Solidarity from the St. Petersburg City Council has led to a rare about-face from Mayor Ken Welch, who will now proceed with plans to revive and reimagine the Science Center.
Welch’s administration quietly reneged on a $1.6 million deal to sell a once-beloved cultural institution and the surrounding four acres to a group known as St. Pete for STEAM. A new, reportedly identical contract is under legal review, and the group expects it back “shortly.”
Council members unanimously asked Welch to reconsider the sale and find alternative sites for unplanned stormwater storage tanks last week. Some also expressed disdain for a convoluted feasibility study’s findings, and the mayor, in a memo Tuesday, said he took those comments to heart…