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https://floridapolitics.com/archives/307009-tampa-bay-rays-finish-with-second-lowest-home-attendance-for-2019
Tampa Bay Rays finish with second-lowest home attendance for 2019
The Rays finished with the lowest home attendance in the American League for the fifth consecutive year.
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https://www.baynews9.com/fl/tampa/news/2019/09/30/hispanic-heritage-month-ybor-city-s-jos--mart--park
Hispanic Heritage Month: Ybor City's José Martí Park
YBOR CITY, Fla. — Cuba may be 90 miles from the Florida Keys, but residents of the Bay area don't have to travel that far to set foot on Cuban soil.
They just have to head to Ybor City.
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José Martí Park in Ybor is actually Cuban property, gifted to the country in 1956 by a local family just three years before the Communist revolution.
A statue of the park's namesake, the man known as the "Cuban liberator," is the centerpiece of the small park, which is surrounded by a wrought iron fence.
“For us, this is the real Cuba,” says veteran Orlando Rodriguez. “José Martí represents freedom, human rights and democracy.”
Rodriguez is the founder of the Cuban Historical and Cultural Center, the organization named guardian of the park by the city of Tampa in 1991.
While the city does much of the park's maintenance, they rely on volunteers like Orlando for upkeep.
It's a duty Rodriguez takes very seriously.
“The park become a symbol of freedom," Rodriguez explained. "It’s the only place that Cuba is free in the world,” Rodriguez said.
The park is located on East 8th Avenue in Ybor and is open to the public during the week from 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. To learn more about José Martí Park and its caretakers, watch the video above.
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https://btsvancity.com/2019/09/30/new-inter-miami-cf-man-david-norman-jr-adjusting-well-on-loan-to-pacific-fc-after-surprise-trade-from-vancouver-whitecaps/
BTS, CANADIAN PREMIER LEAGUE, COLUMNS, MLS, OTHER SOCCER TALK, PACIFIC FC, WHITECAPS
New Inter Miami CF man David Norman Jr adjusting well to CPL on loan to Pacific FC after surprise trade from Vancouver Whitecaps
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https://www.edp24.co.uk/sport/norwich-city/norwich-city-loan-round-up-1-6297524
Loan Round-Up - Hectic weekend for Canaries out on loan
It was a hectic weekend for those Norwich City operators currently plying their trade elsewhere, with the Canaries talent getting plenty of minutes under their belts for their respective clubs this weekend whilst out on loan.
Across the Atlantic, defender Caleb Richards continues to get regular minutes for the Tampa Bay Rowdies.
Richards was involved for the entirety of their 2-2 draw against Louisville City. Richards continues to play on the left of a back three in the states.
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http://www.sportspromedia.com/news/bundesliga-espn-plus-tv-rights-deal-usa-ott-streaming
Bundesliga heads to ESPN+ in long-term US rights deal
Six-year media partnership also sees games air on sports broadcasting giant’s linear channels.
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https://www.nashvillepost.com/sports/nashville-sc/article/21089585/nashville-sc-takes-over-top-spot-in-eastern-conference-standings
Nashville SC takes over top spot in Eastern Conference standings
Six teams in hunt for one of four home playoff games
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https://www.uslchampionship.com/news_article/show/1053049
The 18 – Phoenix Rises from the Ashes, Again
IN A WEEK PACKED WITH COMEBACKS, PHOENIX SHOWED ITS STRONGEST TRAIT
9. If that seems like a narrow margin to decide the final team that at best will get to host a single playoff game this postseason, then the top of the Eastern Conference has given us an even tighter race after this past week’s action. And, again, a comeback had something to do with the set-up that sees five teams vying for the top seed in the postseason separated by just two points.
10. And of all the comebacks we saw on Saturday night, that of the Tampa Bay Rowdies on the road against Louisville City FC might have been the most unlikely. Trailing by a pair of goals and down a man after Jordan Doherty was sent off for his second caution of the game, it looked as though the Rowdies were going to be the odd team out in the top five at the end of the night.
11. But then, as he has regularly during the second half of the season, Malik Johnson became a difference-maker as he was brought down inside the penalty area to earn the visitors a chance to pull a goal back from the spot. (Johnson has completed 55 of 84 dribbles since August 1, 12 more than second-place Marcus Epps over that span, and been a menace to anyone trying to defend him one-on-one). Sebastian Guenzatti duly obliged with three minutes to go, but then two minutes later it got that much better for the visitors. Shawn Barry’s cross from the right was met at the near post by Lucky Mkosana – who had been sent to the Rowdies earlier this season by LouCity in a trade for Antoine Hoppenot – and the Zimbabwean forward headed home into the top-right corner to grab a point.
12. Given the Rowdies’ road history, the result was another sign that the club has turned a corner this season when it comes to getting results away from Al Lang Stadium. Tampa Bay is now 8-4-3 on the road this season, which is one more win than it recorded away from home over the past two regular seasons combined.
