Where St. Pete Candidates Stand on the Gas Plant

Recently, I asked my more than 43,000 HomeRunsMatter readers—most of them St. Petersburg residents and voters—whether voters should know where candidates for Mayor and City Council stand on the future of the Historic Gas Plant District before casting their ballots.

They said yes.

So I contacted every candidate for Mayor and every candidate for the District 6 City Council seat. I told each candidate that I would publish their comments exactly as they submitted them.

I asked them about two fundamentally different approaches:

City-Led Planning First — The City first develops the vision and comprehensive master plan for the district, including streets, parks, public spaces, infrastructure and development parcels. Developers then compete to build individual portions of that plan.

Master Developer First — The City first selects a master developer and negotiates the redevelopment of the district primarily through that developer’s proposal.

Kevin Batdorf — City-Led Planning First

Brandi Gabbard — City-Led Planning First

Jim Large — City-Led Planning First

Maria Scruggs — City-Led Planning First

Charlie Crist — City-Led Review Before a Final Decision

Ken Welch — Master Developer First

Linsey Grove — FOR City-Led Planning First / AGAINST Master Developer First

Doug Homeyer — FOR City-Led Planning First / AGAINST Master Developer First

Jameka Williams — FOR City-Led Planning First / AGAINST Master Developer First

Terri Balliet and Trevor Mallory — Provided comments but did not select an approach

I strongly believe the City should complete its own planning first.

My reasoning comes down to three issues:

Value: The City should create the plan and allow developers to compete for individual parcels so that the public—not one master developer—captures as much of the land’s future value as possible.

Vision: The City, with meaningful public participation and help from nationally recognized planners, should determine the streets, parks, public spaces, development parcels and overall character of the district before developers are selected.

Control: This redevelopment will unfold over decades. A parcel-by-parcel approach preserves the City’s ability to respond to changing markets, community needs and future opportunities.

I was encouraged that four mayoral candidates clearly supported City-Led Planning First and that three District 6 candidates said they would vote for it and against Master Developer First.

Their reasons varied, but many reflected the same concerns I have raised: public control, competition, long-term value, community involvement and flexibility.

I also believe Charlie Crist’s proposed Blue Ribbon Committee is a reasonable approach. Bringing together qualified stakeholders and outside planning expertise to review the current process before making a final decision is a responsible way to proceed.

The Historic Gas Plant District may be the most valuable public asset St. Petersburg will ever redevelop.

The decisions made now will shape our city for generations.

I have published every candidate’s complete comments, Mayor Welch’s full statement and my detailed analysis on HomeRunsMatter.