Before You Begin
This post explains exactly what must happen, what you need to do today, and why the timing matters.
SUMMARY OF KEY FACTS
What’s happening right now
The Tropicana Field site covers 86 acres of public land.
The Rays will remain for at least three more years, so there is no urgency.
The City has received a major proposal — which does not meet the Mayor’s stated requirements (Ellison–ARK–Horus).
It is not understandable why the Mayor is promoting a proposal that does not meet his own standards.
The Mayor is planning to solicit additional proposals on January 4 — before planning is complete.
Why this is dangerous
Proposal-first already failed with Rays/Hines.
Developers will ask to buy land early at below long-term value, locking in today’s lower prices.
Proposals contain big ideas with no feasibility.
Affordable housing promises lack funding and enforceability.
The City risks losing control of its most valuable public asset.
A critical fact about the Ellison–ARK–Horus proposal
The Mayor has stated proposals must follow the 2022 RFP requirements, including:
Five completed development projects
One completed 25-acre or $100M project
Experience managing large, mixed-use redevelopment
However, the proposal does not meet these requirements.
It lists The Central (St. Petersburg) — an early-stage concept and Tampa Heights — an early-stage concept, neither of which satisfy the stated thresholds.
Why this affects YOU
Planning determines:
Whether affordable housing is real and enforceable
What jobs come and what industries fit
How children benefit from opportunity and education
How resilience and infrastructure are addressed
Whether long-term public wealth stays public
How arts, culture, and identity take shape
How large parks and public spaces can be
Whether community benefits last for decades
This is about the long-term future of St. Petersburg.
WHAT MUST HAPPEN
City Council must clearly state:
They will not approve any Gas Plant deal that comes from a proposal-first process.
Planning must come first — proposals second.
Without planning:
There are no requirements
No enforceable commitments
No grid or parcel structure
No infrastructure or feasibility analysis
No community engagement
No way to evaluate proposals or their public value
Planning-first protects the public’s wealth, priorities, and control.
WHAT YOU NEED TO DO TODAY (WEDNESDAY)
There is a City Council meeting TOMORROW (Thursday) at 1:30 PM.
Today is the day when Council Members prepare their comments, positions, and questions.
Therefore, your voice today can shape what happens tomorrow.
What to ask Council
Ask them to:
Publicly state that no developer will be selected through a proposal-first process, and
Approve a resolution requiring a full planning framework — led by a national planning firm and community engagement — BEFORE any developer is chosen.
Send your message to:
City Council Administrative Officer:
jayne.ohlman@stpete.org
Council Members:
copley.gerdes@stpete.org
gina.driscoll@stpete.org
richie.floyd@stpete.org
lisset.hanewicz@stpete.org
brandi.gabbard@stpete.org
corey.givens@stpete.org
deborah.figgs-sanders@stpete.org
mike.harding@stpete.org
Please cc: homerunsmatter@gmail.com
SAMPLE EMAIL YOU CAN COPY AND SEND
Subject: Please Take Action: Support a Planning-First Process for the Gas Plant
Dear Council Members,
I am writing to respectfully ask you to take formal action to ensure a planning-first process for the 86-acre Gas Plant District.
Specifically, I ask that you:
• Publicly state that the City will not select a developer through a proposal-first approach, and
• Approve a resolution requiring a planning framework — led by a national planning firm and community engagement — before any developer is chosen.
The current 30-day proposal sprint and the idea of soliciting additional proposals before planning is complete put the City at risk. Without a planning framework, the City would be evaluating proposals without clear requirements, without a street grid or parcel plan, without infrastructure analysis, and without meaningful public involvement. This is not how successful cities approach major redevelopment.
A planning-first process will allow St. Petersburg to:
• Define what success looks like before negotiations begin
• Capture full land value through phased, competitive development
• Reduce risk by avoiding reliance on a single developer
• Honor the site’s history and engage the community
• Ensure decisions reflect what truly matters for our long-term future
This project is too important — and the land too valuable — to rush.
Please act now to restore a responsible process: affirm that no developer will be selected before planning is complete, and begin that planning work immediately.
Thank you for your service and leadership.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
[Your Neighborhood]
Reviewing the First Gas Plant Proposal Shows Why City Council Must Stop This Process Now
This concerns the 86-acre Gas Plant site — one of the most valuable publicly owned sites in Florida.
And here is the fact that changes everything:
The Rays are staying for at least three more years — possibly longer.
There is no reason to rush into proposals.
Yet the City has:
Received a major proposal (Ellison–ARK–Horus), and
Is planning to solicit more proposals on January 4,
without:
A master plan
Feasibility analysis
Independent land valuation
A Community Advisory Council
Defined public priorities
This proposal-first, planning-later pattern is exactly why the Rays/Hines plan collapsed.
