Treasure Island - If a voter referendum passes next month, the core of this beach city could transform from one-story retail centers set behind wide parking lots to multistory, mixed-use housing geared toward urban living.
The zoning changes would allow developers to build apartments and condos atop businesses along the Treasure Island Causeway and adjacent sections of Gulf Boulevard.
Housing density also would increase significantly, though existing city regulations capping building heights at about five stories would not change.
City officials are hosting an information meeting at 7 p.m. Tuesday at City Hall about the five zoning changes, which will be up for a vote on March 12.
"We really have just one-story development there. This (proposal) allows them to build above, and you really start to gain a small-town ambiance," said Paula Cohen, the city's community improvement director.
Four of the referendum questions address Treasure Island's downtown core district and the east side of Gulf Boulevard going south from 106th to 103{+r}{+d} avenues and north from 108th to 112th avenues.
In addition to permitting mixed residential and commercial uses, the zoning change would increase the number of hotel rooms allowed in these areas from 22 to 60 per acre. It would also allow as many as 24 residences per acre downtown and as many as 15 per acre along Gulf Boulevard. Those are two areas that currently don't allow for any homes.
One other question on the ballot would increase new building heights by 2 feet to account for stricter flood regulations that require buildings to add 2 feet below the ground floor.
The vote comes after a long visioning process dating to the late-1990s when residents said they wanted to maintain Treasure Island's small-town ambiance, city spokesman Jeff Jensen said.
Amid worries about high rises, residents in 2002 voted that any future zoning changes dealing with height or density had to be approved by referendum.
City officials in recent years have worked on plans to redevelop the downtown area to make it more residential and suitable for pedestrians. Future storefronts under the plan would be more densely packed with parking in the back rather than the front and wider sidewalks that are more conducive to outdoor dining.
"People like to live in that environment. They like to walk it," Cohen said. "And here the ideal opportunity is that you're a block from the beach. How good is that?"
City Commissioner Carol Coward said she thinks people in her downtown district will welcome the change.
"I know the people in the downtown area are quite anxious for it to happen because certainly it's going to change the demeanor of the downtown," she said.
If all the referendum questions pass, changes would be gradual, Coward said.
"What we're trying to do is just get it to a place where we can begin to develop it and move forward and make it interesting so whoever is going to come in and bring their money, they're going to feel like it's a good investment for them," she said.
