DOWNTOWN
moved a year later to SearsTown, and then out to Orange
Blossom Mall from 1984 to 1998. When her Bed, Bath &
Kitchen and Karen Kane Interiors was one of the last six
stores at the mall, she decided the up and coming place to
be was downtown Fort Pierce.
“It’s kind of interesting that I ended up not far from
where I started,” she said. She now leases a 3,000-squarefoot
14
store from the Koblegard family. Her Karen Kane
Interiors projects have ranged from “a kitchen window to
the common areas of the Atlantic View Beach Club after
the hurricanes in 2004.”
Soon, for the first time in as long as anyone can remember,
likely customers of Kane’s will be living downtown
— in 38 condominiums in the newly built Mediterraneanstyle
Renaissance on the River between Indian River
Drive and Melody Lane, opening in April.
RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT
Leo Henriquez, the developer of Atlantic View Beach
Club and Altamira on North Hutchinson Island, said he
chose to build the five-story Renaissance residential,
office and retail complex downtown because he saw the
potential for growth in the city.
His company, Boca Ven Land of Fort Pierce, broke
ground for the 225,450 square foot Renaissance on the
River in May, 2006. The massive project takes up a square
block, from Melody Lane to Indian River Drive between
Atlantic and Orange avenues. The condominiums go for
$425,000 to $1.25 million.
Renaissance on the River is the first large residential
development built in downtown since the construction of
the old Fort Pierce Hotel — later converted to living units
and now an office complex — which sprang up in the
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PHOTO BY ROB DOWNEY
Mediterranean Revival style, used for the new clerk of the circuit court
building, is a popular choice for new buildings in downtown Fort Pierce.
PHOTO BY GREGORY ENNS
Restoration of the Arcade Building, built in 1926, was completed in 2002
and is now home to retail and professional businesses. It also contains a
small museum.
PHOTO BY GREGORY ENNS
The Old Post Office built in 1935 may become a museum when its
restoration is completed.