St. Pete asks residents to design its next creative neighborhood

St. Petersburg residents were given the rare opportunity last month to weigh in on what they would like the city’s next creative neighborhood to look like. 

The St. Pete Chamber of Commerce hosted a four-day public charette to collect ideas for how to design St. Petersburg’s newest district: 28 acres in the heart of downtown dubbed the St. Pete Cre8 District. 

The event, held the week of Nov. 17, brought community members from all walks of life to daily, open-house sessions at 855 28th Street South. That's in what's been dubbed the Creators’ District. It's just west of the Warehouse Arts District, tucked behind the St. Petersburg Distillery, south of the Pinellas Trail and bounded by 28th Street, 31st Street and 10th Avenue South. 

Both the undeveloped parcel and adjacent St. Petersburg Distillery are owned by the Iafrate family, a prominent St. Petersburg name known for their commitment to community spirit. Dominic Iafrate Sr. and sons Dominic Jr. and Stephen launched the distillery in 2014 after finding success with the major construction and demolition recycling business, Angelo’s Recycled Materials, he started in the 1960s. The family have since become synonymous with small-batch spirits, community engagement and quality craft products. 

Easy access

Pinellas County property records show the lafrate family began purchasing the property that makes up their “Creator’s District” one parcel at a time as early as June 2005, when the family purchased two parcels from the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority for a combined $5 million. The final pieces of property were purchased in June 2024, bringing the overall total cost of the acquisition to $20.15 million, records show. 

The “Creators District” is also easily accessible by walking or bicycling down the Pinellas Trail, located one block north of the entrance. Those using public transit can take the No. 7 or No. 9 bus to reach the property.

Courtesy image

The Iafrate family created “St. Pete Cre8” to be a community-focused initiative behind the planning and development of their new “Creators’ District” — the first time the family has ever embarked on such a venture. The family aims to build a neighborhood centered on “creativity, collaboration and local culture” they say in a statement to the Business Observer, replacing older concepts with a more authentic, people-centric plan inspired by historic urban design principles.

“There are enough prepackaged, same old, same old communities being built across Florida,” Dominic Iafrate told the Business Observer in a statement on behalf of his family. “St. Petersburg deserves something better, something rooted in creativity, collaboration and a real sense of place.”

Officials with the family and the chamber didn't respond to requests from the Business Observer for more details on the project by paper's deadline.

Take shape

The Iafrate’s initiative comes a century after John Nolen created his 1925 master plan for the city of St. Petersburg — another effort that emphasized a people-centric approach to urban design. 

“This project honors the legacy of the 1925 John Nolen plan and invites the community to design St. Pete’s future from the ground up,” the St. Pete Chamber of Commerce says in a statement. 

The free, four day event included drinks, food trucks, free gelato, live music, trolley tours and community planning conversations. Members of the public were invited to not only share their ideas for the new district, but also their stories about living and working in St. Petersburg, the chamber says. Participants collaborated with planners, artists and project planners to help their ideas take shape. 

“We enjoyed talking with urban designers and town planners about ideas for this space, such as a park atmosphere for meandering walks and bike rides, live music, shops and community spaces,” says Dawn Stewart, who runs the Instagram account Taste Testers St. Pete.

Participants also shared in tours of the future parcel and its surrounding gems, walking away with insights into the community in which they live. “We took a great trolley tour of the property, which included a historic bus depot, steel factory, concrete facility and the St. Petersburg Distillery,” Stewart says. 

And the group learned some cool facts, Stewart says, such as these nuggets:

• Local honeybees nest in a collection of the St. Petersburg Distillery’s barrels outside
• During Covid St. Petersburg Distillery made and donated over 250,000 bottles of hand sanitizer.