By Peter Roos
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ST. PETE BEACH
On Friday, January 19th St. Pete Beach Fire Rescue hosted an official push-in ceremony for their new state-of-the-art Truck 23, which includes a 100ft ladder. The “Push In” tradition dates back to the days of horse-drawn equipment in the fire service, when firefighters would return from a call, detach the horses from the apparatus, spray it down, and push it back into the bay.
The City of St. Pete Beach is hiring for multiple positions! Explore career opportunities in multiple departments and job functions at www.stpetebeach.org/431/Job-Openings. The city of St. Pete Beach is also seeking volunteers for advisory board and committee vacancies including on their Beach Stewardship Committee, Library Advisory Board and Planning Board. Learn more about how you can volunteer at www.stpetebeach.org/590/Board-Vacancies.
Former city managers are in demand by beach cities this winter as St. Pete Beach rehired former city manager Wayne Saunders and Treasure Island brought Garry Bromback back until a more permanent replacement is chosen. St. Pete Beach Mayor Adrian Petrilla unseated Alan Johnson last Marc, running on a slow or no growth platform, and calling for replacement of the entire commission.
Suntan 61st Birthday Bash & Fundraiser
Suntan Art Center is a wonderful resource, including a variety of art classes, monthly exhibitions, scholarships for children, and a boutique featuring unique masterpieces by local artists for artists. They are planning their annual fundraising party, Let’s Twist Again, March 23 from 6:30-9:30pm. More details next month. You can sign up or donate on their website, www.suntanart.org, mail a check or stop by 3300 Gulf Blvd., St. Pete Beach. For info, call Cindy Rodella-Purdy, Director 727-367-3818.
PINELLAS COUNTY
The Southwest Florida Water Management District is reminding residents who irrigate their lawns to “Skip a Week” or more of watering during February. According to research by the University of Florida, grass doesn’t need to be watered as often during the cooler months. One-half to three-quarters of an inch of water every 10–14 days is sufficient. In fact, if your lawn has received any significant rainfall, then you can turn off your irrigation system and operate it manually as needed. Watering only every other week at most during the winter will help conserve drinking water supplies that the public needs for critical uses during the dry season. Learn more at www.paradisenewsfl.com/skip-a-week.
TIERRA VERDE
Save the Date! Tampa Bay Watch is celebrating Earth Day on Thursday, April 18, 5-8pm with their Earth Night 2024 at the headquarters in Tierra Verde. Earth Night is a sustainable foodie event that helps students from underserved local communities participate in meaningful marine science education programs hosted by the Tampa Bay Watch Discovery Center. More information to come. Learn more about what Tampa Bay Watch is doing for our coastal community, sign up for upcoming volunteer projects or donate today at www.tampabaywatch.org.
ST. PETERSBURG
The St. Petersburg Shuffleboard Club – America’s oldest and largest shuffleboard club – is turning 100 in 2024 and is inviting the community to celebrate together. Festivities began on Saturday, January 20, with the club’s 12th Annual Tweed Ride – the most fashionable event on two wheels. Their 100th anniversary celebration will continue all year. The St. Petersburg Shuffleboard Club is planning multiple special celebrations including a Centennial Shuffleboard Tournament in October, with details to come at a later date. To learn more about upcoming events, visit www.StPeteShuffle.com.
Doc Ford’s Rum Bar & Grille is celebrating their one-year anniversary of its Jungle Terrace restaurant in St. Petersburg. Nestled on the waterfront on Boca Ciega Bay, right off Bay Pines Boulevard, the restaurant opened in late 2022, quickly becoming a popular destination for prime sunsets, sea breezes and Doc Ford’s award-winning Caribbean Rim-inspired food and refreshing cocktails. Learn more at www.paradisenewsfl.com/doc-fords-1-year.
Tampa Bay Markets’ NEW Sunday St. Pete Market celebrated their grand opening Jan. 7! This new weekly market will be every Sunday 10am-2pm at St. Petersburg High School. See photos from their Facebook album of their grand opening at www.facebook.com/TampaBayMarkets. Learn more about this new weekly market at www.paradisenewsfl.com/sunday-market-st-pete.
The Firestone Grand Prix is looking for friendly and enthusiastic volunteers with a can-do attitude for their Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg on March 8-10 in downtown St. Petersburg. Volunteering at the event is a unique and fulfilling experience that offers great insight into one of the biggest annual sporting events in Florida! There are a number of different positions available. Learn how you can volunteer at www.gpstpete.com/contact/volunteer.
