St. Petersburg City Council and CRA Meeting - November 4, 2024: Hurricane Recovery, Tropicana Field Remediation, and CRA Tower Approval
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St. Petersburg City Council and CRA Meeting - November 4, 2024
The St. Petersburg City Council and Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) met on November 4, 2024, in a lengthy session that focused on hurricane recovery from Hurricanes Helene and Milton, a major Tropicana Field remediation contract, and approval of a 49-story mixed-use tower in the downtown CRA. The meeting included extensive public comment, staff presentations, and multiple votes.
Consent Calendar
- E1 (unanimous): Authorizing a public utility easement to Duke Energy at 1160 62nd Avenue NE.
- E3 (unanimous): Vacation of a 10-foot alley at 1412 7th Avenue S and 721 14th Street S.
- E4 (unanimous): Rezoning of a parcel at 3089 15th Avenue S from NT-1 to NTM-1 to allow up to six residential units.
- F1 (unanimous): Approval of the 2023 ADA Annual Compliance Report.
- F4 (unanimous): Resolution authorizing a completion agreement with Denson Construction for the Tanglewood bridge project after contractor default.
- F5 (unanimous): Acceptance of a $100,000 grant from the Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg for the Hometown Hauler program, with additional general fund appropriation.
- G1 (unanimous): Ordinance amending City Code 20-74 on sleeping in the right-of-way to comply with state law.
- H1, H2, H3, H4 (all unanimous): Referrals to committees on wastewater facilities (H1), construction crane safety (H2), post-storm permitting (H3), and temporary housing via mobile homes/RVs during disaster recovery (H4).
Public Comments & Testimony
- Open Forum (preceding public hearings):
- Walt Driggers (Friends of Albert Whitted Airport) thanked council for support and noted airport damage (32 hangars, 10 airplanes, 2 helicopters from Hurricane Helene; runway operations limited due to lighting damage).
- Bill Herman (private citizen) urged requiring $100 million umbrella insurance for projects over 200 feet to protect adjacent properties, citing crane collapse risks.
- Robert Ewell expressed gratitude for city recovery efforts and opposed Amendment 4 (abortion rights) as a personal opinion.
- Andy Oliver (Pastor, Allendale United Methodist Church) called for prioritizing low-income communities and equity in rebuilding.
- Karen Carmichael (Downtown Neighborhood Association) thanked Councilmember Montaneri and supported Councilmember Driscoll's referral on crane safety.
- Jeremy Tolberg criticized proposed stadium funding, arguing storm recovery should take priority over a luxury stadium deal.
- Public Hearings (items E2, CRA2):
- Benjamin Sureless (property owner at 7630 34th Ave N) requested DRC-approved site plan to retain 12 parking spaces; council approved with attachment D (7-1).
- Multiple residents of Saltaire condominium (Lewis Burke, Carlos Munoz, Mark & Chandra Kasakevich, Cynthia Smith, Lori Sens, Paul Amarillo, Deborah Harvey) opposed the 49-story Waldorf Astoria tower, citing proximity (10 feet), safety risks during construction (cranes, vibration), aesthetic incompatibility, and lack of independent studies. Some asked for denial or further studies.
Discussion Items
- Hurricane Recovery Update (Debris Removal, Communication, Damage Assessment):
- Administrator Corbett and staff presented on debris operations, expedited FEMA reimbursement (30.7 million obligated), and damage assessments. Councilmembers discussed communication improvements, the Hometown Hauler program, and the need for better public information on boil water notices and sanitation zones.
- Councilmember Floyd asked about damage assessment methodology; staff explained windshield surveys and urged residents to report damage by email (floodplain@stpete.org).
- Discussion on street teams and outreach to neighborhoods like North Kenwood.
- Hometown Hauler Program (F5):
- Brian Caper (Economic & Workforce Development) reported 5,174 verified hauls, program cost $1,552,000, with $1,329,600 already paid. 100 haulers capped, 37% from South St. Pete CRA. $100,000 grant from Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg accepted. Council praised the program.
- Tropicana Field Remediation (F6A and F6B):
- Raul Quintana (Engineering) and Beth Herrendine (Risk Management) presented two emergency contracts: $2.5 million with Hennessy Construction to seal the seating bowl and divert water, and $3.986 million with BMS Cat for interior remediation (damaged carpet, drywall, etc.) over 8 weeks. These were to prevent further damage and protect insurance claims.
- Council debated risk vs. cost, lack of prior information, and potential total exposure ($22.5M deductible). Some members (Hanowitz, Floyd) sought to limit initial spending pending a structural report due Nov. 8; others (Gertis, Driscoll, Montaneri, Gabbard) argued inaction jeopardized insurance. After prolonged discussion, the item passed 6-2 with councilmembers Floyd and Hanowitz voting no. Councilmember Gabbard requested a report back on Nov. 21.
