There has been a wooden pedestrian pier at the end of Elbow Lane in west St. Petersburg since 1921.
The walkway, adjacent to a public boat ramp, has been rebuilt, refurbished, fortified and modified numerous times over the decades (most recently in 2007). The otherwise sturdy structure on Boca Ciega Bay was no match for Hurricane Helene’s storm surge in 2024, however.
Neighborhood residents are wondering what’s going to happen to the approximately 100-foot pier, which was a popular spot for sunset-watching, and for viewing fireworks over the distant beaches.
“It’s still closed, which to me and the neighborhood associations is not a problem,” said John Hoke, president of the Jungle Terrace Civic Association. “We just want a timeline and a resolution.
“When we started asking the City about it, they said ‘It’s going to be rebuilt, but it’s going to be smaller.’ And that can be anything from a smaller pier to basically a small observation deck at the end of the grass.”
Added Juliana Fisher, president of the Jungle Prada Neighborhood Association, “I would rather them not do anything until we’re all in agreement on what needs to be done.”
Councilmember Copley Gerdes has been advocating for a path forward. “The pier,” he explained, “has always been a priority. I spoke with Community Enrichment Director Mike Jefferis the day after the storm, and the two of us have been working on the project ever since.”
Engineers have determined that the pier, as it exists, is unsafe.
Engineers have determined that the pier, as it exists, is unsafe. At Thursday’s City Council meeting, a vote will be taken on whether or not to allocate the $1.8 million necessary to demolish it. Permits have been secured.
“Then we’ll go into discernment of what the next iteration of the pier will be,” Gerdes said. “And how much money do we want to spend? What will it look like? How far out do we want it to go?”
An early estimate for rebuilding was in the neighborhood of $5M.
“The challenge, as is often the case, is funding,” said Gerdes. “Where is that money coming from? Where are we moving it from? It’s almost certainly replacing another project. The Parks & Rec CIP (Capital Improvement Plan) is already stretched to the limit.”
“We’ve asked to be part of the conversations and the decision points on the pier,” Hoke explained. “If funding’s the problem, how much is coming from FEMA? Can they take private donations?
“Could we consider monetizing this boat ramp?” he asked, “because it’s St. Pete’s last remaining free boat ramp.”
Neighborhood leaders are scheduled to meet May 5 with Gerdes and Jefferis.
There will be a period for public comment before Thursday’s vote. Fisher intends to be there to advocate. “It’s not even just people from the west side of St. Pete,” she said. “People come from Seminole, they come from Gulfport. I’ve had people come from Tierra Verde. It is the only over-water access on the west side. And we all know the sun sets in the west, so it’s very busy and very well used at sunset hours.”
Gerdes, who grew up going to the pier, said he knows firsthand its value to the district. “If it weren’t a priority, we would tear it down and be done with it. But we’re doing to the work to figure out what we want to build, and what we can build.”