Pt. Two, From the Bureau of Vital Statistics

St. Petersburg sits at the tip of Pinellas County which is a peninsula. To the west of Pinellas County is the Gulf of Mexico and to the east is Tampa Bay. Hillsborough County, and its largest city Tampa, sit just across Tampa Bay. Travel south from Pinellas County (over the Sunshine Skyway) and you’ll end up in Manatee County. These three counties make up the Tampa Bay area, or as it is lovingly referred to as the Crotch of Florida. Picture with me if you will, a view of the state from outer space. Now imagine that Florida is a gentleman having his picture taken from the side, or the profile. If Tampa Bay is the Crotch of Florida, by means of reasoning, Pinellas County must be the…well, the wang. Great.

Pinellas County is 38 miles long and 15 miles wide, and covers an area of 280 square miles. Crammed into that 280 square miles is 924,413 people, making Pinellas County the most densely populated county in Florida. By the way, that number is growing. On average, there are 3,339 people per square mile. Likewise, there are 4,521 miles of paved roads in Pinellas County, a number that is growing as well. Gone are the expanses of wilderness that I so fondly remember as a child, replaced with strip malls and urban sprawl gone mad.

St. Petersburg is Pinellas Counties largest city with somewhere around 250,000 inhabitants. St. Petersburg covers approximately 60 square miles, and at its height is *43 feet above sea level, leaving most of this fine city just above, at, or below sea level. Trust me, I’m going somewhere with this.

Imagine with me the nightmare scenario that has been talked about and mulled over for years; the same scenario that every citizen of this city, myself included, has been threatened with at the beginning of every hurricane season. A category three or four hurricane is at the doorstep. Since the majority of the city sits just above, at, or below sea level, most people have to evacuate. Most of those people will opt to leave the city, and honestly, who can blame them? Now imagine the throngs of people trying to cross the four bridges that lead out of the city into the surrounding areas. When the hurricane finally hits, the city is completely inundated with the waters associated with the storm surge. Most of the city, with the exception of the area 43 feet above sea level, will be underwater. On a more positive note, I’ve always wanted water front property. Think how exclusive my neighborhood will be! St. Petersburg: Florida’s New Orleans.

*To say that the high point of 43 feet is the highest point in this city may be a bit misleading. Actually, the highest point is 100 feet above sea level, and is found at the city dump. Yes, if the nightmare hurricane were to hit, the only areas above the water would be the dump, and the area that I mentioned before. For all intents and purposes, St. Petersburg would be reduced to an isle of trash. I like that description more than St. Pete’s current distinction as the Sunshine City.