Ninety-six employees are losing their jobs as Triad shutters its St. Petersburg operations. The digital advertising and marketing firm is being permanently closed due to the combined impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and ongoing changes in the retail industry, according to media investment company GroupM, which bought Triad in 2016. When GroupM confirmed the shutdown last month, it did not say how many workers would be affected. But in a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification dated April 17 and made public today, the company detailed the 96 job titles and positions that would be eliminated in the shutdown. The layoffs began on April 30 and will continue through the end of the year, the WARN said.
Nonprofits and community organizations serving low to moderate income residents can apply for funds through Pinellas County’s portion of the federal CARES Act. The funds are designed to support public health and testing, feeding operations, emergency sheltering, housing and other services. The organizations must show a direct link between the Covid-19 crisis and their increase in services, as well as demonstrate their ability to meet specific public health objectives defined in the CARES Act. Funds are coming from the Community Development Block Grant Program-Coronavirus Response (CDBG-CV) and the Emergency Solution Grant-Coronavirus Response (ESG-CV) funds. Applications are due by 5 p.m., May 22. More information is here.
The owner of one of the top meeting venues in St. Petersburg, the Hilton Hotel Carillon Park, has ended its contract with the company hired to manage the property. Heartland Hotel Corp., which has managed the hotel since it opened in 2006, said its management contract ended effective May 6. "Following the declaration of the coronavirus health emergency, the various closure orders and the closure of the hotel on or about April 8, 2020, Heartland Hotel has been negotiating with the owners of the hotel to attempt to continue management of the hotel. The efforts have been unsuccessful," Derick Rackham, president of Cedar Rapids, Iowa-based Heartland said in a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification filed with the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity. Because it was uncertain when the hotel would open, Heartland permanently laid off all of its 150 employees at the hotel on May 6, the WARN said. No one from Heartland nor the owner, Hobbs & Curry Family Limited Partnership in Fort Smith, Arkansas, returned calls from the St. Pete Catalyst requesting additional comment.
A newly constructed, single-tenant, freestanding retail property in Pinellas Park sold for $5.59 million, or a record-breaking price of $1,798 per square foot, according to SRS Real Estate Partners Net Lease Group. The 3,109-square-foot property, a 9401 49th St. N., is occupied by 7-Eleven and provides direct access to U.S. Highway 19. Frank Rogers and Michael Carter of SRS represented the seller, who is described in a news release as a merchant developer. The property has a 15-year corporate guaranteed absolute triple-net lease in place, with 10 percent rental increases every five years, Carter said in the release. Pinellas County records list the buyer as 9401 Pinellas Park Holdings LLC, a company associated with Dubler Investments LLC in New York.
Tampa residents were more eager than most to get back to dining in at local restaurants after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis launched the first phase of a plan to lift restrictions imposed in the wake of Covid-19. Dining reservations at Tampa restaurants spiked on May 4, the first day restaurants were allowed to partially re-open, and have since dramatically outpaced restaurants in major cities in Florida, Georgia and Texas, according to a new report from the Tampa Bay Partnership. The organization analyzed data from Open Table, a restaurant reservation service, and found that in four days reservations at Tampa restaurants jumped by 20 percent. The Open Table data only includes restaurants in Tampa but the Partnership said it is a proxy for the entire region.
Viva5 Corp., a health and wellness company in St. Petersburg has new senior credit facilities totaling $27.1 million. Proceeds from the the financing were used for a partner buyout, to refinance existing debt and to provide significant growth capital for future acquisitions, a news release said. Monroe Credit Advisors in Chicago was Viva5's exclusive financial advisor and placement agent and ran an expedited debt placement process that generated significant lender interest, the news release said. Monroe led the underwriting and closing process during a challenging work environment created by Covid-19, said Brian Baer, Viva5’s CEO. Viva5 specializes in innovation and ecommerce focused on the vitamin, mineral and supplement category and is expanding its brand portfolio to include beauty and skin care products along with partnerships in nutritional gummies and probiotics.
Suncoast Credit Union in Tampa and Apollo Bank in Miami have ended plans to merge. The decision to terminate the merger was mutual and followed a series of coronavirus-related regulatory delays, according to the Miami Herald. There was too much uncertainty to continue with the deal, Kevin Johnson, Suncoast president and CEO, told the Miami Herald. Suncoast, the largest credit union in Florida, signed a definitive agreement to buy Apollo Bank in December. Terms were not disclosed but Suncoast described the deal at that time as the largest bank acquisition by a credit union in U.S. history.
Cameron Mitchell Restaurants, which operates Ocean Prime restaurants in Tampa, Orlando and Naples, laid off 330 workers at those three Florida locations. The temporary lay offs occurred in March due to closures stemming from the response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The layoffs were not made public until Monday when the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity posted a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification from the company. All workers at the three restaurants, including servers, bartenders, managers, cooks, chefs, home office employees, directors and executives, were impacted. The restaurant company said it intended to rehire the workers. The layoffs involved 150 workers at Ocean Prime at 2205 N. West Shore Blvd. in Tampa and 90 workers at each location in Orlando and Naples.
The Florida Department of Transportation has announced a second phase of critical infrastructure projects that have been accelerated throughout the state. Three projects in Pinellas County are involved: intersection lighting improvements on SR 688, SR 586 and SR 580 at various locations in Pinellas County; intersection lighting improvements on SR 688 between Hamlin Boulevard in Largo and Feather Sound Drive in St. Petersburg; and intersection lighting improvements on SR 586 between Alt 19/Bayshore in Dunedin and Tampa Road in Oldsmar. All will be accelerated by one week, FDOT said in a news release. More than 40 projects statewide are being expedited to take advantage of continued lower traffic volumes as a result of Covid-19, FDOT said.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has awarded $1.12 million for Covd-19 testing in Pinellas County. Most of the funding will be distributed to the Community Health Centers of Pinellas, the main testing sites for low-income and minority communities in Pinellas County, according to an announcement from the office of Congressman Charlie Crist. "Robust testing is absolutely crucial to re-open our community safely and effectively. While testing has increased across the country, low-income communities are being under-tested and neglected," Crist, D-St. Petersburg, said in a statement. "This funding will help Pinellas County and the Community Health Centers of Pinellas to provide testing to everyone who needs a test, regardless of income or zip code."
Westfield shopping centers in the Tampa-St. Petersburg area will re-open for the community starting Friday, May 15. The centers will open with modified hours, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday, and will implement relevant government-mandated health and safety protocols, a news release said. The centers will increase the frequency of cleaning measures, monitor and control the number of guests entering as well as crowds in lines, implement and enforce relevant social distancing and face mask policies, and provide an increased number of hand sanitizer and hand washing stations. Local Westfield shopping centers are Westfield Countryside in Clearwater, Westfield Brandon and Westfield Citrus Park.
The city of St. Petersburg won't add additional restrictions for hair salons and barber shops that plan to reopen today. Gov. Ron DeSantis said late Friday that most Florida barber shops, hair salons and nail salons would be allowed to reopen provided they follow strict safety guidelines. "Owners of barber shops, cosmetology salons, and specialty salons in St. Petersburg should prepare to open this week if they so desire, and as long as they can strictly adhere to the safety protocols, including six feet of separation between customer chairs, addressed in the Office of the Governor Executive Order 20-120," said a statement from the office of the mayor that was issued late Sunday. "The City of St. Petersburg will not add additional restrictions at this time." State guidance and frequently asked questions about reopening can be found here.
