New café Pura Vida Miami opens in downtown Tampa this week
Is Tampa the next Miami? Well, the verdict is still out, but a popular South Florida restaurant chain is about to debut in Tampa’s Water Street neighborhood. Fast-casual well-ness café chain Pura Vida Miami will officially open this Thursday, Sept. 10 at 1038 Water St., in the former Dwell & Company location. Pura Vida, founded…
Tampa Tiger Bay says Byron Donalds dropped out of one-on-one event with David Jolly, his campaign says it was never confirmed
Byron Donalds says David Jolly “isn’t doing much of anything” on the campaign trail, but Jolly is firing back that it’s Donalds who dropped out of what would have been the first one-on-one events between the two men running for governor of Florida. Those verbal exchanges took place over the Labor Day weekend, when both men…
Florida has lost nearly 21 percent of its citrus farms in the last year, says federal report
Citrus land keeps vanishing from Florida’s landscape, down nearly 21 percent over the past year, according to a federal report. As the 2026-2027 growing season gets underway, there are 165,359 acres across 23 Florida counties in use for producing oranges, grapefruit and specialty fruits, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s preliminary Commercial Citrus Inventory report states.…
Florida blocks undocumented students from state universities
Students must be lawfully in the United States to attend Florida’s universities, the board that oversees the university system voted Thursday. The measure received no debate or discussion, except from members of the public during public comment. The Board of Governors approved the measure, on the consent agenda, after receiving preliminary approval during a meeting…
After two years of renovations, St. Pete’s Historic Manhattan Casino finally reopens
After closing its doors in 2022, the Historic Manhattan Casino in St. Petersburg is finally ready for its debut. The space, which once hosted some of the most famous Black jazz and blues performers back in the day, will open its doors at 642 22nd St. S on Sept. 19 for a ribbon-cutting ceremony. The…
‘Thank you Ron DeSantis for stealing $10 million from sick kids’: Tampa Bay State Rep candidate confronts governor over Hope Florida scandal
Rather than witness his 14th execution so far this year, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis was instead in Tampa Tuesday evening sharing a stage with Republican candidates, and also getting grilled by audience members over the ongoing Hope Florida scandal. While speaking at the TPepin’s Hospitality Centre, DeSantis was in the midst of introducing Republican gubernatorial…
Co-owner of Armature Works wants to bring a Trader Joe’s to Seminole Heights
One of Tampa’s most prominent local developers wants to bring a popular, private-label, grocery store to his neighborhood. Armature Works co-owner Adam Harden is currently pushing to bring Trader Joe’s fourth Tampa Bay location to Seminole Heights. It all started this summer with a mysterious “Hey Joe” campaign, which so far includes a dedicated website,…
St. Petersburg citizens launch campaign for city to run its own utilities
A coalition of local organizations in St. Petersburg announced Wednesday a petition campaign to try to place a measure before the public that, if approved, would make the city the first in more than 20 years in Florida to run its own electric utility. The pronouncement comes after the St. Petersburg City Council voted in…
Florida House Democrats call for impeachment of Attorney General James Uthmeier
House Democrats want to impeach Attorney General James Uthmeier for his role in the diversion of $10 million in a settlement over Medicaid overpayments that was routed into political committees he controlled. The committees opposed two measures on the November 2024 ballot. A recently leaked grand jury report found the money was “misappropriated” but didn’t…
Tampa Filipino restaurant Lucky Tigre celebrates fourth anniversary with lumpia eating contest
Tampa restaurant Lucky Tigre has lived a lot of lives in its short four years. Born as Good Fortune Baby during the height of the pandemic, Julie Sainte Michelle Feliciano-Loughlin’s Filipino restaurant then dropped dumplings on doorsteps, then moved into the South Howard neighborhood, and later West Tampa. The spot at 1901 N Howard Ave.…
Last year DeSantis funded Flock cameras, now he’s against the ‘surveillance state’
Gov. Ron DeSantis, critical of license plate readers, has blocked their use on state roads, warning the cameras could create a “surveillance state.” But in the past year, DeSantis has approved approximately $4.6 million in requests from local law enforcement agencies for license plate readers in connection with their illegal immigration enforcement efforts. Not all…
Only two Florida Democrats joined Republicans in bill condemning Democratic Socialism, Tampa’s Kathy Castor was one of them
Two Florida Democrats who are fighting for their political lives after seeing their congressional seats redistricted voted Tuesday for a resolution denouncing “socialism in all of its forms.” Kathy Castor and Darren Soto joined six other Democrats in supporting the resolution. The final vote was 220-192, with two Democrats voting present. The resolution “denounces socialism in all…
Letters: With each year at Hillsborough College, the home of the Hawks feels less like the nest I once knew
