April 17, 2024

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Today’s Forecast

🚧 3 projects to watch

The brand-new recreation center will debut in fall of 2025. | Rendering via City of Tampa

Things are building up up and away across the Tampa Bay area.

We’re bringing you an update on some of the latest projects to watch in Tampa + the Burg. Here’s the rundown:

Welcome to East Tampa

Last week, Tampa city leaders celebrated the groundbreaking of the Fair Oaks Park transformation.

The massive $34.7 million project features a ~33,000-sqft center with room for seniors, an indoor basketball court, and classrooms, according to a release. Once complete, the park will also boast one outdoor basketball court, two outdoor pickleball courts, a multipurpose sports field, and walking trails.

Leaders say the new center will be finished in fall of 2025, and the full project will be complete in spring of 2026. Never fear, current patrons, the center will remain open while construction is ongoing.

Updates on the TradeWinds Expansion

Remember the proposed glass observation deck looking out over St. Pete Beach? The vote on the TradeWinds Island Resorts expansion — which includes the new public rooftop deck — was delayed to Tuesday, April 23.

City Council was supposed to vote on the proposal — which calls for an additional 629 rooms, parking garages, retail and restaurant spaces, new pools, and a kids center — on Monday, April 15, but the special meeting stalled out after eight and a half hours of public comment and discussion.

While the St. Pete Beach Planning Board unanimously approved the $500 million plan, the expansion still requires final approval from St. Pete Beach City Council.

Tampa General Hospital’s new surgical tower

Tampa General Hospital also celebrated a groundbreaking this week: Leaders just kicked off work on the new Davis Islands surgical tower, according to the Tampa Bay Business Journal.

Tampa-based Belcher Pharmaceuticals just gave TGH $25 million for the tower. Located next to TGH’s Davis Islands campus, Taneja Tower will house surgical, neuroscience, and transplant services.

The facility is expected to open in 2027.

Events

Wednesday, April 17

Pasco County Libraries: Lectures at the Ranch | Wednesday, April 17 | 6:30-8 p.m. | Starkey Ranch Theatre Library Cultural Center, 12118 Lake Blanche Dr., Odessa | Free | ZooTampa’s Manatee Rescue Team shares info on their rescue efforts and how you can help support the gentle giants.

Thursday, April 18

2024 Spring Ybor Art Tour | Thursday, April 18 | 5-9 p.m. | Coastal Film Lab, 1704 N. Nebraska Ave., Tampa | Free with registration | Make your way across the historic neighborhood checking out 24 arts venues, 14 artist studios, and finish the night off with some eats and drinks.
Candlelight: A Tribute to Queen and More | Thursday, April 18 | 9-10 p.m. | Coastal Creative, 2201 1st Ave. S., St. Petersburg | $45+ | Fall under the spell of “Bohemian Rhapsody” and other Queen tunes under the glow of candlelight.

Friday, April 19

98ROCKFEST | Friday, April 19 | 5:50 p.m. | Amalie Arena, 401 Channelside Dr., Tampa | $24+ | Prepare for head-banging to the likes of multi-platinum recording artists Staind, Seether, Asking Alexandria, Dayseeker, Austin Meade, and Sleep Theory.
Jesse McCartney | Friday, April 19 | 6 p.m. | The Ritz Ybor, 1503 E. 7th Ave., Tampa | $26 | The beloved 2000s pop star performs on his “All’s Well Tour.”
“La Traviata” | Friday, April 19-Sunday, April 21 | The Straz Center for the Performing Arts, 1010 N. MacInnes Pl., Tampa | $54 | Inspired by Alexander Dumas’ novel “La Dame aux Camelias,” this opera includes themes of class, reputation, and devotion.

Saturday, April 20

Shop Kirsten Pop-Up | Saturday, April 20 | 10 a.m.-5 p.m. | Oxford Exchange, 420 W. Kennedy Blvd., Tampa | Price of purchase | Grab brunch and shop apparel with messages of kindness and positivity.

Events calendar here

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News Notes

Coming Soon

Just in time for summer, a new açaí spot is coming to Armature Works. Fit Bowl Co. Superfood Bar is opening a pop-up in the popular Heights Public Market. Once opened, the eatery will offer build-your-own smoothie bowls, smoothies, and of course, açaí bowls. (That’s So Tampa)

Pets

Let the dogs out... to new homes. Stop by Tampa’s Santoro’s Pizza tonight from 7:30 to 9 p.m. to find your new pup. The Mercy Full Project will be on hand with lots of dogs in need of loving homes + there will be treats for sale benefiting the nonprofit.

Number

43. That’s how many new residents Hillsborough County added per day in 2023. Overall, the Tampa Bay area saw a positive net migration of 89,490, according to the Business Journal analysis of US Census Bureau data. (Tampa Bay Business Journal)

Festival

Here’s a taste of what’s to come. The Straz Center for the Performing Arts’ “Taste” foodie fest is booked for Saturday, April 27. The annual event features 40+ local eateries and drinkeries like The Dan, 3 Daughters, and Tampa Bay Brewing Company. Buy tickets. (Creative Loafing Tampa Bay)

Real Estate

Speaking of Davis Islands, a prime piece of waterfront real estate is up for grabs. The onetime home of former TECO president Francis J. Gannon is on the market for $4.25 million. The Mediterranean-style home boasts six bedrooms, six bathrooms, and a saltwater pool. (Creative Loafing Tampa Bay)

Sports

Just a few more days until the NHL Playoffs start. Get game coverage, analysis, insights, interviews and more from local experts of the Tampa Bay Lightning with Locked On’s daily podcasts.

Home

Did you catch the latest episode of HGTV’s “Rock the Block”? Reno stars Lyndsay Lamb and Leslie Davis were in Tampa and partnered with Freedom Solar Power to give their house a major upgrade. See episode details + snag Freedom Solar’s $500 savings to celebrate the HGTV partnership.*

Home

Did you know you could finance your fixer-upper with home equity? You could get up to $50K with a HELOC — calculate your payment.*

Culture

🖋️ TBAY or not TBAY

A top-down view of a laptop sitting on a table with an open notebook and pen sitting on top of it. Next to the laptop is a latte in a mug atop a white saucer. The latte has a foam heart on top.

Drumroll, please. | Photo by Pixabay via Pexels

This month, we ran a poetry contest to celebrate National Poetry Month. We challenged our readers to craft a poem using only the words that appeared in one of our newsletters (here are the original contest guidelines if you want to give it a try).

While prose is our newsletter’s bread and butter, it turns out that you all certainly aren’t op-prose-d to verse; we received several creative, intriguing, and beautiful poems that we narrowed down to our top three finalists.

Give them a read at the link below, then vote on your favorite + we’ll announce the winner next week.

Check out the entries

Asked

Which poem do you think should be crowned the winner?

A. “Pexels and the Burg” by Ivelina K.
B. “An American Eclipse” by Andres L.
C. “Hello Tampa Bay” by Barbara G.

Take your pick

The Buy

Briton Court’s new spring collection. Enter the new season with one of these unique printed dresses.

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The Wrap

Today’s edition by:
Bailey

From the editor

Now’s your chance to taste Earth’s bounty. In honor of Earth Day, Downtown St. Pete’s Paradeco is serving a special Earth Day green tea latte + 15% of this drink’s profit goes to Keep Pinellas Beautiful. The blue and green-hued drink is made with ceremonial matcha, blue jasmine green tea, Madagascar vanilla syrup, and oat milk.

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