St. Pete Beach is a coastal city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States, famous for its status as a tourist destination. St. Pete Beach was formed from the towns of Pass-a-Grille, Belle Vista, St. Petersburg Beach and unincorporated Pinellas County. At the time of its incorporation in 1957, its name was St. Petersburg Beach. On March 9, 1994, locals voted to officially change the name to the shorter version of St. Pete Beach, to distinguish it from the city of St. Petersburg a few miles to the east. The population was 9,346 at the 2010 census.
St. Pete Beach's downtown is centered on Corey Avenue. This district contains many bars, restaurants and shopping popular with both tourists and locals. The Pass-a-Grille Historic District and the historic Don CeSar beach resort are located at the southern end of the beach.
Geography
St. Pete Beach is located at 27°43′29″N 82°44′31″W (27.724587, -82.741850).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 19.9 square miles (52Â km2), of which 2.2 square miles (5.7Â km2) is land and 17.6 square miles (46Â km2) (88.68%) is water.
St. Pete Beach occupies the entire space of Long Key, a barrier island at the east central edge of the Gulf of Mexico. Three bridges lead into the city, connecting it to Treasure Island, South Pasadena and the Bayway Isles area of St. Petersburg.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 9,929 people, 5,294 households, and 2,726 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,417.8 inhabitants per square mile (1,703.8/km²). There were 7,817 housing units at an average density of 3,478.1 per square mile (1,341.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 97.61% White, 0.66% African American, 0.22% Native American, 0.55% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.34% from other races, and 0.57% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.51% of the population. St. Pete Beach has the largest proportion of residents who are Lithuanian-American in Florida (3.3 percent).
There were 5,294 households out of which 10.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.2% were married couples living together, 5.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 48.5% were non-families. 40.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.82 and the average family size was 2.40.
In the city, the population was spread out with 9.7% under the age of 18, 3.3% from 18 to 24, 22.6% from 25 to 44, 31.3% from 45 to 64, and 33.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 54 years. For every 100 females there were 99.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $47,574, and the median income for a family was $61,434. Males had a median income of $40,938 versus $30,532 for females. The per capita income for the city was $35,514. About 3.7% of families and 7.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.5% of those under age 18 and 4.6% of those age 65 or over.
Education
Residents are zoned to Pinellas County Schools. Residents are zoned to Azalea Elementary School, Madeira Beach Middle School, and Boca Ciega High School.
In 1915 Sunshine Elementary School opened in Pass-a-Grille. Gulf Beaches Elementary opened in 1950. The Tampa Bay Times said that Gulf Beaches "quickly absorbed most of the kids from Sunshine". Sunshine Elementary School closed on June 6, 1975. The Gulf Beaches School absorbed the traditions of the Sunshine school, including the fish broil fundraiser.
On January 14, 2009, the Pinellas County school board voted 7-0 to close several schools, including Gulf Beaches Elementary School. When the school was in operation, it had annual fish broils. Linda Chaney, the commissioner of St. Pete Beach, and Mary Maloof, the mayor of Treasure Island, had asked the school board not to close Gulf Beaches. The Gulf Beaches campus, which is located on 4.7-acre (1.9Â ha) of land in St. Pete Beach, had been closed after the school board faced budget cuts. In addition the year-round population of children had decreased. In 2014, the Pinellas County School Board announced Gulf Beaches would be reopened for the 2014-2015 school year as a technology magnet school.
References
External links
- St. Pete Beach travel guide from Wikivoyage
- City of St. Pete Beach official website
- "Gulf Beaches Elementary School".Â
