ST. PETE BEACH, Fla. — St. Pete Beach city leaders will soon consider moving a historic home 15 blocks to replace the Pass-a-Grille shuffleboard clubhouse, which has been slated for demolition after the building was severely damaged by last year’s hurricanes.

What You Need To Know

The 90-year-old shuffleboard clubhouse will soon be demolished after being severely damaged by last year’s hurricanes 

The owners of the 100-year-old Deacon cottage in Pass-a-Grille have offered to donate it to the city 

It’s estimated to cost about $160,000 to move the historic home 15 blocks south to the shuffleboard courts property 

City commissioners will consider approving the move at their Dec. 9 meeting 

“The city saves money by not having to build a new structure,” said Bill Lowery, Historical Preservation Board Chairman. “They get a house in place that’s in great shape.”

Lowery said he came up with the idea when city commissioners approved the demolition of the 90-year-old shuffleboard clubhouse earlier this month. Commissioners made that decision after finding out the cost to rebuild the historic clubhouse would be $192,000.

“This is not a responsible use of the money. So I agree that it needs to be demolished,” said Lowery. “It was a beach shelter that was moved from Gulfport by barge back in the late 1920s.”

Lowery said the owners of a historic Pass-a-Grille home, which did not flood, have offered to donate it to the city as they prepare to build a new house. The 100-year-old home was owned by Jack Deacon who was the Pass-a-Grille mayor in the 1930s and the president of the shuffleboard club, according to Lowery.

“It was just kind of like karma,” he said. “You feel like it was just meant to be.”

Saving one historic home has become a big deal for Lowery. He said in the four years leading up to Hurricane Helene, 14 historic homes had been demolished. After the storm, Lowery said the demo numbers skyrocketed.

“In the last year since the storm, we’ve had 30,” he said. “Which is a significant percentage of the homes on Pass-a-Grille.”

City Commissioner Jon Maldonado, who represents District 4, agrees with Lowery’s sentiment.

“It’s with a heavy heart that we’re starting to see these structures go down in record numbers,” he said. “So anything that we can do to preserve even one building is going to be significant for St. Pete Beach, specifically for Pass-a-Grille.”

Maldonado said he supports moving the historic Deacon cottage from 24th Avenue to become the new shuffleboard clubhouse on 9th Avenue.

“I support it 100 percent. It’s not only a great gesture, it’s just the building has a lot of historical character,” he said. “The commission was in agreement that we should pursue whatever options we could within reason.”

Lowery said a resident got an estimate to move the historic home further than the shuffleboard courts, and the cost was $162,000. He hopes the city can use insurance and FEMA money to help offset the cost.

“What they (city commissioners) called the ‘Path Forward,’ they mentioned there was about $170,000 in funds to potentially build the new clubhouse,” he said. “Now, whether that was going to happen or not, I don’t know, but that amount of money would probably cover the move.”

Lowery said they’re also up against a tight deadline as the owners of the historic home want to start construction in January.

“We just have a time crunch, which we understand and appreciate,” he said. “That’s why we’re acting as fast as we can.”

Public Services Director Camden Mills said he plans to present the city commission with a potential plan to move the historic home at their Dec. 9 meeting and seek guidance.