St. Petersburg Pier
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The St. Petersburg Pier, officially known as the St. Pete Pier, is a landmark
pleasure pier Seaside pleasure pier in Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th century.">England.html" ;"title="Brighton, England">Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th ...
extending into
Tampa Bay Tampa Bay is a large natural harbor and shallow estuary connected to the Gulf of Mexico on the west-central coast of Florida, comprising Hillsborough Bay, McKay Bay, Old Tampa Bay, Middle Tampa Bay, and Lower Tampa Bay. The largest freshwater in ...
from downtown
St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the fifth-most populous city in Florida and the second-largest city in the Tampa Bay Area, after Tampa. It is the ...
, United States. Over the years several different structures have been built at the same location. The most recent structure, the third owned by the city, was a five-story inverted pyramid-shaped building, designed by St. Petersburg architect William B. Harvard, Sr. That Inverted Pyramid Pier was closed in 2013, and the new 26-acre Pier District opened on July 6, 2020. The $92 million dollar project includes five restaurants, a playground, an environmental education center, and numerous artworks including work by
Xenobia Bailey Xenobia Bailey (born 1955) is an American fine artist, designer, Supernaturalist, cultural activist and fiber artist best known for her eclectic crochet African-inspired hats and her large scale crochet pieces and mandalas. She has said that her ...
,
Nathan Mabry Nathan Mabry (born 1978) is an artist based in Los Angeles. Mabry was born in Colorado. His work is a mixture of primitive sculpture and Minimalist-style art. He references the work of artists such as Sol LeWitt, John McCracken and Carl Andre ...
,
Nick Ervinck Nick Ervinck (born 1981) is a Belgian artist. Biography Ervinck was born in 1981, in Kortemark. From the age of 15, he studied at the Academie voor Schone Kunsten in Bruges and at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts (KASK) in Ghent. Work Ervinc ...
, and a large sculpture entitled ''Bending Arc'' by
Janet Echelman Janet Echelman (born March 19, 1966) is an American sculptor and fiber artist. Her sculptures have been displayed as public art, often as site-specific installations. Works include: ''1.26'', which has been exhibited on five continents; ''Her ...
. Its opening was scheduled for May 30, 2020, but was postponed due to the
COVID-19 pandemic in Florida On March 1, 2020, the U.S. state of Florida officially reported its first two COVID-19 cases, in Manatee County, Florida, Manatee and Hillsborough County, Florida, Hillsborough counties. On April 1 Governor of Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis de ...
.


History

Before the construction of a centralized pier in
St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the fifth-most populous city in Florida and the second-largest city in the Tampa Bay Area, after Tampa. It is the ...
, there were several smaller piers that jutted out into the
Tampa Bay Tampa Bay is a large natural harbor and shallow estuary connected to the Gulf of Mexico on the west-central coast of Florida, comprising Hillsborough Bay, McKay Bay, Old Tampa Bay, Middle Tampa Bay, and Lower Tampa Bay. The largest freshwater in ...
from 1854 to the creation of the Railroad Pier in 1889. The first of which resulted from an expedition by Lt. C.H. Berryman replying to Florida senator
David Levy Yulee David Levy Yulee (born David Levy; June 12, 1810 – October 10, 1886) was an American politician and attorney. Born on the island of St. Thomas, then under British control, he was of Sephardic Jewish ancestry: His father was a Sephardi from Mo ...
to survey land for optimal partitions of railroad lines following the 1850 Florida Swamp Land Act to the region. Though due to the railroad being halted in
Cedar Key, Florida Cedar Key is a city in Levy County, Florida, United States. The population was 702 at the 2010 census. The Cedar Keys are a cluster of islands near the mainland. Most of the developed area of the city has been on Way Key since the end of the 19th ...
the project was soon deserted, however the findings did stimulate active ideas in extending the line to the greater Tampa Bay metropolitan area due to his 1855 report.


