About $2 billion has been invested in downtown redevelopment since the late 1990s, establishing St. Petersburg as a leader in the marine sciences and financial services clusters. The city is also building a new $35 million museum to house the works of Salvador Dali. Crislip Arcade is undergoing a rebirth as a hub for aspiring and accomplished artists. Other diversions include visiting an array of funky stores and restaurants, The Pier, the Museum of Fine Arts, American Stage and Tropicana Field for a Tampa Bay Rays’ game. Housing choices range from historic bungalows to high-end waterfront condominiums to traditional subdivisions.
Today's trend toward more healthy eating and an apparent increase in the Tampa Bay region's pro-animal rights, vegetarian and vegan populations have helped restaurants that serve primarily vegan fare – or at least offer multiple options that are sans-animal products – become increasingly common and increasingly profitable.
Like many other urban markets around the country, the Saturday Morning Market in downtown St. Petersburg is about more than better food. It's about a better life. Healthy living, recycling, renewal are the underpinnings of most of the products and services.
University of South Florida Associate Professor David Mann listens to the sounds dolphins use to communicate in the Gulf of Mexico. The work began in 2007 thanks to a 3-year, $1.63 million grant from the National Oceanographic Partnership Program. The project got another boost this year with $300,000 in federal economic stimulus money that will allow the work to continue through August 2011.
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