As St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch formally announced intent to sell Historic Gas Plant District land to Blake Investment Partners, the Mayor argued the move is a step toward delivering on promises made.
Standing at Campbell Park, Welch said The Burg Bid proposal, led by developer Thompson Whitney Blake, will transform the 86-acre property around Tropicana Field. The area was previously home to a predominantly Black neighborhood razed decades ago to make way for the ballpark.
The Burg Bid will cover about 58 acres of the property, while Welch said the Pinellas County Housing Authority will develop affordable senior housing on the Third Avenue South parcel.
“The Historic Gas Plant District has held the promise of progress for St. Pete for decades,” Welch said. “It holds the key to what I call a JHOP priority: jobs, housing, economic opportunity, and honoring the promises made to the community and to the city when the land was acquired.”
Welch said the selection is a turning point in the city’s effort to move forward after the Tampa Bay Rays walked away from a previous deal that would have paired a new stadium with a sweeping mixed-use redevelopment. The collapse of the stadium deal has opened Welch to bruising criticisms of his tenure as Mayor.
Welch’s choices were leaked a day ahead of Thursday’s announcement. His decision to move forward with a new redevelopment plan also goes directly against the St. Petersburg City Council, which previously voted to call on Welch to pump the brakes on the selection process.
The Burg Bid proposal includes an estimated $8 billion redevelopment plan and about 3,600 affordable and workforce housing units, though city reviewers previously noted that much of the housing component is reserved for the second phase of the project.
Evaluators previously highlighted the development team’s track record and described the proposal’s three five-year phases as more compressed than some competing visions for the site. But they also flagged the need for more detail on the project’s economic development strategy and expected job creation impact.
Welch selected the Pinellas County Housing Authority to develop affordable senior housing on the western Third Avenue South parcel, with what he described as “specific opportunities for Gas Plant residents to return home.”
“This is where we start, because housing is not just a promise we make. It is a promise we keep,” Welch said.
For the larger site, Welch described The Burg Bid as a “hometown team” rooted in St. Petersburg and led by someone with personal ties to the city.
“Team lead Thompson Whitney Blake was born and raised in this city,” Welch said. “He knows what this land means and he has assembled a team prepared to honor that meaning with action.”
Welch also thanked the ARK-Ellison-Horus team, whose unsolicited proposal after the Rays deal collapsed helped restart discussion about the land’s future.
“Your unsolicited offer last year, submitted after termination of the Heinz Tampa Bay Rays agreement, advanced this conversation and reminded our city that vision and urgency can coexist,” Welch said.
Welch is seeking another term while facing a crowded field that includes former Gov. Charlie Crist, City Council Member Brandi Gabbard, former St. Pete Fire Chief Jim Large, community advocate Maria Scruggs and former Shore Acres Neighborhood Civic Association President Kevin Batdorf.
Opponents have criticized Welch for moving ahead before the election ahead of the upcoming election.
Gabbard has previously pushed for the city to slow the process, culminating in an official vote attempting to slow the process down for third-party consulting — while Crist has called for the Rays to reconsider St. Petersburg as the team’s long-term home. Other candidates have criticized Welch’s plans on the campaign trail.
Nonetheless, Welch said the city will now enter negotiations, develop term sheets and ultimately bring agreements to the City Council for approval.
That leaves several steps before the redevelopment is finalized, but it leaves open the possibility that the next Mayor and City Council could inherit the process before a final deal is approved — potentially leading to a reversal of Welch’s announced plans if he loses his bid for re-election.
“Our community has waited four decades for promises to become plans, for plans to become progress,” Welch said. “And today, the progress begins.”
—
Ed. note: Michelle Todd Schorsch is the Chair of St. Pete Shines, a political committee backing Crist for St. Petersburg Mayor. Todd Schorsch is married to Schorsch, the publisher of Florida Politics.