Paczki and Dyngus Days
What are you doing on Valentine week? Start off with a Polish Dinner & Dance on Paczki Day, Sunday, Feb. 11 (under $25 each). Bring a dance partner or find one at the Polish American Club, 1343 Beach Dr. SE, St .Petersburg. Doors open at 1:30pm. Music by the Florida Generations from 3-8pm is included in $12 entry. There is a cash bar and an optional Polish dinner $12, 2:15-3:30pm. Everyone gets an awesome Polish Donut to prepare to start Lent. Mark your calendar now for the end of Lent, April 1 this year, when the Polish American Society brings you Dyngus Day. Described “like a reverse Mardi Gras.”
TREASURE ISLAND
Treasure Island Fire Rescue wants local chefs to bring the heat to people’s tastebuds at this year’s Chili Cook-Off on Feb. 16, 5-7pm at the Treasure Island Community Center. There will be music, prizes, a raffle and more. There will also be beer and wine available for donation. This annual event benefits the Treasure Island Fire Association and its chosen charities. There will be prizes for 1st, 2nd and 3rd best chili recipes in two different classes – “The Open Class” and “The Pro Class.” Tickets are $10. Attendees can sample and vote on all the entries. Tickets must be pre-purchased at the Treasure Island Fire Department during regular business hours, M-F 8am to 4pm and traditionally sell out early. Admission is limited to 150 people. Children under the age of 12 are free.
Do you think you have the next best chili recipe? Show everyone what you’ve got by entering your recipe into the Chili Cook-Off. Contact Mercedes Nelson Palmer with any questions at 727-547-4590 ext. 261 or mnelson@mytreasureisland.org. Learn more about this event at www.facebook.com/cotifire.
GULFPORT
The City of Gulfport Senior Center’s Telephone Reassurance Program is a free service for Gulfport residents 50 years of age or older. Volunteers make daily phone calls to registered members and provide comfort, security, and peace of mind to members and families. Registration is simple and free. If you or someone you know could benefit from this service during this difficult time, please call 727-893-2237 and register today.
TAMPA BAY
Tampa Bay’s wildest night returns Saturday, April 6! Join ZooTampa for an ALL-INCLUSIVE night filled with up-close wildlife, endless food, unlimited drinks, live music, games, and more at their annual ZooBrews events! Save with early bird pricing.
St. Petersburg is 2024 Tripadvisor’s Travelers’ Choice Awards Best of the Best winner #2 Travelers’ Choice Awards. Best of the Best winners are destinations whose hotels, restaurants, and things to do received a high volume of above-and-beyond reviews and opinions from the TripAdvisor community over a 12-month period. Fewer than 1% of TripAdvisor’s 8 million listings are awarded Best of the Best, signifying the highest level of excellence in travel. From lesser-known cities to new escapes, these places are up and coming destinations. Wedged between #1 Napa Valley and #3 Marathon in the Florida Keys, “the sun almost always shines on St. Petersburg, the “Sunshine City” that enjoys an average of 361 days of clear skies per year. Combine that with 244 miles of glimmering coastline along Tampa Bay, the Gulf of Mexico, Boca Ciega Bay and the intra-coastal waterways and you have one hot beach destination. Catch the sun, surf and sand, kayak, canoe, explore a fort and more at Ft. De Soto Park, or take a hike, bike or even an electric bike ride up the 37-mile Pinellas Trail. Enjoy a Lightning, Bucs, Rowdies, or Tampa Bay Rays game or escape to the shady oasis of the Sunken Gardens. Visit the Museum of Fine Art, Museum of History, James Museum of Western and Wildlife Art, the only Salvador Dali Museum outside of Europe, the only Chihuly glass museum outside of Seattle, Imagine Glass Museum, Museum of American Craft Art or one of a host of other museums just a 15-minute SunRunner or 25-minute Central Avenue Trolley ride from St. Pete Beach hotels.
Clyde Butcher’s epic book“LifeWorks in Photography”
Clyde Butcher has been called the next Ansel Adams by Popular Photography magazine, awarded as a humanitarian for acting for the betterment of his community, and recognized as a conservationist for bringing issues to the forefront of public consciousness through his art. His photography transcends political boundaries, challenging us to work together to protect natural places across the globe.
“LifeWorks in Photography” is a comprehensive reflection of Clyde Butcher’s remarkable journey, spanning the last 60 years of his prolific career. Divided into six captivating chapters, each section unveils a unique aspect of his life, accompanied by stunning photographs that chronicle his adventures across the United States – from state parks to national parks, showcasing the breathtaking beauty of our nation. Additionally, the book takes you on an international journey, exploring captivating scenes from Cuba, Spain, and the Czech Republic.
