CLEARWATER - Prudential Commercial Real Estate - FL announced the sale of a 25,000sf commercial building for $1,175,000, according to Matt Shaw and Armando Flores III, who handled the transaction. The building consists of 15 units at approximately 1,700sf each and is considered flex space for office and industrial use. Located at 3734 131st Ave. N. in Clearwater, it was purchased by the Alliance Group of Tampa Bay VIII LLC. Seller is Norrie Gateway LLC.

TAMPA - During the fourth quarter of 2009, the total industrial vacancy rate ticked up 60 basis points from the previous quarter, rental rates inched downward and negative absorption was recorded for the ninth quarter in a row in the Tampa Bay market.

Although a 9.8% overall vacancy for the Tampa Bay market represents only a slight increase from last quarter’s 9.2%, it is a marked increase from our 4Q08 vacancy of 7.3% and more than double the 4Q07 rate of 4.3%. More than 800,000sf, or almost 6% of this vacant space, is sublease space.

ST. PETERSBURG - Osprey Real Estate Services - North Bay LLC announced the sale of a 131,800sf manufacturing, warehouse and office building on approximately 5.5 acres of land at 3001 Gateway Center Parkway in Pinellas Park’s Gateway Centre Business Park for $7,150,000 by Hunter Douglas Fabrication Co. to the Oettinger Davidoff Group for a new U.S. headquarters.

Paula Clair Smith, CCIM, commercial broker associate, was the seller’s representative.

TAMPA - Duke Realty Corp. closed 2009 by leasing 182,497sf to three tenants at Fairfield Distribution Center.

In each transaction, Duke Vice President Tim Hain represented ownership.

Iron Mountain Information Management renewed its lease for the entire 92,200sf Fairfield III building and was represented by Bruce Vaughn with Jones Lang LaSalle.

At Fairfield VI, locally based Certified Records Management leased 49,410sf of the 156,500sf building and was represented by Frank Cisneros of Cisneros Real Estate Group.