Demolition of iconic St. Petersburg Pier under way

Workers last week started demolition work on an iconic pier and retail center in downtown St. Petersburg.

Built in the shape of an inverted pyramid, the retail center at the end of the 42-year-old St. Petersburg Pier will be razed and replaced by a new development called Pier Park.

The project would create a more park-like environment at the pier, a popular pedestrian attraction. The project designers are ASD Architects of Tampa and Rogers Partners of New York.

The design of Pier Park encompasses gardens, an expansive lawn, pedestrian paths, a water splash area, floating docks and boat tie-ups, according to the Tampa Bay Tribune.

The St. Petersburg City Council advanced the project to the construction phase after a year-long process to choose the design team. The demolition is scheduled to take six months, and construction of Pier Park would start in early 2017.

The city council in July approved an expenditure of $5.2 million to begin replacing the pier, including $3.16 million to demolish the retail center at the end of the pier, which juts into Tampa Bay. [Tampa Bay Tribune] – Mike Seemuth