Rick Kriseman and St. Pete EDC head to San Francisco on first business development mission

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http://www.tampabay.com/news/business/economicdevelopment/Rick-Kriseman-and-St-Pete-EDC-head-to-San-Francisco-on-first-business-development-mission_168017478

Rick Kriseman and St. Pete EDC head to San Francisco on first business development mission

ST. PETERSBURG — For its first-ever business development trip, the Greater St. Petersburg Area Economic Development Corp. headed to San Francisco, the tech-business world’s pricey capital, with a pitch about another bay area where sticker shock is not so big an issue.

"San Francisco is a very, very cool place, but oftentimes it’s hard to live there because of the sheer size of it and the cost," said EDC president J.P. DuBuque, who booked the trip after talking with local San Francisco ex-pats about why they moved from there to here.

DuBuque and Mayor Rick Kriseman had a total of 11 meetings with seven companies from Wednesday to Friday morning of last week. Some are looking at expanding operations outside of California. One is thinking about a wholesale move.

"Our goal was to make sure that we were on their radar and to see if we could give them enough information to get them interested in looking into a little deeper at the possibility of us being that east coast hub for them," Kriseman said.

No names are being released, but the companies they visited occupy various corners of the tech landscape — software development, fintech and technology manufacture — from Sausalito on the north to San Jose on the south. They’re growing, with annual sales in the $10 million to $50 million range. Some are or have been on the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing private firms.

"Talent was the primary thing they were talking about," DuBuque said Monday. Some were thinking about new offices for engineers, others for sales and administrative services jobs. Several mentioned a need to expand data analytics operations.

That was encouraging, Kriseman said, because data analytics has been targeted by the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce’s "Grow Smarter" strategy and has become a fast-growing employment sector for the city.

"It fits well in our market," Kriseman said.

DuBuque and Kriseman pitched St. Petersburg’s growing pool of tech professionals, its quality of life and its affordability — of people, office space and residential real estate. DuBuque said executives took note when they heard that they could get a 3,000-square-foot condominium in a prime tower overlooking Tampa Bay for what they would pay for a three-bedroom home in a so-so neighborhood there. Similarly, the guys from St. Petersburg told them Class A office space in downtown St. Petersburg goes for about a third of what they pay for Class B space on a corporate campus there.

Before the meetings, none of the California companies had given much thought to St. Petersburg, DuBuque said. Now all say they are considering it, and DuBuque is looking to arrange some visits.

Kriseman and DuBuque also visited:

• The San Francisco headquarters of PandaDoc, a document automation company that added a St. Petersburg office in 2017.

• San Francisco Mayor Mark Farrell. That meeting was brokered by Tim Schar, SunTrust Bank’s market president for the Tampa Bay area, who has San Francisco connections from his days as an executive with ApplePie Capital.

• A Jabil innovation center similar to a lab planned for Jabil’s new corporate campus in St. Petersburg.

The nonprofit EDC paid for Kriseman’s airfare, hotel room and meals. DuBuque declined to say how much the organization spent.

A second business development mission is likely this fall. For that, the EDC could look at New York, Chicago or Atlanta. St. Petersburg competes against cities like Austin, Charlotte and Nashville for corporate expansions, and, DuBuque said, "I want to make sure that the places where they’re coming from know we’re an option."

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https://stpetecatalyst.com/bill-edwards-announces-concert-series-to-boost-summer-business-in-st-pete-video/

Bill Edwards announces concert series to boost summer business in St. Pete [Video]

Lauryn Hill, Poison, and 3 Doors Down are just a sampling of the eclectic array of concerts coming to Al Lang Stadium and the Mahaffey Theater this summer. While tickets have already been for sale for a few weeks, St. Pete entrepreneur and Rowdies owner Bill Edwards officially announced the “Al Lang Live” series today at a gathering in the Mahaffey atrium.  Edwards spoke for about 10 minutes, emphasizing his commitment to respecting the surrounding residents with regard to noise and traffic.  He explained that the “speakers will be pointed downward” to limit the reach of the noise. In addition, roaming staff members with decibel meters will continuously monitor noise in the surrounding neighborhood; they’ll be connected via walkie-talkie to the sound engineers who can lower the volume on a moment’s notice if necessary.  The concerts, held mostly on weekdays, will also beginning earlier, around 6:30, to keep them from cutting into bed time.

