However, he said he would bow to a directive from the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) to remove five of the murals, including ones that celebrate Black history.
Following the effective date of a new state law in June, FDOT updated its Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, which now includes a prohibition on “non-uniform traffic control devices,” such as pavement markings on state and local roads, and notified local governments of that directive.
Shortly thereafter, U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy sent a letter to all 50 governors around the country to keep crosswalk and intersection markings “free from distraction” for safety reasons.
FDOT followed up last week, demanding that local governments that hadn’t removed painted crosswalks do so within weeks or lose access to state transportation funds.
In some cases, FDOT is erasing such crosswalks itself, as it did last week in Orlando at the site of the Pulse Memorial.
Evan Mory, St. Petersburg’s transportation and parking director, had asked FDOT to exempt five specific murals, noting that they were all in place before the law changed. City officials also noted that traffic crashes had been reduced by 70% at the Common Ground mural painted at Fifth Street and Central Ave. in downtown St. Petersburg.
That mural, painted by Argentinian artist Cecilia Lueza, features a rainbow of huge triangles and geometric shapes that spread across the intersection.
However, on Friday, Justin Hall, FDOT’s District 7 secretary, rejected that request. He said in his response that if the FDOT removes the markings instead of the city, those costs will be assessed to St. Petersburg.
Mayor Welch began his press conference by bemoaning what he said was the state’s latest move “to usurp local values and priorities and instead mandate what our values should be.”
Murals to ‘live on’ in other forms
“We’ve seen repeated attempts to silence our voices, to change the definition of terms from climate change to DEI, even banning the recognition of Black history and the LGBTQ community,” he said. “We’ve seen the attempts to stifle our ability to express and celebrate our community values. Yet time and time again, our community has risen to the occasion. And this latest challenge will be no exception.”
How that response will be manifested isn’t exactly clear yet. Welch said that the murals will “live on” in other forms, “on city and privately owned properties, on flags and banners and other installations. Whatever is taken away will be replaced in new, more impactful ways.”
While cities such as Key West have asked for and received an administrative hearing with FDOT to fight to maintain their rainbow crosswalks, Mayor Welch said on Monday that he saw no reason to do likewise. FDOT’s Justin Hall told the city on Friday that “the hearing will not involve a request for an exception of waiver to permit the nonconforming pavement markings to remain in place. The Department has already reviewed the pavement markings at the location(s) mentioned above and determined that the pavement markings will not be allowed.”
St. Petersburg City Council member Copley Gerdes said at the news conference that while the city was speaking rationally, the state wasn’t, “and that’s what we’re experiencing today.”
“We have been data-driven,” he said. “We’ve been intentional. Forward-thinking. We are trying to [be] rational. Unfortunately, our partner in this conversation is not. And so, we’re never going to see eye-to-eye in this conversation until they start using rational as well.”
State pressure
Gov. Ron DeSantis and Attorney General James Uthmeier have previously used threats of removing local officials from office in pushing local governments to see things their way when it comes to cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Now they are using the threat of denying state funds for cities that refuse to remove street art.
After insisting he wasn’t going to allow Uthmeier to “bully” him or other Orange County leaders, Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings backed down earlier this month and signed an updated agreement with ICE to transport immigration detainees to ICE facilities, although he later said he did so “under protest and extreme duress.”
Uthmeier had threatened to have DeSantis remove Demings and every other Orange County commissioner unless they signed that agreement.
Welch said Monday that he and his administration had not conceded initially to the state’s order and had provided data showing the street markings had actually increased public safety, based on data before and after the installation of the murals.
But he said FDOT’s position was clear that a refusal to remove the public art “would jeopardize millions of dollars in state transportation funding and potentially tens of millions more in broader state funding in other areas.”
He encouraged members of the public to visit the murals and share them on social media before they are removed. He said that the city won’t remove them directly, but instead will reimburse FDOT to do so, because “it’s not our decision.”
“As the mayor of our city, I will not risk these essential investments in a fight that I don’t believe we can win. That would be irresponsible leadership and detrimental to our city in the long run, but make no mistake, this is not the end of the story.”
Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com.Subscribe to Creative Loafing newsletters.
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This article appears in Aug 21-27, 2025.