Pinellas commissioners should approve St. Petersburg's proposal to extend redevelopment financing to improve the Mahaffey Theater and the Pier.
A Times Editorial
Published January 27, 2005
Nearly everyone agrees that making St. Petersburg's Mahaffey Theater a first-class facility and beautifying its downtown waterfront site is a good idea. How to pay for the $26-million project is another matter. When a financing plan that relied on a private investor fell through, the city turned to a reliable source of revenue: Pinellas County.
More precisely, the city wants to amend an agreement with the county that earmarks millions of new city and county property tax dollars collected in downtown St. Petersburg for redevelopment there. The process, known as tax-increment financing, has been in place since 1982 and is due to expire in 2012. Mayor Rick Baker has proposed a revised expiration date of 2035.
That extension would allow the city to borrow against future tax revenues to pay for the Mahaffey Theater improvements and to cover extensive repairs to the Pier, a tourist magnet, which are expected to cost $50-million. So far, reception to the idea from some county officials has been lukewarm at best.
County Commissioner Susan Latvala questions whether a booming downtown St. Petersburg is still a blighted area, a requirement for such financing under state law. County Administrator Steve Spratt wonders whether repairs to the Pier are an appropriate use of the county's general revenue dollars. On the other hand, both suggest that the county may have a role in supporting the theater project.
City officials are ready to argue that Clearwater recently won county approval for an extension of its redevelopment plan, so St. Petersburg shouldn't be treated differently. On the question of blight, state law is very generous in defining the term when it comes to qualifying for redevelopment financing, and not all of the downtown area has shared the same success as the waterfront. The city shouldn't have a difficult time making its case on that point.
Fights over limited tax revenues are always unseemly, of course, and this one could get out of hand. St. Petersburg and county officials have had a number of spirited clashes over money or control. In particular, Baker has irritated some in county government with his aggressive style.
It would be a shame, however, if this issue degenerated into a personality conflict or pitted one city against another for county attention. The truth is the county and St. Petersburg need each other on this and future initiatives that will determine the quality of life throughout Pinellas County.
While it would be nice if St. Petersburg had another reliable source of revenue for necessary improvements to the Mahaffey Theater and the Pier, it doesn't. Neither city nor county officials can afford to let those two signature facilities fall into disrepair.
St. Petersburg's request to extend redevelopment financing for the Mahaffey Theater and the Pier is reasonable and deserves the County Commission's support.
