St. Pete Beach, Florida

St. Pete Beach or Saint Pete Beach The Pass-a-Grille Historic District and the historic Don CeSar beach resort are located at the southern end of the beach.

History

The town of St. Pete Beach was consolidated from the municipalities of Pass-a-Grille, Don CeSar Place, Belle Vista, and St. Petersburg Beach in a 1957 referendum, in which consolidation only won by a margin of 5 votes. 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.

Geography

St. Pete Beach is located at (27.724587, –82.741850). According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (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. St. Pete Beach is located about south of Clearwater Beach.

Demographics

Racial and ethnic composition

{| class="wikitable"

|+St. Pete Beach racial composition<br> (Hispanics excluded from racial categories)<br> (NH = Non-Hispanic)<br>

!Race

!Pop 2010

!Pop 2020

!% 2010

!% 2020

|White (NH)

|8,643

|7,958

|92.48%

|89.63%

|Black or African American (NH)

|64

|55

|0.68%

|0.62%

|Native American or Alaska Native (NH)

|23

|13

|0.25%

|0.15%

|Asian (NH)

|106

|118

|1.13%

|1.33%

|Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian (NH)

|0.03%

|0.07%

|Some other race (NH)

|14

|21

|0.15%

|0.24%

|Two or more races/Multiracial (NH)

|81

|266

|0.87%

|3.00%

|Hispanic or Latino (any race)

|412

|442

|4.41%

|4.98%

|Total

|9,346

|8,879

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, St. Pete Beach had a population of 8,879. The median age was 60.4 years. 6.4% of residents were under the age of 18 and 38.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 95.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 95.5 males age 18 and over.

100.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 0.0% lived in rural areas.

There were 4,979 households in St. Pete Beach, of which 8.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 43.8% were married-couple households, 22.7% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 26.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 40.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 20.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States census, there were 9,346 people, 4,844 households, and 2,512 families residing in the city.

2000 census

As of the census

In 2000, 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 2000, 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.

In 2000, 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, specifically the schools of 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. The Gulf Beaches campus, which is located on 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.

Library

thumb|St. Pete Beach Public Library in 2022

The St. Pete Beach Public Library is the public library that serves the city of St. Pete Beach and the greater Pinellas area. The library was founded in 1951 by the St. Petersburg Beach Community Club inside their clubhouse with "450 books on two shelves". The library grew to include "200 adult and 200 children's books" from the Florida State Library Extension Service.

On July 7, 1969, the St. Pete Beach Library opened an building designed by architect Glenn Q. Johnson at 365 73rd Avenue. On March 26, 2021, the St. Pete Beach Library reopened after a $2.6 million restoration and renovation.

Tourism

St. Pete Beach is a popular seaside tourist destination. In 2021, TripAdvisor named St. Pete Beach the number one beach in the US, and the number five best beach in the entire world to visit.

The Don Cesar is a renowned and historic hotel, opened in 1928. It is located on the Gulf in St. Pete Beach. The Don Cesar is a member of the Historic Hotels of America.