St. Petersburg leaders are once again asking for proposals to develop the historic Gas Plant site where Tropicana Filed is located.
Mayor Ken Welch on Friday released the city's requirements for the 86-acre site. They include accommodations for affordable housing and the need to honor the history and legacy of the African-American Gas Plant community. The city also expects development plans to include a baseball stadium on 17 acres.
"The development of these 86 acres is a project that will effect our entire community for generations to come," Welch said in a video released on YouTube. "The decisions that we make today will effect not only our current residents but young people and future generations who will one day make up the fiber of this great city."
This is the second time St. Petersburg is asking for development proposals for the site after Welch said an initial bid chosen by former Mayor Rick Kriseman in 2021 did not reflect the city's needs.
City leaders held community conversations and engagement efforts, which they used in formulating the new requirements.
"This is an historic opportunity for our city to utilize a generational redevelopment opportunity to ensure equitable opportunity for all residents, visitors, businesses and stakeholders," Welch said in a release. "With this new RFP we are calling for a significant emphasis on affordable and workforce housing; arts and culture; research, innovation, and education; recreation; open space, healthy and sustainable development; and intentional equity."
The city's timeline calls for proposals to be submitted by November with Welch making a recommendation before the end of the year.
The city is asking developers to incorporate the following goals:
- Inclusion of and connection to a state-of-the-art baseball stadium on 17.3 acres
- Further honoring the history and legacy of the Historic Gas Plant District site and fulfilling past promises
- Inclusion of principles and findings of the Structural Racism Study and Disparity Study
- Minority Business Enterprise and Woman Business Enterprise inclusion
- Adherence to Community Benefits Agreement principles
- Emphasis on affordable/workforce housing availability on- and off-site
- Acknowledgment of future mitigation requirements related to Oaklawn Cemetery
- Inclusion of guiding principles from results of the Community Conversations sessions and other community engagement efforts
- Acknowledgment of evolving workforce and office space demand
- Opportunities for local, under-invested businesses
- Flexibility for convention space tied to evolving demand
- Opportunities for shared parking for public and ballpark use
- Adherence to connectivity guidelines as described in the Downtown Mobility Study
- Robust job creation opportunities
- St. Pete CRA resident priority hiring, both during construction and for post-development operations
- Mixed-use development
- Connectivity to surrounding neighborhoods
- Emphasizing Booker Creek as a potential water feature
- Activation of the Pinellas Trail within the site
- Emphasis on open space
- Opportunities for office, housing, retail and entertainment
- Smart City technology
- Health equity
- Healthy/sustainable building design
- Opportunities for SBEs, local small businesses, and historically under-invested businesses
- Adherence to the city's Complete Streets plan and opportunities for multi-modal transit
- Inclusion of research, innovation and education opportunities and space
- Significant opportunities for arts and culture