After the announcement, Edwards took questions from the audience; for the most part, they touched on parking and programming goals for the series.  Many local residents (including restaurant magnate Steve Westphal) stood to praise Edwards.

Watch the entire talk and Q & A in the (poor quality cell phone) video below.

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https://www.bizjournals.com/tampabay/news/2018/05/03/edwards-launches-concert-series-with-live-nation.html

Edwards launches concert series with Live Nation at downtown St. Pete venues

Tickets have been on sale for weeks, but on Thursday St. Petersburg businessman and philanthropist Bill Edwards officially announced an expanded schedule of live music and entertainment events in downtown St. Petersburg.

Big 3 Entertainment, Edwards' entertainment and venue management company, launched the series with the Bill Edwards Foundation for the Arts. Shows are being presented in conjunction with Live Nation Florida, according to a statement.

Events will be held at both Al Lang Stadium and the Duke Energy Center for the Arts – Mahaffey Theater.

The capacity for Al Lang is 7,227; for the Mahaffey Theater it's 2,031, according to the Tampa Bay Business Journal's Event venues list.

One year ago, the Tampa Bay Rowdies' owner, the Edwards Group, got voter approval allowing the team to enter into a long-term lease with the city at the stadium. Edwards, who was reportedly looking to sell a stake in the Rowdies, has said his group would privately fund $80 million in renovations in order to attract Major League Soccer. The renovations would increase stadium capacity from 7,000 to 18,000 and open the stadium to views of Tampa Bay.

Al Lang Stadium expansion renderings

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http://www.baynews9.com/fl/tampa/news/2018/05/03/summer-concert-series-coming-to-st--petersburg-s-al-lang-stadium

Summer concert series coming to St. Petersburg's Al Lang Stadium

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- It’s no secret that developer Bill Edwards has had an ongoing love affair with St. Petersburg.

    Developer Bill Edwards announces summer concert series at Al Lang Stadium
    Rowdies owner promoting events during summer lull
    Al Lang Live, Mahaffey Theater events to start in June
    Tickets are on sale now through Ticketmaster

The owner of the Tampa Bay Rowdies, Edwards has invested in the Mahaffey Theater, Al Lang Stadium and the Sundial retail development.

His next big venture is to bring more music to downtown starting this summer.

On Thursday, Edwards announced a summer series of concerts at Al Lang that will include music guests Poison, Lauryn Hill and Counting Crows, among others.

Edwards says he wanted to place an emphasis on entertainment during the summer months, when business and tourism in the city tends to hit a lull.

“We’re sitting here with businesses that are somewhat empty,” Edwards said. “And we need the business so the whole idea of this is to have a have summer concert series that we’re about to announce that will revitalize downtown during the weekdays.”

Noise ordinance questions linger

The summer series comes as city leaders still try to hammer out a noise ordinance that will accommodate both businesses and the growing residential population downtown.

Edwards said he's taking the noise into consideration in planning the concerts.

“I can't do much about where the park is and where I have to put the stage,” said Edwards. “But I can make a difference in how loud I make it, and how I angle the speakers, and how I make it early.”

Downtown Neighborhood Association President Matt Weidner said it all remains to be seen and, more importantly, heard.

“Of course, the devil is in the details,” says Weidner. “We'll have to wait and see what the details are. For now, the important thing is that we all want to engage in a community dialogue and discussion about it.”

The summer series also includes events at the Mahaffey that will include Donnie & Marie Osmond and former Vice President Joe Biden and his “American Promise” tour.

