MADEIRA BEACH, Fla. (WFLA) – A local developer has big plans for one of Pinellas County’s most popular tourist destinations.
The Marina at John’s Pass has reportedly sold for $17.2 million.
The buyer is Ben Mallah, a principal of Equity Management Partners. Mallah is also the former owner of the Best Western Bay Harbor Hotel in Rocky Point. He sold the hotel (now known as the Godfrey Hotel & Cabanas Tampa) for $34.5 million in 2015.
The purchase, first reported by the Tampa Bay Times, was made through the online auction site Ten-X and comes more than a year after the Marina went on the market.
“It’s been really neglected,” Mallah told the newspaper. “We’re gonna come in, give it a bunch of TLC, clean and paint, get more stores and entertainment in there and get it like it should be.”
The 138,715-square-foot marina has shops, water sports and restaurants, including Hooters, the Friendly Fisherman and Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.
LATEST STORIES:
