Monitoring Tropical Storm Erika
As Tropical Storm Erika makes its way toward Florida, city and county emergency officials are monitoring the storm and reviewing emergency plans. Residents may want to do the same. Now might be a good time to review your family's emergency plans, and stock up on water, cash and gas. Over the weekend, home owners may want to survey their yard for loose limbs or debris that might cause damage in the event of high winds.
Please continue to watch weather updates closely -- you can find the Weather Channel home page here. City of St. Petersburg staff will work closely with counterparts in Pinellas County to keep you informed of any impact the storm may have on our city.
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Expanding Boyd Hill Nature Preserve
On Wednesday, August 26, Mayor Kriseman, Deputy Mayor Tomalin, and City Council Member Steve Kornell stood with community leaders to announce an agreement between the City of St. Petersburg and the St. Petersburg Country Club to purchase nearly 12 acres adjacent to Boyd Hill, and an additional 23-acre restricted covenant for golf-related use only. City Council will consider final approval of the purchase.
The price tag is $1.1 million - significantly less than the appraised value of the property.
Said Mayor Kriseman: "In purchasing 35 acres adjacent to this preserve, we protect not just Boyd Hill and the wildlife that calls it home, but we protect the Lakewood Estates Civic Association, and we accommodate the Country Club and its many golfers who also love this preserve."
Watch an excerpt from the announcement by clicking the image above, or
here.
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A Message from Mayor Kriseman
Yesterday, I boarded a plane bound for Cuba with Deputy Mayor Kanika Tomalin, City Council Chairman Charlie Gerdes, and my Chief of Staff, Kevin King.
I am excited to learn more about Cuba and the Cuban people, and to tell the story of Florida's best city. As President Obama continues his policies of normalizing relations with Cuba, I want to ensure the Sunshine City is well-positioned for the future.
This
trip is privately funded through the Alliance for Responsible Cuba Policy Foundation. You can learn more about the work of the foundation here.
While we are in Cuba, we will meet with officials from the Cuban Department of State, the Oficina del Historiador de La Habana, the Cuban Department of Cultural Affairs, leaders and staff from the Economics Department at University of Havana, and much more.
After we return, we will host a press event to discuss our findings from the trip. Join us at City Hall on Tuesday, September 1, 1:00 pm.
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St. Petersburg is America's Best Craft Town!
St. Petersburg is a City of the Arts, and now is the time to show the rest of the country that we love our crafts, too, with a vote in
American Craft Week's Top 10 Towns for Craft Lovers poll. St. Petersburg currently holds the lead, but we need your help to ensure we win. Voting ends this Sunday, August 30.
Click this link to vote: http://americancraftweek.com/top10
Vote once per day, per device. There's no registration, it takes less than 30 seconds and gives the Sunshine City another reason to celebrate why the #SunShinesHere. The Top 10 Towns will be announced September 1.
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Public Highlights for the Mayor, Deputy Mayor, and the Sunshine City
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August 29 through September 5, 2015
| Saturday, August 29, 9:00 am |
67th Annual Fish-A-Thon, Lake Jorgensen
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| Saturday, August 29, 11:30 am |
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| Monday, August 31, 6:00 pm |
The Heat is On - A Public Forum on Climate Change, The Greenhouse
Learn more here.
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| Tuesday, September 1, 1:00 pm |
Mayor Kriseman & Deputy Mayor Tomalin: Cuba Press Briefing, City Hall
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| Wednesday, September 2, 12:00 pm |
Mayor Kriseman: Mayor's Council of Pinellas Council, St. Petersburg Marriott
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Thursday, September 3, 6:00 pm
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| Saturday, September 5, 9:00 am |
Opening Day, Grand Central Flea Market, 2500 Block of Central Ave.,
Learn more here.
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Tampa Bay Times: Their calling: Helping others - one guide puppy at a time
The golden retriever puppy looked up from the floor underneath the dining table where she had been chewing on a metal chain - she's teething, after all - and locked eyes with her visitor.
In a second, she sat up and began to caress the visitor's outstretched hand with long, languid licks. Her front paws went into his lap. The puppy in her had taken over. In those seconds, she was no longer a guide dog in training. She was 40 pounds of sweetnes
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Tampa Bay Times: Under new administrator, St. Petersburg's recycling program considers alley pickups
Since taking over the city's fledgling recycling program three weeks ago, Mike Dove has spent at least three hours a day in the hundreds of miles of alleys that crisscross the city.
He videotapes them, trying to assess if the city's fleet of recycling trucks can squeeze through alleys often tangled with overgrowth and debris.
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Tampa Bay Times: St. Petersburg moves to protect Boyd Hill Nature Preserve
The hawk screeching and fluttering on the arm of a handler was the only one who wasn't seemingly thrilled Wednesday as city officials, environmental activists and Lakewood Estates residents cheered the news that the city has reached an agreement to buy nearly 35 acres in a thin band along the southern perimeter of Boyd Hill Nature Preserve.
The $1.1 million purchase is meant to ensure development---like a controversial town home plan a few years ago---won't threaten the sanctity of the preserve or the character of the neighborhood.
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Bay News 9: St. Petersburg agrees to buy land surrounding Boyd Hill Preserve
The City of St. Petersburg has decided to buy the 35 acres next to the park from the St. Petersburg Country Club. It will not only guarantee the preservation of the land, but also keep it out of developers' hands.
"The area we intend to purchase has been called a critical buffer zone," St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman said. "It's an ecosystem of its own, where threatened species can be found."
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Creative Loafing: St. Pete buys land once slated for another subdivision
Sometimes the one with the most money doesn't win.
Case in point: St. Petersburg's announcement this morning that it will buy 10 acres of golf course land adjacent to Boyd Hill Nature Park. Two years ago, juggernaut developer Taylor Morrison
had offered the St. Petersburg Country Club $3.2 million for the land, but the deal fell through due to lack of city support, among other things. The city later successfully offered $1.1 million, with the stated intention of making the land a permanent park of Boyd Hill Nature Preserve.
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Tampa Bay Times: Kriseman leaves for Cuba with hopes of bringing consulate office to St. Petersburg
Mayor Rick Kriseman heads to Cuba this morning in hopes of establishing economic and cultural ties with the island nation.
The three-day trip comes nearly two months after President Barack Obama announced the United States was re-establishing diplomatic ties with Cuba after 54 years. Kriseman said he will make a pitch that Cuba should pass over rival Florida cities Tampa and Miami and open a consulate office in St. Petersburg.
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Tampa Bay Business Journal: St. Pete mayor headed to Cuba
As
President Obama continues his policies of normalizing relations with Cuba, St. Petersburg is well-positioned to capitalize on the policy changes.
That's part of the reason Mayor
Rick Kriseman will travel to Cuba from Aug. 27-30.
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Bay News 9: St. Petersburg mayor embarking on fact-finding trip to Cuba
St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman is headed to Cuba today.
Kriseman and a group of city leaders are headed to the island nation in hopes of enticing Cuba to open a consulate in St. Petersburg. The mayor also said he wants to learn more about the country and its people, especially in light of the ongoing improving climate between Cuba and the United States.
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Tweet of the Week
The St. Petersburg Police Department was awarded both Advance Accreditation and Accreditation with Excellence from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA), Incorporated. The St. Petersburg Police Department is the first law enforcement agency in the Tampa Bay area to do so after participating in a Gold Standard Assessment. Additionally, the Police Department maintained recognition as a Meritorious Agency, having been accredited for 30 years.
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