St. PETERSBURG, Fla. — It’s been a long time coming, but on Monday the new St. Pete Pier officially opens. Mayor Rick Kriseman said the grand opening ceremony is scaled back though due to the pandemic, but regardless, this is a day to celebrate.
What You Need To Know
- St. Pete Pier will feature shops, restaurants
- There will be hand sanitizer stations, social distancing signs
- Click HERE to make a reservation
“It's a little over seven years now since the pier's been closed. There's a lot of people who have been waiting and waiting so we expect a lot of excitement,” said Kriseman.
Monday morning the Mayor gave Spectrum Bay News 9 a sneak peek ahead of the official opening. He describes it as not just a pier, but a 26-acre district, created very intentionally.
There are shops, restaurants, a playground, and various areas to sit and take in the views.
There will also be some unplanned additions — touch-free hand sanitizer stations, signs reminding people to socially distance, and the city is asking that everyone wears a mask in all the areas where socially distancing is not possible.
“We talk a lot about icons, and at one point there was a desire to build an icon. Well, St. Petersburg is iconic because of its waterfront parks, and this adds to what's iconic about the city in a huge and spectacular way,” said Kriseman.
Later in the day, Kriseman commented on the ironic timing of the pier's reopening — at a time when city and county governments are actively encouragin people to not congregate for public health reasons.
"There is a cruel irony in opening a place built to bring people together during a global pandemic that largely requires people to stay apart," he said. "But we are fortunate in that what we built is no ordinary pier. There's no single building that we all need to cram into. We built a beautiful park inside of a dynamic district."
Visitors we spoke to Monday said they really liked what they got to see.
"The design of it all is exactly what I was hoping for," said visitor Byron Baugh.
"I love this city and I think that it's just a really great addition to what's already an amazingly beautiful well constructed city," said Megan Hammer.
For at the least the first week of opening, reservations are required to visit the new pier. Visit the Pier's Events page to make your reservation.
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