At its Thursday meeting, the St. Petersburg City Council approved the updated Palmetto Park Neighborhood Plan.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Located west of downtown St. Pete, the neighborhood encompasses approximately 407 acres and is in close proximity to the Historic Gas District and The Deuces. It is also a component of the South St. Petersburg Community Redevelopment Area \u2013 an initiative designed to encourage reinvestment in housing, business development and education in certain communities.\u00a0<\/p>\n
According to the City\u2019s neighborhood relations manager Kayleigh Sagonowsky, the original plan was written in 1992.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Engagement activities such as community workshops and an online survey were essential in the updating process. These interactive efforts began in late 2023. The St. Petersburg government partnered with Orlando-based consultant Inspire Placemaking Collective on the project.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThese plans not only help us identify residents\u2019 priorities,\u201d she explained at the Thursday meeting, \u201cbut also their shared vision for the neighborhood.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Key themes discussed included connectivity, walkability and bikeability.\u00a0<\/p>\n
More connections to the Pinellas Trail were requested. Additionally, individuals wanted to better \u201cintegrate\u201d the trail into the neighborhood by \u201cadding pocket parks or businesses,\u201d according to the plan.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Residents also signified that they wanted more housing options, small business support and recreational amenities. They suggested more \u201cplacemaking efforts\u201d \u2013 \u00a0including adding more public art to the neighborhood as well as \u201cconsistent engagment\u201d with the South St. Petersburg Community Redevelopment Agency. \u00a0<\/p>\n
Sagonowsky explained that Inspire Placemaking Collective outlined phased implementation recommendations in three segments: strategic initiatives, capital improvement projects and programming initiatives.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Based on feedback, the firm suggested sidewalk repair or new installations, the addition of bike lanes and more signalized crosswalks. Additionally, it recommended that the City considers intersection and Pinellas Trail connectivity improvements.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Adding more wayfinding and gateway signage could \u201cguide residents and visitors to key community assets, such as parks, cultural centers and historic sites \u2013 fostering a sense of discovery and connection,\u201d according to the plan.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Recreational amenity updates, such as improving the existing playground and community garden, were discussed as well.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Residents were also interested, she said, in increasing food access. The plan states that there is an opportunity to host farmer\u2019s markets or increase grocer or restaurant options.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sagonowsky added that additional mixed-use, multi-family infill developments are desired.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Additionally, workshop and survey participants wanted certain safety issues such as illegal dumping addressed. Inspire Placemaking Collective suggested utilizing the St. Petersburg Police Department to assist. Implementing Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design strategies, such as pedestrian scale lighting and properly maintained landscaping, could be beneficial as well.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen people know that a neighborhood is well taken care of,\u201d she said, \u201cthey are less likely to commit crimes in the area.\u201d<\/p>\n
In December, the plan received approval from the South St. Petersburg Community Redevelopment Area\u2019s Citizen Advisory Committee. Community Planning and Preservation Commission consent was given in February. <\/p>\n
The City and Inspire Placemaking Collective have explored financing options for the plan. These include Neighborhood Enhancement Project funds and the Neighborhood Partnership Matching Grant (from the City\u2019s Neighborhood Relations budget). Additionally, Neighborhood Planning Program funds (provided under the South St. Petersburg Community Redevelopment Area budget) could be used.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"At its Thursday meeting, the St. Petersburg City Council approved the updated Palmetto Park Neighborhood Plan.\u00a0 Located west…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":180861,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[202,204,203,199,201,200],"class_list":["post-180860","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-st-petersburg","tag-st-pete","tag-st-pete-headlines","tag-st-pete-news","tag-st-petersburg","tag-st-petersburg-headlines","tag-st-petersburg-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180860","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=180860"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180860\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/180861"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=180860"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=180860"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=180860"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}