Racial and economic equity issues bumped up against business strategies as St. Petersburg City Council members debated a new plan for The Historic Manhattan Casino.
While some City Council members were encouraged by a reimagined space and business concept, others were concerned that the plan doesn’t adequately protect the interests of Black residents of the South St. Petersburg Community Redevelopment Area.
From the corner of Rui Farias’ office, Doc Webb is always watching.
Farias, director of the St. Petersburg Museum of History, considers Webb – the founder, president, chairman and namesake of Webb’s City, the massive retail center that dominated downtown for over half a century – a pivotal figure in local history.
Fifteen minutes before logging in for his Catalyst Sessions interview, Michael Connelly reported, he’d finished writing the final episode of the Amazon series Bosch, based on a character he created 25 years and 35 books ago.
It was not only the last script for Season 7 of Bosch, which has yet to begin production due to Covid restrictions, it was the last script for the entire series. As in, the finale. The endgame. After Season 7, it has been mutually agreed between producers (including Connelly) and network, no more Bosch.
As City Development Administrator Alan DeLisle is in charge of economic development, transportation, planning, real estate, events, Enterprise Facilities (including the Tropicana Field site) and more. The discussion centers on the all-important 86 contiguous acres where Tropicana Field now sits, and what will be done with it - if the Tampa Bay Rays leave when their contract expires in 2027, or if the team stays and the area is transformed into mixed-use.