At the request of downtown property owners, the St. Petersburg Downtown Partnership, has quietly been working on a plan that could bring big – and needed – changes to a wide swath of downtown St. Pete. Partnership CEO Jason Mathis first unveiled a rough outline of a plan back in February that would create a “Downtown Improvement District,” or DID, in much of downtown St. Pete, and this week, the Partnership launched a website detailing the proposal.

At a Partnership meeting this week, Mathis and his team explained the idea further, fielded questions from downtown property owners (who would foot the bill for this proposed DID), and shared their vision for what the program would prioritize. The gist of the idea is this: private property owners within a specific swath of downtown would pay a yearly assessment on their property value, which would then be used for district improvements such as clean and safe programming, security, help for those experiencing homelessness, private amenity management and more.

The proposed district map covers much of downtown, though not all of it. Mathis and the Partnership spoke with property owners of all types – from individual condos and retailers to entire hotels and residential towers – to come up with an initial idea of the boundaries. As it stands now, the DID covers 5th Avenue North to 5th Avenue South between 5th Street and the downtown waterfront.

The proposal from the Partnership recommends assessing one dollar for every thousand dollars of a property’s taxable value (not market value), and they estimate that would result in around $2 million per year for the board of the Downtown Improvement District to use toward its agreed upon goals. For example, a property with a $300,000 property tax value would pay $300 per year.

The crown jewel of this idea would be the revitalization of Williams Park, where an influx of funds could help provide cleaning programs, 24/7 security, support and protection for those experiencing homelessness, improved facilities, and potential for more events activations. For advice and inspiration, Mathis brought in Dan Biederman, the man behind the revitalization of New York City’s Bryant Park in Midtown, and an expert who deemed the creation of a BID in downtown St. Pete to be an excellent idea.

As for what happens next, the proposal will need to go in front of City Council, likely this fall or later in the year. After any changes – or a blanket base approval – it would then go to a vote among property owners within the BID footprint. At that point, property owners would vote yes or no (likely via mail-in ballot), and so long as the no votes are below 50% of the total property owners, the measure would move forward, and a board would be selected to lead the new DID.

As those in the area consider the proposal, some helpful notes:

• The DID will not replace the work done by St. Petersburg Parks & Rec, though it could add to some of their services.
• Each property owner counts for one vote; so a resident who owns a single condo, and the owner of a hotel or tower, each get one vote.
• Mathis’ team has proposed setting a limit for how much of the funding can be spent on administrative costs (they suggest a max of 10%), ensuring the majority of the funds go toward the stated goals.
• Mathis’ team has also suggested annual polling among property owners (both before and after the proposed institution of the BID) to track success rates and discover any needed changes or additions.
• Among the many well-known properties in the area, ownership at The Vinoy and the under-construction 400 Central both expressed a desire to be a part of it, reflected in the map of the DID.
• Mathis emphasized that security and the clean and safe programming would include support and protection for the homeless population, rather than keeping them out of the area.

Stay tuned to I Love the Burg for more as we follow this quest to bring improvements to downtown St. Pete. And be sure to check out the BID’s website for more FAQs and detailed info.