St. Petersburg

Home Sweet Home       Find a Realtor       Find a Company       Vital Stats       Rain & Shine       Job Market       Class Notes       Getting Around

Great Outdoors    Good Sports    Hot Times in the City    Shop 'til you Drop    Nightlife    College Scene    Just for Seniors

A dream delayed isn't always a dream denied. Sometimes it improves along the way. So too with St. Petersburg's long and oftimes unrequited love affair with baseball. Finally, the city's commitment has been rewarded; and its love of the game has been returned--big time and big league. St. Petersburg has a hometown team, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. Big leaguers play ball in downtown St. Petersburg. Even the team's home field has a special Florida flair; it's called Tropicana Field. At last, a decades-old dream of the city and county has been realized in grand style.

St. Petersburg (called St. Pete by many) is the largest city on the Pinellas County peninsula, a water world boasting nearly 400 miles of waterfront on the Gulf of Mexico, the Intracoastal, Boca Ciega Bay and Tampa Bay. It shares the "point of pines" with 23 other municipalities, but St. Petersburg is the place everyone knows about, although not everyone remembers why it's named after a Russian city. (Peter Demens, one of the region's early developers and railroad tycoons named the city after his Russian hometown.)

Home Sweet Home

Geographically, the county is small and its population density is high--the highest in the state. Lots of people live here; lots more visit for months at a time. Why not? With sunny days and miles and miles of waterfront, Pinellas is a water-lovers paradise and a place of refuge for many thousands seeking the sun's warmth during the frigid winter months.

Like its neighboring cities of Clearwater and Tampa, St. Petersburg occupies a prominent position in the four-county Tampa Bay Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). All three cities and many more towns and villages benefit from living in Florida's largest urban area with its 2.2 million people, its cultural and natural assets, its sports and shopping choices and its relaxed lifestyle. During 1999, the median sales price of an existing home was $94,200 for the MSA, up 7 percent from 1998.

Vital Stats

(Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater MSA includes the counties of Hernando, Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas)

Population: 2,199,231 million
Median age: 44.4
New citizens: 5,800 yearly
New job creation; 4.8 percent (1999)
Unemployment rate: 2.5 percent August, 1999
Cost of living: 101.91 percent (U.S. average: 100 percent)
Per capita income: $27,311
Median household income: $30,088

Rain & Shine

It's entirely possible that St. Pete is the sunniest place in the Sunshine State. The Guinness Book of World Records lists the city's 768 consecutive sunny days (set in the late 1960s) as a world record. The now defunct St. Petersburg Evening Independent used to give the paper away any day the sun failed to shine. During its 76 years of Suncoast promotion and publication, betting on the sun proved relatively inexpensive for the publisher. The paper was free only 295 times--an average of fewer than four times per year.

Even on days when it does rain in Pinellas County, clouds blow away and the sun usually returns quickly. The average annual rainfall is 49 inches, yet nearly every day is sunny at least part of the time. The average annual temperature is 73 degrees Fahrenheit. In January, the average low is 50.1; in July the average high is 90.4.

Job Market

Once a clear second-fiddle to Hillsborough County's bustling business environment, Pinellas County now attracts high-tech manufacturing and even corporate relocations. Business taxes are low; a skilled labor force is available. Pinellas ranks second in the state in manufacturing jobs. The county's top 10 employers are: Pinellas County School Board headquartered in Largo (15,497), Home Shopping Network in Clearwater (5,000), the City of St. Petersburg (3,859), Jack Eckerd Corp. in Clearwater (3,375), Morton Plant Hospital in Clearwater (3,215), Pinellas County Government in Clearwater (3,157), Times Publishing in St. Petersburg (3,000), Florida Progress in St. Petersburg (3,000), Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg (2,300) and All Children's Hospital in St. Petersburg (1,857).

Three of the county's fastest growing companies operate in St. Petersburg: America II Group (No. 2), Danka Business Systems (No. 8) and Catalina Marketing (No. 9), according to the 1996/1997 Pinellas Journal of Commerce & Industry and the St. Petersburg/Clearwater Economic Development Council.

Class Notes

Extensive information about the schools in this area is online at the state's Department of Education (http://www.firn.edu/doe/doehome.htm). There you'll discover everything you'll need to know about Florida schools -- in general and in particular. All you need is the name of your county and the names of the schools students from your neighborhood attend.

Use links from the DOE home page for general information about entrance requirements, immunizations and so forth.

For the nitty-gritty details that really matter, click on the logo for the "Florida School Indicators Report."

Getting Around

Amtrak and Greyhound serve the area. Freight service is via CSX. Three ports are handy: the Port of Tampa to the east, the Port of Manatee to the south and Pinellas' Port of St. Petersburg, which is primarily a port serving cruise ships and their passengers. Corporate planes and private pilots use Albert Whitted Municipal Airport in St. Petersburg. Two major airports--Tampa International Airport and St. Petersburg/Clearwater International Airport -- are within 15 or 20 minutes of most Pinellas County residents. The Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA) runs 40 routes with 144 buses. To get to St. Pete Beach and Treasure Island, PSTA riders connect with Beach Area Transit Service (BATS).