City Council can restore order by stating they will not approve any Gas Plant deal that comes through a proposal-first process.
Why You Should Care — And Why These Goals Require Planning, Not Proposals
If you care about affordable housing, planning determines what is real and enforceable — not proposals.
If you care about jobs and long-term economic opportunity, planning identifies industries that actually fit St. Pete’s strengths — not proposals.
If you care about children and youth, planning determines how the 86 acres can fund opportunity and education — not proposals.
If you care about flood protection and resilience, planning evaluates infrastructure needs and how rising land values can support them — not proposals.
If you care about honoring the history of the Gas Plant, planning creates enforceable restorative commitments — not proposals.
If you care about your taxes, planning prevents premature land sales that lock in today’s lower values — not proposals.
If you care about real community benefits — including local hiring, contracting opportunities, training pathways, cultural investment, and long-term wealth-building — planning is the only way to secure enforceable commitments that last for decades, not proposals.
If you care about parks and public spaces — including a major signature gathering place — planning determines where it goes, how large it can be, how it connects to neighborhoods, and how it becomes a true community asset, not whatever land is left after proposals.
These are not side issues — they shape St. Petersburg’s long-term future.
St. Petersburg Absolutely Can Lead This
Cities such as Denver, Austin, Washington DC, and Boston created successful districts by doing one thing first:
Planning.
They:
Hired national experts
Created a real grid and parcel plan
Analyzed infrastructure, economics, and housing
Engaged the community
Then invited developers to compete one parcel at a time at full market value
St. Petersburg is in an even stronger position because:
We already have community priorities
We already have the 2022 guidelines
Land values are rising
Public support for planning-first is strong
This is not risky.
This is not complicated.
This is proven.
And St. Petersburg can do it now.
What the Ellison–ARK–Horus Proposal Reveals About Proposal-First
1. Big Promises Without Commitments
The proposal includes:
An innovation district
An academic campus
Office towers
SXSW-style global events
But SXSW evolved over 40 years with:
A major research university
A deep tech sector
Major cultural infrastructure
Ambition is welcome — but feasibility must be tested through planning, not assumed in proposals.
2. Affordable Housing Without Funding or Enforcement
The proposal labels half its units affordable/workforce.
But it includes:
No funding source
No subsidy tools
No enforceable commitments
No defined affordability levels
No feasibility analysis
Affordable housing must be determined in planning — not wishful labels.
3. Early Land Sale Risk — Why Taxpayers Lose
The proposal contemplates purchasing land early.
That creates major risk:
Locks in today’s low land values
Shifts long-term appreciation to private hands
Reduces public wealth
Shrinks the City’s leverage
Planning-first eliminates these risks.
4. Developer Qualifications — A Process Issue, Not a Personal One
The Mayor has said proposals must follow the 2022 RFP requirements.
But the submission highlights:
The Central — early stage
Tampa Heights — early stage
It does not meet:
The 5 completed projects rule
The 25-acre or $100M completed project rule
The large mixed-use redevelopment experience rule
This is a process failure, not a personal one.
Why Planning-First Protects Everyone — Including Developers
With planning-first:
The City does not commit all 86 acres at once
Land is sold or leased parcel by parcel, only when ready
Developers are vetted when each parcel is ready
Proof of financing is required
Experience must be demonstrated
Capacity must be shown
Projects must align with the master plan
Public risk stays small.
Only one parcel is at stake at any time.
Public land value remains with the public.
Rising land values build long-term civic wealth.
Developers compete fairly and transparently.
This is how successful cities build great districts.
What Went Wrong With the Rays/Hines Proposal
The Rays/Hines plan began with a proposal, not a plan.
This led to:
A publicly funded stadium the City did not need
An entertainment district with no proven demand
Unfunded affordable housing commitments
Early land conveyance risk
Land-sale terms far below long-term public value
These were process failures.
Planning-first prevents a repeat.
Why Every New Proposal Will Have the Same Problems Under Proposal-First
If new proposals are invited on January 4, they will include:
Big ideas without feasibility
Renderings instead of commitments
Academic or innovation concepts without real partners
Housing promises without funding
Early land sale requests
Developer priorities over community priorities
Not because developers are doing anything wrong.
Because the City has not done the planning needed to guide them.
Why Today Matters
The City Council meeting is TOMORROW at 1:30 PM.
Today is the moment when Council Members decide whether they will:
Stand up
Speak out
Require planning-first
Your voice today can shape the next 50 years of St. Petersburg.