Early constructed piers

The first centralized pier was created in 1889 when the
Orange Belt Railway The Orange Belt Railway (later known as the Sanford & St. Petersburg Railroad) was a narrow gauge railroad established in 1885 by Russian exile Peter Demens in Florida. It was one of the longest narrow gauge railroads in the United States at th ...
, brought by
Peter Demens Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...
, constructed the Railroad Pier stretching from around 2,000 to 3,000 feet into the Tampa Bay after being convinced by John C. Williams. Built on 1st Avenue South, the Railroad Pier allowed for
steamboat A steamboat is a boat that is marine propulsion, propelled primarily by marine steam engine, steam power, typically driving propellers or Paddle steamer, paddlewheels. Steamboats sometimes use the ship prefix, prefix designation SS, S.S. or S/S ...
s and cargo-freight ships to enter and dock in its 12-feet-deep waters. It was deemed by Demens to be a tourist attraction, later instigating the construction of a
bathing pavilion Bathing is the act of washing the body, usually with water, or the immersion of the body in water. It may be practiced for personal hygiene, religious ritual or therapeutic purposes. By analogy, especially as a recreational activity, the term is ...
in the two years following its opening. In the same year, Henry W. Hibbs leased part of the pier to open a fishing business which quickly grew the industry of fishing in the area. During these early years, Demens sold off the railway to
Henry B. Plant Henry Bradley Plant (October 27, 1819 – June 23, 1899), was a businessman, entrepreneur, and investor involved with many transportation interests and projects, mostly railroads, in the southeastern United States. He was founder of the Plant Sy ...
, who converted the railway into the Sanford and St. Petersburg Railroad. Not wanting to lose business interest in his holdings, Plant and his associates held a monopoly on the pier going as far as to block further dredging of the channel later in 1901. As an alternative to the Railroad Pier, D.F.S. Brantley constructed the Brantley Pier in 1896 at the length of 1,500 feet in 7-foot-deep waters. The Brantley Pier also hosted a bathing pavilion, and was built farther north at 2nd Avenue North. As competition between the piers grew, it helped to facilitate William Straub of the ''
St. Petersburg Times The ''Tampa Bay Times'', previously named the ''St. Petersburg Times'' until 2011, is an American newspaper published in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. It has won fourteen Pulitzer Prizes since 1964, and in 2009, won two in a single ...
'' to successfully advocate for the waterfronts to be used for public parks in the early 20th century. A third pier was built by Edwin H. Tomlinson in 1901 south of the Railroad Pier on 4th Avenue South which was named the Fountain of Youth Pier. The pier featured a cottage at the edge of the pier, and a well that was drilled near the entrance having water that held similar promises of the famed
Fountain of Youth The Fountain of Youth is a mythical spring which allegedly restores the youth of anyone who drinks or bathes in its waters. Tales of such a fountain have been recounted around the world for thousands of years, appearing in the writings of Herod ...
. The Brantley Pier was demolished in 1904 and was soon replaced by the Electric Pier constructed by F.A. Davis in 1905. The Electric Pier had a length of 3,000 feet and was 16 feet in width. The pier was illuminated with light bulbs and featured an
electric trolley Electric current collectors are used by trolleybuses, trams, electric locomotives or EMUs to carry electrical power from overhead lines, electrical third rails, or ground-level power supplies to the electrical equipment of the vehicles. Those for ...
that could move both passengers and cargo down the length of the pier, rivaling that of the Railroad Pier once again. In 1908, Jesse F. Conrad purchased the pier from Tomlinson and added an arch for the entrance of the pier as well as turning the well into a spa. The city of St. Petersburg built its first pier, the Municipal Recreation Pier, ten feet north of the Electric Pier in 1913 after a $40,000 bond was authorized by voters. The Municipal Recreation Pier was an effort by the city to boost its tourism, enhance the cities parks, and was used solely for recreational activities. A year later in 1914 the Electric Pier was demolished. In the aftermath of the
1921 Tampa Bay Hurricane The Tampa Bay hurricane of 1921 (also known as the 1921 Tarpon Springs hurricane) was the most recent hurricane to make landfall in the Tampa Bay area and held the record as the major storm that stuck the continental United States latest in the c ...
, the Fountain of Youth Pier was destroyed and the spa building at its base collapsed. The rest of the piers were severely damaged as the Railroad Pier had a water tank and Henry W. Hibbs fishing unit left standing while the Municipal Recreation Pier had only
pilings A deep foundation is a type of foundation that transfers building loads to the earth farther down from the surface than a shallow foundation does to a subsurface layer or a range of depths. A pile or piling is a vertical structural element ...
remaining. Soon after the Municipal Recreation Pier was repaired, although engineers had alerted public officials that the pier would need to be replaced thereafter. As a result, Lew B. Brown, a publisher of the ''
Evening Independent The ''Evening Independent'' was St. Petersburg, Florida's first daily newspaper. The sister evening newspaper of the ''St. Petersburg Times'', it was launched as a weekly newspaper in March 1906 under the ownership of Willis B. Powell. In Novem ...
'', promoted an effort to construct a new pier entitled "The Million Dollar Pier". Brown had organized the community into donating $300,000 dollars towards the pier, with the remaining funds being bonded from the city. Voters in 1925 voted to endorse a $1 million bond towards a new pier structure, and construction of the pier began the same year. In total, the pier would cost $998,729.18 (USD) dollars ($ in dollars).


