The City of Tampa told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay that code enforcement conducted 154 inspections on Jan. 1-Jan. 2, and issued six citations, including a second citation for MacDinton’s in South Tampa.
The second citation for MacDinton’s—located at 405 S Howard Ave. in the popular bar district of Soho—arrived on the night of Jan. 1 and means the establishment got a $300 fine.
Bar Howard, just a block away from MacDinton’s, was also fined for mask violations on Jan. 1. On the same night in Ybor City, three bars—Southern Nights, Prana (pictured) and The Ritz—were issued citations for violating mask and dance floor ordinances.
On Jan. 2, Ybor City’s Club Skye was also issued a citation.
Initial fines for violating the ordinances that prohibit gathering on dance floors or not wearing your mask unless seated are $150. While individuals can’t be fined, businesses that don’t enforce these rules can receive a civil citation and a fine up to $500, or a second degree misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $500.
Ashley Bauman, spokesperson for the City of Tampa, told CL that 76 inspections were conducted on Jan. 1 while 78 were conducted on Jan. 2. Bauman also confirmed that City of Tampa code enforcement was not out on New Year’s Eve when hordes of partygoers spilled into the streets in the first moments of the new year, just hours after Florida recorded its largest single-day increase in COVID-19 cases: 17, 192.
New Years Eve vibes in Ybor City. pic.twitter.com/pBGakI0ht8
— Luis Santana (@LuisSantana) January 1, 2021
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This article appears in Jan 7-13, 2021.
