Claire:
There are still a range of marinas in Tampa Bay area, tho' they are steadily dwindling due to waterfront development. When considering your projects, necessary vendors & the desirability of mixing some fun with the boatwork, I'd recommend TB over Ft. Myers, Punta Gorda and Bradenton areas...altho' they all would work. Let me zoom in on the TB area...
If you want inexpensive berthing, I suspect you're only real option is going to be a private
dock behind a house or motel. The marinas are full even out of season, so you'll need to plan on paying guest dockage rates for a marina slip. At the N end of the county, I'd suggest you contact Clearwater Muni Marina. Good basics, attractive location across from the beach & along a main drag, and easy access to the Gulf. OTOH this is 'strip mall city', traffic is clogged at times and vendors are spread out. Ross Yacht Yard was a common source of talented boat workers but it recently closed (condos).
At the S end of the peninsula, Isla del Sol & Tierre Verde, the marinas are not well situated and some of them suffer from surge. A better option is the quiet community of Gulfport on Boca Ciega Bay & Gulfport's Muni Marina, tho' again you are in the boonies relatively speaking. Nice marina, well protected...but not sure they could handle your beam.
Inside Tampa Bay, the big player is St. Pete Muni Marina in St. Pete - great location in many respects but starting a
dock refurb project now in the N Basin. Give them a call and see if they can work out a temporary berth; advance arrangements are probably critical. Further S in downtown is the Harborage Marina, private and adjacent to the
Salt Creek
boatyards. If you have a YC
membership, perhaps you could arrange berthing with the St. Pete YC tho' their marina is small and popular. Across the
Bay is Ruskin's hole in the wall marina; w-a-y
remote and also full last I heard.
Trying to make St. Pete work is worth the effort. The city has a free looping bus
service non-stop (easier way to get to the nearby WM Express store than using your car), the venue of parks, concerts, museums (Dali museum & excellent Fine Arts museum plus others immediately available), Cinema-plex and lots more are right at your doorstep. If you want to take a break from marina life & cost, the other side of the Pier is the Vinoy Basin with protected 2-week
anchoring permitted - and rarely full. Two large WM stores are nearby and, for your stainless work, JTR is the favorite metal shop to use - huge machines, excellent quality, good value prices but plan to get in line. (JTR is a bike ride from Gulfport's marina, as well).
Fallback options would be Bradenton (second best) and then the Punta Gorda area further S (less best), both with local yachtie infrastructure, WM stores and
anchoring options nearby.
Good luck with the
research. Where is the boat and where is she headed?
Jack