13. On the other hand, it was a devastating blow for Louisville’s chances at finishing in the top four. The defending champion might have clinched a playoff place with Saturday’s result, but after pregame talk of feeling overlooked during its now nine-game undefeated streak (6-0-3) this is going to likely lead to a far harder road to claim a third consecutive title. LouCity has lost its previous two road games in the postseason, now it looks like it’s going to have to accomplish that multiple times with a six-point gap to the fourth-place Rowdies with four games to go.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.fccincinnati.com/post/2019/09/30/loan-roundup-sept-30
Loan Roundup: Sept. 30
Ben Lundt
Position: Goalkeeper
Club: Louisville City FC
Result: 2-2 against Tampa Bay Rowdies
Lundt is injured and hasn’t played since June. Lundt, who recently turned 24, was in Cincinnati this week.
The USL Championships Eastern Conference standings:
1. Nashville SC (31 games played, 58 points)
2. Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC (30 games played, 58 points)
3. New York Red Bulls II (31 games played, 57 points)
4. Tampa Bay Rowdies (31 games played, 57 points)
5. Indy Eleven (30 games played, 56 points)
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https://thestreamable.com/news/espn-plus-snags-rights-to-bundesliga-matches-to-start-streaming-in-2020
ESPN+ Snags Rights to Bundesliga, Matches to Start Streaming in 2020
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https://www.reddit.com/r/TampaBayRowdies/comments/dbas1g/usl_power_ratings_sept_30_2019_oc/
USL power ratings: Sept. 30, 2019 [OC]
Tampa remains the strongest team in the East, but a shaky couple weeks drops the Rowdies' projected finish down to No. 3 in the East. A relatively simple Friday game against Loudoun has to be a win for the bounceback to be possible. A draw (or, God forbid, a loss) probably eliminates any chance of a top-two finish, and makes even top-four contingent upon a win over Indy.
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https://clubcountryusa.com/2019/09/30/usl-power-ratings-sept-30-2019/
USL power ratings: Sept. 30, 2019
Welcome to the USL power ratings! Don’t forget to follow the site on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook for all the content on USL, US Soccer, and Nashville SC.
Table Power
This rating method combines points per game with the quality of opposition played (also measured in points per game). It’s blind to home/away splits as well as scoring margin. The goal is to project a final table based on the games already played.
USL East power ratings:
Pittsburgh Riverhounds (+1) – 66.09 projected points
Indy Eleven (-1) – 62.72 points
Tampa Bay Rowdies (+1) – 62.60 points
Nashville SC (+1) – 62.30 points
New York Red Bulls II (-2) – 61.83 points
Louisville City – 57.65 points
North Carolina FC (+1) – 53.01 points
Ottawa Fury (-1) – 51.92 points
Saint Louis FC – 46.65 points
Charleston Battery – 46.31 points
Birmingham Legion – 45.94 points
Memphis 901 – 38.35 points
Bethlehem Steel – 34.84 points
Atlanta United 2 – 33.62 points
Charlotte Independence – 32.51 points
Loudoun United – 30.68 points
Swope Park Rangers – 25.95 points
Hartford Athletic – 24.52 points
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https://www.reddit.com/r/TampaBayRowdies/comments/dbdcu7/match_32_the_numbers_game/
MATCH 32 & the Numbers Game
Alright Mobsters and Pirates! We're down to the final few matches and the numbers don't look good... In fact, they are brutal. What say ye: Where will the Rowdies finish and how many points will it take? Even to secure a home match?
I'm feeling like we need to win all 3 just to stay top 4. That would give us 66!
I have the Hounds finishing on top. The gilded Lillies have 4 matches left over our 3, and not a sound opponent in sight. It's theirs for the taking.... Prediction: 70
Likewise for the11, except for our Al Lang matchup. Even with a loss here, they can still easily earn 9. I'm not sure whether our head to head puts us in front or behind. But it doesn't matter if they run it out. Possible: 68
The little Nash ramblers have a couple of tight matches left in their final 3 with King Louie and NC, but all are at home. Earning 6 leaves them with 64, but 9 earns: 67
The Babybulls will remain road warriors throughout this final stretch, with only NC in their way for a full 9 points. Differential would put them (ahead?) even with: 66
Silver lining: I doubt King Louie can back into a top 4 spot. Still possible if they earn a full 9 and TBR drops 2 (differential?) and someone else crashes. But they should be hungry to earn a home match on their tiny pitch. 9 gives them: 60
What a season! What a bounceback! COYR!! Finish strong! FIGHT AS ONE!!!!
There is still a TON at stake right now regarding Eastern Conference playoff positioning. I started mapping out possible scenarios, and in political election terms, it's still "too close to call".
Regarding the Rowdies I looked at the other teams in positions 1-7. This would be NSH, PIT, NY, IND, LOU, and NC. OTT is out of the picture for us since they sit on 45pts with 4 games left to play, giving them a max total points of 47. It would tie us on both points and win totals, but we would likely have the edge on them on goal differential in a worst case scenario.
