Keep door open today for waterfront's future

By A TIMES EDITORIAL
Published March 22, 2007

Finally, there is the promise of new activity on Clearwater's downtown waterfront. It isn't just the voters' approval of the downtown boat slip project in the March 13 election that provides a reason for optimism.

It is also the announcement that a new dinner cruise boat, the sleek Yacht StarShip II, will start plying the waters of the Intracoastal Waterway sometime next month.

And it is the opening of the first block of Clearwater's streetscape project along Cleveland Street, with its more pedestrian-friendly environment.

And it is the slowly rising tower of the Opus South high-rise condominium and retail project on the key corner of Osceola Avenue and Cleveland Street, where Calvary Baptist Church once stood.

These items don't complete the puzzle - they are merely pieces - but people depressed over Clearwater's dreary downtown can find some cheer in them.

While some other proposed condominium projects in or near downtown are languishing in the slow condo market, Opus South keeps going. That project will bring not only new residents, but also new shops to downtown.

Troy Manthey, who operates two dinner cruise ships in Tampa's Channelside district, will dock his newest venture, the Yacht StarShip II, in the Clearwater Municipal Marina on Clearwater Beach. The 118-foot ship, in which Manthey is investing $1-million, will offer sit-down dining for almost 150 people, a dance floor, an observation deck, a cocktail lounge and a bridal suite. The ship's brunch, lunch and dinner cruises on the Intracoastal will give tourists and residents alike something new to do.

The voters' decision on the boat slips gives Clearwater city government, for the first time in recent history, an open door to do something positive on publicly owned waterfront property. The project will bring around 129 rental boat slips, hundreds of feet of side-slip tieups for transient boaters, a fishing pier and a promenade to the Intracoastal waterfront at the base of Coachman Park - provided the city is able to obtain all necessary permits.

The city did a good job of informing residents about the boat slips project in the leadup to the election. Their job doesn't end there, though. Some residents believe Clearwater is inept when it comes to building public projects. Clearwater officials can help address that image problem by updating the public regularly during the permitting process and being completely accountable for any problems that arise.

City officials surely understand that by doing so, they will earn public trust - perhaps enough to gain support for future projects to further improve the downtown waterfront.