Opinion: St. Pete residents should vote 'Yes' to expand the Dali Museum
/A proposed rendering of the expanded Dali Museum. Credit: Dali Museum
After our world-famous beaches, the Dali Museum is one of the largest attractions in Pinellas County and it proudly calls downtown St. Petersburg home.
The museum boasts the largest collection of Dalí's works outside of the artist’s hometown of Figueres, Spain.
Since opening in its current building in 2011, the Dali Museum has welcomed millions of visitors and has hosted thousands of community events.
While the museum is already a St. Pete success story, the Dali must continue to innovate to attract world-class traveling exhibits and provide a cutting-edge guest experience.
With expected growth and demand for programming, the Dali Museum’s existing space can no longer accommodate the ideas and vision of the museum’s forward-thinking leaders.
The Dali Museum has announced plans for a multi-phase expansion that will begin later this year with the construction of a semi-permanent dome structure on museum‘s existing property. The 2,400 square foot building will provide additional education and community space and has a targeted opening in 2023.
The first phase of the expansion features a 2,400 square foot semi-permanent dome building with additional educational and community space. The dome is expected to open in 2023. Credit: Dali Museum
The second phase would be a permanent expansion of the Dali Museum’s existing building to accommodate more exhibit, educational, and community space.
The Dali sits on city-owned land and the expansion’s second phase would slightly expand the museum’s boundary. As a result, the proposed permanent expansion requires an amendment to the museum’s land lease with the City of St. Petersburg. Because of the city charter’s protection of city-owned waterfront land, this lease amendment must be approved by residents.
In this year’s election, on every St. Petersburg voter’s ballot is a Referendum Question asking residents to decide whether the city should approve the amendment of the city’s 99-year lease to the Dali Museum. Approval of this amendment is crucial for the museum’s expansion plans. St. Pete Rising recommends voting ‘Yes.’
The existing Dali Museum sits on Lot 1 and Lot 2. The proposed expansion references Lot 6. Credit: Dali Museum
If approved, the proposed expansion of the Dali Museum is expected to drive an additional 70,000 visitors and nearly $180 million dollars in economic impact to St. Petersburg in the first year alone, according to an independent study by Research Data Services, Inc.
If the lease amendment is approved, construction on the permanent expansion would begin in 2023 and would open in 2025.
The project is not expected to require taxpayer funding from St. Pete residents.
Pinellas County Commission has already committed $17.5 million toward the project at the recommendation of the Tourist Development Council (TDC) using bed taxes from tourist accommodations (taxes on hotel stays).
The Dali expects to pay for half of the $55 million project with TDC funds and will seek private donations and potentially a loan to fund the remainder of the project. The Dali has also worked with the Mahaffey Theater and the St. Pete Grand Prix to ensure there is limited interruption of the neighboring institutions and events.
The Dali Museum’s existing building opened in 2011. Credit: City of St. Petersburg
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Dali Museum was drawing over 450,000 visitors from over 30 countries per year. With nearly half of those visitors being overnight guests, the economic impact of the museum for the greater St. Petersburg area was valued at over $140 million per year with over $70 million being direct spending in the local economy.
As one of St. Pete’s cultural anchors, the continued growth of the Dali Museum is crucial to the growth of downtown. The proposed expansion of the museum will ensure The Dali remains a preeminent institution that St. Petersburg can be proud of.
St. Pete Rising recommends voting ‘Yes’ on the City of St. Petersburg’s No. 1 Referendum Question to support the Dali Museum expansion.
For more information on The Dali’s expansion plans, visit their website.
The ballot language of the referendum is as follows:
City of St. Petersburg
No. 1 Referendum Question
Approving Amendment of City’s 99-year Lease for Dalí Museum to Allow Construction of Expansion
May City Council approve amendment of the 99-year lease of City-owned property used by the Dalí Museum to allow construction of a Museum expansion, subject to conditions in ordinance 512-H? Such conditions address insurance, indemnity, and coordination; operation of the Mahaffey Theater and the Grand Prix; and future development of the surrounding Center for the Arts. Such amendment would not extend the duration of the lease or require City funding for the expansion.
Yes
No
