By Peter Roos
MADEIRA BEACH
April 28-30, Old Salt Fishing Foundation’s Spring King of the Beach. King Mackerel and Spanish Mackerel Tournament with $225,000 in cash and prizes.
4/28: Captains Meeting, Team Check-In & Registration Gates Open: 5pm, Team Check-In: 6:30pm Rules Review: 8pm Raffle & Silent Auction: 9pm4/29: Kids Fishing Slam & Community Party Gates Open: 5pm Kids Slam Starts: 6pm4/30: Tournament Fishing & Weigh-In Lines In: 6am Weigh-In Starts: 3pm Must Be Checked-In and In Line By: 5pmLocation: 200 Rex Place – Madeira Beach, Florida 33708Tournament Entry Fees – Pre-registration
Old Salt Member Entry Fee ($255) Non-Member Entry ($275) Spanish Mackerel Only: $155
PINELLAS COUNTY
Pinellas County School Board members, superintendents, cultural executives, and other community leaders will gather in Ruth Eckerd Hall to honor and celebrate 121 Pinellas County Principals at the annual Principals Appreciation Breakfast. Arts for a Complete Education (ACE) will host the event and bring together various speakers and presentations to demonstrate the value of arts education. Presentations on the importance of the arts in public schools, student performances, and speeches from local community leaders will be featured. The event will highlight student art, as well as the impact of past, present, and future arts programs. Please visit www.stpeteartsalliance.org/ace-pinellas.
PSTA to purchase 60 electric buses
The Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA) will purchase 60 electric buses over the next five years. The recent release shows an electric bus built by Gillig. PSTA confirmed the initial order was worth 80 million dollars but expects each electric bus to save about $20,000 a year in diesel fuel costs. PSTA targets a “fully green fleet by 2050,” said Brad Miller, CEO. He stressed the decision was helped by the new Biden administration transportation law, “the largest investment public transit has realized in US history.” The federal infrastructure trillion-dollar budget includes $7.5 billion reserved for zero-emission buses.
ST. PETE BEACH
Corey Landings $90+ Million Project Approved
St. Pete Beach commissioners unanimously approved the Corey Landing project, a mixed-use residential development planned by South Florida-based Ram Realty Advisors. The approved plans include a seven-story building that will house 243 residential units, along with 5,000 square feet for an indoor/outdoor restaurant, 8,000 square feet of retail space, and another 4,000 square feet for office/co-work areas. Additionally, plans for the nearly four-acre lot include almost a full acre dedicated to a park running through the center of the development and opening onto the waterfront. As part of their centennial celebration, the Pass-a-Grille Woman’s Club is working on a coffee table book with a history of Pass-a-Grille from 1922 – 2022. The books will be sold in Pass-a-Grille for years to come. There are no ads, but the ladies are looking for people with Pass-a-Grille stories to tell. For a substantial donation, you or your ancestors too can be included. It will end up being a who’s-who of Pass-a-Grille women over the last century. It is their goal for the project to be self-funding, so it doesn’t use funds bound for charities. Email sandie7@verizon.net.
The city has funding for a yard beautification effort that would remove paving from a home’s right of way and replace it with a shade tree and ground cover. Homeowners can apply online. There is no cost to the homeowner. Questions should be directed to Jennifer McMahon, Chief Operating Officer, City of St. Pete Beach, at 727-363-9274 or email: rddirector@stpetebeach.org
ST. PETERSBURG
Tiny Home Villages in South St. PeteThe Pinellas Ex-Offender Re-entry Coalition, (PERC) which aims to help ex-offenders secure jobs, is proposing a South St. Pete tiny home village dedicated to the workforce. PERC submitted an offer letter to the city to acquire the property at the northwest corner of 18th Ave and 18th St. S, 2034 9th St. S., and 634 22nd Ave. S. to build 32 to 34 tiny homes, said Mike Jalazo, executive director of PERC. The units will be rented to residents earning at or below 80% of the area median income (AMI). Two other developers, Habitat for Humanity and Namaste, also submitted proposals. In separate news, Habitat for Humanity got a half a billion dollars from Mackenzie Scott nationally. The local group’s share is $11 million, the largest ever by 10-fold.
Canvas City Homes project in Warehouse Arts District.
Sight Real Estate of Tampa is planning a 10-unit luxury townhome project in St. Pete’s Warehouse Arts District. Canvas City Homes St. Petersburg, will be a 10-unit residential development at 2700 5th Ave. S with a modern industrial architecture style, influenced by the many artist studios and galleries in the district. The community will have two floor plans for its 2,000 sf., three-bedroom units, which start at $525,000, with end units priced at $550,000. All of the units have a balcony and a two-car garage.
FLORIDA
2018 Red Tide Outbreak Cost Florida 2,900 jobs. Researchers with the University of Florida found during the 2018 bloom – which took place between October 2017 and January 2019 – roughly $184 million was lost in the tourism sector. And, because of the shrinking Airbnb market at the time, nearly 2,900 jobs were lost throughout the state.
Want A Favorite Movie Poster? The new owners of The Beach Theatre found hundreds of movie posters in storage there spanning decades. The Beach Theatre Community Foundation is holding a sidewalk fundraiser April 10th to raise money towards the renovation of the historic Beach Theatre! Now is your chance to own a piece of Beach Theatre history! Hundreds of posters covering decades of theater programming are available at $20 each or 3 for $50. You can redecorate. See www.SPBeachtheatre.org. Hit Movie Poster Fundraiser for list. Standard theatrical release one-sheet posters measure 27”x 40”. Want it framed? Just a few doors west of the beach theatre, Yvonne Marcus’ Art EXPO gallery can expertly frame it.