Could a long-term fix finally be on the horizon for the persistent flooding in St. Petersburg’s Shore Acres neighborhood?

Residents are hopeful. With the city’s support, they’ve joined forces with experts to find real solutions through the St. Pete Resident Task Force Pilot Program — an initiative that could lead to major changes.

As part of the program, Shore Acres residents, city officials, and a third-party engineering firm recently toured the neighborhood’s flood-prone areas by bus. During the tour, they discussed a new stormwater pump station project designed to help reduce “sunny day flooding,” a common issue in the area.

Kevin Batdorf, president of the Shore Acres Civic Association, helped lead the tour. The Task Force was established by the City of St. Petersburg in collaboration with the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council.

“They’re asking each neighborhood what types of flooding they experience,” Batdorf said. “I told them, ‘What kind don’t we have?’ But there’s still no plan for surge flooding — and we really need one.”

City Councilmember Mike Harting, who represents the area, accompanied the tour and expressed confidence that solutions are coming.

“I believe we’ll see progress on the issues that can realistically be fixed — especially those that make sense financially for the city,” he said.

For residents like Lois Eck, whose home flooded during Hurricane Helene, the initiative brings cautious optimism. “I just hope I’m still around to see it all happen,” she said.

Another resident, Chris Frasier, left the tour with some answers and a hopeful message: “I really hope they were listening. We need smart spending and real improvements.”

It’s a complex challenge, but the engineering teams will evaluate the data and develop potential flood mitigation strategies.

In a statement, the city emphasized the broader goals of the effort:
“This important feedback will inform future decisions and strategies that will benefit not only these representative neighborhoods, but can be applied citywide to improve the resilience of all St. Pete neighborhoods.”

The tour began in Rivera Bay and will continue in the city’s north, west, central, and south neighborhoods on May 17 and 31. Afterward, engineers will hold a workshop with all participating communities and deliver a report with findings and recommendations to city leaders later this fall.

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(Image credit: Shaquille Lashley)

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