"Political Party with Adam Smith" EP 34 w/ Peter Belmont, Preserve The Burg"

Back in 2011, a strong majority of St. Petersburg voters passed a city charter amendment requiring a waterfront master plan to ensure the city’s sacred waterfront would be properly protected. Ten years later, development in the city is booming so much that backers of that waterfront plan are calling for a similar plan to ensure St Pete doesn’t lose its character amid a sea of million-dollar condos.

“I view the Community Character Master Plan as kind of moving forward from what we did 10 years ago. Ten years ago, we weren’t growing like we are today,“ Peter Belmont, a longtime leader of Preserve the Burg, said on the latest episode of Political Party with Adam Smith.

“That master plan would be a great way to help keep St. Pete special.”

Belmont spoke about concerns that St. Petersburg is in danger of losing its unique character amid all the development. Just as roads and sewers are key to a city’s infrastructure, so is a coherent vision and plan for growth.

“Cities are going to naturally grow, change over time, but it’s important to have a plan and a vision and a guide for how you’re going to grow, and I think in terms of ensuring that St. Pete stays special, keeps what is important, we’re lacking that infrastructure,” said Belmont, who also lamented that the current administration routinely ignores or downplays existing development codes that require projects be compatible with the surrounding neighborhood.

“Those expectations that you can do whatever you want with your property, or the downtown zoning code allows you to build a high rise anywhere, is not an accurate expectation, and the city needs to be clear about that,” he said. #stpete #preservetheburg #tampabay #radio #stpetecatalyst #radiostpete