Proposal for maritime village offers look into Dunedin's past

The historical society wants to transform old buildings into an attraction to draw tourists. City officials have varied reactions.

By DEBORAH O'NEIL

© St. Petersburg Times, published April 24, 2000

DUNEDIN -- More than 100 years ago, this small city grew up along pristine water of the Gulf of Mexico. A boat dock built in 1870 became a regular port of call for vessels traveling the west coast of Florida.

On shore, sailors and merchants found a booming downtown with a general store and a library.

The Dunedin Historical Society Foundation wants to tap into Dunedin's maritime heritage by transforming a group of old buildings in the Dunedin Marina and Edgewater Park into a historic seaport village. The idea got a mixed reaction from city officials.

"It's daring," said Historical Museum director Vinnie Luisi. "It's something new and innovative for the area."

The village would be a tourist draw similar to that of St. Augustine, Annapolis, Md., or Mystic, Conn., according to Richard Gehring, a foundation board member and waterfront development consultant who presented the idea to the city last week.

The estimated cost of the village is $1.4-million. The foundation wants the city to commit to spending about $1-million, and the foundation would raise the rest.

"The idea of the seaport goes right along with the idea of tourism, making the town more attractive," Gehring said. "We could sell the town a whole lot harder than we do now."

The idea for the village grew out of the success of the first historic homes tour staged by the Dunedin Historical Society two years ago that drew 1,400 visitors.

Originally, the idea was to put the seaport village on Honeymoon Island, but that idea was nixed after people protested the idea of putting any new buildings in the state park. So local historians decided the village should go around the marina, where it originally began.

"If people want to see historic houses in a town like Dunedin, why don't we give them something they can go to on a regular basis?" Luisi said. "This is a combination house tour-historical interpretation."

The Historical Society Foundation is the fundraising arm of the Historical Society, which oversees the Historical Museum on Main Street. Under the proposal, the proceeds of the seaport village would be used to support the museum, which is seeking accreditation from the American Association of Museums.

The village would be created using existing city-owned buildings on city land that will eventually need to be replaced, Gehring said. The boat club would be renovated to resemble a Key West-style structure and would feature an area for a live historic boat-building exhibit to pay tribute to the city's successful boat builders, like the Prior family and Clark Mills, designer of the pram.

"It's a dying craft, and it's something we'd like to keep alive," Luisi said.

A new building about where the bathrooms are in Edgewater Park would house a historical library and visitors center. A re-creation of the Douglas/Somerville general store would be built where the fish market is located.

"It will help with the redevelopment of downtown," said foundation vice president Carl Keltner. "I do think it's feasible. The community will get behind it."

But city officials raised questions about the logistics and costs of the project. Commissioner John Doglione, a boating enthusiast, said he worried about traffic at the marina.

"Are we going to get inundated with people?" said Public Works Director Bob Brotherton. "Dunedin is a neat little place, but it's a place for our residents. We've never gone out and promoted it like Clearwater Beach."

Commissioner Janet Henderson said more thought needs to be given to how people would move through the village in such a compact area. Also, she said a horse and carriage is not feasible on Dunedin's narrow roads downtown.

"I can see that it's a positive way of redeveloping those buildings because a few of the buildings do need to be replaced. It makes a lot of sense to do something that would be an enhancement to the area," Henderson said. "I think it's the nut of a good idea . . . It will take a lot more thought and development, but I thought the plan had some merit."

Mayor Tom Anderson said the city has other spending priorities.

"I'm not sure a city this size could afford such a project," Anderson said. "These are big projects not only to build but then to operate. The operating cost is something we have to be very concerned about."

Commissioner Cecil Englebert said while other projects are more important, it might be possible to get grant money for the village.

"We have a waterfront community we don't take advantage of," Englebert said. We have $7-million of drainage that is more important to me than the waterfront, but the waterfront is important."

DUNEDIN SEAPORT VILLAGE

Local historians are proposing creation of a historic seaport village at Edgewater Park and the Dunedin Marina. The plan calls for the following:

THE DOUGLAS/SOMERVILLE STORE -- The historic store built in 1878 would be re-created where the fish market is located at the marina. There would be a historic store front facing the park, with the fish market behind it and the harbormaster's office on the second floor. Horse and carriage rides through downtown would leave from the store. Estimated cost: $500,000

BOAT CLUB -- The Boat Club, which dates from the 1920s, would be renovated to resemble a Key West structure. The first floor would have a storage area for the city's pram fleet and an area for a historic boat building exhibit. The second floor would have a seaport village exhibit area and the boat club's offices. Estimated cost: $312,000.

LIBRARY/VISITOR CENTER -- The center would be the starting point for the village tours. It would be built where the city's bathrooms are located in Edgewater Park, site of the city's first library built in the 1880s. A library would be on the first floor and would house materials about Dunedin history. The visitor center would be on the second floor. Estimated cost: $425,000.

HOMES AND CHAPELS -- The historical foundation would like to include in the tour some of downtown's historic homes, such as the J.O. Douglas House on Scotland Street and the Winchester Octagon House on Scotland Street, and chapels like the Church of the Good Shepherd on Edgewater Drive.

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