Traffic--to the airports or simply around the county--can pose a problem at times, but locals become resourceful. Interstate 275 is the major north/south road. It connects with I-75 north and I-4 east; I-275 also crosses the dramatic Sunshine Skyway Bridge south into Manatee County. Four additional bridges--the Bayside Bridge, the Howard Frankland, the Courtney Campbell Causeway and the Gandy Bridge--move residents and visitors around the area and to adjoining counties. U.S. Highway 19 traverses the length of the Pinellas peninsula. It's an important but often congested north/south thoroughfare. Gulf Boulevard connects the beach communities along Pinellas' 28 miles of oceanfront.

Great Outdoors

Surrounded on three sides by water, Pinellas County remains a place where natural beauty is valued and preserved. A 15-foot-wide paved path traverses the county. An innovative rails-to-trails recycling project, this retreat and exercise route for walkers, runners, bikers and in-line skaters will eventually be 47 miles long. Urban areas surround the Pinellas Trail, but so do bucolic scenes of ancient oaks trailing Spanish moss and glades graced by exotic water birds.

Caladesi Island--accessible only by boat--makes many Best Beaches lists, including those of Conde Nast Traveler and famed beach geologist Stephen Leatherman of the University of Maryland. Indian Shores is home to the nonprofit Suncoast Seabird Sanctuary, where sick and injured birds are rehabilitated and returned to the wild. Five islands comprise the 900-acre Fort DeSoto Park at the southern tip of the peninsula. It's ideal for family outings or reunions. The county's largest park contains two fishing piers, a campsite, a boat-launching area, an historic site and numerous places to picnic in addition to its impressive waterfront. To enjoy friends and family in an awesome outdoor setting, Fort DeSoto Park is a good choice but only one of many beautiful parks and nature centers in the county and the region.

Good Sports

Pro sports exist in profusion in the metro area--the Tampa Bay Lightning hockey team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers football team, the Tampa Bay Mutiny soccer team and St. Petersburg's long-awaited and very popular pro baseball team, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. Their minor league club, the St. Petersburg Devil Rays play at Al Lang Field, where their big-league namesakes train during the pre-season. In fact, the grapefruit league (baseball clubs that hold spring training in Florida) is blooming and booming in Tampa Bay--both good fun for residents and big bucks for businesses. In addition to the home-town team, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in St. Pete, the New York Yankees train in Tampa, the Toronto Blue Jays play in Dunedin Stadium and the Philadelphia Phillies thrill fans in Clearwater's Jack Russell Stadium.

If you'd rather be in the action than watching it, boating, fishing, golf and tennis are all popular in Pinellas County. Pleasure boats crowd area marinas and docks. Nine yacht clubs add nautical class to the area. Deep-sea charter boats are available, too, but many resident fishermen don't bother with boats. They simply cast their lines from one of the piers or directly into the surf. Forty-plus golf courses and more that 200 public tennis courts--plus 15 private or semi-private tennis facilities--give participants additional recreational choices. Parks are plentiful. And if you're one of that rare breed who lives by the motto, "Give blood, play rugby," you have four teams to watch, including the Tampa Bay Pelicans, who play in St. Petersburg's Old Busch Complex. Swimming, shuffleboard, croquet, polo and lawn bowling also boast loyal local participants.

Hot Times in the City

The social and cultural calendar is crowded. Time, not opportunity, is often the dilemma. There's so much to see and do, but often not enough time for everything. For shopping, strolling, dining or simply enjoying the view, visit The Pier at the end of 2nd Avenue North. Attend Broadway shows, pop concerts, orchestra concerts or opera performances at Ruth Eckerd Hall in neighboring Clearwater, at the elegant Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center across the bay in Tampa or at St. Pete's own Bayfront Center, equipped with a 8,250-seat arena and the 2,300-seat Mahaffey Theater.

Kids like building sand castles or splashing in warm, tranquil Gulf waters at local beaches. The Science Center of Pinellas in St. Petersburg offers hands-on exhibits and laser animation. And Great Explorations: The Hands-On Museum welcomes all ages with six major activity areas. Only a block away from Great Explorations, the Salvador Dali Museum appeals more to adults than children, yet it's small enough to hold the interest of many late-elementary and middle-school youngsters, and most teenagers enjoy looking at and discussing Dali's surrealist sketches and paintings. Other St. Petersburg cultural assets include the Museum of Fine Arts and the St. Petersburg Historical & Flight One Museum. A converted department store downtown now hosts major traveling exhibits at Florida International Museum. It opened in 1994 with the highly successful Treasures of the Czars. A good day trip for the entire family requires only a short drive north to the unique coastal community of Tarpon Springs. Its Greek fishing-village ambience, sponge docks, sponge boats and ethnic eateries provide plenty to catch the eye and tempt the palate.

