Metered parking surrounding USF St. Petersburg was eliminated along 6th Avenue S. between Third and First streets.
Grassy medians separate single lanes along Sixth Avenue S. A complementing wide sidewalk weaves alongside the University Student Center, but the meters with matching parking spots that once lined the road have been removed for a new stretch of City Trails, a project of the city of St. Petersburg.
“The overall project was, as far as connecting with the trail, about the beautification and repurposing of the right of way,” said Evan Mory, director of transportation and parking management for the city of St. Petersburg.
The Historic Booker Creek Trail is a connecting path to the Pinellas Trail, a road used by bicyclists, longboarders, and other exercise enthusiasts. The Pinellas Trail extends from St. Petersburg north to Tarpon Springs. The city of St. Petersburg sees it as an opportunity for USFSP students to access other areas of St. Petersburg, which could allow some commuter students to choose bicycling or longboarding to campus instead of driving.
The Crow’s Nest reported last fall that the Booker Creek Trail Loop was to be completed by November 2014. The project was completed ahead of schedule in lieu of road construction in the area. The new trail runs from Roser Park through Martin Luther King Jr. Street S, taking the path through Third Street S past Harbor Hall.
Nearby road construction during the spring semester forced students to enter the parking garage from Fifth Avenue S, an area once filled with free two-hour parking zones. The spaces were altered to become metered parking spaces.
The city of St. Petersburg expects a change in street parking and worked with the university administration to plan for parking changes.
“We will probably see a decline in onstreet parking due to the loss of the meters,” Mory said. “The surrounding occupancy [parking] will go up, so it won’t be a complete loss.”
William Benjamin of Parking Services could not be reached for comment after repeated attempts for contact.
Metered parking can still be found outside the Student Life Center, the Peter Rudy Wallace Center for Teachers, and along First Street South near Albert Whitted Airport on the east side of campus.
Booker Creek Trail – Phases I and II alignment_March 2013
