CareFest is back! The yearly celebration of volunteering and giving back to the community has returned for Spring 2021.

Neighborhood associations and individuals are invited to participate in community-led projects and giving opportunities happening March 1-31 to support St. Pete's spirit of volunteering and giving back to the community.

How to Participate:

• Volunteer and Give Back from a Distance: Contact the Community Services Department at ICAN@stpete.org or 727-551-3249 for a list of project ideas, partners, local organizations and ways to help.
• Organize a Neighborhood Cleanup: Neighborhood leaders can contact the Community Services Department at Robert.Barto@stpete.org or 727-551-3249 for more information and to schedule. Up to two neighborhood cleanups may be scheduled per weekend in the city.
• Host a Donation Drive: Collect vital resources to donate to local nonprofits and families who are facing new economic hardship from the pandemic. Contact the Community Services Department at ICAN@stpete.org or 727-551-3249 for more information.

Track Your Impact:
If possible, report back to the Community Services Department with how your neighborhood helped the community during CareFest by emailing ICAN@stpete.org. If your neighborhood has helped in ways not listed, let us know!

Find more information at stpete.org/Spring2021CareFest.

We’re all working hard to Restart St. Pete and adapt to a new normal.

But, in light of the continued community health risks, we’ve shifted our focus to reducing Pinellas County’s COVID-19 positivity rate and being Florida’s most COVID-safe community. We must continue doing everything we can to keep our community safe.

Find resources to navigate the pandemic and help prevent the spread as well as metrics with our current standing as a community at StPeteRacetoSafe.com. We’re in this Race to Safe together – the St. Pete Way.

Keep up to date with the vaccine at covid19.pinellascounty.org/vaccines/.

Learn more about the Executive Order related to events, effective Feb. 1, here.

The St. Petersburg Main Library, located at 3745 9th Ave. N., has been renamed the President Barack Obama Main Library in honor of America’s first African American president.

The dedication and installation of the new sign kick off renovations at the library. The facility will undergo renovations that will include an upgraded rear patio and outdoor gathering space, reconfiguration of interior spaces with new programming areas, additional parking spaces and more.

The Main Library will be temporarily closed for the renovations starting Thursday, April 1. Library patrons will be able to return items checked out from the Main Library at other St. Petersburg Library System locations and essential services will continue to be provided by the open libraries in accordance with existing health and safety measures.

Library patrons will be encouraged to visit the other St. Petersburg Library System locations found at splibraries.org.

Learn more here.

Mortgage & Utility Assistance

Previously known as the Coronavirus Relief Fund, the Mortgage & Utility Payment Assistance Grant Program provides grants of up to $8,000 to eligible homeowners who are currently unemployed or underemployed as a result of the pandemic and have fallen past due with mortgage payments or other living expenses and/or are in jeopardy of future payment delinquency due to lost or diminished income. More at stpete.org/MortgageAssistance.

Rent Assistance

Renters whose incomes have been affected by the pandemic can receive assistance on rent and utilities through local non-profit organizations that the City has partnered with. More information can be found at stpete.org/RentAssistance.