DOJ officials to hear from public on Tampa biking-while-black issue

A scathing Tampa Bay Times report out in April highlighted a Tampa Police Department policy that involved targeting African Americans riding bicycles in low-income areas. The revelation sparked local outrage, national media attention and a U.S. Department of Justice investigation. As part of the investigation, federal officials from the department's Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS)…

Grayson jumps into U.S. Senate race, people respond of course

Congressman Alan Grayson, a Democratic gentleman from Orlando who is known for his outspoken ways, has entered the race for the Senate seat currently held by Marco Rubio, a Republican gentleman who is apparently trying to be president. Grayson, who doesn't care what you or I think, faces a primary battle with West Palm Congressman…

St. Pete Pier contracts move forward (!)

Demolition of the St. Pete Pier's inverted pyramid structure could start as early as next week, officials said Thursday. A pier with porch swings, splash pads and a tilted events lawn — all facets of the Pier Park concept — could be a reality by 2018 if all goes well. In a brisk (relatively speaking,…

Florida Aquarium chomps down on Shark Week

There is a single week out of the year that is responsible for transforming sharks from the things of nightmares (at least my nightmares) into the fascinating creatures that they are, and that’s Shark Week. The Florida Aquarium, celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, is completely on top of this week of shark-tastic wonder, and…

Jeb!: you need to work longer hours

The Democratic National Committee caught themselves some fodder today when former Florida governor Jeb! Bush, one of the Republican guys who wants to be president, said something that could get interpreted in a bad-ish way during an interview in New Hampshire. When asked about how to grow the economy, he said Americans need to stop…

Report: Environmental enforcement, fines down dramatically under Scott

Those of you who have lived in the Tampa Bay region for decades probably have noticed the better water quality in the bay and other local waterways due to intensive cleanup efforts, stricter environmental rules and actual consequences for those who pollute. But ever since Governor Rick Scott took office, and despite his claims that…

Tampa ranks high on recreation list

When it comes to listicles ranking cities and states on their various attributes, the internet hasn't been very nice to Tampa Bay or the state of Florida. While a list or two has deemed us best looking, we've been called sweaty, sad, gridlocked and, simply, the worst. But a new study suggests Tampa is tops when…

ARE YOU READY FOR SOME…Pier negotiations?

After an expected, roughly two-month lull, St. Pete city officials are set to take up the first batch of decisions on the city's favorite first-world problem, the newly approved Pier Park design slated to crown the downtown waterfront. On Thursday morning, the St. Pete City Council will discuss about $5.2 million in contracts, including, reports…

Bondi’s next (and, we hope, last) stand: solar energy

Not that it's surprising, but Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi has deemed blocking a possible voter-driven embrace of solar power worthy of taxpayer dollars.  A surprisingly diverse coalition — as in, everyone from Tea Partiers to environmental groups — is backing a constitutional amendment that would make it easier for businesses and individuals to generate…

St. Pete Preservation to City Council: Preserve the ‘Burg, FFS

History be damned? Not quite. Not if Emily Elwyn, president of St. Pete Preservation, and her board have anything to say about it. As its name suggests, St. Pete Preservation has a single-minded devotion to, uh, preserving St. Pete's historic bits. Turns out preservation is harder than it looks in the movies and St. Pete Preservation…

The Weekend Shift: Selfie saturation

If narcissism and vanity had a love child, they’d name her Selfie. As annoying as so many selfies are, and make no mistake, eyes-be-rollin’ at photos of your post-gym workout body or your I’m-a-gangster!-in-the-bathroom-mirror self, they have become an extension of how we tell people about ourselves, especially because so many of them are posted…

St. Pete’s Plan to NOT Jail Teens Appears to Work

Who would have thought not treating a 13-year-old, first-time offender like a hardened criminal would help the kid make better choices? In St. Pete, early statistics — released yesterday morning by the mayor's office — show that doing just that works. Apparently if you don't put a young teenager in jail with older, more seasoned…

WordCamp Tampa partners with veterans support organization

WordCamp Tampa has announced a new partner for the 2015 edition of the annual technology conference focused on the WordPress format and its development. The nonprofit Happy Joe has joined the event, crafting the curriculum for a full day of hands-on training which will be centered around the organization's goals of supporting veterans' efforts to…

NASCAR Trades Navy Jack for Old Glory in Daytona

Not all symbols of the Deep South are clinging to an outdated symbol of "heritage," so hold your NASCAR jokes, please. The family-owned stock-car racing organization will take your rebel flags and give you an American flag instead at Daytona this weekend.  NASCAR chair Brian France called the flag an "insensitive symbol" and told Associated…

$3.25 Billion to Florida From BP over Deepwater Horizon

Just five short years after pumping an astonishing amount of oil into the Gulf of Mexico when a deepwater rig exploded near the northern coast of the Gulf or Mexico, BP has reached a deal with the federal government. In it, Tampa stands to get $27.5 million of the $3.25 billion the deal pays Florida…


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