As of right now, there are 20 games in total that have yet to be played that affects where the Rowdies might end up.
LDNvPIT (10/1)
OTTvIND (10/2)
LDNvTBR (10/4)
PITvATL (10/5)
NCvNY (10/5)
INDvMEM (10/5)
STLvLOU (10/5)
NSHvLOU (10/8)
NSHvNC (10/12)
STLvPIT (10/12)
TBRvIND (10/12)
LOUvSPR (10/12)
BHMvNY (10/16)
INDvSPR (10/16)
NSHvATL (10/19)
LDNvNY (10/19)
HFDvTBR (10/19)
MEMvLOU (10/19)
NCvSTL (10/19)
BHMvPIT (10/20)
Doing the quick math, 320 = 3,486,784,401 possible outcomes. We are still too far away and too close on points to be able to predict any scenarios with confidence. Honestly, I want to throw out what I think might happen, but the East is incredibly volatile and unpredictable. For all I know, I could see NCFC take all three of their games, and now they would be in the home playoff picture if they did.
I don't care where we finish, as long as we don't have to travel to Pitt or Louisville. I feel extremely confident we can win anywhere else. Those two are just house of horrors for us
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https://www.gq.com.au/lifestyle/art-design/david-beckhams-new-50-million-miami-apartment-is-insane/image-gallery/cd4e49de04148539e8d31553411a7bcd
David Beckham's New $50 Million Miami Apartment Is Insane
A Zaha Hadid-designed marvel with the luxury of a seven-star resort.
It may seem like a bit of a cliche for rich British expats to descent on the sunlit Atlantic shores of Miami when they strike it rich, but David Beckham and his family seem intent on keeping the trend alive and well. As a major investor in the city's planned MLS team Inter Miami, the ex-footballer has established the Floridian city as something of a second base — something he clearly intends to make permanent by buying what could one of the city's most prized pieces of real estate.
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https://www.foxsportsasia.com/football/transfer-news/1179717/reports-manchester-united-handed-transfer-setback-attacking-target-mario-mandzukic-juventus-prepares-mls-switch/
Reports: Manchester United handed transfer setback as attacking target prepares for MLS switch
Reports suggest that Manchester United will no longer be able to sign Juventus striker Mario Mandzukic, as he is getting ready to join Major League Soccer (MLS) team Los Angeles FC.
The Sun reports that Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is quite interested to sign the Croatian veteran in the upcoming January transfer window, and thereby make amends for the sale of Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez to Inter Milan in August.
But according to Calciomercato, the 33-year-old is also a target for Los Angeles FC, who currently sits at the top of the Western Conference table in the MLS.
Monday, September 30, 2019
Sunday, September 29, 2019
St. Pete and Tampa City Council chairmen have different vision for Tampa Bay Rays
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https://www.tampabay.com/news/tampa/2019/09/27/st-pete-and-tampa-city-council-chairmen-have-different-vision-for-tampa-bay-rays/
St. Pete and Tampa City Council chairmen have different vision for Tampa Bay Rays
Tampa City Council chairman Luis Viera welcomes the challenge of keeping the Tampa Bay Rays. His St. Petersburg counterpart, Charlie Gerdes, says he’s not interested in sharing the team with Montreal.
Tampa City Council Chairman Luis Viera and his St. Petersburg counterpart, Charlie Gerdes, discussed regional cooperation in Tampa on Friday morning.
TAMPA — Charlie Gerdes and Luis Viera don’t see eye to eye on this region’s ability to support a major league baseball team for an entire season.
Or which city could better support a franchise.
Gerdes,...
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https://www.abcactionnews.com/news/driving-tampa-bay-forward/its-time-tampa-bay-survey-reveals-commuters-want-rapid-transit-streetcar-expansion
'It's Time Tampa Bay' survey reveals commuters want rapid transit, streetcar expansion
Results will help define long-range transportation
TAMPA, Fla. — The latest It’s TIME Tampa Bay survey reveals commuters are looking for rapid transit service to get to and from work as well as expanded streetcar access.
Survey results will help the three Metropolitan Planning Organizations create the very first tri-county Long-Range Transportation Plan for Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas Counties. The It’s TIME Tampa Bay survey was the most successful MetroQuest survey in the United States ever, according to the survey website.
DRIVING TAMPA BAY FORWARD | The latest headlines on safety and infrastructure in the Tampa Bay area
More than 9,500 people weighed in on transportation and growth in the Tampa Bay region, leaving about 250,000 data points for consideration in the creation of its first tri-county Transportation Plan.
Respondents said they were looking for routes connecting Downtown Tampa to the University of South Florida as well as Tampa International Airport.
They also were looking to expand the TECO Streetcar that currently runs through parts of Downtown, Channelside and Ybor City to connect it to more neighborhoods.
