Lower Tampa Bay
The Lower Tampa Bay watershed spans 16 miles in southeastern Pinellas County, including downtown St. Petersburg and the city's beautiful waterfront.
The watershed contains three named lakes (Lake Maggiore, Mirror Lake, and Round Lake) and three creeks (Bayou Creek, Booker Creek, and Salt Creek). Lake Maggiore is currently undergoing a major restoration project to improve the lake's failing water quality, including the construction of new stormwater management facilities, a $10M in-lake dredging project, and shoreline habitat restoration.
Once a navigable body of water, Salt Creek still connects Lake Maggiore to Bayboro Harbor, a deep-water port shared by the U.S. Coast Guard, the University of South Florida, commercial fishing operations, shipyards, and marinas. Salt Creek is known as "Harbordale's water ribbon" as it gently winds its way through surrounding neighborhoods, providing shelter and food for wading birds, butterflies, fish, and the occasional alligator!
A classic "urban watershed," Lower Tampa Bay consists primarily of developed lands, where paved surfaces create large amounts of stormwater runoff during periods of heavy rain.
Links:
City of St. Petersburg