State rejects St. Pete’s street art exemption request

Mayor Ken Welch announced Friday afternoon that the City of St. Petersburg will comply with a Florida Department of Transportation directive to remove street art that FDOT says is not in compliance with its “traffic control device standards.”

In a letter to Evan Mory, St. Petersburg’s Transportation and Parking Management Director, FDOT District Secretary Justin Hall on Friday said four specific works must be removed by Sept. 4:

9^th Avenue and 22^nd Lane S. (Black History Matters mural adjacent to the Woodson African American Museum of Florida);

Central Avenue and 25^th Street N. (Pride flag rainbow);

Central Avenue and 5^th Street N. (colored prism art);

6^th Avenue and 2^nd Street S. (University of South Florida art);

11^th Avenue and 46^th Street S.

Pride colors at Central and 25th Street. The State has banned street art “with political, social, or ideological messaging” on public roads. Photo: Meghan Bowman/WUSF.

Mory had asked that these five examples be exempted, noting that the locations were all in place before recent upgrades to state guidelines about driver distractions and potential traffic issues caused by asphalt art.

The State did not back down.

“If we do not hear from you, the pavement markings referenced above will be removed by the Department of Transportation without notice,” Hall wrote.

“You are further notified that if the markings are removed by the Department, all costs associated with the removal will be assessed against the City of St. Petersburg. You may avoid these costs by removing the pavement markings and then notifying the Department of compliance immediately.

“Please note that the Department will pursue withholding of state funds as permitted by the law should the City of St. Petersburg reverse course and decide not to comply.”

In his public statement confirming compliance, Welch declared that “after consultation with the City Attorney’s office, and considering the implications of keeping the street art murals in question, we have determined that identified street art murals must be removed under FDOT’s order. City personnel will not remove this artwork, rather FDOT has indicated that it will exercise its authority to do so in accordance with state law.”

St. Petersburg “values public art as an important expression of our community’s creativity, inclusivity, and identity,” the mayor wrote.

“The City remains committed to working with our community to find lawful ways to celebrate and express our values in the public realm. While these specific art murals will be removed, the spirit of what makes St. Pete a special place can’t be suppressed by legislative fiat, and we will find meaningful ways to express our shared values.”