Another St Pete thread (Tampa, Clearwater: condo, neighborhoods, closing)

[DoctorRain]

I am making this post because for the first time in 6-7 months, I went to St Pete and checked the downtown out. Office buildings down there might have closed and all, but what i see overall is a very UN depressed city that is going through a rebirth. I get the impression it is a young version of the new Seattle or something or its at least trying to be right on Ashevilles level or any more crowded hip urban type place. The only con these days there seems to be the speculation and possible real life situation of the LA oil spill, but city has improved. I also noticed they moved Durty Nellys too. I think a new thrift shop came in as well. I see promise.. I don't know about some of you.

[Angler]

It's been this way for the past few years. Even with the closing of Baywalk shops, the rest of the area, especially Beach Drive and Central, have exploded. GO there on a weekedn evening. The streets are crowded- restaurants are doign well- even during the recession, the number that closed mirrored the general turnover in the industry.

And now with the Chihuly gallery opening and the opening of the 600 block of Central, the arts community is second to none in the area.

[Eastern Roamer]

St. Pete is trying. The Pier is a money pit and a lame tourist trap. I imagine it was a novelty when it was new. It gave the city something to identify it by, a sort of icon. It needs a serious overhaul, into something useful, hopefully. The tragic irony of Baywalk is that it was the anchor for downtown commerce and now, as Beach Drive, Central Ave., et al have been cleaned up, Baywalk is dying a slow death. It, too, needs overhauled. If only there were as much money as there are ideas...

The 600 block of Central is mostly dilapidated, but it has some charm. The north side of the block was bought out and vacated for a huge condo project that never materialzed (for obvious reasons). St. Pete has homeless people like Clearwater has Scientologists. It's like their mecca, or something.

There are some some contentious ideas and issues (like what to do with the Rays & the Trop) but important discussions are being had, and that's good. When good times return and the city's budget gets a boost, the city will continue on its path of improvement. It has come a long way considering what a seedy backwater it was and its stigma for being heaven's waiting room. There's a liberal demographic and, say what you want about politics, there's no debating that liberals make the coolest cities.

The Old NE is charming, but that's a small area. There needs to be some more mixed zoning, especially around some of the other near-historic neighborhoods where sidewalks actually get used. If Tampa gets high-speed and light rail, I'm sure St. Pete would be on board (pardon the pun) which would make the whole system more viable. They could stretch the rails all the way over the Howard/ Franklin to Carrillon, and then run a light train down 4th St. and out to the beach from downtown... but I digress.

It's a city on the cusp, is my point. I just don't know how long I want to live in a city with "potential" when I can move to a city with the ammenities and jobs that I want.