St. Petersburg Daily Brief: Grand Prix week, City Hall updates, and local business pitches

St. Pete’s Wednesday rundown

Downtown is shifting into race-week mode, City Council has a neighborhood plan teed up, and a new pitch event is aiming to keep local storefronts thriving.

Grand Prix weekend: closures, free fan events, and a grand marshal

The Firestone Grand Prix takes over the waterfront Friday through Sunday, and several streets around Pioneer Park, the Mahaffey Theater and the Dalí Museum are expected to be restricted or closed as the course operates. Organizers are also promoting parking at Tropicana Field (lots 6 and 7) with options to connect via a shuttle or the SunRunner.

Before the engines really roar, Thursday includes a flag raising at City Hall in the morning and a free fan party in North Straub Park in the late afternoon. A 5K on the track is also scheduled for Thursday evening. Separately, former Buccaneers coach Jon Gruden has been tapped as this year’s Grand Marshal.

City Hall watch: Palmetto Park plan heads to Council

Council members are set to review updates to the Palmetto Park Neighborhood Plan, a resident-driven guide meant to shape preservation and improvements as nearby redevelopment conversations continue around the Historic Gas Plant area. The update has already cleared city advisory committees and is headed to Council for final acceptance.

Local business: a new ‘Brick Pitch’ is coming March 5

A new spin on pitch night is launching March 5 with a focus on brick-and-mortar businesses. The program, tied to the city-and-chamber small-business support effort known as The Greenhouse, is set up for short presentations, judge Q&A, and a mix of cash and service prizes.

Cold nights: Pinellas shelters include St. Pete sites

With winter cold snaps still popping up, Pinellas’ cold-night shelter network recently activated overnight sites including locations in St. Petersburg. The list included the Unitarian Universalist Church near Mirror Lake, a Salvation Army site on 4th Street South, and Allendale Church. The county also noted free evening-to-morning bus rides for people headed to cold-night shelters.

Sources

• https://www.axios.com/local/tampa-bay/2026/02/25/grand-prix-2026-schedule-parking-road-closures
• https://www.fox13news.com/news/john-gruden-named-grand-marshal-firestone-grand-prix-st-petersburg/
• https://stpetecatalyst.com/zaps/council-to-consider-palmetto-park-neighborhood-plan-alterations/
• https://stpetecatalyst.com/first-st-pete-brick-pitch-event-is-march-5/
• https://www.wusf.org/weather/2026-02-22/cold-weather-shelters-open-tampa-bay-february