WUSF Public Media is launching a free online streaming service called ArtsAxisFL.org for users across the nation to stream performances from a variety of arts groups and cultural institutions in Florida including the Florida Orchestra, the Dali Museum, the James Museum for Western and Wildlife Art and the Sarasota Ballet. As
Covid-19 has changed the way we live and work and the Catalyst, in conjunction with the St. Petersburg Downtown Partnership, wants to find out how the pandemic has impacted your day-to-day life. Please click here to complete a brief survey by Wednesday, Nov. 18 at noon. We'll share the results in an upcoming edition of the Catalyst.
The estimated per capita personal income in the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater metropolitan area was $48,908 in 2019, a 3.3 percent increase from 2018, according to newly released data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Statistics. The increase from 2018 to 2019 was smaller than from 2017 to 2018, when per capita personal income jumped 4.1 percent. Per capita personal income in Pinellas County in 2019 was estimated at $55,607, up 3.4 percent from 2018, but also a smaller increase than the 4.4 percent jump between 2017 and 2018. The Tampa-St. Pete metro area ranks No. 159 among the metro areas in the U.S. for per capita personal income in 2019.
Allegiant has announced a new nonstop route from St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport to Hector International Airport in Fargo, North Dakota beginning Feb. 11, 2021. The new seasonal route will operate twice weekly.
Larry G. Swets Jr. was named chief executive officer of 1347 Property Insurance Holdings Inc. Swets had served as interim CEO since June. He has been a director of the company since November 2013 and was chairman of the company from March 2017 to May 2018. 1347 Property Insurance Holdings (Nasdaq: PIH), headquartered in St. Petersburg, formerly was a property insurance company and now is implementing business plans to operate as a diversified holding company of reinsurance and investment management businesses. The company will ask shareholders to approve a name change to FG Financial Group Inc. at its Dec. 14 annual meeting.
St. Petersburg College has received a gift from the Hough Family Foundation to provide seed funding needed to grow the school's nursing, certified medical assistant and patient care technician programs. The gift will be used to expand SPC’s nursing simulation lab as well as provide additional training equipment and faculty support for the CMA and PCT programs. Through 2026, there is a projected 21 percent job growth for nurses in Florida, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. With the increase of Covid-19 testing and the high demand for healthcare workers even prior to the pandemic, employers are in even greater need of trained medical assistants at outpatient clinics and urgent care centers.
Ahead of its work in the Tampa area around Super Bowl LV, the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay has been selected by AT&T to receive $10,000 in support of the Gateway Contact Center. The Gateway Contact Center includes the 2-1-1 line, where callers receive immediate information and referrals to local services, as well as emotional support 24/7. As the sole provider of these services in Hillsborough County, the Crisis Center anticipates an increase in demand surrounding Super Bowl LV events. This funding also supports the pillars the Super Bowl LV Host Committee has chosen to focus on including early childhood education, food insecurity, families, health and wellness, sustainability and systemic justice.
The city of St. Petersburg ended fiscal year 2020 on Sept. 30 with a $2.5 million surplus in the general operating fund, city administrators told the City Council Monday. Tom Green, assistant city administrator, credited the fiscal stewardship of administrators and department directors, and called the performance "outstanding," given the city spent nearly $6.5 million on the Fighting Chance Fund to help 1,340 small businesses and 1,004 residents impacted by the Covid-19 crisis during the fiscal year. That surplus will be added to the general fund balance for the current fiscal year, FY 2021, said Liz Makofske, budget director. That will help offset the impact of other adjustments in the current year's budget that will add $4.4 million in spending. City Council members have set a public hearing for 5 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 19 on the year-end appropriation adjustments to the budget.
The PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE: PNC) has agreed to buy BBVA USA Bancshares, including its U.S. banking subsidiary, BBVA USA, for $11.6 billion in cash. Both banking companies have a presence locally. PNC Bank had 20 offices and $1.7 billion in deposits in the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater metro area as of June 30, the most recent date for which information is available, while BBVA had two offices in the metro area and $349 million in deposits, according to the FDIC. The deal is expected to close in mid-2021. After it closes, PNC intends to merge BBVA USA into PNC Bank and convert BBVA USA customers to the PNC platform with BBVA USA branches assuming the PNC Bank name, a news release said.
Two major shopping mall owners have agreed to revised terms on a deal that includes the sale of International Plaza in Tampa. Taubman Centers (NYSE: TCO), which owns International Plaza and 25 other malls, agreed to sell the malls to Simon Property Group (NYSE: SPC) for a lower price of $43 a share, a news release said. The two companies also settled a pending court battle, and the deal now is expected to close in late 2020 or early 2021. In February, Simon announced what was a $3.6 billion deal, but called off the purchase in June, after the Covid-19 pandemic hit. The revised deal signal there is hope in the retail real estate industry that traffic will rebound at America’s best malls, CNBC reported.
Quality Thin Films, an optical components company in Oldsmar, has been acquired by Edmund Optics, an optics technology company in Barrington, New Jersey. Financial terms were not disclosed in a news release announcing the deal. The acquisition includes Quality Thin Films' 14,000 square foot facility. Karl George Sr., president and CEO of Quality Thin Films, will retire and his son, Karl George Jr., will continue to oversee the facility and its 30 employees, the news release said.
Three more deaths attributed to Covid-19 have been reported in Pinellas County. The county's death toll from the virus since the pandemic began in March now stands at 853, according to a Saturday report from the Florida Department of Health. There have been a total of 28,865 cases reported in Pinellas County, an increase of 119 cases overnight. The percent of people who tested positive for Covid-19 on Friday was 7.6 percent and has averaged 6.7 percent over the past two weeks. There were 162 people hospitalized in Pinellas County with a primary diagnosis of Covid-19 as of mid-day Saturday, according to the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration. Pinellas County hospitals reported 28.4 percent of hospital beds are available, and 21.6 percent of adult intensive care unit beds are available.
