St. Petersburg Needs a Plan, Hot a Hurry-Up Deal, for the Gas Plant’s Next Chapter

A once-in-a-century opportunity
By 2028, the Tropicana Field site — 86 acres of public land in the heart of St. Petersburg — will finally be open for redevelopment. For decades, city leaders have promised this land would help rebuild what was lost when the Gas Plant neighborhood was displaced. That promise is too important to rush.
The city’s new “30-day window” for additional development proposals is the latest example of moving too fast in the wrong order. Redevelopment law, and common sense, both say: plan first, then build.
The missing foundation
Florida Statute 163.362 requires every Community Redevelopment Plan to include a detailed layout of streets, infrastructure, and public spaces for the entire district, not just a portion. The City’s current plan doesn’t do that for the 86-acre site. That isn’t a legal technicality — it’s the foundation that ensures any deal fits into a coherent vision for the city’s future.
Without it, private developers are effectively writing the plan for us. That’s backwards. Cities such as Denver (Stapleton), Washington, D.C. (Walter Reed), and Philadelphia (Navy Yard) have shown how successful city-led master planning works — setting the grid, public spaces, and community goals before private deals are struck.
A better path forward
St. Petersburg can lead the way by taking a short pause to put the plan in order. That means:
Creating a detailed redevelopment framework for streets, parks, cultural and civic spaces, and utilities;
Engaging residents and local leaders to participate in the planning.
Phasing development so public improvements and private projects advance together; and
Forming a standing community advisory group to guide implementation and ensure transparency.
This approach honors the law, rebuilds public trust, and attracts quality developers who want to be part of a well-defined, city-led vision.
What’s at stake
The Gas Plant district could become a national model for equitable, forward-looking urban redevelopment — or another missed opportunity. If we rush into a deal before the city knows exactly what it wants, we risk losing both the moment and the meaning of this project.
The community that once lived here deserves more than symbolic gestures. They deserve a plan that brings everyone to the table, in the right order and for the right reasons. Let’s make this the chapter where St. Petersburg finally gets it right — a home run for the whole city.