First Street Village calls for 348 residential units, including flats, lofts and townhouses; 38,000 sf of office space; and 98,000 sf of retail, anchored by a Publix supermarket. The project will break ground this spring. It joins several others that gained approval here following a study, commissioned by the Downtown Redevelopment Agency to address revitalization of the historic area, and conducted in 2002 by Duany Plater-Zyberk & Co., a Miami-based urban planning firm. The plan called for live/work/play projects.

Cameratta declined to disclose any projected construction costs, pricing for residential units, or rates for retail and office space. A spokeswoman tells GlobeSt.com, "costs and pricing are not final, especially as the costs of materials continue to escalate." One neighboring project, Oasis, a 16.3-acre residential complex of five 32-story towers, planned by Miami-based Related Group of Florida, is estimated to cost $450 million with units priced at between $200,000 and $800,000.

On condition of anonymity, an area condominium marketer estimates to GlobeSt.com that First Street Village, "will probably cost between $75 million and $90 million to complete. Demand for Downtown condos is escalating," he adds, estimating sales will be "in the area of $400 to $450 per sf."