ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — After making a number of safety and security upgrades to the Jordan Park neighborhood, the St. Pete Housing Authority is focusing on bringing the community together.

On Tuesday evening, the city of St. Pete is sponsoring a spring family picnic for the neighborhood. The event will include outdoor activities, access to helpful community resources, a fresh produce market, pizza and a chance to make friends with neighbors.

What You Need To Know

Jordan Park community event takes place from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Tuesday 

SPHA says nine new high-definition security cameras have been added in the neighborhood

Regular patrols now take place from St. Pete Police and a private security company 

Jordan Park renovations were completed in late 2023

Kiara Lovett, Director of Social Services for the St. Pete Housing Authority, says she grew up in south St. Pete and wants the children who live in Jordan Park to have the same sense of community that she did.

“We’re always trying to create that community that I once knew when I was younger,” she said. ”I feel like we’ve just lost that sense of community as a whole… so we want to create the village.”

Lovett is helping organize Tuesday’s event and says she’s expecting to see anywhere from 250 to 300 families there.

“I do what I do because once upon a time I wish I had the support given to myself,” she said.

Jordan Park is St. Pete’s oldest public housing community, first built in 1939. Over the last 5 years, a number of units were torn down to make way for a new 60-unit senior living community called The Legacy at Jordan Park. The additional 206 family units were renovated, and reopened in late 2023. In all, the project cost about $93 million.

St. Pete City Council member Corey Givens Jr. says despite the upgrades, Jordan Park is having a hard time shaking its tough reputation.

“What are the consequences for these tenants?” Givens said as he addressed follow council members during a Youth and Family Services Committee meeting last month. “I have names. I have unit numbers. I know that the problems aren’t just coming from the outside, they’re festering from within.”

Nick Fokianos with the St. Pete Housing Authority says the area has gotten significantly safer. Jordan Park now has nine new 360-degree high-definition security cameras with feeds that St. Pete Police can view. There’s also new fencing, new LED lighting and patrols from both police and a private security company.

“It’s helped the situation,” he said. “It’s making it so everything is being clearly seen what’s going on in the neighborhood.”

Fokianos said residents are now being held responsible for their guests’ actions.

“We don’t want guests coming from outside the community, we don’t want this to be the teen hangout spot,” he said. “We want residents to feel safe in their own community.”