It's been one year since we published our report 'Keeping the Vibe Alive: Historic Preservation in St. Petersburg," and things were definitely "vibing" at the 2025 Preservation Awards at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Historic Mirror Lake as we celebrated Historic Preservation Month by honoring dozens of people and projects that help keep St. Pete's historic vibe alive.
Winners from across the city - Gandy Blvd. to Old Southeast, Magnolia Heights to Methodist Town - were recognized for their efforts to rehab, reuse, and steward the city's historic places and spaces.
"These awards celebrate the human stories behind the city's historic buildings," said Manny Leto, Executive Director of Preserve the 'Burg. "When we preserve our architectural heritage, we're not just saving buildings – we're preserving the stories of our city."
The 2025 Preservation Award winners, selected by Preserve the 'Burg's Awards Committee from nominations submitted by the public, represent excellence across various preservation categories.
Winners were both grand and smaller-scale, residential, commercial, and institutional.
Bethel AME Church, who has stewarded their 103-year-old building in Methodist Town through a wide range of projects since 2016, was one of several recipients in the "Sacred Spaces Stewardship" category that also included St. Mary's Church and St. Peter's Cathedral, which underwent a meticulous restoration of their steeple last year. Bethel AME restored their church's west wall, replaced the roof, and restored stained-glass windows and their front entry steps, among other efforts. All Trades Historical led the restoration efforts of these historic sacred spaces.
On the south side of St. Petersburg, several residences in Old Southeast were recognized for multi-year restoration efforts, while the Polish American Club received a resiliency award for their work following extensive flooding following hurricanes Helene and Milton. They were joined by the Women's Club on Snell Isle who endured a similar fate. Both clubs rallied to save their locally designated landmark buildings.
"People are at the center of historic preservation," Leto reminded the capacity crowd during the ceremony, before handing out awards to residents who helped achieve a local historic district designation for Mirror Lake at the end of 2024, as well as Christine Page, the former executive director of the St. Petersburg Shuffleboard Club who stewarded the world's oldest shuffleboard club for the past 10 years. Local historian John Anderson was recognized in the "education" category for his work leading visitors on tours of an ancient shell mound in the Jungle Prada neighborhood, while several Preserve the 'Burg volunteers where also recognized for their years of service to the organization, including Bill Reid, a local contractor leading the rehab of Preserve the 'Burg's new office space in the Warehouse Arts District.
Local brewery Golden Isles, located in the Magnolia Heights neighborhood was recognized for their conversion of a mid-century gas station into a bustling community gathering space. "Find your favorite local brewery, and you'll likely find yourself in a historic building," Leto told the crowd before toasting the owners of Golden Isles with a "Community Vibrancy" award.
In another nod to a historic gas station, we recognized the Blackmon family for the adaptive reuse of a former Standard Oil station at 4th Street and 24th Avenue South. The station served residents from 1926 until 1962. The ever-popular Pete's Bagels is slated to move into the newly renovated 325-sqare-foot localy designated historic building later this year.
The historically designated Penninsular Friut Company/Alveo bulding at 10000 Gandy Blvd. and Sunken Gardens - both throwbacks to St. Pete's roadside attraction legacy - were also recognized.
At each Awards ceremony, Preserve the 'Burg is proud to recognize a local craftsman with the Maureen Stafford Excellence in Preservation Award, which recognizes an individual that has a demonstrated track record of excellence working to renovate and restore historic properties in St. Petersburg. Thanks to the generous support of long-time Preserve the 'Burg supporter, Maureen Stafford, the recipient is recognized with a $1,000 check from Preserve the ‘Burg. This year's recipient, Frederick J. Dion of American Custom Builders & Roofing LLC., has restored numerous historic properties, especially in Historic Kenwood. Many of his projects have been featured on the Kenwood BungalowFest Home tours and have won past Preservation awards.
Stafford took home an award of her own for the nearly three-year restoration of 346 16th Ave NE, also known as “The Babe Ruth House.” Other residential projects included an interior restoration by EDAD Studios of the historic Jones-Laughner House, at 556 Beach Drive NE, among others.
Check out the highlight reel and see the complete list of winners below.
Here are the 2025 Preservation Awards winners:
Historic Sign Restoration: Sunken Gardens, at 1825 4th St. N.
Education: Sunken Gardens History Center, at 1825 4th St. N.
Residential Rehabilitation: Dozark Residence, at 345 12th Ave. NE.
Residential Rehabilitation: John Barie Residential Project, in Old Southeast.
Residential Rehabilitation: HB Smitz House, at 2015 Beach Drive SE.
Residential Rehabilitation: Babe Ruth House, at 346 16th Ave. NE.
Interior Renovation: Jones-Laughner House, at 556 Beach Drive NE.
Interior Renovation: Morgan Residence, at 2335 Dartmouth Ave. N.
Sacred Spaces Stewardship: Beth AME Church, at 912 3rd Ave. N.
Sacred Spaces Stewardship: Cathedral Church of St. Peter, at 140 4th St. N.
Sacred Spaces Stewardship: St. Mary Our Lady of Grace Church, at 515 4th St. S.
Commercial Rehabilitation: Peninsular Fruit Company Building, at 10000 Gandy Blvd.
Commercial Rehabilitation: Standard Oil Station, at 2439 4th St. S.
Historic Storefront: The Story Garden, at 832 14th St. N.
Community Vibrancy: Golden Isles Brewing, at 3000 Dr. MLK Jr St. N.
Community Vibrancy: Uptown Barber Bar, at 3236 Dr. MLK Jr St. N.
Stewardship: C. Perry Snell House, at 375 Brightwaters Blvd. NE.
Stewardship: Williams House Restoration, at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg campus.
Neighborhood Compatibility: Strum Place, at 6366 Central Ave.
Resiliency: Polish American Society, at 1343 Beach Drive SE.
Resiliency: St. Petersburg Woman’s Club, at 40 Snell Isle Blvd.
Education: Discover Florida Tours in the Jungle Prada neighborhood.
Education: The Center for Health Equity’s History of Civil Rights and Social Change in Pinellas County.
Preservation Legacy Lifetime Achievement: Christine Page, outgoing president of the St. Petersburg Shuffleboard Club.
Maureen Stafford Excellence in Preservation Award: Frederick J. Dion, owner of American Custom Builders & Roofing.
Volunteer Awards: Bill Reid, Kathy Douglas and Les Lloyd.
Advocacy Leadership: Mirror Lake Historic District volunteers.
