By Jim Bleyer The Tampa Electric Company is playing a high-stakes shell game with the health and lives of the three million people who reside in the Tampa metropolitan area. Hillsborough County has the most polluted air in Florida, according to the recently released American Lung Association …
By Scott Myers, Contributor The recent proposal by Stu Sternberg, with the approval of MLB, to pursue having the Tampa Bay Rays, beginning in 2024, play 35 home games per season in Tampa Bay and 46 in Montreal is fraught …
By Sharon Calvert, from Eye on Tampa Bay As we posted previously, Judge Rex Barbas gutted the illegal All for Transportation (AFT) tax hike charter amendment, tossing all of AFT’s illegal spending appropriations, prohibitions on funding new roads and other regulations it tried to force Hillsborough County …
By Jim Bleyer Former hedge fund manager turned sports franchise owner Jeff Vinik continues to ply his trade in stocks: laughing ones. Vinik’s Tampa Bay Lightning, overwhelming 9-5 favorites at the outset of the recently-concluded National Hockey League playoffs, continue to be the butt of standup jokes and …
By Mark Calvert, from Eye on Tampa Bay Now that much of the mandated spending constraints All For Transportation tax hike have been found unconstitutional, all the media, business elites, politicians and proponents that were so wrong about the legal issues, are pushing hard to reinstate the “will …
By Jim Bleyer The attendance-challenged Tampa Bay Rays are exiting the area sooner rather than later. The team and Major League Baseball make that clear yesterday by announcing they will explore sharing home games with the city of Montreal. Splitting an 81-game home schedule between two cities 1,300 …
By Jim Bleyer It’s been a rocky road for electric scooters. Embraced by many American cities, including Tampa, the dockless, shareable two-wheelers have experienced mounting injuries, many serious. Initial enthusiasm has been replaced with a healthy dose of reality. Sure they’re cute, cheap, and offer Millennials a downtown …
By Jim Bleyer If Variety reviewed the Mayor’s Forum on the Arts, held Wednesday night at Hillsborough Community College, the gathering would have been described as nothing less than “boffo.” In fact, the venerable staple of entertainment news might have showered the Tampa event with more superlatives than …
By Sharon Calvert, from Eye on Tampa Bay All For Transportation (AFT) were the media darlings of transportation last year. Local media gave AFT spokespersons gobs of free exposure to shout out the message that we must spend more money on transportation in Hillsborough County. AFT spent $4 million telling …
By Jim Bleyer A combination of secrecy, weak regulation, and rapid proliferation have made hedge funds a very attractive vehicle for money launderers. And, although Congress was on the cusp of legislation making hedge funds culpable for abetting criminal activity, that opportunity evaporated following the 2018 midterm elections. …
By Sharon Calvert, from Eye on Tampa Bay Sunshine Citizens is registered in Florida as a “501c3 nonprofit” and has a federal tax exempt status from the IRS. Sunshine Citizens website reflects they are a transit “advocacy” group who wants to reduce “our dependence on the automobile”. And in reality, it is …
By Jim Bleyer Gov. Ron DeSantis’ just concluded trip to Israel aimed at cementing ties between Florida and the Jewish state found a serious audience. In contrast to the Florida media circus that hypocritically demeaned and attempted to undermine the bolstering of scientific, agricultural, economic, and political cooperation, the …
By Jim Bleyer Don’t be deceived by Bill Carlson’s calm demeanor. The rookie city councilman’s passion for Tampa runs wide, deep, and beyond his avid penchant for a good cigar. Along with enthusiasm for all things Tampeño, Carlson brings to City Hall a world view, willingness to explore and …
By Jim Bleyer The Florida Department of State has notified Jeff Vinik that his corporation, Tampa Bay Sports and Entertainment LLC, may be in non-compliance with state statutes and, therefore, subject to fines. The company has been doing business in Florida since 2010 but never registered as a …
By Jim Bleyer Andrew Gillum brought healthy doses of his charisma, bankroll, and grit to Tampa on Thursday in an effort to rally Democrats for the 2020 election and beyond. The main photo op for the local press was his presenting a large facsimile of a $100,000 …
By Dr. Jim Davison Hillsborough County’s Metropolitan Planning Organization has concocted an impractical transit scheme that involves tearing down 10 miles of Interstate-275 in favor of a boulevard concept, a plan ranked last by a survey of Tampa Bay citizens. The unfathomable concept attempts to shoehorn a …
By Jim Bleyer Jeff Vinik selling the Tampa Bay Lightning would never enter the mind of most local hockey fans but the idea is not at all far-fetched. In fact, over the next 15 months it is rated a 50-50 proposition to those paying close attention to the machinations …
By Clocker Vandalay, Contributor I have a friend, who is a fellow professional and young, relative to me. She was drawn to horse racing a couple of years ago, her interest triggered by a move from Florida to Louisville, where horse racing is considered a legitimate and interesting sport, second …
By Jim Bleyer A class action lawsuit has been filed against Tampa Bay Sports and Entertainment that could conservatively could cost the Jeff Vinik-led company $300 million. The legal action alleges TBSE, owner of the National Hockey League’s Tampa Bay Lightning, violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. Litigation …
By Jim Bleyer Acknowledging he feels pressure in deliberating and ruling on a lawsuit challenging the validity of the Hillsborough County sales tax for transit, Judge Rex Barbas nevertheless promised anything but a quick resolution to the issue. Both sides participated in a marathon hearing Friday with more arguments …
