The development group behind The Vue wants to pick up where Pineapple Square left off and complete a promised vitalization of State Street in Downtown Sarasota. Realtors since April have taken reservations for The Mark, a 10-story luxury condominium and commercial project in one of the last parts of the city core that hasn’t seen vertical development. “We love this area—kind of in the loop of the downtown walking district,” says David Arent, senior project manager for Kolter Urban in Sarasota. “With State Street as strong as it already is and Main as strong as it is, we feel it’s just a great place to be.”

Kolter Urban also plans to open The Promenade, retail space fronting major roadways and promising 35,000 square feet of new commercial space. No leases have been signed yet, but Arent expects a mix of restaurants and shops that will further activate the streetscape downtown. And residents of The Mark will be able to walk out the building lobby into the new shopping area. “One of our slogans is ‘Downtown, Downstairs,’” he says. Georgia Kopelousos, an agent with Michael Saunders and Company marketing the site, says reservations have been going strong. Roughly 80 percent of the project will be made up of units in the $700,000 to $1 million range, with a few priced as high as $3.2 million. A total 157 luxury condominium units are planned, and 23 had already been reserved as of mid-April.

Kopelousos’ office can be found close to where The Mark will eventually stand at the intersection of Lemon and Pineapple avenues. That puts the project right by Pineapple Park, a public right-of-way sold to the State Street Partners in February and planned with retail use.  The development builds on approvals already granted to the city for the Pineapple Square development. Kolter Urban also purchased parking space north of State Street to support the new project and will not disrupt any of the existing Pineapple Square activity happening on the nearby city blocks, including Hyde Park Restaurant or the Sarasota Farmers Market. Arent expects having a new city parking garage on State Street will benefit retailers, but Kolter Urban will put in new parking to support the project as well. Multiple levels of parking will sit atop the first-floor commercial—living levels don’t begin until the fifth floor—but Arent says a façade on the outside building will conceal the parking levels and ensure a sleek exterior from ground level to penthouse.