The Million Dollar Pier

After a year of construction, the Million Dollar Pier was opened on November 25, 1926 with 10,000 individuals in attendance. The pier extended 1,452 feet into the bay with the bridge measuring 100 feet in width. At the head of the pier stood a building named the Casino, a
Mediterranean Revival architecture Mediterranean Revival is an architectural style introduced in the United States, Canada, and certain other countries in the 19th century. It incorporated references from Spanish Renaissance, Spanish Colonial, Italian Renaissance, French Colonial ...
structure. The Casino had hosted a central
atrium Atrium may refer to: Anatomy * Atrium (heart), an anatomical structure of the heart * Atrium, the genital structure next to the genital aperture in the reproductive system of gastropods * Atrium of the ventricular system of the brain * Pulmona ...
for vehicles, an open air ballroom and theater, and an
observation deck An observation deck, observation platform, or viewing platform is an elevated sightseeing platform usually situated upon a tall architectural structure, such as a skyscraper or observation tower. Observation decks are sometimes enclosed ...
. Along its base and approach the pier also accommodated a beach, a
solarium Solarium may refer to: * A sunroom, a room built largely of glass to afford exposure to the sun * A terrace (building) or flat housetop * The '' Solarium Augusti'', a monumental meridian line (or perhaps a sundial) erected in Rome by Emperor Augu ...
, and a
streetcar line A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...
. In July 1927, the radio station WSUN began operation on the second floor of the Casino in the Shrine Club. In 1952, the Railroad Pier was demolished ending the early era of public constructed piers. In the mid 1960s, the pier began to become neglected sparking different groups to suggest replacements for the pier, though all were shot down by the city council. Due to considerable repairs and renovations that would be needed to upkeep the pier, the demolition of the Million Dollar Pier Casino structure started in July 1967 and was completed in the same year by the Cuyahoga Wrecking Company.


The Inverted Pyramid Pier

After the demolition, the pier's head was converted into a park that included benches, tables, and shelters. In the ensuing years the city considered many ideas to replace the pier ranging from industrial and commercial uses. In 1969, the city council authorized a pier project slated to be completed for the 19701971 tourist season at the cost of $2 million. The project selected was the Inverted Pyramid Pier designed by William B. Harvard Sr., designed to minimize blocking the a view of Tampa Bay. The following year in 1970, the pier project was granted an additional $800,000 dollars to construct the design. The Inverted Pyramid Pier opened on January 15, 1973 after delays and a budget of around $4 million. Upon its opening, the
Marriott Corporation Marriott Corporation was a hospitality company that operated from 1927 until 1993, founded by J. Willard Marriott and Frank J. Kimball as Hot Shoppes, Inc. In 1957, Marriott Corporation opened its first hotel in Arlington County, Virginia, Ar ...
was given a five-year contract in managing the pier. With a tubular steel framework to create large windows for panoramic views of Tampa Bay and a larger top floor and observation deck. On March 20, 1976, the city dedicated a laser sculpture by
Rockne Krebs Rockne Krebs (December 24, 1938 – October 10, 2011) was a contemporary American artist and sculptor. Biography Early life Krebs was born on December 24, 1938, in Kansas City, Missouri. He graduated from the University of Kansas in 1961 and ...
entitled ''Starboard Home on the Range, Part VI''. The sculpture featured a green laser beam from the pier directed towards downtown St. Petersburg, reflecting to the pier several times with mirrors, finally reflecting out to Tampa Bay. When ongoing technical problems with cooling the laser engine caused repeated dysfunction, the laser sculpture was shut down. In 1986, the Inverted Pyramid Pier closed for renovations, however after delays and an expanded restoration budget of $12 million the pier reopened on August 27, 1988. In 2004, the city of St. Petersburg found that the structure of The Pier could no longer be funded as it cost too much in upkeep and a new pier would replace the current inverted pyramid pier in the coming years. In April 2005, Pinellas County created a plan to set aside $50 million for the new plans for the pier. In 2009, an official Pier Task Force was created and set an international design competition which included 29 architectural firms that submitted designs. The Inverted Pyramid Pier officially closed on May 31, 2013.