- CRA Item CRA2 – 49-Story Mixed-Use Tower (Waldorf Astoria Residences):
- Staff presented a proposal at 100 2nd Avenue S (49 stories, 164 units, office, retail, 754 parking spaces, ~225M cost). The applicant voluntarily offered conditions on crane safety (149 mph wind rating, additional tie-backs) and construction monitoring.
- Councilmember Driscoll clarified that CRA approval was only for conformance with the redevelopment plan, not final project approval. The Development Review Commission (DRC) would review details next week.
- Public speakers raised concerns over proximity (10 feet from Saltaire), structural damage risk, wind tunnel effects, and aesthetic impact. Vice Chair Gertis noted deep soil mixing and vibration monitors would be used.
- The item passed unanimously.
- 2023 ADA Annual Compliance Report (F1): Lindell Bright reported upcoming mandatory federal changes (website accessibility by 2026, sidewalk master plan) and praised city compliance efforts. Council thanked him and approved.
- Tanglewood Bridge Completion (F4): Evan Burke described contractor default after 50% completion; settlement with surety secured a new contractor. Councilmember Hanowitz questioned contract language improvements. Approved unanimously.
- Ordinance Amendment G1 – Sleeping in Right-of-Way: Assistant City Attorney Joe Patner explained removal of an exception to comply with new state law (F.S. 125.0231) effective Oct. 1. Councilmember Floyd criticized the state mandate but voted yes. Unanimous.
Key Outcomes
- Approved (all unanimous except where noted):
- Consent items E1, E3, E4, F1, F4, F5, G1, H1-H4.
- E2 (vacation with DRC conditions) passed 7-1 (Floyd no).
- CRA2 (49-story tower) passed unanimously.
- F6A and F6B (Tropicana Field remediation) passed 6-2 (Floyd and Hanowitz no).
- Referred to Committees:
- H1: Wastewater facilities update to Public Services & Infrastructure (PSNI).
- H2: Construction crane safety to PSNI.
- H3: Post-storm permitting to Housing, Land Use & Transportation (HLUT).
- H4: Temporary housing (mobile homes/RVs) during disaster recovery to PSNI.
- Next Steps:
- Hurricane structural report on Tropicana Field due November 8; remediation work to start immediately.
- CRA tower to go to DRC next week; further council review at later stages.
- Hometown Hauler program completed; final grant report to Foundation.
- Councilmember Gabbard requested a report back on Tropicana Field at the November 21 meeting.
Meeting Transcript
Because guess what? They have to test that water. So when we do a bowl water notice, it's at least two days. We know that for a fact. Whenever that notice goes out, it should say at least two days. Good point. You know, any minimum should be included so people can understand how long this could be so they can properly prepare. And now you know why they asked you to fill your bathtubs. This is this is this is it. So and I appreciate the ice issue because I'll tell you what, after Hurricane Andrew, you could not find ice in three counties. You could. And it was August. People thought this hurricane was bad. This was October. Imagine 90-something degree weather in August. I don't even know. The police would have definitely had a lot of calls for sure. Um it is important, I guess, to get this communication. I know you guys are gonna work on on that. So I have I have no no question about that. Um but I did one of the biggest issues I I heard from the community was communication and getting the information that they needed so they can properly prepare as fast as possible. So thank you, Claude, for that. Um and then the only thing I just want to touch on, I'm not gonna touch on everything because we're gonna continue having this discussion is the open forum issue. I I think we need to discuss this during our uh when we have our meeting regarding our policies and procedures manual. I think we've had various meetings where we started open forum extremely late. We all get paid here. The people that work here are getting paid. People come here and take time from their job, and they sit here, it's good, it's one o'clock, and honestly, this report item could have probably happened after open form because frankly, the people that are sitting here, including including our public hearings, they they're attorneys that are hired. They're getting paid by the hour in some of these things, and people pay for them. So I think as a city council, we have to have this discussion at some point so we can have some transparency. When we get a proposed agenda order, that's not what the public has. They get the other agenda. And so when you see that, it doesn't match with what we're doing. And it's just not fair to the public. So I I see people leave all the time. It's happened before, and we know what our agenda is here, but the public out there who wants to address and redress their government and tell us what they think, you know, they had to wait all morning, and I think that's just unfair. So we'll uh hopefully have that discussion when we have our procedures uh manual review. So with that, thank you everyone. Thank you. Vice Chair Gertes. Thank you, Madam Chair. Uh thank you for the presentation. I just have a couple of questions and then I'm I'm and with some thank yous. Um Mike, I'll probably start with you if that's okay. Um I know one of the things that was really impactful for me was when when you and I met on whether it was from I can't remember it was Friday or Saturday after the storm, and we had actually we were actually looking at the um sanitation zone map, not the route, but the zone. I think it would be really helpful. I don't know if other council members have looked at it, but I I think it would be really helpful to maybe share that one more time. And then I think that zone map should be posted um on our website. So so when we have things like this, that because I think a lot of times for me, frankly, this was very easy, right? The big zone that got a the big area that got affected in District One, it's all in one zone.
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