A South Florida firm has purchased downtown Tampa's iconic Rivergate Tower, better known as the "beer can building," in the hope of filling the half-empty building.

With so much vacancy, In-Rel Properties of Lake Worth sees lots of potential upside, the company said in an email to the Tribune.

Rivergate Tower has been in some turmoil since its lender, Royal Bank of Scotland, started foreclosure procedures against the owner last fall.

The bank eventually took back the tower from America's Capital Partners.

In-Rel Properties recently bought the cylindrical tower from the bank for an undisclosed sum, closing on the sale June 15.

In-Rel owns other properties in the Tampa Bay area including three shopping centers, Town N Country Promenade, Plaza 66 in St. Petersburg and Manatee Village in Tarpon Springs.

The 515,000-square-foot building at 400 N. Ashley Drive is only 50-percent leased, but the company hopes to remedy that by enhancing its aesthetics and reintroducing it, the company said by email. Rivergate Tower was last purchased in 2005 for $35.5 million, according to county land records.

The Hillsborough County Property Appraiser's office has appraised it at $26 million. The new owner hasn't disclosed the price it paid, and the sale hasn't yet shown up in county records.

http://www2.tbo.com/news/real-estate-news/2011/jun/30/5/quotbeer-canquot-building-downtown-is-sold-ar-240990/