Plans for a new pier


The Lens

In a straw-poll vote (5–3) after a two-hour workshop on August 18, 2010, the St. Petersburg City Council accepted Mayor Bill Foster's recommendation to demolish the current pier. A binding vote, 7–1, was taken at an August 26 meeting. On January 20, 2012, the St. Petersburg Pier International Design Competition Jury unanimously selected
Michael Maltzan Architecture Michael Maltzan is the principal architect at Michael Maltzan Architecture (MMA), a Los Angeles-based architecture firm. He received a Master of Architecture degree from Harvard University and both a Bachelor of Architecture degree and a Bachelor ...
's "The Lens" as the design for the new pier out of the original 29 architectural firms that submitted designs for the pier. Design proposals by the top three competitors included
Bjarke Ingels Group Bjarke Ingels Group, often referred to as BIG, is a Copenhagen and New York based group of architects, designers and builders operating within the fields of architecture, urbanism, research and development. The office is currently involved in a ...
's (BIG) "The Wave" and
West 8 West 8 is an urban planning and landscape architecture firm founded by Adriaan Geuze and Paul van Beek in Rotterdam, Netherlands in 1987. It is known for its contemporary designs and innovative solutions to urban planning problems using lighting, ...
's "The People's Pier". In September 2012, the city applied to the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers , colors = , anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day) , battles = , battles_label = Wars , website = , commander1 = ...
for a permit to demolish the pier. Approval would have taken 6 to 12 months. A campaign to stop the destruction of the existing pier and prevent The Lens design from replacing it resulted in a referendum. One issue with The Lens design was its plans for a visible reef that low visibility in Tampa Bay made unrealistic. On August 27, 2013, city residents voted to cancel the contract with Michael Maltzan Architecture, ending The Lens project.


