As hurricane season approaches, here’s how St. Pete and residents can prepare

/
As hurricane season approaches, here’s how St. Pete and residents can prepare

It’s almost that time of year again to prepare for hurricane season, which runs from June 1st through November 30th.

The City of St. Petersburg, in partnership with Pinellas County, is taking precautionary measures ahead of the looming season by strengthening the region’s infrastructure.

The actions follow the release of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s 2025 Hurricane Outlook, which forecasts above-normal hurricane and tropical storm activity this season. The outlook predicts 13 to 19 named storms that could become hurricanes. Peak storm activity typically occurs between mid-August and mid-October, when tropical or subtropical cyclones are most likely to form in the North Atlantic Ocean.

Read More

The Common Thread yarn shop and cafe opens this August in the Warehouse Arts District

/
The Common Thread yarn shop and cafe opens this August in the Warehouse Arts District

A cozy new yarn shop and coffee shop is weaving its way into the Warehouse Arts District this summer.

The Common Thread is opening this August at 2462 5th Avenue South, in the location that previously housed HaleLife Bakery and Bistro, and before that, The Chelsea coffee shop.

Nicole Potts Hart of KW Commercial represented both O’Brien and the property owner in the lease transaction.

Founder Shannon O’Brien, a longtime crocheter and San Francisco transplant who made St. Pete her permanent home in 2022, had been searching for a local yarn shop in St. Pete.

Read More

St. Pete Beach’s historic Beach Theatre set to reopen this July after 13 years

/
St. Pete Beach’s historic Beach Theatre set to reopen this July after 13 years

The historic Beach Theatre on St. Pete Beach will reopen on Friday, July 18th for the first time in over a decade, bringing back the smell of fresh popcorn and the buzz of excited moviegoers.

The theatre, located at 315 Corey Avenue,firstopened in 1940 as the first venue in Pinellas County built exclusively for sound films.

The reopening follows a year of extensive renovations led by new owners and St. Pete Beach residents Ronald and Sissy Hockman and their daughter, Hannah. The family purchased the 85-year-old theatre in March 2024 for $1 million.

“I have dreamed of owning a theatre for as long as I can remember,” Hannah shared in a Facebook post.

Read More

Five-story resort with waterpark and rooftop bar rejected by St. Pete Beach officials

/
Five-story resort with waterpark and rooftop bar rejected by St. Pete Beach officials

A proposed resort on Gulf Boulevard in St. Pete Beach has encountered another setback after city officials rejected the plan for a second time.

The City Commission unanimously voted last Tuesday to reject a variance, density allocation, and a conditional use permit to construct a 104-unit resort on a vacant 2.76-acre strip of land between the Sand Cove Apartments and Sun Harbor Condos.

The Windward Pass Resort, led by Jack Bodziak of Bodziak/Hayes Architects, would feature a five-story, art deco-inspired building. Amenities include a waterpark with slides and a lazy river, a main pool, a sundeck with a swim-up bar, on-site restaurants, a rooftop bar, a 12-slip boat dock offering paddleboard and kayak rentals, and a 190-space parking garage.

Read More

Ají Ceviche Bar to bring Peruvian fusion cuisine to downtown St. Pete

/
Ají Ceviche Bar to bring Peruvian fusion cuisine to downtown St. Pete

An Orlando-based restaurant known for its ceviche-centric Peruvian cuisine is making its way to downtown St. Pete this summer.

Ají Ceviche Bar will open a new location at 200 1st Avenue South—formerly occupied by Ford’s Garage. Ford’s will downsize and continue operating alongside Ají.

The new restaurant announcement follows Monday’s purchase of the 9,700-square-foot property by Miami-based Torose Equities, St. Pete-based RKG Holdings, and HSH Holdings Co. Jenna Malowany of The Archer Group represented the seller in the transaction.

Ají’s menu features more than 15 varieties of ceviche, including customer favorites like El Achorado, a fusion of traditional ceviche with crispy seafood, and El Carretillero, made with fried calamari and yellow pepper sauce.

