Not everyone living near Floriland Mall was against the housing there of Tampa's homeless. I, for example, who live within walking distance of that mall, would have welcomed them to my neighborhood with open arms. What a wonderful opportunity it would have been for those of us who are more fortunate to volunteer with and help those who temporarily are not able to help themselves. ...more

October 28, 2009

When two Hillsborough County commissioners proposed putting a homeless shelter at the former Floriland Mall, they didn't think to ask Kellie Nieves and her neighbors what they thought about the idea. ...more

October 24, 2009

Abuses of prescription painkillers is a hard pill for state lawmakers to swallow. So-called "pill mills" have transformed much of Florida into "the painkiller capital of the United States, the notorious home to a cottage industry of storefront pain clinics selling alarming numbers of narcotics and feeding a brazen black market," state Rep. John Legg said in a press release. ...more

October 24, 2009

What is Highlands County drug abusers' poison of choice? According to Capt. Randy LaBelle, with the Highlands County Sheriff's Office's Special Investigations Unit (SIU), it's prescription medications. ...more

October 21, 2009

Some bright spots punctuated the gallows humor at a recent convention of shopping center executives: A few pizza restaurants, dental practices and discount retailers are expanding aggressively on the Suncoast. ...more

February 20, 2009

Some bright spots punctuated the gallows humor at a convention of shopping center executives today: A few pizza restaurants, dental practices and discount retailers are expanding aggressively in the Tampa Bay area. ...more

February 4, 2009

Some bright spots punctuated the gallows humor running through a convention of shopping center executives today: A few pizza restaurants, dental practices and discount retailers are expanding aggressively in the Tampa Bay area. Those with plans to grow took the spotlight during the gathering of shopping center owners, retail real estate brokers and retailers at the Grand Hyatt Tampa Bay in Rocky Point. The sponsor was the International Council of Shopping Centers. ...more

February 3, 2009

Well, there's still the game tonight, although after Super Bowl Week the game is almost anti-climatic. Most of the interest seems to lean in the direction of how good the commercials might be. ...more

February 1, 2009

Sprawling toward the horizon, Andersen Air Force Base is surprisingly quiet, leaving the impression of a big, empty parking lot. ...more

January 26, 2009

Bank of America Cutting 35,000 Bank of America said it will eliminate 35,000 jobs over the next three years because of the poor economy and duplications created through its merger with financial services company Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. ...more

December 12, 2008