Pier Park

After The Lens design was turned down by the citizens of St. Petersburg, mayor
Rick Kriseman Richard David Kriseman (born August 2, 1962) is an American politician who served as the 53rd Mayor of St. Petersburg from 2014 to 2022. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as a member of the Florida House of Representatives, r ...
asked for the request for qualification for a design consultant in January 2014. Later a group was established called the Pier Working Group to incorporate elements and activities from the community in order to set the basis for the new pier. The process of finding a new pier began with sixteen initial teams that submitted a statement of qualification on September 8, 2014 with ideas ranging from renovating to replacing the current pier. From those initial teams, eight were invited by the city of St. Petersburg to the second stage of the selection process. Designs for the new pier concept were due on December 15, 2014 by the selected eight teams. After review from the selection committee of the designs introduced by the teams, the design teams were shortlisted on January 23, 2015 to include seven of the original eight teams, dropping "The Crescent" by ahha! Design Group. Over the course of the next month from January to February, public outreach was collected based on the shortlisting and the teams presented their pier concepts to the public. A public online survey ensued from February to March, which the results from citizens of St. Petersburg favored the "Destination St. Pete Pier" by the St. Pete Design Group followed by "Pier Park" by ASD Architects, Rogers Partners Architects+Urban Designers, & Ken Smith Architect and "Blue Pier" by W Architecture and Landscape Architecture. A meeting with the pier committee was held on March 20, 2015 to decide the top three rankings for the pier. During this meeting, the committee evaluated the designs of all seven piers viewing each pro's and con's and hearing comments from both the committee and public. In conclusion of the meeting, four of the seven teams were eliminated which excluded the "Blue Pier", "Discover Bay Life Pier", "rePier", and "Prospect Pier". The top three piers were ranked by "ALMA" first, "Destination St. Pete Pier" second, and "Pier Park" third, however the movement to rank the piers in the order given was failed during a vote between the committee. Weeks after the initial meeting, mayor Rick Kriseman commented that the residents just want to see their elected officials build a pier. During a final hearing on April 23, 2015, the selection committee had two meetings. The first involved a questions and answers for the top three teams and the second included a hearing from the public with final consideration for the top three designs. During the second meeting, the selection committee ranked the piers by several major criteria. During the late night meeting, the committee ranked "Pier Park" as their number one pick followed by the favored "Destination St. Pete Pier" ranked second and "ALMA" by Alfonso Architects ranked third. The St. Petersburg City Council approved of the "Pier Park" plans on May 7, 2015 in a 7 to 1 vote, and approved the contract on June 9, 2015. On July 9, 2015, the city council approved on a $5.2 million deal to demolish the current pier and to finalize the Pier Park. The demolition of the pier began on August 18, 2015. On November 17, 2015, the St. Petersburg Pier structure was fully demolished. After the demolition of the structure, the approach of the pier was next which was estimated to be fully demolished four months after starting. The entire demolition was expected to be done by February 2016, however it was completed in late 2016 on the account of safety concerns from the decay of the construction materials that were reinforced over the lifetime of the pier's approach and base structure. A redesign on the pier was presented on March 17, 2016 with mixed reactions from officials, though it was viewed positively by the city's council. Due to the redesign, budget cuts were soon imposed on the Pier's concepts. Pier Park's groundbreaking began on June 28, 2017. On September 25, 2017,
Pinellas County Pinellas County (, ) is a county located on the west central coast of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 959,107. The county is part of the Tampa–St. Petersburg– Clearwater, Florida Metropolitan Statistical ...
granted an expanded budget of $76 million towards the Pier's district. In December 2017, the pier's concrete pilings were around "three quarters of the way done" with the deck "about half done". In April 2018, three artists were announced to create public art for the pier's surrounding and immediate district, including
Nick Ervinck Nick Ervinck (born 1981) is a Belgian artist. Biography Ervinck was born in 1981, in Kortemark. From the age of 15, he studied at the Academie voor Schone Kunsten in Bruges and at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts (KASK) in Ghent. Work Ervinc ...
,
Nathan Mabry Nathan Mabry (born 1978) is an artist based in Los Angeles. Mabry was born in Colorado. His work is a mixture of primitive sculpture and Minimalist-style art. He references the work of artists such as Sol LeWitt, John McCracken and Carl Andre ...
, and
Xenobia Bailey Xenobia Bailey (born 1955) is an American fine artist, designer, Supernaturalist, cultural activist and fiber artist best known for her eclectic crochet African-inspired hats and her large scale crochet pieces and mandalas. She has said that her ...
. In August 2018, it was approved by the cities council to install a
Janet Echelman Janet Echelman (born March 19, 1966) is an American sculptor and fiber artist. Her sculptures have been displayed as public art, often as site-specific installations. Works include: ''1.26'', which has been exhibited on five continents; ''Her ...
sculpture in the pier's district. Vertical construction on the Pier's structure began in November 2018. Its original opening was scheduled for May 30, 2020, but was postponed due to the
COVID-19 pandemic in Florida On March 1, 2020, the U.S. state of Florida officially reported its first two COVID-19 cases, in Manatee County, Florida, Manatee and Hillsborough County, Florida, Hillsborough counties. On April 1 Governor of Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis de ...
. The pier and pier district opened on July 6. The renovated St. Pete Pier features a variety of restaurants. The new addition to the city sits on 26 acres of land.


In popular culture

On June 17, 1922, 18-year-old Dorothy MacLatchie was killed by a "monster fish" while floating next to the Municipal Recreation Pier in St. Petersburg, Florida. While some reports indicate her death was caused by a shark, newspaper accounts indicate her death was caused by a
barracuda A barracuda, or cuda for short, is a large, predatory, ray-finned fish known for its fearsome appearance and ferocious behaviour. The barracuda is a saltwater fish of the genus ''Sphyraena'', the only genus in the family Sphyraenidae, which was ...
. A significant amount of footage was filmed in and around the Pier for the second and third season of the mid-1990s television series ''
seaQuest DSV ''SeaQuest DSV'' (stylized as ''seaQuest DSV'' and also promoted as simply ''seaQuest'') is an American science fiction television series created by Rockne S. O'Bannon. It originally aired on NBC between 1993 and 1996. In its final season, it ...
''. The Pier was shown prominently on the cover of local zombie anthology, ''Zombie St. Pete''. This is a short story collection featuring fictional zombie attacks in the St. Petersburg city. The Pier also held the ''Zombie St. Pete'' book release party on February 27, 2010.


References


External links


Official website
{{Commons category, St. Petersburg Pier Buildings and structures in St. Petersburg, Florida Tourist attractions in St. Petersburg, Florida Inverted pyramids Cultural infrastructure completed in 1973 Modernist architecture in Florida Piers in Florida Pyramids in the United States Buildings and structures demolished in 2015 1973 establishments in Florida