It’s 6:30 in the morning and inside my headphones is the calming sound of ocean waves. Outside, the sun is rising behind the apartment complex across the street. Swooping into view is an osprey, who lands atop an orange construction cone and stares intently into the pond below. It’s nest on the next telephone pole.…
Pinellas human rights board could investigate sheriff for immigrant detention policies
Pinellas County’s authority on human rights is exploring options to investigate Sheriff Bob Gualtieri following a ProPublica investigation that uncovered unconventional immigrant detention practices. The report found that the jail was repeatedly booking immigrants, briefly releasing them into U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody, then rebooking them. This reset a 72-hour detention time limit. At…
TIGLFF’s 37th annual queer film festival takes over St. Pete and Tampa this month
The gays are taking over the silver screen this month, on both sides of Tampa Bay. The Tampa Bay International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival (now just “TIGLFF”) paused in January St. Pete festival and is moving forward with a rebrand that will span seven days across two weekends in two area codes. St. Petersburg’s…
Barstool Sports is coming to St. Pete
Barstool Sports, a media empire spanning everything from guys in baseball caps shouting about football to guys in baseball caps shouting about Sydney Sweeney’s new lingerie line, has selected St. Petersburg as the permanent home for a new NFL show. The media company will utilize a 5,600-square-foot production space at St. Pete’s Shear Media Studios,…
Gulfport’s annual Geckofest party brings 10 hours of untamed fun to the waterfront
Inspired in part by the United Kingdom’s Monster Raving Loony Party, Gulfport resident Marlene Shaw had a pretty simple vision for the seaside town’s Labor Day weekend party. She saw “music, color, costume, and characters who treated politics like performance art,” according to a new piece published in the town’s indie newspaper the Gabber. “Somewhere…
Creative Pinellas taps 50 artists to get loud at ‘Amped’ fundraiser this weekend
Even after a quarrel with county commissioners over funding, Creative Pinellas is still loud. The arts nonprofit turns up at FloridaRama (stylized FloridaRAMA) this weekend for a fundraiser and exhibition featuring about 75 pieces across all mediums. Curated by pretty much lifelong Bay area scene supporter Maggie Duffy, this weekend’s opening includes live music (DJ…
Ybor City’s extra freaky Tabernacle Of Oddities returns this weekend
Going into some of Tampa Bay’s most horrific haunted houses isn’t the only way to get freaked out this Halloween season. Ybor City’s most famous (and only??) oddities shop Dysfunctional Grace once again takes over the Cuban Club this weekend for another edition of its Tabernacle Of Oddities. The convention includes four floors of weirdness…
Fresh off $2.5 million renovation, Scream-A-Geddon returns to Dade City this weekend
America celebrates Halloween for two months, and if you need proof, look no further than this 60-acre patch of horror in Pasco County. Ahead of its 12th season, Scream-A-Geddon underwent a $2.5 million renovation on its midway, which has not only led to paved parking lots, but apparently opened the door for the attraction’s infamous…
Florida sheriffs begin dropping license plate readers as DeSantis warns against ‘surveillance state’
Ron DeSantis insists no Florida governor has given law enforcement more tools to fight crime than he has, but he wants them aimed at criminals, not citizens who have done nothing wrong. Speaking in Jacksonville Monday, the governor said he’s certain that nearly every sheriff in Florida can point to a situation in which Flock-style…
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‘Molotov Cocktails, Pipe Bombs & Other Family Recipes’ book release among top events in Tampa Bay [September 3-10]
Every family has recipes. For some, that includes molotov cocktails and pipe bombs. That’s on paper, at least, for the writer and spoken word artist Richard J. Girard II. This weekend, the 20-year literary and poetry scene veteran celebrates the release of a new book “Molotov Cocktails, Pipe Bombs & Other Family Recipes” by bringing…
DeSantis Administration bans Flock cameras from state highways
Amid a growing backlash to license plate reader (LPR) cameras and citing concerns over privacy, Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration on Monday moved to shut down the newly ubiquitous technology on state roads. The cameras, made by Flock Safety and other companies, use artificial intelligence to track suspects and flag speeders. But reports of abuse by…
Tampa Bay Beer Week hosts ‘Halfway There’ fundraiser beer festival this weekend
Across the nation’s media landscape, food & drink writers seem eager to declare the death of craft beer. Some of those bylines actually make a good argument. As Tampa Bay Business Journal reported yesterday, a dozen local breweries have closed over the last year, with just five (including the extremely popular Late Start Brewing) opening…
Spaddy’s marks 10-year anniversary by roasting Tampa’s favorite golfing coffee roaster
There’s a lot you could roast Greg Spadaccini about. Like how for 10 years, he’s made his extremely loyal Spaddy’s Coffee customers in Seminole Heights sit outside to enjoy the very good coffee that he’s been making for over a decade. The guy even opened an indoor country club before cooling down that cozy courtyard.…
