St. Pete reaches preliminary deal to buy CSX rail line running through downtown St. Pete
/A years-long effort to bring a key stretch of the CSX rail corridor in downtown St. Pete into public ownership, including the segment that cuts directly through Ferg’s Sports Bar & Grill, is finally moving forward.
According to an October 15th email from St. Pete Transportation and Parking Management Director Evan Mory, CSX Transportation has accepted a conditional offer from the City of St. Petersburg to acquire nearly a mile of rail right-of-way stretching from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Street along 1st Avenue South to 5th Avenue North.
The city plans to create a trail linking the Historic Gas Plant District redevelopment and the Pinellas Trail up to 5th Avenue North, with the longer-term goal of extending it to Booker Creek Park in North Kenwood.
The purchase is expected to cost $7 million, with $1 million coming from the City of St. Pete, $4 million from Mark Ferguson of Ferg’s Sports Bar, and $2 million from Ellison Development.
The offer cannot move forward without City Council approval, which is expected within the next 30 days.
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A new vintage boutique specializing in women's clothing and accessories from the late 1990s and early 2000s is coming to the Grand Central District of St. Pete.
Clique Vintage is expected to open later this month at 2042 Central Avenue, in an 800-square-foot storefront between The St. Pete Barber Shop and Crispy Avenue Cafe.
Behind the boutique is 25-year-old Cammie Peebles, who has spent the past several years selling vintage clothing online and at local markets.
Peebles grew up in Historic Kenwood and remembers visiting the former Haslam's Book Store as a child.
"It's so full circle," Peebles said in a conversation with St. Pete Rising. "If only I knew when I was little that I was going to be opening a store right across the street, I would have thought I was so cool."
Clique Vintage will carry a curated assortment of Y2K fashion, including beaded cami tops, denim mini skirts, silk slip dresses, leather shoulder bags, and kitten heels.