Pinellas County is Florida's densest county with over 920,000 people crammed into 280 square miles. It averages out to around 3,274 people per square mile. Why is this important? Because Pinellas County has simply run out of room. There is very little land left to be developed, so the main source of future growth has to come from redevelopment.

St. Petersburg, with nearly 4,000 people per square mile, anchors Pinellas County with close to a quarter of a million residents. Like Pinellas County, St. Petersburg is also built-out. There is little to no room left to build new roads or expand our highways. Therefore increasing density and mass transit are the only way to responsibly continue to grow.

Walkable neighborhoods have always helped bring life to urban centers. Millennials, or people born between 1980 to the early 2000s, tend to favor more urban environments than their predecessors. These Generation Y'ers are bringing rapid growth to once decaying urban centers. But, millennials have needs- they prefer to live in neighborhoods where they don't have to use a car and can walk to a majority of their errands. The University Village shopping center in Downtown St. Petersburg has helped ease the millennials in their transition from suburban to urban living. Anchored by Publix, among other retailers, this shopping center is the only grocery store in the downtown area.

But could Downtown St.Petersburg be getting a second grocer?