Read More

Beloved Japanese-inspired Shiso Crispy food truck coming to the Jannus Block in downtown St. Pete

/
Beloved Japanese-inspired Shiso Crispy food truck coming to the Jannus Block in downtown St. Pete

Known in the Sunshine City for its handmade dumplings and Asian-fusion bowls, the popular food truck Shiso Crispy is opening a restaurant on one of downtown St. Pete’s most vibrant blocks.

Founded by award-winning chef Ronicca Whaley, a six-time contestant on Guy's Grocery Games, Shiso Crispy will debut this June on the Jannus Block at 226 1st Avenue North. The space was most recently home to T’s and Tacos, and before that, Cap's Steamer Bar & Grille and MacDinton's Irish Pub.

Shiso Crispy, named after the Japanese word shiso—which means “mint”—launched its first food truck in late 2019 to rave reviews. It went on to earn a Tampa Bay Times “Best of the Best” award in both 2020 and 2021.

Read More

376-unit residential community proposed for 22-acre Empath Health campus in Largo

/
376-unit residential community proposed for 22-acre Empath Health campus in Largo

A South Carolina developer is planning to transform the 21.8-acre Empath Health campus in Largo into a large-scale residential community that includes affordable housing made possible by Florida’s Live Local Act.

Greystar Real Estate Partners, currently under contract to purchase the property at 5771 Roosevelt Boulevard, has proposed a 376-unit development consisting of apartments and townhomes. Of those, 150 units will be reserved as affordable housing.

The planned community, named Bayside, will include an ample amount of green space featuring gravel paths, gardens, sports areas for families, two dog parks, playgrounds, a potential putting green, a shaded hammock area, a walking trail around a large stormwater pond.

Read More

16-story hotel approved to replace 100-year-old storm-damaged building in downtown St. Pete

/
16-story hotel approved to replace 100-year-old storm-damaged building in downtown St. Pete

An 11-story storm-damaged building in the heart of downtown St. Pete is one step closer to being demolished and redeveloped into a 16-story boutique hotel after receiving its first approval from the city.

St. Pete City Council, meeting as the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA), found the proposed plan to demolish the 100-year-old building at 300 Central Avenue and construct a 16-story tower with 74 hotel rooms and 4,000 square feet of commercial space consistent with the City’s Intown Redevelopment Plan.

The existing structure, historically known as the Smith Empire Building and called the Coronet 300 since 1966, was constructed in 1924 as a commercial building and later adapted for mixed-use residential purposes in the 1960s. The building is not listed on the Local or National Register of Historic Places.

Local entrepreneur and developer Steve Gianfilippo of Gianco Companies, who purchased the building in 2017, said the vacant structure suffered significant damage from Hurricanes Helene and Milton. Interim repairs will be made to ensure safety while plans for the new hotel are finalized.

Read More

Massive 31-story, twin-tower development approved for downtown St. Pete

/
Massive 31-story, twin-tower development approved for downtown St. Pete

The City of St. Petersburg has officially approved plans for one of downtown’s largest-ever residential projects, a transformative $225 million development featuring two 31-story towers at the former headquarters of UPC Insurance.

First reported by St. Pete Rising earlier this year, the project at 800 2nd Avenue South is being led by local developer Echelon, LLC and Tampa-based investment advisory firm Third Lake Partners.

Now greenlit by the City, the development will move forward with site plan approvals, setting the stage for construction to begin as early as the first quarter of 2026.

Read More

New townhomes and office HQ proposed alongside expanded preservation in north St. Pete

/
New townhomes and office HQ proposed alongside expanded preservation in north St. Pete

Three wooded lots in north St. Pete's Gateway area, currently vacant and littered with debris, may soon become expanded and maintained preservation grounds alongside a local office building and a new residential development.

The noncontiguous sites, purchased by St. Pete-based general contracting firm Lema Construction in February for $400,000, are located on the northeast side of 4th Street North and Gandy Boulevard.

The properties are surrounded by commercial and multifamily developments, including the assisted living facility Aventura Bay Place, the Winn-Dixie-anchored Bayview Shopping Plaza, and a site slated for future townhomes.

Read More