The release of “LifeWorks in Photography” will be complemented by his new traveling exhibit, also titled “LifeWorks,” opening Sept. 6 in New Mexico at Las Cruces Museum of Art. This exhibit will bring the pages of the book to life, allowing you to immerse yourself in the captivating visuals that have defined his career. info@clydebutcher.com 941-486-0811
American Stage has gotten a head start on their summer camp programs, offering children interested in acting or theatre 1–3-week sessions and a t-shirt at $275/week from June 3-Aug. 2, 9am-3pm Monday-Friday, ages 5-17. Stagecraft Week will introduce three new camps for littles through teens. In “Storybooks Come to Life!” 5–7-year-olds will work as a team to create and perform a unique and imaginative story based on a popular children’s book. “Storybooks Come to Life!” will culminate in a mini production designed by youth and teen campers in the “Gadgets, Gizmos, & Whosits” and “Page to Stage” camps.Teens and tweens interested in bringing their stories to the screen can enroll in “Acting for the Camera,” a two-week intensive where campers will be immersed in in the world of creating mock commercials, screenwriting for TV & Film, and creating short films that will be presented at a viewing for parents and friends. Precare from 8am and aftercare until 5pm are available at $10 and $20/day respectively. Registration is now open, and financial aid is available. For more information, please visit www.americanstage.org/summer-camp
Across Florida, roughly 100 municipalities have adopted summer rainy-season fertilizer bans. Pinellas County’s fertilizer ordinance became law in 2010. One of Pinellas County’s main legislative priorities this year is to support efforts to keep counties in charge of their fertilizer bans, according to spokesperson Tony Fabrizio. The county believes the ordinance is an effective way to curb nutrient pollution from entering waterways like Tampa Bay, Fabrizio said.
While Leesa Souto conducted research in 2019 to evaluate the effectiveness of local fertilizer ordinances in the Tampa Bay area at preventing nitrogen pollution and found a positive correlation, a new report born from a lobbying effort by the TruGreen lawn care company argues there isn’t enough research to determine whether seasonal fertilizer bans help stop pollution from dumping into Florida waterways.
JD Power named TPA the best large airport in the country for the second year in a row. Strong scores across all factors: A robust food and beverage program, public art, superb customer service, amenities, security, and a plethora of foreign destinations all make TPA stand out among the pack. The J.D. Power Satisfaction StudySM measures passengers’ satisfaction with their airport experience. The study provides insights that can help airports improve their performance and passengers’ airport experience. Frontier Airlines has been expanding its Tampa hub too. Non-stop flights are planned to fly from Tampa to several underserved Caribbean destinations, with or without the absorption of Spirit Airlines.
Paczki and Dyngus Days
What are you doing on Valentine week? Start off with a Polish Dinner & Dance on Paczki Day, Sunday, Feb. 11 (under $25 each). Bring a dance partner or find one at the Polish American Club, 1343 Beach Dr. SE, St. Petersburg. Doors open at 1:30pm. Music by the Florida Generations from 3-8pm is included in $12 entry. There is a cash bar and an optional Polish dinner $12, 2:15-3:30pm.
Everyone gets an awesome Polish Donut to prepare to start Lent. Mark your calendar now for the end of Lent, April 1 this year, when the Polish American Society brings you Dyngus Day. Described “like a reverse Mardi Gras.”
The seventh annual ReadOUT Festival of LGBTQ+ Literature will be live in Gulfport, as well as virtually on Zoom. Presentations will be onsite, live streamed or prerecorded. ReadOUT is committed to involving a wide array of voices. Feb. 16-18 tickets are $0-$10 on Eventbrite in St. Pete.
The seventh annual ReadOUT Festival of LGBTQ+ Literature will be live in Gulfport, as well as virtually on Zoom. Presentations will be onsite, live streamed or prerecorded. ReadOUT is committed to involving a wide array of voices. Feb. 16-18 tickets are $0-$10 on Eventbrite in St. Pete. Educate. Celebrate. Inspire. Event registration: There are two locations for ReadOUT 2024 – Artists of Elements: The Gathering Space and the Catherine A. Hickman Theater. All are welcome. Tickets are available now for both onsite and online attendance. Scholarships are also available for those who wouldn’t otherwise be able to join us. Get your event tickets. Susan Gore, Interim Board President LGBTQ Resource Center, Gulfport Public Library, 5501 28th Ave. S, Gulfport.