotiations

The information in this package reflects the conceptual criteria and development goals the County would like to achieve in selecting a master developer for County-owned parcels in downtown Clearwater.

Background

The 34 subject parcels owned by Pinellas County range from ±0.17 acres up to ±5.12 acres for a total of ±24.66 acres. The redevelopment aims to create a next‑generation coastal downtown that integrates residential, commercial, retail, hospitality, civic, and public‑realm uses within a cohesive, vibrant, and walkable district. While the County owns the parcels, close collaboration with the City of Clearwater is ongoing to ensure the County’s and City’s mutually beneficial goals are realized. The County and City are aligned in pursuing a downtown that exemplifies civic excellence, placemaking, and fiscal sustainability. The goals include creating a destination that is open to the public, thrives both day and night, and attracts residents and visitors to experience the community beyond the beach.

Project Details

• Reference ID: 26-0375-RFN
• Department: OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT & BUDGET
• Department Head: Merry Celeste (Director)

Important Dates

• Questions Due: 2026-08-14T20:00:00.000Z
• Pre-Proposal Meeting: 2026-07-14T17:00:00.000Z — Location: Palm Room 333 Chestnut Street, Clearwater, FL 33756 Virtual Option: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_5TnezZvIQMu9dM-_FK-nuQ

Evaluation Criteria

• Development Team Qualifications and Experience (200 pts) —
  • Experience developing mixed use projects of comparable size in an urban setting
  • Financial strength of Development Team
  • Submission Requirement Tabs per the RFN:
    • Tab 1
    • Tab4
    • Tab 5
    • Tab 9
• Economic Benefit (300 pts) —
  • Fee simple acquisition price
  • Economic impact (e.g., job creation, tax revenues)
  • Submission Requirement Tabs per the RFN:
    • Tab 7
    • Tab 8
• Project Development and Design (300 pts) —
  • Project’s ability to activate the urban core upon stabilization and throughout the project’s life (18-hour downtown that is open to the public during daytime and nighttime hours, active storefronts)
  • Thoughtful mix of uses (residential, commercial, retail, hospitality, office, food and beverage) for public patrons
  • Quality of design and construction
  • Development timeline (e.g. construction commencement and delivery timing)
  • Connectivity to, leveraging further, the recent investments in downtown Clearwater (e.g. Coachman Park, Gotham project,
  • Osceola and Myrtle Avenues)
  • Adaptive reuse of Historic Courthouse
  • Civic and community benefits (e.g. pedestrian safety and connectivity, programming of open and green space, shade, connectivity to the beaches)
  • Submission Requirement Tabs per the RFN:
    • Tab 6
    • Tab 9
• Financial Proposal (200 pts) —
  • Post-completion occupancy and management plan
  • Defined source and percentage of debt and equity
  • Financial feasibility and cash flow analysis
  • Submission Requirement Tabs per the RFN:
    • Tab 7
    • Tab 8

Submission Requirements

• Proposal Requirements (required) —

  Did you read through and confirm that you met all of the proposal requirements?

• REQUIRED FORMS (required) —
  1. FORM A - Indicative Terms Chart
  2. FORM B - Vendor Submittal Acknowledgement
  3. FORM C - E-Verify Affidavit
  4. FORM D - Vendor References
  5. FORM E - Human Trafficking Affidavit
  6. FORM F - Officers Form
  7. FORM G - CBRE Commission Agreement

  All forms listed above are required to be filled out and submitted with the response.

• Proposal (without Cost Proposal) (required) —

  Please Upload your COMPLETE Proposal here. Upload fee proposal separately in the next step.

• Separate Cost Proposal (required) —

  Confirm that your fee proposal is not attached in your Proposal and is attached separately here.

• Bid Bond (required) —

  Will this solicitation require a bid bond?

• Electronic Pricing Table (required) —

  Would you like to have bidders respond to an electronic pricing table through ProcureNow?

  Some examples of of when to say "yes":

  1. This is a quote for goods or commodities
  2. This is a public works bid, with a pricing table that can be uploaded into ProcureNow from an excel spreadsheet
  3. Seeking services for hourly rate schedules
• Separate Fee Proposal Upload (required) —

  If you are NOT using the Electronic Pricing Table option, will you want your bidder to separate a Price Proposal from the rest of their Response? You'll want to do this if you open your bids initially WITHOUT showing price, and then come back in after a technical evaluation to unseal pricing later.

• Evaluation Committee? (required) —

  Will there be an evaluation committee to review the proposals and score them based on weights and multiple criteria?