The Tampa Bay area hosts awesome annual festivals. In St. Petersburg alone there's the SPIFFS International Folk Fair in March; American Stage in the Park, an April Shakespearean dramatic festival; the Mainsail Art Show in May; Taste of Pinellas in June; the Caribbean Calypso Carnival in July--featuring limbo dancing, steel drum bands and authentic food from the Islands; Sunsational Museums Month in September with special events sponsored by four St. Petersburg museums and the big St. Petersburg Boat Show in November. Snowfest & Holiday Fantasy, a monthlong celebration of the holiday season in November/December, the festive Lighted Boat Parade at Christmas and special First Night events on New Year's Eve are simply some of the yearly highlights.

Shop 'til You Drop

Shopping sites abound. In St. Petersburg you can shop at Tyrone Square Mall, many neighborhood shopping centers and several antique stores, including the 60-dealer 4th Street Antique Alley, Inc. and the four-story Gas Plant Antique Arcade. Neighboring Clearwater offers Boatyard Village's galleries and shops, Countryside Mall, Clearwater Mall and the Bay Area Outlet Mall. Across the bridge in Tampa is West Shore Plaza, Eastlake Square Mall and Old Hyde Park Village's numerous shops.

Nightlife

If you like to gamble, jai-alai, greyhound racing, horse racing and the Seminole Gaming Palace await, although the first three are seasonal. Notable nightspots and numerous restaurants provide locals with food, drink and entertainment. Hundreds are scattered throughout the large Tampa Bay metropolitan area to serve the region's 2.25 million people. In Pinellas it's not uncommon to wait in line for a table at a popular restaurant; sometimes the food is even good enough to make you forget the initial inconvenience. The Pier, Sunken Gardens and Jannus Landing are restaurant-rich St. Petersburg locations.

Good places to eat in St. Petersburg include the Keystone Club and Pepin. For that big evening out, consider the Maritana Grille's ambience, which features massive aquariums and beachspaces and is located in the elegant, old Don CeSar Beach Resort on Gulf Boulevard. Away from the water, but also elegant, the Stouffer Renaissance Vinoy's Terrace Room is a pleasant downtown place to listen to jazz. If rock's your beat, reel in The Big Catch on 1st Street North. For reggae and blues, sample the music at Ringside Cafe or Silver King Tavern. Stormy's at the Hurricane is a late-night dance club above a St. Petersburg Beach restaurant.

College Scene

St. Petersburg Junior College is a coed, public, two-year school with several locations in Pinellas County. Hillsborough Community College is just across the bay in Tampa. Both are part of the state community college system that serves thousands of students close to their homes for reasonable tuition rates. The four-year University of South Florida (USF) boasts five campuses and 36,000 students. With its main campus in Tampa, it's the second largest school in the state's 10-member university system. One of USF's campuses is in downtown St. Petersburg. Forty-five percent of its classes are offered at night to accommodate working people and area professionals. The prestigious Knight Oceanographic Research Center opened its doors on the St. Petersburg campus in 1994.

Clearwater Christian College is a private, four-year school located on 50 acres of waterfront property. A private, four-year institution, Eckerd College is in St. Petersburg. So is the Stetson University College of Law, founded in 1900 as Florida's first law school. (Parent Stetson University's campus is in DeLand, Florida.) Poynter Institute for Media Studies, also in St. Pete, offers no degrees. The nonprofit center focuses on seminar-based journalism courses geared to college graduates and professionals already working in the field.

Just for Seniors

Seniors in Pinellas County like activity--fishing, golfing, boating, walking and watching sunsets keep many 60-plus folks busy. Many more swim with the largest Masters Swim Club in the country, based at the Olympic-sized North Shore Pool in St. Petersburg, or participate in the annual Goodlife Games for senior athletes 55 and older. County-wide competitions attract about 1,500 every year for chess, ballroom dancing, pinochle, bridge and badminton in addition to tennis, swimming, golf, track and field and volleyball. Volunteering to help at schools and organizations throughout the county is popular with many active senior citizens.

At the Academy of Senior Professionals at Eckerd College and the Learning in Retirement Institute at USF courses geared to seniors are offered. Additionally, Florida's public schools offer tuition waivers for people 60 and older, so classes of all descriptions beckon older learners when space is available. For special programs and social events, many active seniors enjoy the six senior centers scattered throughout the county and additional area sites sponsored by churches and private groups.

Call (813) 576-1533 for the Senior Helpline. It's an information and referral service to assist those 60 and over who may be searching for resources to help with housing, transportation, medical services or home-delivered meals or any number of problems seniors experience. Federal, state and local programs, many funded or administered by the Area Agency on Aging, assist seniors with services such as adult day care, congregate meals, legal assistance, respite care and home-delivered meals, but there may be a waiting list, especially if the program is primarily for low-income elderly. When money isn't a consideration, delivery of services isn't a problem. In this major metropolitan area, fee-for-service programs geared to the over-60 population are abundant.

Pinellas County is popular with seniors because of the extensive senior services it offers. There's no state income tax or inheritance tax. Another bonus is that out-of-state children and grandchildren love to visit so that they can enjoy the 361 average days of sun and the water wonderland that surrounds the Pinellas peninsula.