Smith & Associates Realtor Christopher Pitre is known for spicing up his video home tours with a touch of salsa (the dance, not the condiment). It’s close to irresistible as a sales gimmick. As he sidesteps and swivels through his properties to a salsa soundtrack, smiling all the while, he looks like a fun guy to hang out with. More importantly, he makes the houses he’s selling seem like fun places to hang out.
But when it comes to one of his latest offerings — the spectacular two-story penthouse at Bliss, which he’s co-listing with fellow Smith Realtor Ali Bearnarth — it’s likely the homebuyer who’ll be doing the dancing.
Bliss is an 18-story luxury condo tower at 176 4th Ave. NE in downtown St. Petersburg. Built in 2017, the tower has only 29 residences with no shared walls, a host of amenities (heated pool, fitness center, rooftop club room) and a prime location just off Beach Drive.
But where it fully lives up to its name is in the penthouse. A wide-open two-story space with exhilarating, unobstructed views at every turn — yup, this is bliss. And oddly enough, despite the marina and the museums and the new St. Pete Pier spread out below, it doesn’t feel like you’re in St. Pete. The 4,300-square-foot residence has the kind of up-to-the-minute glamour more commonly associated with Manhattan or Miami.
“This has a very New York penthouse loft vibe,” said Pitre, who moved to St. Pete from his native Brooklyn six years ago. “It has that very distinct feel to it that’s not necessarily St Petersburg but offers everything St. Petersburg has to offer.”
Its proximity to the walkable downtown and waterfront parks of St. Pete is what distinguishes this condominium from its equivalent in a glitzier metropolis.
“Miami to me is a concrete jungle,” says Bearnarth, a lifelong St. Pete resident and a Realtor for 16 years. “Here you’ve got a flair that you don’t have anywhere else.”
Oh, and you don’t have to worry about scouring downtown for a place to park; the residence comes with four-count-‘em-four parking spaces.
both a custom-designed staircase and an in-residence elevator.
The above story is in the Fall 2020 issue of duPont Registry Tampa Bay. Hard copies are due to be showing up in fine mailboxes near you any day now, but meanwhile, enjoy the digital edition.
