Should I-175 be Replaced with a Surface Boulevard?

Should Interstate 175 — the elevated mile-long spur highway from Interstate 275 along the border of the Tropicana Field site to Fifth Avenue S — be replaced with a ground-level thoroughfare?

It’s a hot question as development scenarios for the Tropicana site, with or without a new stadium, are researched pending a decision on how long the Tampa Bay Rays will remain there. I-175 is a major, convenient entry to the southern part of downtown St. Petersburg. It is also a barrier limiting access from largely African-American neighborhoods to the Tropicana site and the booming Edge District.

The City of St. Petersburg and HKS Architects published a conceptual master plan for the 85-acre site last year featuring input from stakeholders. The city’s website describes the proposed mixed-use redevelopment as “a once-in-a-generation” opportunity for economic development and an enhanced community.

Alterations to I-175 have been partially outside the scope of the plan, although it included a slide that depicted a transformation of the spur with several crossing points from the south.

Alan DeLisle, city development administrator, emphasizes that the I-175 impact is being fully considered in efforts that include a including an upcoming mobility study to be conducted by Forward Pinellas with the city and the Florida Department of Transportation. “Mayor Kriseman has requested multiple studies to determine proper policies to benefit the community.” DeLisle said. “A goal is to gear up quickly with private-sector partners once key decisions are made.”

Broad support for replacement

Watson Haynes, 67, was raised (“at third base,” he said) in the Gas Plant district, which was razed in the late 1980s to become the Tropicana Field site. Ten years earlier, Haynes saw the district cut off from neighborhoods to the south by the construction of I-175. “A lot of people and businesses gave up a lot when I-175 was built through the black community,” said Haynes, who is president and chief executive officer of the PInellas County Urban League. “Replacing it would be a good way to make corrections for the past.”

Urban planner Jeff Speck, author of Walkable City Rules, adds, “I- 175 is exactly the type of spur highway that can be, and has been, removed from cities with little impact on traffic and incredibly powerful impact on place-making and real estate value. Through highways are a heavier lift, but a dinky spur like I-175 is a no-brainer. The key is to replace it with a surface boulevard that is exceptionally well-designed and walkable.”

City Council member Gina Driscoll, represents District 6, which includes I-175. She fully supports its removal provided studies determine that traffic can be managed. “That barrier has separated south St. Pete from downtown for a long time,” she said. “It would put us on a path toward a more walkable, bikeable neighborhood feeling. The advantages appear to far outweigh the challenges. The Tropicana Field site could become an area where everyone comes together.”

Alex Nicolas is president of the Campbell Park Neighborhood Association. That 33-acre park and surrounding neighborhood are immediately south of Tropicana Field, separated by I-175. “I went door to door, and my neighbors were very emotional that the city may finally do the right thing,” he said. “It’s a big deal that it’s hard to walk to Central Avenue and downtown. Jobs promised when the Trop was built never came through.”

Karl Nurse, Driscoll’s predecessor as District 6 City Council member, also wants I-175 to go: “I’ve been an advocate for its replacement for eight to 10 years,” he said. “It has walled off neighborhoods to the south from the rippling effect of downtown economic development for many years.”

Caveats

The complexity of evaluating alterations to I-175 is immense. Federal, state, county and city transportation departments all have a role. Studies need to be completed and costs estimated. The multiyear timeline could also be affected by the timing of the Rays’ decision. Their current contract runs through 2027.

St. Petersburg Transportation and Parking Management Director Evan Mory notes that various options must be evaluated, and solutions may evolve. For example, if determined that the spur highway should stay, he says, it could be redesigned to be essentially buried or capped so it is no longer a barrier. New space could be gained over the top of the existing roadway, as other cities have accomplished. While the Rays decision will be important, and he emphasizes waiting for more data, Mory predicts analysis will show that the presence of a stadium does not in itself require the existing spur vs. a less dominating roadway configuration.

Another Question

What if perhaps hundreds of millions of dollars are invested in the Tropicana site and the barrier remains?

Nicolas said “redeveloping the Trop site and keeping I-175 in place would be very painful to the residents, as this highway serves as a form of ‘infrastructure segregation.’ ”

Haynes, Nurse and Nicolas all noted a widespread belief that the barrier between downtown and African-American neighborhoods was created purposefully in the 1970s.

The supporters of I-175 replacement are cautiously optimistic that it will happen – eventually.

“If government wants to take action,” Haynes said, “it can find a way to make it happen sooner.”