Tickets for the upcoming Al Lang Live shows can be purchased at ticketmaster.com or by calling 800-745-3000. For tickets to Mahaffey Theater events, visit themahaffey.com or call 727-892-5767. 

AL LANG LIVE

Poison with Special Guest Pop Evil - Friday June 29, 8 p.m.

Rock & Roll Express Tour with 3 Doors Down, Collective Soul and Special Guest Soul Asylum – Wednesday July 11, 6:30 p.m.

The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill 20th Anniversary Tour – Sunday, July 29, 6 p.m.  

Counting Crows with Special Guest Live – Tuesday, July 31, 6:30 p.m.

DUKE ENERGY CENTER FOR THE ARTS – MAHAFFEY THEATER

Vice President Joe Biden’s American Promise Tour – Monday, June 4, 7:30 p.m.

David Blaine – Wednesday, June 6, 8 p.m.

Donny and Marie – Friday, June 29, 8 p.m.

Erasure – Saturday, July 7, 8 p.m.

The Greatest Love of All – The Whitney Houston Show– Saturday, July 14, 8 p.m.

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http://www.tbo.com/sports/2018/05/04/benevolence-bravery-honored-at-sneaker-soiree/

Benevolence, bravery honored at Sneaker Soiree

Soiree honorees

A list of those honored at Thursday evening's Sneaker Soiree

Tampa Bay Rowdies Fan of the Year: Chris Behrens

Tampa Bay Rays Fan of the Year: Sharon Tyson

Tampa Bay Buccaneers Fan of the Year: Albert "Bucified" Owens

Tampa Bay Lightning Fan of the Year: Sticks of Fire

USF Fan of the Year: David Goldstein, Joanne Nelson

Freddie Solomon Moral Courage Award: Iggy Thomas, Hillsborough High football

Youth Coach of the Year: Diana Jackson, Tampa Gymnastics

Tom McEwen Community Advocate Award: Vincent Jackson

Sports Community Hero: Calvary Christian baseball team (on 57-game win streak)

Sports Community Hero: Eric Ugarte, Plant City boys soccer player

Under Armour "I Will" Award: Jonathan Conrad, Carrollwood Day wrestler

Lee Roy Selmon Lifetime Achievement Award: Edward DeBartolo Jr.

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http://www.goal.com/en-us/news/zlatan-ibrahimovic-was-exactly-what-the-mls-needed-says-us-based-/1j9nbsfn42xts130bkwdfa90xg

'Ibrahimovic was exactly what the MLS needed' - Tampa Bay star Joe Cole

The former Chelsea attacker has lauded the move of the Swede to play in the United States, which he believes has already had an impact on the sport

LA Galaxy striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has made a "massive impact" in American football, according to former Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole.

Ibrahimovic scored twice in the first LA derby between Galaxy and Los Angeles FC, with one of the strikes a sensational long-range effort.

The former Manchester United striker has already appeared on prime time American television, too, sitting down for an interview on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

And Cole, who is approaching his second full year at the Tampa Bay Rowdies, believes Ibrahimovic's personality has already captured the imagination of American football fans.

"He’s had a massive impact. He is a massive player. Massive personality," Cole told Goal. "It is exactly what the MLS needed and I feel like he will have a big impact both on and off the pitch for both the league and the Galaxy. Nowadays, branding and things like that have become very important.

"I think we have a very individualistic culture and the clubs out here they need people of this stature who bring the following they have, to bring even more attention. I think it will be a great lifestyle for Zlatan and I am sure he will love it.

"It is a wonderful way of life and I think the players appreciate the anonymity that the United States offers, to a certain degree at least, compared to the melting pots of Europe and the intensity of the football. That won’t last forever though, that’s for sure.

"The lessons they have learned from the 60s, 70s and 80s when they brought the names over, they are now being smart about it. I think that clever business people are involved. It is going in the right direction and I would advise anyone to come out here."

Cole played 56 times for England and he won eight major honours over the course of his career that saw him play for West Ham United, Liverpool and Aston Villa, as well as at Chelsea.