Council upholds DRC approval for 619‑unit Skyway Marina project after de novo hearing

St. Petersburg City Council on May 15 denied an appeal of the Development Review Commission’s approval of a 619‑unit multifamily site plan in the Skyway Marina District, upholding the DRC decision by a 6–1 vote.

The appellant, Frank Guerra of Altus Cardinal Sky Town LLC, argued the applicant’s site plan miscalculated the property’s impervious surface ratio (ISR) by treating an on‑site stormwater pond as pervious. Guerra said the pond is a retention feature that “holds water” and therefore cannot be treated as pervious under the city code’s definition of impervious surface, which measures areas that “prevent infiltration of stormwater into the earth.” He also argued the project departs from the Skyway Marina District plan’s vision by providing no immediate retail fronting 34th Street, noting that five prior market‑rate projects in the district included retail and insisting the plan’s retail emphasis had been applied in prior approvals.

The applicant, represented by Elise Bridal of Stearns Weaver Miller, said the project meets the RC‑1 zoning standards and the city’s land development regulations. The applicant’s professional engineers testified the stormwater pond was part of the stormwater system and designed to allow groundwater exchange (not a lined pool), and therefore was treated consistent with city engineering practice in the ISR calculations. The applicant also noted it carved a one‑acre future commercial parcel into the site plan and continues outreach to potential commercial tenants.

City staff and the applicant pointed out that the Skyway Marina District plan is a visionary district plan that was not codified as binding zoning requirements; staff said compliance must be judged against the city’s comprehensive plan and the land development code. Staff recommended denying the appeal and upholding the DRC action, noting the project’s ISR, height, density and other RC‑1 criteria met code requirements.

Public comment was mixed: students and neighborhood residents urged more housing choices and supported the project for adding middle‑market housing near Stetson and other institutions; Skyway Marina District representatives and nearby stakeholders asked for stronger, enforceable commitments to on‑street retail and community activation.

Council discussion focused on two technical and policy points: the definition and treatment of stormwater ponds in ISR math, and the role of the Skyway Marina District plan as a guiding — but not regulatory — document. Engineering and stormwater staff explained that a wet pond without an impervious liner typically allows infiltration and is reviewed at the engineering/permitting stage to determine how it is counted for ISR; a lined vault or impermeable pool would be counted differently.

A motion to grant the appeal (which would have overturned the DRC approval) failed 1–6. Councilmember Fig Sanders was the lone vote to grant the appeal; the majority concluded the DRC and city staff had sufficient code‑based grounds to approve the site plan. The council’s action leaves the DRC approval intact and sends the project back to permitting and subsequent construction steps.

Next steps: the applicant will proceed to permit engineering reviews (where final ISR and stormwater treatment details will be verified), and the city said it will continue outreach about the planned commercial parcel and any sequencing conditions attached to site plan approval.