Pier ahead: Amid a new reality, rebuilt $92M amenity finally opens

More than seven years in the making, the new St. Pete Pier opened in early July. But with events and entertainment canceled, can it still fulfill its potential as a source of economic growth?

By Brian Hartz
| 6:00 a.m. July 31, 2020
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Photo courtesy of City of St. Petersburg

Tampa Bay-Lakeland

After nearly a decade without one, St. Petersburg again has a pier.

On July 6, more than a month after its originally scheduled opening, the new St. Pete Pier welcomed visitors, as well as shoppers and diners because, in addition to being a beautiful waterfront park, the $92 million, 26-acre Pier District is also home to restaurants and a marketplace populated by 17 local vendors hawking everything from hats and handbags to sauces, jewelry and skin-care products.