The City of St. Petersburg is exploring the possibility of demolishing Al Lang Stadium—home of the professional soccer team Tampa Bay Rowdies—and replacing it with an amphitheater and a highly activated waterfront park.

On Thursday morning, the St. Petersburg Economic and Workforce Development Committee reviewed initial plans and conceptual renderings for the proposed Center for the Arts District.

The district, located just south of the St. Pete Pier, would stretch from 1st Avenue South to 5th Avenue South and include the Mahaffey Theater, Salvador Dalí Museum, Al Lang Stadium, and the site of the Saturday Morning Market.

Architecture firm ASD | SKY presented the conceptual designs, which reflect a long-term vision for the area. Key components include expanded green space near the Dalí Museum and Mahaffey Theater, a new parking garage with at least 1,100 spaces, a 60,000-square-foot conference center, and 35,000 square feet of new retail space, among other features.

I'll be starting a new mini-post series called Snapshot St.Pete. These posts will be shorter than regular posts and will offer a brief glimpse at an aspect relating to Downtown St.Petersburg! Last weekend the Firestone Grand Prix of St.Petersburg took place in downtown bringing thousands of spectators and racing fans. The Grand Prix is always an interesting time in Downtown St.Petersburg because of the chaos that occurs both before, after, and during the race. Between The Dali Museum and downtown businesses there tends to be a debate as to whether the race positively impacts downtown. Some business owners claim that the race scares locals away and leads to a decline in business while others see an increase in business.