Ellison Development

A bold new model for community investment.

Together with ARK Invest, we’ve announced plans for two private real estate funds that reimagine how people can participate in transformational urban development. Anchored by the $6.8 billion Historic Gas Plant District and including projects like The Central, the Ark Ellison Urban Innovation Fund and the Ark Ellison Community Growth Fund are designed to align innovation, impact, and inclusion — giving investors of all kinds a chance to share in the growth they help create.

This is more than a project. It’s a movement to build The Innovation Coast, right here in St. Petersburg.

🔥 Big news for St. Pete! 🔥

We’re thrilled to announce that Chef Geoffrey Zakarian will open his first new restaurant in nearly a decade right here at Central Hotel in The Central.

Zakarian has shaped dining experiences at the highest level around the world — and now he’s bringing that vision and creativity to St. Pete’s EDGE District. His restaurant will anchor the hotel and set a new benchmark for hospitality and dining in our city.

This is a huge win for St. Pete, and we can’t wait to share what’s ahead!

St. Pete’s EDGE District is getting a rooftop unlike any other.

At The Central, we’re turning the top of a parking garage into a destination — complete with a 78-million-year-old Gorgosaurus fossil. The dino, named “Devaiah” in honor of our partner Sidd Pagidipati’s father, will be displayed in a glass enclosure as part of a rooftop garden!

This addition reflects what The Central is all about: creating experiences that surprise, delight, and spark curiosity. Whether it’s transforming a hotel “garage view” into a “dinosaur view” or giving local kids a chance to see something they might only expect in New York or D.C., our goal is to make St. Pete a place of discovery.

The Central is more than offices, a hotel, and housing — it’s a neighborhood-defining project that continues to evolve in ways that celebrate both creativity and community.