In addition, there was a popular push to put elevated express lanes, similar to the ones currently on the Selmon Expressway, on highways. Hillsborough County said if that gets approved to the long-range transportation plan, express lanes could go on roads like Dale Mabry, Memorial Highway and the Gandy Bridge.
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https://www.tampabay.com/arts-entertainment/arts/books/2019/09/27/gianna-russos-new-book-captures-a-poetic-side-of-tampa/
Gianna Russo’s new book captures a poetic side of Tampa
Native to the city, she evokes its past and present. Russo will appear at the Times Festival of Reading.
Gianna Russo's new poetry collection is "One House Down."
Amid the high-rises and the McMansions, between the interstates and the eight-lane highways, the ghosts of an older Tampa fan themselves in the deep shade of bungalow porches and live oaks. You might...
Native to the city, she evokes its past and present. ... The Methodist Women's Society Cookbook (United Methodist Church, Ybor City, circa 1953) ...
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https://www.theringer.com/mlb/2019/9/27/20885126/tampa-bay-rays-tropicana-field-fan-attendance-relocation-payroll-playoffs
The Hidden Treasures of Tropicana Field
Amid relocation rumors, rock-bottom payroll, stagnant attendance, and another playoff push, the Tampa Bay Rays continue to have to justify their existence. But inside the oft-derided Trop awaits both unexpected charm and a team that’s changing the way baseball is played. Can the Rays get fans under the dome to watch?
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https://www.wfla.com/news/welcome-to-florida/welcome-to-florida-tampa-bay-history-center-explores-areas-past-from-cigars-to-pirates/
Welcome to Florida: Tampa Bay History Center explores area’s past from cigars to pirates
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) – From pirates to cigars to the Columbia Café, the Tampa Bay History Center offers interactive experiences for guests to dive into our area’s history.
While the center changes some exhibits throughout the year to keep things fresh and exciting, there are a few main stables throughout the three floors that history buffs should check out.
One of those exhibits is the “Cigar City Gallery,” which is a replica of what a store in Ybor City would have looked like in the 1910s and 1920s.
It features original cigar marketing material from those times.
“Cigar factories and cigar manufacturers were some of the first to employ the techniques of advertising and marketing,” said Manny Leto, the director of marketing and communications for the Tampa Bay History Center.
“You see all these really great cigar labels, these, again, promotional materials like putting their logo and their name on ashtrays and cigar cutters and those kinds of giveaways or promotional materials,” Leto added. “We think that that’s new but really it goes back quite a long way and it goes back to the cigar industry.”
On the same floor as the Cigar City Gallery, you’ll learn more about the Seminole Indian tribe.
The History Center has a vast collection of artifacts.
“And it features original Seminole patchwork clothing, tools, ceremonial items, things that Seminole Indians would have used during their celebrations,” Leto said. “Seminole patchwork is very unique, not only to Florida but unique to each of the different families who wore it. So each piece of patchwork is identified with a different family or clan and is unique to that family. And we just have this really great collection of these really colorful skirts, long shirts, jackets.”
The center even has a Rolodex of different patchwork styles.
The interactive part of this exhibit is a theater that tells the story of the Seminole Indians from both the side of the U.S. Army and from the side of Cooachachee, a Seminole leader who led his people during the second Seminole War in the 1830s.
A neat, interactive exhibit that may be great for kids involves a lesser-known part of Florida history: cattle ranching. The History Center talks about that in their “Cowman and Crackers” exhibit, where folks can actually hop on a saddle and ride along with a Florida cattle drive.
The movie shown in this part of the center involves an actual cattle ranching family in Florida, who has been here since the late 1700s.
Of course, you can’t talk about Tampa Bay history without thinking of pirates.
The History Center features a gallery all about pirates, privateers and life on the ocean.
“So the whole gallery is built around this 18th-century sailing sloop, or a pirate ship, if you will. And it’s about the size of a ship that a sailor or a pirate or a privateer would’ve actually been on during this time,” Leto explained. “You can walk through the ship and learn a little bit about life at sea in the age of Discovery. And so life at sea as a pirate, as a privateer in the 17, 18, 1900s. And you really get a sense of the technology that they used, the actual life aboard the ship.”
The gallery has artifacts recovered from Florida waters on display, including navigational tools, weapons and gold and silver, as well as common things such as utensils and jewelry dating back 400 years.
The Tampa Bay History Center is a great location to learn about history from across the region, not just the City of Tampa.
“The history center is really telling the story of the Tampa Bay area, the Tampa Bay region and historic Hillsborough County. And that means we’re not just a Tampa museum, we’re a museum about the Tampa Bay area. So we tell stories that are all the way down south to Sarasota and all the way north to Tarpon Springs, so we are telling that full story and certainly the story of west-central Florida and really Florida in general,” Leto said.
Here is some information to help you plan your next visit to the Tampa Bay History Center.
