Questions remain over St. Pete Pier’s estimated ‘return on investment’

This week, the City of St. Petersburg issued an economic impact report claiming the new St. Pete Pier — as part of its own district — would create $80 million in annual economic impact. It would be “a complete return on investment in the first year of operation,” Mayor Rick Kriseman said in a news release. That bold prediction caught the attention of WTSP’s Noah Pransky, who questioned some of the report’s findings. To investigate, Pransky spoke with City Development…