SAFETY HARBOR — The Fire Marshal Dick Brock Memorial Pier reopened to the public Aug. 27, ending a two-year absence from the city’s waterfront and catching most of the city by surprise.
Mayor Joe Ayoub announced the reopening in a Facebook video posted that morning, shortly before the pier opened at about 10 a.m. In the video, he checked the final item off a list of tasks alongside city mascot Fiona Fun.
“It looks like everything is ready to go!” Ayoub said. “The pier is now open, and we hope everyone can come out and enjoy!”
The wooden pier, a fixture of the Safety Harbor waterfront for more than a century, was destroyed during the back-to-back hurricanes that battered the region in the fall of 2024. The City Commission then fast-tracked a long-planned reconstruction of the pier and the adjacent Safety Harbor Marina. The pier project finished under budget and months ahead of schedule, according to the city.
The new structure looks and functions much like the one it replaced. The city used existing permits for the design and location to speed up the replacement.
The short notice drew good-natured ribbing on the city’s Facebook page, where residents noted that Ayoub had told the City Commission days earlier that an official ribbon-cutting was set for Sept. 12.
“Is this the first announcement of opening? Today for today?” one commenter wrote. Another replied: “You were given 15 minutes notice. That’s not enough time?? Lol.”
The late notice did not keep anyone away. Photos and comments filled local social media pages through the day and into the night.
“This magnificent new pier replaces the ones we lost in the devastating storms of 2024,” Dave Hutchinson, a longtime resident and photographer, wrote in an Aug. 27 post to the Safety Harbor Strong Facebook page.
“I’ve been photographing this pier from the very beginning, watching it take shape against the ever-changing skies of Old Tampa Bay,” he continued. “It was pretty special to finally stand on that pier today.”
The response echoed the outpouring that followed the pier’s loss. Its removal generated thousands of social media comments within days.
“We attach our happy memories to it,” Laura Kepner, a longtime resident and author of “A Brief History of Safety Harbor, Florida,” told Tampa Bay Beacons in October 2024. “It’s a place to see manatees and fish and hang out, and it reminds people of their happy memories in the Harbor.
“So, even though it’s not as traumatic as a person’s death, when something devastating happens to something you love, it hits home.”
Safety Harbor officials have scheduled an official ribbon-cutting ceremony at the pier for 10 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 12.