Admission Prices:
Adults – $14.95
Seniors (60+) – $12.95
Youth (7-17) – $10.95
Children (6 & under) – Free
Military, first responders, students (with ID) – $12.95
Members – Free
Travel time to the Tampa Bay History Center (links will update to current traffic conditions, weekday afternoon conditions listed):
– From Brandon: 19 minutes
– From New Port Richey: 54 minutes
– From Lakeland: 42 minutes
– From Bradenton: 53 minutes
– From Sarasota: 1 hour
– From Orlando: 1 hour, 23 minutes
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2019/09/27/socom-ramps-up-efforts-to-develop-cutting-edge-data-techniques-opens-new-data-engineering-lab/
SOCOM ramps up efforts to develop ‘cutting-edge data techniques,’ opens new data engineering lab
The U.S. Special Operations Command Data Engineering Lab grand opening ceremony took place in Tampa, Fla., on Sept. 25, 2019. The lab is an open-concept work environment and is the Command’s outpost of a larger DoD modernization eco-system, whose goal is to foster collaboration between Special Operations Forces professionals, data scientists, data architects, software developers, systems integrators and technologists.
U.S. Special Operations Command is ramping up its efforts to develop “cutting-edge data techniques” like artificial intelligence to boost readiness and minimize costs.
As part of that initiative, the command unveiled its new Data Engineering Lab located at the SOFWERX facility in Tampa, Florida, on Wednesday. SOFWERX was established under a partnership intermediary agreement with SOCOM and DEFENSEWERX, formerly known as the Doolittle Institute, to help address war fighter problems for the command.
The lab was designed to cultivate AI, machine learning, and robotic process automation — all to boost the performance and strength of special operations forces, SOCOM spokeswoman Army Maj. Jennifer Bocanegra told the Military Times.
“The DEL is modeled off of leading technology companies, where DoD partners, industry thought leaders, academia and Special Operations Forces collaborate to develop, test and employ new technical approaches to modernize warfighting decision making,” Bocanegra said in an email to the Military Times.
Already, several projects are underway at the DEL, according to Bocanegra.
Along with the Pentagon’s Joint Artificial Intelligence Center, the DEL is working on a project supporting the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment based at Fort Campbell in Kentucky to use AI and machine learning technology to help predict and prevent key mechanical issues, and to enhance the effectiveness of aircraft maintenance, among other things.
“This project is in its early stages, but initial data collection, analysis and use of results have resulted in a significant increase in readiness, at cost savings,” Bocanegra said.
A ribbon cutting ceremony for the opening of the lab was held on Wednesday, and included remarks from SOCOM commander, Army Gen. Richard Clarke and SOCOM Chief Data Officer David Spirk.
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SOCOM's Data Engineering Lab grand opening took place in Ybor City in Tampa yesterday. The DEL is specifically designed to develop and leverage cutting edge data techniques, including AI & machine learning, to enhance SOF effectiveness and capabilities...
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Spirk joined SOCOM in 2018, after working with the Department of Defense’s Project Maven Program that launched in April 2017. The artificial intelligence program is designed to use machine learning and artificial intelligence to process full-motion video.
The new lab comes as SOCOM is composing a new artificial intelligence and machine learning strategy as part of its program objective memorandum for fiscal years 2022 to 2026. At the time, Spirk said Special Operations Forces components would start crafting the strategy starting in September.
“We’re going to start the crafting of a real roadmap,” he said at the Special Operations Forces Industry Conference in May, according to National Defense. “This will help the command...talk about the investments we need to make and the resources that we’re going to need.”
The DEL will be overseen by SOCOM’s Data Office, but will be housed in SOFWERX’s facility in Tampa’s Ybor City. SOFWERX and the new data lab will both address solutions for special operator needs, Bocanegra said.
“Being co-located provides opportunities for the DEL and SOFWERX to collaborate on future challenges for the Special Operations community,” Bocanegra said.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.wtsp.com/article/life/holidays/halloween-events-haunted-houses-theme-parks-tampa-bay/67-d406eaf1-8566-46df-ada6-30c6bf03739e
Haunted houses, theme parks, pumpkin festivals and more Halloween events in Tampa Bay
Get in the spooky spirit with super scary haunted houses, ghost tours and family-friendly trick-or-treating.
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https://thatssotampa.com/hidden-gems-3-tampa-coffee-shops-you-need-to-visit/
Hidden Gems: 3 Tampa coffee shops you need to visit
Tampa is a coffee lover’s paradise. You have the large coffee shops like Kahwa Coffee and Blind Tiger that have changed the game in the area. There are also other major coffee spots that have come to prominence with the emergence of Food Hall, like Union by Commune + Co. and Kofe.
Other shops worth mentioning include King State, which serves both coffee and craft beer, Spaddy’s, Seminole Heights go-to caffeine spot, and The Portico, which uses its coffee shop to provide jobs and donations for those in need.
While we love the coffee purveyors that keep us caffeinated, there are a few hidden gems you need to visit in the city of Tampa.
