ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The city of St. Petersburg officially opened its 30-day proposal window this past Sunday to redevelop the Historic Gas Plant District, as some community members have urged city council to reject the process and plan for the project first.
What You Need To Know
The window for Gas Plant redevelopment proposals opened this past Sunday
Ark Ellison Horus has been the only team to officially submit
At least a half dozen other developers reportedly plan to submit proposals before the Feb. 3 deadline
City Council member Corey Givens Jr. said he wants to see a citizen-driven plan completed first
“The way it’s being handled now is going to cost the city more than $1 billion and permanently surrender control,” said Ron Diner, Home Runs Matter founder. “This is a gold mine for developers, and this is our gold… not theirs.”
Diner is a former Raymond James executive who wants a city-led plan completed before any of the 86 acres of prime downtown land can be redeveloped.
“The city should plan first,” he said. “They should form a community advisory council, hire national planners, and then lay out the property and then have the developers come in and buy the land parcel by parcel at fair value.”
Instead, Mayor Ken Welch has decided to go with a master developer approach where all the land is acquired first. The process has not been rushed but is responsible, according to Welch. The mayor also wrote that the city will move deliberately, guided by the principle that redevelopment must serve all, including those once left behind.
Ark Ellison Horus has been the only team to officially submit a proposal during the current open window. It’s the team that triggered the process with an undisclosed proposal last October. At least a half dozen other developers reportedly plan to submit proposals before the Feb. 3 deadline.
City Council member Corey Givens Jr. said he agrees with Diner’s approach and will vote down any of the development proposals that come in this month. Givens said putting the cart before the horse is bound to fail.
“I want a citizen-driven plan. I think what happens first is the citizens need to decide what they want,” he said. “But we also need to bring in experts, advise us. A lot of times you’ve got to go outside of St. Pete to find out what will work best in St. Pete.”
Diner spoke out at the St. Pete city council meeting on Thursday, telling members he wants them to draw the line on the proposal-first approach.
“What I challenged the city council to do today was to stand up and say that we will not approve of a developer proposal first process if any is brought before us,” he said. “We insist the city do a planning process first.”
This is the city’s third attempt to find a Gas Plant developer in the past six years.