TIERRA VERDE, Fla. \u2014 Tierra Verde residents are asking a circuit court to overturn St. Petersburg\u2019s approval of a proposed redevelopment at the Tierra Verde Marina, arguing the city applied the wrong height limit when it approved plans for new 72-foot dry storage racks.<\/p>\n
The St. Petersburg Development Review Commission<\/a> approved Greenleaf Capital<\/a>\u2019s proposal last month. Developers said the project would modernize the marina with new dry storage racks, upgraded existing wet slips and a new restaurant, bar and marina office.<\/p>\n The project has drawn opposition from many residents, who said the planned racks would be too tall for the area.<\/p>\n \u201cThe height is going to allow all these extra boats that this island can’t hold. Our infrastructure is not designed for this. Our residential neighborhood is not designed for 72-foot warehouse structures,\u201d said Melanie Coleman-Simon, spokesperson for Tierra Verde Next<\/a>.<\/p>\n Tierra Verde Next, a community group that said it represents more than 1,000 residents, filed a petition asking the circuit court to undo the city\u2019s development approval. The group claims the city\u2019s Development Review Commission applied the wrong height limit.<\/p>\n \u201cSo the current proposal is going to add 22 feet to the county code, which is saying only 50 feet, and that’s what’s legal, and that’s what the DRC did not have the right to do, just to allow them that extra space,\u201d Coleman-Simon said.<\/p>\n The marina is in a unique area where county codes apply, but the location is under St. Petersburg\u2019s jurisdiction.<\/p>\n Developers argue that state law should have prevented the county from adopting more restrictive land development regulations in 2025. They claim the prior maximum height of 75 feet still stands.<\/p>\n Greenleaf Capital spokesperson Rick Kriseman previously told Spectrum News that the proposal meets code criteria.<\/p>\n \u201cSo we think it’s a real win win, for the boating community, for the community that lives here, and it’ll be a great project,\u201d Kriseman said in March.<\/p>\n A city spokesperson said the city cannot comment on pending legal action. However, the height issue was discussed by commission members and city staff at the Development Review Commission hearing.<\/p>\n \u201cSo the allowed height by right is 75 feet, or you could go through approval for 100 feet. They chose to go to 72 feet, so they are below the 75 which is allowed by right,” city staff said at the DRC hearing in May.<\/p>\n “But does the Tierra Verde overlay prescribe a 50 foot maximum?,” a commission member asked. ‘No,\u201d a speaker said at the hearing.<\/p>\n The new racks would add 173 storage spots, bringing the marina\u2019s total capacity to 500 spots.<\/p>\n