Several structures have successively occupied the site, most recently, the third owned by the city, a five-story inverted pyramid-shaped building[1][2] designed by St. Petersburg architect William B. Harvard, Sr.[3] That Inverted Pyramid Pier was closed in 2013, and the new 26-acre Pier District opened on July 6, 2020.

[4] The $92 million project includes five restaurants,[5] a playground, an environmental education center, and numerous artworks including work by Xenobia Bailey, Nathan Mabry, Nick Ervinck,[6] and a large sculpture entitled Bending Arc by Janet Echelman.

[10][11][12] Built on 1st Avenue South,[12] the Railroad Pier allowed for steamboats and cargo-freight ships to enter and dock in its 12-feet-deep waters.

[11][13] Not wanting to lose business interest in his holdings, Plant and his associates held a monopoly on the pier going as far as to block further dredging of the channel later in 1901.

[13][14] As competition between the piers grew, it helped to facilitate William Straub of the St. Petersburg Times to successfully advocate for the waterfronts to be used for public parks in the early 20th century.

[17] In the aftermath of the 1921 Tampa Bay Hurricane, the Fountain of Youth Pier was destroyed and the spa building at its base collapsed.

[11] At the head of the pier stood a building named the Casino, a Mediterranean Revival architecture structure.

[10][11] The Casino had hosted a central atrium for vehicles, an open air ballroom and theater, and an observation deck.

[10][22] In July 1927, the radio station WSUN began operation on the second floor of the Casino in the Shrine Club.

[10] In 1969, the city council authorized a pier project slated to be completed for the 1970–1971 tourist season at the cost of $2 million.

[10] With a tubular steel framework to create large windows for panoramic views of Tampa Bay and a larger top floor and observation deck.

[24] On March 20, 1976, the city dedicated a laser sculpture by Rockne Krebs entitled Starboard Home on the Range, Part VI.

[30] In a straw-poll vote (5–3) after a two-hour workshop on August 18, 2010, the St. Petersburg City Council accepted Mayor Bill Foster's recommendation to demolish the current pier.

Design proposals by the top three competitors included Bjarke Ingels Group's (BIG) "The Wave" and West 8's "The People's Pier".

[37] A campaign to stop the destruction of the existing pier and prevent The Lens design from replacing it resulted in a referendum.

[38] On August 27, 2013, city residents voted to cancel the contract with Michael Maltzan Architecture,[39] ending The Lens project.

[56][57] Weeks after the initial meeting, mayor Rick Kriseman commented that the residents just want to see their elected officials build a pier.

The entire demolition was expected to be done by February 2016,[72] however it was completed in late 2016 on the account of safety concerns from the decay of the construction materials that were reinforced over the lifetime of the pier's approach and base structure.

[73][74] A redesign on the pier was presented on March 17, 2016 with mixed reactions from officials, though it was viewed positively by the city's council.

[80] In April 2018, three artists were announced to create public art for the pier's surrounding and immediate district, including Nick Ervinck, Nathan Mabry, and Xenobia Bailey.

[81] In August 2018, it was approved by the cities council to install a Janet Echelman sculpture in the pier's district.

[87][better source needed] On June 17, 1922, 18-year-old Dorothy MacLatchie was killed by a "monster fish" while floating next to the Municipal Recreation Pier in St. Petersburg, Florida.