22nd Street Coffee
This spot came to our attention courtesy of an Instagram post about their Cuban toast. Yes, we came for the toast and stayed for the cup of Joe. Their delicious Cuban bread also makes for one of the best breakfast sandwiches in the entire region.
22nd Street Coffee just opened a little over a year ago. A good coffee spot is just as much about aesthetic as it is about the roast. 22nd Street Coffee is adorned with murals inside and out. The owners are welcoming, and the tables are vibrant. If you want lose yourself for a few hours inside a savory ham, egg, and cheese, a piping hot cup of local roast, then you need to visit this Ybor City gem.
Also, when you visit, make sure to try the “Fraccucino,” made with cream, milk, CAFÉ PEREZ Cuban style espresso and home made whipped cream. It’s the best way to start your day.
22nd Street Coffee, 208 North 22nd Street.
LPCX Cafe Bakery
This is another spot that goes above and beyond with its food. The pastries are the perfect complements the coffee. The Colombian bakery serves up dishes like the arepa engallada, a treat featuring pulled pork, paisa cheese, avocado, and a poached egg on top of a arepa. It’s divine, y’all.
Hungry for more? Treat yourself to a fried cheese-dough called Buñuelo. The tarts and waffles here are equally irresistible. It’s a much appreciated taste of Colombia right in Tampa.
LPCX serves up Eastlick Coffee, and you can taste the sensational boldness in every cappuccino.
PS, save room for LPCX’s famous Colombian hot dog loaded with crushed potato chips and pineapple.
LPCX Cafe Bakery, 6204 North Armenia Avenue.
Felicitous Coffee & Tea
Felicitous is creation of a former USF student who craved a good local coffee shop off campus. Mixing the coziness of Central Perk from Friends, with damn fine coffee you’d expect from Double R Diner in Twin Peaks.
Felicitous has two locations, both housed in a quaint cottage like homes. Whenever we see the purple and green facade we’re filled with the kind of warmth that can only be created by coffee and conversation.
When we visit, we’re almost always in the mood for an affogato, because there’s nothing like ice cream and espresso on a Sunday morning.
What makes Felicitous stand apart from the rest of the coffee shops in Tampa is its special menu. The Floridian is a latte with mocha, Florida orange, and whipped cream. The Mississippi Mud is a sweet blend of hot chocolate, espresso, marshmallows, whip topping and chocolate drizzle.
You need to sip on the Teacher’s Pet. It’s a latte with dark chocolate, peanut butter, whip, and chocolate drizzle. Yes, Felicitous is for those with a sweet tooth.
Felicitous Coffee and Tea, 14204 N 42nd Street AND 11706 N 51st Street.
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https://www.courier-journal.com/story/sports/soccer/louisville-city-fc/2019/09/28/louisville-city-fc-ties-tampa-bay-in-front-of-season-record-crowd/3809642002/
Louisville City FC ties Tampa Bay in front of season-record crowd
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https://floridapolitics.com/archives/306897-strike-em-out-full-time-baseball-wont-work-in-tampa-or-st-pete-charlie-gerdes-says
Strike ’em out: Full-time baseball won’t work in Tampa or St. Pete, Charlie Gerdes says
He’s happy to let Tampa take another stab.
St. Petersburg City Council Chair Charlie Gerdes doesn’t think the Tampa Bay Rays can have high enough attendance at home games whether they have a brand new stadium in St. Petersburg or Tampa.
He said during a Café Con Tampa talk Friday that the team’s only hope for success in the Tampa Bay region might be to play a split season in Montreal.
The team previously floated an idea that would split home games between Montreal and Tropicana Field, but St. Pete Mayor Rick Kriseman scoffed at the idea.
Some fans also balked, arguing the city and its taxpayers shouldn’t be on the hook for a new stadium if the team isn’t fully committed to playing its full season in it.
“[Hillsborough has] a problem with a revenue source, but their geography is primo,” Gerdes said.
On the contrary, St. Pete has a potential revenue source, but it’s location within the region leaves too few fans within a 30-minute drive from the stadium.
Pinellas County has long had available tourism bed tax dollars to help fund a stadium. Hillsborough County wanted to leverage community redevelopment dollars as well as tap potential private sources, a plan the Rays rejected.
And whatever ends up happening, has to get the OK from not just the Rays, but the entire Major League Baseball.
“If the team moves from Pinellas to Hillsborough, Charlie says attendance is not going to meaningfully change,” Gerdes said, using his own name to emphasize that was his opinion.
Home game attendance is abysmal, but attendance is down across the board. Gerdes blames big screen TVs and the comforts of home. Why schlep it to a stadium when you can watch the game for free at home with access to your own bathroom, not to mention much cheaper beer.
Gerdes said Rays principal owner Stu Sternberg told the city a full season in St. Pete was not an option.
“ ‘I will not give you 81 games,’ he said that,” Gerdes said.
He said that’s even if the team gets a shiny new stadium on the city’s downtown waterfront.
