The Pinellas County School District will provide prepackaged lunch and breakfast to students from March 23-March 27, the week students would have returned to school after spring break. Florida officials last week ordered all public schools in the state to close through March 27. Pinellas schools said the meals will be cold and meet the USDA nutritional standards. The district is working with the Tampa Bay Network to End Hunger to help reach more students and families needing assistance. Meals will be served “Grab & Go," with lunch and (breakfast for the next day) served in a single bag. Meals are free for anyone 18 years old and under; the child or teen must be present to receive meals. For a list of distribution points and times click here.
The St. Petersburg Parks & Recreation department is suspending childcare, including spring camps, effective Monday, March 16. "Keeping our children, community and employees safe is our top priority. In an effort to keep our community healthy and prevent the spread of COVID-19, St. Petersburg Parks & Recreation will be suspending childcare, including Spring Camps, effective Monday, March 16. If you have any questions, please contact your childcare facility," the department said in a Facebook post mid-afternoon. "No city childcare or spring camps. More announcements tomorrow," Mayor Rick Kriseman said in his own Facebook post.
Sunday afternoon's matinee performance of Lone Star Spirits at St. Petersburg's freeFall Theatre was the show's swan song, although it was scheduled to run for two more weekends. The theater announced late Sunday that it was suspending operations for at least eight weeks due to coronavirus fears. The next show, Dear World, has been postponed indefinitely.
Embarc Collective, the downtown Tampa hub for startups, investors and the technology community, will close to the public as Monday, March 16. The step is being taken to ensure the health and wellness of the Embarc community, the organization wrote in a Covid-19 update on Sunday evening. "We are closely monitoring the situation and will keep you informed of our re-open date. Prior to our re-open date, we will conduct a deep clean of the building," the update said. Endeavr, the coffee shop that is located at Embarc Collective, also will close for the same period of time. Embarc also has moved most of its member programming to virtual sessions.
The Salvador Dalí Museum, one of St. Petersburg's largest tourist draws, announced Sunday morning that it has closed through March 31, "at which time we will reassess. This is an extraordinary time for all of us and we appreciate your understanding and patience. Your safety, well-being, and the continued readiness of The Dalí to educate and delight are our first priorities."
The Glazer Children’s Museum, Tampa Museum of Art, Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI), Henry B. Plant Museum and The Florida Aquarium will temporarily close to the public beginning Monday. The museums collectively announced the closures Saturday afternoon, naming Sunday, March 29 as re-opening day. Staff at all five cultural attractions will be paid their full compensation per their regular work schedule for the two-week period.
The coronavirus pandemic prompted Duke Energy to give a break to some customers.
Charlotte, North Carolina-based Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK) Florida’s service area covers approximately 13,000 square miles and supplies electric service to approximately 1.8 million residential, commercial and industrial customers.An important update from Duke Energy & Piedmont Natural Gas regarding #COVID19 pic.twitter.com/BXN0j1GazK
— Duke Energy (@DukeEnergy) March 13, 2020
Publix Super Markets will close its stores and pharmacies at 8 p.m. beginning March 14. The Lakeland-based grocery chain said in a news release that it is adjusting its hours to give store teams time to conduct additional preventive sanitation and restock product on shelves.
St. Petersburg College is the latest of the area's major higher education institutions to respond to the coronavirus outbreak. The college has extended spring break for students through Tuesday, March 17, it said in a notice posted late Friday. Most of the college’s courses are being transitioned to an online format. Classes resume on Wednesday, March 18. All large-scale, college-sponsored events will be canceled, postponed or conducted virtually March 16 through April 13. At that time, SPC will review the situation and provide additional information, the school said.
Florida Public Schools have been ordered to close for two weeks, in an effort to contain the spread of the coronavirus, according to media reports across the state. The Florida Department of Education announced Friday that all schools would be shut down for the weeks of March 16-20 and March 23-27. According to the report, the order was made by Florida Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran. Numerous districts in the state were already scheduled for spring break vacation during at least one of the two weeks. For those schools, the break will simply be extended one week. Other districts who were not scheduled to close during those weeks will now close. Districts are also ordering that schools be cleaned during the closure. Many schools are likely to provide meals for children in need during the closure. Check back with St. Pete Catalyst for updates.
Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections Deborah Clark has made emergency polling place changes throughout Pinellas County in response to the threat of coronavirus. Polling places for the March 17 primary election have been moved out of eight Assisted Living Facilities and into new polling places nearby. Affected voters should receive email and mail communication of the changes, as well as phone calls. Workers will also we stationed at the original polling places on March 17, directing voters to the new polling places. Impacted voters should visit: https://www.votepinellas.com/Election-Information/Find-Your-Precinct-Polling-Place
The Tampa Bay Innovation Center is cancelling any pubic meetings and meetups through the end of April. The St. Petersburg-based business incubator remains open but has adjusted its business practices, said Tonya Elmore, president and CEO. The Innovation Center also is extending the application period for its next accelerator progam and will announce later start date to accommodate any concerns. Participants in the current CO.STARTERS cohort program will be notified if future sessions will be held virtually, and the Innovation Center is converting in-person meetings to calls or will hold them virtually. Tampa Bay Wave in Tampa is taking similar steps. Wave's Venture Center will remain open during regular business hours, said Heather McMillan, senior operations manager. However, Wave plans to postepone all events at Wave's Venture Center through the end of March. She's encouraging people to reach out through Wave's Slack channel (tbwave.slack.com).
