St. Petersburg Mayor Kenneth T. Welch will deliver his 2026 State of the City address today at 10 a.m. at the Palladium in downtown St. Petersburg.
For business owners, developers and investors, the speech is a check-in on the city’s next growth phase. Welch has told TBBW the city is seeing record interest from tech founders, corporate relocations and national investors who see St. Petersburg as “the new center for tech, fintech and next generation investment.”
Welch has also pointed to transportation as the region’s biggest long-term constraint. “It’s really our last Achilles heel,” he said in a November interview with TBBW.
Infrastructure and resilience are expected to be a central focus. Welch said the city plans to put a $600 million resilience bond before voters to accelerate stormwater and sewer upgrades following recent storms. “Infrastructure wasn’t built to handle the level of impact we’re seeing,” he said.
Welch has also framed the future of the 86-acre Gas Plant District as a defining economic project for St. Petersburg.
He told TBBW the city intends to begin developing the site after 2028, with about 60 acres of buildable land once the Tropicana Field dome footprint is removed. “It’s the biggest opportunity for economic progress in the city,” he said.
The Palladium is at 253 5th Ave N. Seating is limited.
Residents can watch live on the City of St. Petersburg’s Facebook page, YouTube channel and at stpete.org/TV. The speech will also air on Frontier channel 20, Spectrum channel 641 and WOW! Cable channel 15.
Parking near the venue is limited. The Museum of the American Arts & Crafts Movement garage at 350 3rd St. N. charges $1 per hour. The Sundial garage at 117 2nd St. N. charges $1 for up to four hours.
TBBW will update this story with highlights from Welch’s remarks once the address concludes.
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