Article originally posted by Chris Wille in the Herald-Tribune

Four full-floor residences already reserved

An ultra-luxury condominium tower with clear bayfront views is coming to downtown Sarasota. Seaward Development’s lavish 18-story EPOCH project shows the market for multimillion-dollar condos has not passed the saturation point.

The condo community will rise from a 100-foot-wide site between South Palm and South Gulfstream. The only thing separating the building from Sarasota Bay is Bayfront Park.

While the Sarasota-based company announced EPOCH’s debut this week, condo reservations began earlier this month. Buyers have placed reservations on four of the seven full-floor condos, which range in price from $5.39 million to $6.29 million.

One penthouse has yet to be designed or priced. The other 16 units share a floor, with prices starting at $3.22 million.

“It’s amazing how many calls we are getting,” said Amy Drake, a broker with Ocean Real Estate and president of Property Perspectives who is handling marketing and sales for EPOCH. “It shows the demand is there.”

The condos range from 3,689 to 5,379 square feet under air, plus each has multiple bay- and city-view terraces.

Some prospective buyers are seeking these larger spaces, and some desire an urban, walkable lifestyle without giving up space. The demand for direct water views is always strong, Drake said.

Patrick DiPinto, president of Seaward Development, said: “There is strong demand from single-family homeowners who are ready for a change but don’t want to sacrifice the space, privacy and quality their large homes offer.”

The distinctive design of the tower was inspired by the Sarasota School of architecture, said Igor Reyes, lead architect for Nichols, Brosch, Wurst, Wolfe and Associates of Coral Gables. The blending of spaces, he said, “juxtaposed with the distinct outline of each level, provides each residence a sense of individuality that sometimes gets lost in high-rise living.”

EPOCH offers private elevator entries, ceiling heights of 11 to 13 feet, tall walls of glass, open great rooms and kitchens, and large owners’ suites — huge in the full-floor plan, with a living-room-size sitting area.

Community amenities include a porte cochere with guest parking; an attended welcome lobby; residents’ clubroom; wellness/fitness center; a tropically landscaped pool terrace with lap pool, spa, fire table and cabanas; roof-top terrace; garage parking and private garages for the full-floor residences.

Construction is scheduled to begin next year, with completion two years later.