The Merry Pier Bait Shack in Pass-a-Grille has sat empty for more than two years, but St. Pete Beach officials have revived its restoration with a scaled-down plan that trims the price tag and gets shovels moving again. The 123-year-old landmark flooded during Hurricane Helene in 2024, and a rebuild effort that once threatened to collapse under its own cost estimate is now back on track.
City commissioners first voted to rebuild the bait shack late last year, according to Bay News 9, but the project stalled when the estimated cost topped $150,000 — a figure that ran up against both the project budget and a FEMA rule under which improvement costs reaching the applicable 50% threshold can trigger flood-resistance requirements. City floodplain materials explain that under the Florida Building Code and National Flood Insurance Program, improvements or repairs reaching at least half of a structure's market value can trigger current flood-resistance requirements, according to a city floodplain document. Restoring a residence to its pre-damage condition may still trigger compliance requirements if the work reaches at least 50% of its value.
With the original estimate unworkable, staff was asked to shrink the project's scope. St. Pete Beach Commissioner Jon Maldonado, who represents the district covering Pass-a-Grille, said the scaled-down plan now calls for four walls, a bathroom, and an air conditioner if possible, per the same Bay News 9 report. Public Services Director Camden Mills put the revised rebuilding cost at roughly $80,000, and the city commission approved the updated plan.
A Smaller Price, A Faster Path Forward
That estimate lines up closely with the city's actual contract. St. Pete Beach commissioners approved an $80,137 agreement with Intellisite Inc. to rebuild the hurricane-damaged shack, according to the St. Pete Catalyst. Mills has said the project would take approximately six months to complete, including 90 days of actual construction, and Mills expects the bait shack to reopen by next September. The pier itself sits at 801 Pass-a-Grille Way near Eighth Avenue on the bay side of the island, per the Catalyst's reporting, and the back-to-back blows from Hurricanes Helene and Milton in 2024 damaged the property.
Separately, the Tampa Bay Times reported that commissioners unanimously voted to restore the bait shack even though the structure carries no historic designation and is not eligible for one. A December 16, 2025 commission meeting first put the project's fate in the spotlight, with commissioners voting unanimously to move forward on rebuilding while staff worked out cheaper design options, according to a report from the Local Lens — though that account carries lower confidence than the other sourcing on the project's timeline.
What Reopening Means for Pass-a-Grille
For anglers like Jun Pagaduan, the rebuild is about more than nostalgia. Pagaduan, a fisherman, said the restroom planned as part of the reopening is a convenience that matters for people who spend their days fishing off the pier, and the project will also make it easier to simply get bait at Merry Pier again.
Nearby business owners are watching closely too. Cheryl Engels, who owns Island Life Pass-a-Grille, said her shop saw increased foot traffic when the bait shack was open, and she said the reopening would likely bring more fishermen — and potentially more business — back to Pass-a-Grille Way. Engels said she's excited about another business on the street getting rebuilt after years of disruption.
Maldonado said restoring the landmark matters to both residents and tourists, framing the project as a sign of recovery for St. Pete Beach as a whole. That pattern echoes what's played out elsewhere along Florida's Gulf Coast: in Manatee County, the historic Anna Maria City Pier, built in 1911, was torn apart during the 2024 hurricane season and is expected to reopen this fall, according to WFLA. That station reported that without one of the island's biggest attractions, nearby businesses saw fewer visitors making their way to that end of Anna Maria — and now they're hoping its return brings those visitors back.