Tampa City Council’s 4-3 vote to approve Rays stadium funding is just the first of many steps
Tampa City Council, on a 4-3 vote with Council Members Charlie Miranda, Guido Maniscalco and Lynn Hurtak voting no, approved the funding and development agreement with the Rays at their August 27, 2026 meeting. Despite the language in the agreement being altered right up to the morning of the vote, Council Members Bill Carlson, Luis…
New Florida law to protect consumers from data center costs faces its first test
One of the country’s largest energy holding companies is probing just how closely Florida will regulate data centers and the massive costs they could pass down to electric customers, in a key first test of what advocates have called a “historic” consumer protection law. The case before Florida’s Public Service Commission is weighing whether Duke…
This year’s Florida bear hunt will allow hunters to kill more bears
Hunters in Florida will have a chance to kill more bears later this year than in the 2025 hunt, and once again non-hunters are expected to apply for the permits to undermine the planned hunt. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is offering up to 215 permits, of which 193 people can bid on…
Chromeo headlines Water Street Tampa’s fall ‘Beats on the Street’ music festival
After watching Chromeo get rained out during Gasparilla Music Festival 2023, downtown Tampa is getting another chance to dance with the Canadian electro-duo. Water Street Tampa says that David “Dave 1” Macklovitch and Patrick “P-Thugg” Gemayel will do a DJ set this fall for the fourth annual “Beats on the Street.” The no-cover festival—set for…
‘Dark Knight Rises’ actor Tom Hardy has a rap album, and there’s an Ybor City nod
English actor Tom Hardy is a rapper now, and his new album with hip-hop supergroup Czarface has a brief but notable nod to historic Ybor City. Czarface, which consists of Boston duo 7L and Esoteric, as well as Wu-Tang icon Inspectah Deck, released its latest album Czarface Meets Frankie Pulitzer, over the weekend and if…
Armature Works staple Graze will open a third location in South Tampa
Popular brunch and salad spot Graze will soon open a new location in Tampa’s Ballast Point neighborhood. The restaurant took to social media over the weekend, writing “Graze 3 coming soon to Ballast Point! We are so excited to join this neighborhood and serve up delicious brunch, lunch and dinner 7 days a week.” The…
‘This is money laundering’: David Jolly says Casey DeSantis, Hope Florida were ‘used’ in a ‘sinister plan’
Democratic gubernatorial candidate David Jolly ripped into Republicans again Friday over the grand jury report on Hope Florida. But the candidate looking to replace Gov. Ron DeSantis did agree with the sitting governor on one part of the fallout. He agreed that First Lady Casey DeSantis — who briefly was seen a potential successor to her husband…
Scott Elliott, Tampa artist and WMNF DJ, has died at age 66
Scott Elliott, singer, performer, DJ, vinyl enthusiast (putting it mildly), activist, and therapist, died on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026, of pancreatic cancer. Elliott, who was 66 years old, leaves behind his husband, Stephen Gaudette, two brothers, Melvin and Wayne, and two beloved pups, Duke and Gracie. He was fiercely talented and deeply righteous. Music and…
Florida Dems call for resignations amid Hope Florida leak, while DeSantis claims investigation was designed to ‘smear’ his wife
Florida Democrats went on the offensive Thursday against Republican leaders after the release of a blistering statewide grand jury report that found $10 million in Medicaid funds were “misappropriated” and wound up being used for “political activities.” That report — obtained by CBS Miami and posted on its website — did not result in anyone getting charged…
Tampa City Councilwoman Lynn Hurtak says she has breast cancer
It was another long day at Tampa City Hall today, as the community came together to discuss another proposal that uses public money to help build a stadium for the Tampa Bay Rays. District 3 Councilwoman Lynn Hurtak, who is running in the Tampa mayoral election that wraps in March, has been the tip of…
Downtown Tampa’s staple ‘Rock The Park’ concert series celebrates 16th anniversary on September 3
First Thursdays in downtown Tampa have been a sweet treat for 16 years now, thanks to Rock the Park. The locally-grown concert series at Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park is a bonafide staple of life in the 813 (even if you have a 656 number). This week it is locked on the future (new band Maryn…
Viral nerd-rock band Cheekface comes to Tampa on Wednesday
Cheekface is what happens when Cake walks through primordial ooze hand-in-hand with They Might Be Giants. Despite its nerd-pop sheen, a 2026 album, Podium, has the kind of nihilistic thoughts and existential dread reserved for sleepless nights watching Fox News. Officially viral, the Los Angeles trio is a musical mascot for furries and Gen-Z which…
Pasco Sheriff’s Office will begrudgingly end Flock, license plate detection systems
Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco announced Wednesday that his department will terminate its agreement to use Automated License Plate Recognition cameras (APLRs), as well as Flock cameras, in public areas. In a letter to the Pasco County Board of County Commissioners, Nocco said the agency will end the interlocal agreement that was passed in 2024…
Al Downing Jazz Association hosts a big ol’ guitar concert in St. Pete this weekend
Charlie Byrd would’ve turned 101 years old in September. Expect Carl Amundson to call a few tunes by the jazz icon at this guitar pull of sorts hosted by The Al Downing Tampa Bay Jazz Association. Five guitarists take the stage, backed by a three-piece rhythm section, for solo sets all before coming together at…
‘On High’ music festival, which is kind of like a halfway to Reggae Rise Up concert, comes to St. Pete on Friday
That smell? We’re halfway to Reggae Rise Up, people. The On High party is just one day, but it brings staples of the reggae-rock genre back to downtown St. Petersburg, from Big Island-born trio Pepper to The Movement from South Carolina. Aer’s Carter Reeves brings his feel-good reggae-pop project Surfer Girl to the pier, too.…
‘A highly orchestrated scheme to launder Medicaid money’: Leaked grand jury report prompts calls for Moody and Uthmeier to resign
Democrats on Thursday called for more investigations and resignations of top state officials after a leaked state grand jury report found Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration “misappropriated” Medicaid money in 2024 that ended up in political committees. But since the grand jury also didn’t find enough probable cause to pursue criminal charges against anyone, DeSantis, Attorney…
Fesssi K. releases one of the Tampa Bay area’s best rock LPs of 2026 this weekend
Jeff Buckley will fuck your life up. Just ask Zoe Robinson. Better known as the leader of Fesssi K., the songwriter saw “It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley” in September 2025 and emerged from a writing slump to come up with most of what ended up on Jock. In the documentary, the late singer-songwriter blasts through…
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ends Tampa event when asked about kratom ties
Wednesday, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. abruptly ended a press gaggle with local media when asked about his ties to a kratom company. The incident occurred while Kennedy and Senator Ashley Moody promoted the Harvest to Hallways initiative at a Tampa elementary school. The new federal initiative encourages schools to use…
‘Rap house’ curator brings Caribbean artist Beanie to Ybor City on Friday
There are a handful of folks in the Bay area fully committed to platforming hip-hop. Danny Fazioli is one of them. A staple from the since shuttered Shuffle Remix days, the DJ better known as Dfaz has moved his rap house to The Bricks in Ybor City, and this weekend he welcomes Caribbean singer-songwriter Beanie…
Pinellas sheriff re-booked migrants to bypass federal law limiting detention time, says report
After allegedly being assaulted by her husband, Soumia Bensalah was taken into custody by police in Polk County. Despite having no local criminal charges, she spent the following weeks two counties over, being booked and re-booked into the Pinellas County Jail on behalf of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. A ProPublica investigation released today found…
‘My platform hasn’t changed’: Tampa State Rep. Brian Nathan on unions, affordability and more
Sen. Brian Nathan, D-Tampa, has served less than a year in the Florida Senate and is up for a rematch in November against former Rep. Josie Tomkow, but his strategy hasn’t changed. The union leader is still focused on legislation to roll back the union dues bill recently passed by the GOP majority in the…
Grand jury says Florida AG James Uthmeier was in ‘position of authority’ in $10 million Medicaid scandal
A state grand jury report found Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration “misappropriated” funds by diverting Medicaid money to a nonprofit, eventually ending up in political committees supporting the governor’s agenda. But the report didn’t find enough to pursue criminal charges against anyone. The report was first obtained and published by CBS Miami on Wednesday evening. It…
Tampa Bay History Center’s conversation about transit is already sold-out
Elected officials in the City of Tampa and Hillsborough County can really boogie when it comes to finding ways to give taxpayer money to billionaire baseball team owners—but they seem to have trouble bringing that same energy to the Bay area’s transportation puzzle. Was it always this way? On his Tampa Bay Developer podcast, Garrett…
Tampa’s Black History Museum hosts Zora Neale Hurston book talk on Monday
Since its publication nearly 90 years ago, Zora Neale Hurston’s novel “Their Eyes Were Watching God” has faced opposition. It’s still the ire of parents who’ve pushed for its ban in counties across the U.S. and Florida. More than a Black feminist classic, the 1937 work is simply human and tells the story of a…
Saturday comedy gig in Ybor Heights promises to ‘raise hell, and never punch down’
Comedy is supposed to be the last bastion of free speech, but the culture of Austin, Texas’ Comedy Mothership has unfortunately, occasionally, passed the mic to mediocre comics who’d rather juice the algorithm than actually work on writing smart jokes. This show might be an antidote. Billed as a safe space to tell dark jokes,…
