Carrefour-Colombia recently joined 37 global chains partnered with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Customer Services to serve Florida-grown fruits, vegetables and citrus juices. One major producer included in the retail program is Lake Wales-based Florida's Natural Growers, according to The Tampa Bay Business Journal. Read the complete story.
Tampa Bay's Fritz Eichelberger keeps a watchful eye on the area's information technology job market. His technology recruiting socials, "Pure and Shameless," are networking gatherings designed to meet the increased demand for tech-savy individuals in Tampa Bay.In a recent St. Petersburg Times article Eichelberger says a growing number of jobs are appearing in four particular sectors--software development, interactive marketing, technology sales and health care technology.Read the complete story.
Tampa-based activists are taking a pro-normalization stance toward the country's stance on the U.S.-Cuba travel policy. Activists Vicente Amor, owner of Tampa-based travel agency Flor Caribe, and Washington attorney Tony Martinez have started to reorganize their strategy to reach a united stance on U.S.-Cuba relations. Lifting the travel ban could be more difficult in the current political climate following mid-term elections, according to a recent article the Cuba Standard. Read the complete story.
The Ride 2 Recovery Florida Challenge benefiting wounded war veterans ended its 350-mile journey from MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa to Mayport Naval Station in Jacksonville over a six-day period. More than 200 participants cycled to raise money for mental and physical rehabilitation programs such as Spinning Recovery Labs and outdoor cycling. Riders traveled north from Tampa, making stops in Spring Hill, The Villages, Ocala, Gainesville and St. Augustine before arriving in Jacksonville on Nov. 20. View the complete photo gallery.
Manatee and Sarasota area hospitals experience an average annual lack of 153 RNs and 96 RN openings due to turnovers. Several steps are being taken to increase nursing preparedness and overcome the shortage--State College of Florida introduced a four-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing program, Sarasota Memorial Hospital offers 100 percent tuition reimbursement for continued nursing education. Regional workforce group CareerEdge was awarded a grant totaling $289,619 to fund a three-year training program at five local health care organizations. Read the complete story.
The city of Tampa plans to transform downtown Tampa's Zack Street to a Promenade of the Arts showcasing various forms of public art. The first phase of the project will begin in spring of 2011.According to David Vaughn, director of Contract Administration for the city of Tampa, the promenade will extend from Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park on the Hillsborough River to Nebraska Avenue near Interstate 275. "Phase I will include revamping Zack from the park to Florida Avenue," he says. "We'll be removing lanes and widening walks to make room for the art."Plans for the promenade include various forms of public art such as painting, sculpture, special lighting, lush landscaping and widened roads for ease of parking, walking and biking. Zack has been made a two-way street in preparation for its transformation.Vaughn explains that the promenade is part of the mayor's long-term plan for the downtown area."Back in 2006 the mayor appointed a committee to look at finding a street to be enhanced to celebrate the creative arts. During the latter stages of Curtis Hixon renovation, it became evident that Zack was the right choice, since it is located at the axis to the Tampa Museum of Art. It made sense to have a pedestrian street leading into and out of the park. Less than a year ago we went through a selection process and chose Graham Booth Landscape Architecture to design the streetscapes. We're in the process now of selecting a construction manager."Venues within close proximity to the new promenade include the Glazer Children's Museum, the Straz Center for the Performing Arts and the Tampa Theatre. Writer: Missy KavanaughSource: David Vaughn, City of Tampa Contract Administration
Four streets in downtown Tampa that once ran one way now run in two directions, thanks to a long-term initiative to encourage urban living.After a transformation that took several years of planning and execution, Twiggs, Cass, Zack and Polk, all east-west thoroughfares through downtown Tampa, are now two-way streets.Tampa's Transportation Manager Jean Dorzback says the project, which was done one street at a time, was a multilayered task. "The traffic signals had to be redone, poles ordered, zoning and signage, parking meters. There's more to it than you would think."According to Dorzback, the impetus for the transformation was ultimately to encourage urban living. "One of the goals is to transform downtown to residential," she says. "Mayor Iorio's administration asked that we convert one-way streets to two-way to encourage residential living and make urban living more appealing. One of the initiatives of this was to convert one way to two way to make it easier for people to negotiate."Dorzback says that while east-west streets such as Kennedy Boulevard and Nebraska Avenue are still one-way, the four streets chosen to go two-way were selected because they had the least impact on overall traffic patterns. "We had to be very careful to balance," she says. "We picked the streets that didn't have issues with capacity. These streets didn't have any impact on commuting from the interstates."Dorzback explains that final resurfacing and permanent markings are to take place as soon as work on the city pipeline system is completed. "Once we're finished with the UCAP pipeline renovations, we'll be able to resurface and put down permanent markings."Writer: Missy KavanaughSource: Jean Dorzback, City of Tampa
Sarasota area students attending a school for autistic and behaviorally challenged children have new recreation choices thanks in part to a Sarasota construction company.Holland Construction donated its time and labor to construct two basketball courts and a tether ball court to the Pinnacle Academy. Funding for the equipment was raised through the academy's Parent Teacher Organization (PTO)."It's the first sports-related area for them," says Joe Holland, president of the construction company. "We went in and excavated the area, poured the concrete pads and installed the equipment. It took a few weeks to complete. From the time we began to the time we finished it took about a week or two. It was an honor to be a part of the project."The kids need this kind of play environment and to get some additional stimulation through sports and exercise," continues Holland. "Some children respond really easily to those types of activities. I know my son does."Holland's 4-year-old son attends the school, and Holland is a staunch supporter of Pinnacle and its mission. He serves on the board of the Center for Autism Resources and Education (CARE), which provides families who are facing autism or a related disability in the Sarasota/Manatee, Florida, area with resources, support and education. "The Pinnacle Academy has been a great resource," he explains. "We relocated down here from the Baltimore area specifically for our son to attend there. They have a very unique approach to the development of the children. Most institutions take a narrow approach, but the Pinnacle Academy takes a wider one and truly understands that each child has unique needs in terms of education and therapy. My child has responded tremendously since he started there."Writer: Missy KavanaughSource: Joe Holland, Holland Construction
The tantalizing scents of just-brewed coffee and fresh-baked goodies greet friends and passersby to the Taste Cafe in Safety Harbor by day, while choice beers and wines along with some of Pinellas County's finest local musicians lure them in after dark. Sing along or simply enjoy the sounds as background for the soul on one of the region's favorite Main Streets.
TourWrist. WeoGeo. T.imelin.es. What's next? Hear directly from Spark Labs CEO Charles Armstrong as he sits down with 83 Degrees to talk about his fledgling web app designing firm's successes and what more it will take to create the critical mass necessary to allow more tech companies to thrive in Tampa.
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