Gerdes said he’s more interested in redeveloping the massive Tropicana Field site. If asked, he said he would support another memorandum of understanding with the Rays to allow them to again negotiate with Tampa.
Gerdes was speaking with Tampa City Council Chair Luis Viera during an event sharing priorities on both sides of the bay. The Rays issue often pits St. Pete against Tampa, but Gerdes was all too happy to let Tampa have another stab, especially if that’s what keeps the team local.
“It’s so important to continue to try to have some sort of dialogue,” Viera said. “If the rays leave the region that is a real big failure on our part.”
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https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2854970-br-football-ranks-big-names-rumoured-to-join-david-beckham-at-inter-miami
B/R Football Ranks: Big Names Rumoured to Join David Beckham at Inter Miami
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https://www.caughtoffside.com/2019/09/26/man-utds-greenwood-linked-with-beckham-agency/
David Beckham targets Manchester United star as client as he’s linked with agency move
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https://www.fourfourtwo.com/news/david-beckham-mason-greenwood-agent-manchester-united-man-utd
Mason Greenwood in David Beckham's sights as England legend looks to expand client list
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https://www.tampabay.com/news/st-petersburg/2019/09/26/rays-low-attendance-during-playoff-run-reignites-tampa-st-petersburg-debate/
Rays’ low attendance during playoff run reignites Tampa-St. Petersburg debate
The paltry support from fans this week as the Rays chase the wild card rekindles an old argument that St. Petersburg can’t support big league baseball.
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https://www.sbnation.com/2019/9/26/20883568/american-sports-stadium-architecture-future
What the future of the American ballpark should look like
The American ballpark is in decline. Let’s build it back up.
Don’t just talk about community buy-in; let the community buy in
In 2018, before exploring alternate plans such as a time-share with Montreal, the Tampa Bay Rays optimistically pitched a new park in Tampa’s Ybor City neighborhood. In describing the design, the Rays claimed the venue would be “of, by and for the people of Tampa Bay.” Community engagement is a common refrain in presentations like this, and the Rays are far from the first team to suggest a closer relationship with the public. I don’t see anything in the Ybor stadium design to suggest it will create one, though. It’s a fairly standard design that is admittedly prettier than their moribund current home, Tropicana Field, but doesn’t address the fundamentals of fan support.
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https://skystatement.com/what-the-future-of-the-american-sports-stadium-should-look-like/
What the Future of the American Sports Stadium Should Look Like
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http://www.samfordcrimson.com/20190925-david-beckham-closing-in-on-appointing-ex-real-madrid-boss-santiago-solari-as-inter-miami-coach/
David Beckham closing in on appointing ex-Real Madrid boss Santiago Solari as Inter Miami coach
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https://www.reddit.com/r/TampaBayRowdies/comments/d9ksvj/how_do_you_approach_this_game_vs_louisville/
How do you approach this game vs. Louisville?
With how tight the standings are, three points would be amazing, but also quite difficult. Louisville has been quite good at home (especially as of late). I'm imagining the narrow pitch is going to lead to a lot of congestion in the midfield, so moving around the ball will probably be difficult and might look similar to the Atlanta and Ottawa away games where we resort to having to hoof it over the top (not our best look). That said, it's unlikely they sit back in their place either, perhaps opening up the transition part of the game to some extent.
So, what do you expect to see? How do you think we come at this one?
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https://www.reddit.com/r/TampaBayRowdies/comments/dant3m/its_only_one/
It's only one!
Post-Match Thread
Down by one against a purple team, which is absolutely the worst color in the world.
COYR
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https://www.reddit.com/r/TampaBayRowdies/comments/dau92o/rowdies_highlights_at_louisville_city_fc/
Rowdies Highlights at Louisville City FC - September 28, 2019
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqwiHcbiHOs&feature=youtu.be
Rowdies Highlights at Louisville City FC - September 28, 2019
Tampa Bay Rowdies
🎥 FULL HIGHLIGHTS of tonight's dramatic 2-2 draw in Louisville. Sebastian Guenzatti and Lucky Mkosana scored late goals for the Rowdies.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DnwAOkCYSY
Cocktails with Collins: Episode 6
Tampa Bay Rowdies
On this month's episode of "Cocktails with Collins" presented by The Don CeSar, Coach Collins talks pumpkin spice, closing out the regular season, and Malik Johnson.
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http://www.theunsubs.com/wp/2019/09/25/episode-222-squid-go-pro/4548
Episode 222 – Squid Go Pro
Posted on September 25, 2019 AuthorMatthew Cox Comment(0)
Executive Producer: David Klabo
Tonight, the guys cast their gaze at the playoff possibilities following the Rowdies big win over Bethlehem, check in on the other Eastern Conference contenders, and preview this weekend’s huge trip to Louisville!
