Fort De Soto repairs will limit some St. Petersburg-area access through 2028

Fort De Soto Park remains open to St. Petersburg-area visitors, but hurricane-recovery work continues to limit some facilities and access points. Pinellas County’s project information, updated July 14, 2026, shows repairs moving on separate schedules from late 2026 into early 2028.

What visitors can use now

The boat ramp remains available, but only one floating dock is currently open to the public. Pinellas County says the replacement docks will be designed to better withstand storms by extending the piles upward to allow greater vertical movement. The county advises visitors to use caution at the ramp while construction is coordinated.

Some parts of the park also remain closed because of storm damage. The county lists the East Loop and portions of the seawall near the historic site as closed to the public.

Fort De Soto is open seven days a week from 7 a.m. to sunset. Visitors should check the county’s park notices before traveling because temporary closures, construction activity and event-related road restrictions can change. The county also lists a Bay Pier cleaning closure from park opening until noon on Aug. 8, 2026, and says the park’s public EV charging stations are no longer available as of June 1, 2026.

Boat docks and paving work are next

Pinellas County estimates that construction on the new floating boat docks will be completed by the end of 2026. The docks and piles will be manufactured offsite before installation at Fort De Soto.

Several roadway and trail projects are scheduled to begin in late 2026. The plans call for repaving approximately 7 miles of park roadways, repaving approximately 6.6 miles of trail and reconstructing the East Beach Loop traffic circle. A separate maintenance-area paving project is scheduled to start in summer 2027.

Those are anticipated construction schedules, not statements that the work has been completed. The county says its Fort De Soto page combines multiple projects at different stages, so individual amenities may reopen at different times.

Pier, seawall and shoreline work will take longer

Repairs to the seawall and sidewalk adjacent to the Gulf Pier are planned for spring 2027 after design work is completed. A separate Bay Pier project covers damaged sections of the concrete dock and landings, replacement gangways and ramps, damaged railings and service lines. That work is listed for summer through fall 2026.

A larger shoreline-protection project is scheduled for early 2028. It will address failing seawall sections near the campground and Bunces Pass Cove. The county says the work will use resilient approaches that incorporate natural practices where possible.

How the repairs are funded

The county says eligible storm-repair costs will be reimbursed through a mix of Federal Emergency Management Agency, Florida Division of Emergency Management and Pinellas County funding. For eligible repairs, the documented cost-share structure is 75% federal, 12.5% state and 12.5% county, paid on a reimbursement basis.

Paving work is supported by Penny for Pinellas. The shoreline-protection project is supported by the Surface Water Utility Fund and Penny for Pinellas.

A county purchasing record also documents emergency repairs to boating facilities at Fort De Soto and War Veterans Park following Hurricanes Helene and Milton. The record says the related construction agreement incorporates FEMA terms and conditions and increases the contract amount by $4 million, to a total not-to-exceed amount of $13 million per contractor. That contract covers emergency repairs at multiple county parks and should not be read as the cost of the Fort De Soto projects alone.

For St. Petersburg residents, boaters and visitors planning a beach or camping trip, the practical takeaway is simple: Fort De Soto is operating, but access remains uneven. Check the county’s current park notices before leaving, especially if the visit depends on the boat ramp, East Loop, seawall areas, Bay Pier or roads affected by construction.

Sources

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