‘Tis the season to shop – and support local business! More than 350 local businesses will take over Vinoy Park on Thanksgiving weekend for Shopapalooza Festival 2023. According to LocalShops1 founder Ester Venouziou, the beloved holiday extravaganza is expected to be one of the largest Small Business Weekend events in the nation.

​Co-sponsored by the City of St. Petersburg, Shopapalooza is a production of LocalShops1, recognized as Tampa Bay’s most active voice for small businesses. “We foster collaborations and organize events to connect businesses with businesses, as well as businesses with shoppers,” Venouziou explains. “Our signature event is Shopapalooza, the most popular holiday festival in downtown St.… Read More

In 1972, Hurricane Agnes skirted the Tampa Bay area and made landfall near Apalachicola. Newspaper accounts of the flooding Agnes brought to Shore Acres might be mistaken for stories written about the impact of Hurricane Idalia, which followed a similar path at the end of August 2023. In both Agnes and Idalia, residents scrambled to find high ground for cars, appliances, and belongings. The high tide crested seawalls, came up storm drains, filled the streets, and then made its way into homes. 

There are important differences between Agnes and Idalia, however. On the June night that Agnes swept past us toward the panhandle, city and county officials thought impact would be minimal.… Read More

Musician, professional athlete, conductor, a student of language and science. You might think I’m talking about a group of outstanding people, but in fact, I’m introducing Dr. Chelsea Gallo, the newly promoted resident conductor for The Florida Orchestra’s 2023-2024 season. Her list of accomplishments is long and all the more impressive when you learn she became a conductor quite by accident after a torn ACL changed her entire path. 

Gallo’s love of music, however, has always been with her. She began playing the violin and piano at the age of four, and eventually chose to study music in her collegiate and post-collegiate years, earning a master’s degree in Vienna, Austria, where she also played professional softball.… Read More

There has been much news about the Hines–Tampa Bay Rays proposal to build a new stadium in St. Petersburg, just southeast of Tropicana Field. It’s not just a stadium, however, but a 20-year $6.5 billion proposal to redevelop the 86-acre area of the historic former Gas Plant neighborhood. The proposed redevelopment calls for 6,000 residential units, including 1,200 affordable and workforce units both on- and off-site; a hotel; 14,000 parking spaces; a refurbished park along Booker Creek, which meanders through the site; an entertainment venue; and space for and a $10 million contribution to a new home for the Dr. Carter G.… Read More