ST. PETERSBURG — The City Council defeated a city-initiated plan to designate the city's first commercial block downtown as a historic area.

The 4-4 vote came after property owners protested the plan, which would make it harder to develop the "Block 25" properties, which include Jannus Live and a variety of bars and restaurants.

Preservationists and Mayor Rick Kriseman argued that the block, bounded by Second and Third streets, First Avenue N and Central Avenue, dates to the city's earliest days in the late 1880s.

In June, some property owners presented the city with a conceptual plan to develop that resembled some of the recent high-rise development downtown.

The city initiated protection proceedings three years ago.

But council member Karl Nurse said preservationists need to start acting more like counterparts in Savannah, Ga., and other historic communities who pool their resources and buy historic structures to preserve them.

Preservationists responded that buying an entire block would be too expensive.

Nurse was joined by council members Ed Montanari, Lisa Wheeler-Bowman and Jim Kennedy in opposing the plan.

But the fight might not be over. Kriseman said he will seek to bring the issue back to council.

Editor's Note: The original version of this story incorrectly linked a June meeting with property owners to the arrival of the issue before City Council.