Join the city's largest "Community Celebration of All Things Local' with over 200+ vendors at Williams Park, Saturday, February 4th from 10 am to 5 pm. This year's event is anticipated to be the biggest yet with live music, food trucks, and family-friendly activities. 2nd Ave N and 3rd Street S adjacent to the park will be closed for the event. For more information, visit the event website.

The Blue Chip Sites map, which is maintained by the city's economic development division, has been updated to an ESRI platform making it easier to navigate and more visually appealing. Two new sites have been added to the current listing: 

Blue Chip sites are sizeable properties in the city that are vacant and prime for development. Explore the new map and features here. Currently there's a total of 125 acres of real estate around the city listed on the Blue Chip site.

The new home of the USFSP Kate Tiedemann College of Business, Lynn Pippenger Hall, is now open! Students began their spring semesters in the new 4-story, 68,000 SF facility named for former Raymond James Financial executive and long-time St. Petersburg resident Lynn Pippenger.

The $30 million building includes 20 classrooms, faculty offices, a 200-seat auditorium, open meeting spaces, and a 3-story atrium. "It's a dream come true, couldn't be happier or prouder of this opening," Regional chancellor Sophia Wisniewska said. "This will improve how students learn, how faculty teach and how the community engages with us, the possibilities are endless." Check out the video above, produced by WUSF, to get an inside peek of this state of the art building.

Enterprise Florida is sponsoring a trade mission this spring to Buenos Aires, Argentina. With a population of  41.5 million and a GDP of ~$609 billion, this trip offers an exceptional opportunity for St. Petersburg businesses to connect in the Argentine market. Argentina is Florida's 4th largest export destination with an estimated $3.3 billion worth of exports. Recent legislation changes make it easier for importers to purchase foreign goods.

This Enterprise Florida Export Sales Mission, in cooperation with Pinellas County Economic Development, will provide local companies with the U.S. Commercial Service's Gold Key Service (GKS) Matchmaker program of customized one-on-one meetings with potential customers and partners in Argentina. Visit PCED.org/international for more information.  Contact Brent Barkway, Pinellas County Business Development Manager, at 727-464-7411 or [email protected]   to discuss this trade mission and opportunities for your company.