The Waterfront Centennial Committee has been formed to commemorate and to celebrate the decisions of our early civic and business leaders, which for a century have guided the expansion of the original downtown waterfront park to a green sweep of parkland, from North Shore to Albert Whitted. This unique string of waterfront parks defines the character of St. Petersburg, regularly serving as the scenic focus of city celebrations and events.

The mission of the Waterfront Centennial Committee is:

• to commemorate the beginnings of our system of downtown waterfront parks through sponsorship and support of appropriate events in 2009 and 2010
• to honor those city leaders, both in government and private enterprise, who had the foresight to assemble the land for our first waterfront park and to establish a strong priority for using our downtown waterfront land for public purposes
• to promote awareness of the history of our waterfront parks, and to recognize on this Centennial the centrality of the waterfront parks in forming the character and charm of downtown St. Petersburg, and of the entire city
• to envision ways to preserve and enhance our downtown waterfront parks and open marine vistas for the next century.