Miramar Beach Resort and Postcard Inn recently hosted community meetings to showcase their plans to expand and renovate their properties. To date, these properties are two great examples of businesses who have come to the community with plans that appear consistent with our community's values and maintain a scale that is reasonable and appropriate. We attended both meetings, listened to the presentations and Q&A, toured the properties and previewed renovated guest suites. We found that the majority of residents at both community meetings were pleased to see plans that showcased 1950's retro Florida vibes and respected neighboring properties.
Miramar Owner Kevin Bowden said he's seen the intense controversy over the other hotel developments and says he wanted to make this something the residents would embrace. "We thought we'd come back to the drawing board, and we've been listening to the talk about (how) things should be in character with what St. Pete Beach is. And so I think we kind of redesigned it to be less expensive and more (of a) fit with St. Pete Beach."
"We thought we'd come back to the drawing board, and we've been listening to the talk about (how) things should be in character with what St. Pete Beach is. And so I think we kind of redesigned it to be less expensive and more (of a) fit with St. Pete Beach,"
Postcard Inn's general manager, Jeremy Dasilva and CEO LCP Group, Francis Lively led the community meeting and answered residents' questions about traffic, beach access, noise, and commitment to become a family friendly resort. "The Postcard Inn is an iconic hotel and SPB is a fantastic community . . . it was good to hear from the community, we want their input and perspective," says Lively.
"The Postcard Inn is an iconic hotel and SPB is a fantastic community . . . it was good to hear from the community, we want their input and perspective."
Of particular interest were the questions from the neighboring Silver Sands condominium complex. Silver Sands residents noted that pedestrian traffic along 64th Avenue and day-trip beach visitors using the current PCI parking lot have caused issues. After discussion, it seems that the proposed development will alleviate these issues because the public parking will be removed and the parking facility will only be available for hotel guests.
A second issue identified was potential for increased vehicular traffic on 64th Avenue. That issue was addressed by noting that ingress into PCI will still only occur from Gulf Boulevard, and guests staying and parking in the new building can only exit the parking garage via a right turn onto 64th Avenue and then immediately out onto Gulf Boulevard.
Finally, PCI's owner and general manager both stated their commitment to broadening PCI's potential guest demographics with this renovation. Given PCI's historical reputation for noise and litter on the beach, this expansion seems like a win-win for the beach and broader community.
To see local coverage from 3 news sources check out these links:
https://baynews9.com/fl/tampa/news/2024/05/08/more-st--pete-beach-redevelopment-ahead-