Is growth issue hotels vs. condos?
ST. PETE BEACH – In their frenzy to ban tall buildings, residents in Treasure Island, St. Pete Beach, Belleair and other small cities across Florida might be shooting themselves in the foot, city planners and developers warn. Tourism, the bread and butter of some communities in Pinellas County, heavily depends on growth based on changing market values, making a moratorium on it impractical, they say. If cities won’t allow developers to build up their properties, hoteliers will likely sell out to condominiums. Tourists, who support local businesses and bring in tax revenue, will go elsewhere. Pro-business leaders have warned this for years, but residents have turned a deaf ear, believing that their government officials have given more consideration to how much money these developers will bring in instead of the consequences growth will have on their small communities. But as Tampa Bay grows, city leaders, business interests, and residents will have to reconcile their differences and com