In this episode:
Rowdies 6:1 Bethlehem
Eastern Conference Update
Playoff Possibilities
Louisville Preview
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https://www.tampabay.com/hillsborough/inspired-by-ybor-history-jc-newman-expanding-amid-concerns-about-cigar-industrys-future-20190531/
Inspired by Ybor history, J.C. Newman expanding amid concerns about cigar industry's future
Ybor City’s last cigar factory, J.C. Newman Cigar Co., is adding a hand-rolling space to its operations and releasing The American, a cigar made entirely from U.S. ingredients including Florida-grown tobacco.
TAMPA — The future of Ybor City's last working cigar factory will be rooted in the community's past.
First, the J.C. Newman Cigar Co. will bring back The American — the first cigar ever rolled in the...
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https://tampamagazines.com/j-c-newman-cigar-company/
In many ways, the cigar factories that dot the Ybor City landscape are identical.
They were all built with red brick. Each stands three stories tall and has a basement. The buildings run east to west according to the sun’s daily path — with no electricity, cigar workers needed as much natural sunlight as they could get.
But look a little closer, and you’ll notice one major difference. The factories are no longer functioning, no longer producing the cigars that put Tampa on the map. The exception? El Reloj, named for the thundering clock that used to ring out across all of Ybor City each hour, keeping time for the neighborhood. The factory is home to the 123-year-old J.C. Newman Cigar Company, the only family-owned premium cigar manufacturer left in the entire United States.
“We used to be able to get on our roof and see all of our competition all over the United States from our roof because Tampa was the fine cigar capital of the world,” says company president Eric Newman. “My grandfather went into business for himself in 1895. When he started, there were 42,000 licensed cigar manufacturers. We’re the only one of those cigar manufacturers from 1895 that are still owned and operated by the founding family.”
Like essentially every other red-blooded American industry, the cigar business is a shadow of what it was when Hungarian immigrant Julius Caeser Newman became a cigar apprentice at 15 years old in the early 1890s in Cleveland, Ohio. Just three years later, his mother secured an order for 500 cigars from the local grocer, and Newman started the business that exists today out of the family barn.
In a sign of things to come, the fledgling company’s first real challenge came when, after moving operations into the heated basement of their home, Newman’s mother evicted the business. The cigar production process, she discovered, had made her canned fruits and vegetables taste unmistakably of tobacco. Newman moved his company into a storefront, and later a factory, in down-town Cleveland, where he found ways around a series of threats to his business. First, millions of Americans were introduced to cigarettes when shipments were sent to the troops fighting overseas during World War I.
“Until World War I, no one smoked cigarettes. Cigars were the tobacco of choice for everybody,” Eric Newman says. “All our customers who were in Germany who were cigar smokers came back as cigarette smokers.”
Newman’s grandfather lost money during the Great Depression, when he kept two factory shifts running each day just to keep people employed. The same happened after World War II, when the federal government returned the cigars it had purchased from the Newman Company during fighting — 35 percent of the factory’s total wartime production to help stimulate the economy — with the company taking a total loss. In the immediate post-war years, more cigars were coming back into the factory than were being produced each day.
Those issues were temporarily solved with Newman’s development of the Cameo cigar, which cost just a nickel each and became one of the country’s top-selling cigars. The success was short-lived; Newman raised the cost to six cents, and business plummeted. Simultaneously, a tobacco price-fixing scheme by the larger cigar manufacturers made it nearly impossible for the Newman Company to stay competitive in the mass-market cigar business.
“We had to find a niche in the cigar business that the big guys weren’t in,” Eric Newman says. “In the early ‘50s, they were in the mass market business, so my grandfather said we should get in the premium business. There was only section of the Unit-ed States making premium cigars in the early ‘50s, and that was Tampa, Florida.”
In 1954, at 78 years old, J.C. Newman moved his entire operation to the current Ybor City factory. Less than a decade later, he watched as many of his fellow Cigar City manufacturers shuttered, unable to overcome the embargo on the Cuban tobacco they depended on for the Havana-style cigars Tampa had become known for. Thanks in part to a partnership with Carlos Fuente and his company (Fuente would produce handmade Newman cigars at his factory in Nicaragua, and New-man would make, market and sell U.S.-made Fuente cigars), Newman, his son Stanford, and later his sons Eric and Bobby, would ride out the peaks and valleys of the cigar industry through the 1990s. Today, the Newmans produce the majority of their hand-rolled and machine-made cigars at their factory in Nicaragua, including their iconic Cuesta Rey (the name that still shines from the top of El Reloj) and Quorum, a newer cigar that is now the world’s top-selling bundled ci-gar. In Ybor City, more than 100 workers churn out 60,000 cigars made both by machine and by hand every day.
The past decade, though, brought a new adversary, and one that poses the greatest threat to the business so far: the federal government.
In 2016, the Food and Drug Ad-ministration declared it would regulate all tobacco products, including premium cigars like the ones made by the Newmans, in an effort to curb tobacco use by kids and teenagers. The Newman company had been anticipating the move for about a decade and had already been working with politicians from both parties to block it. Sen. Marco Rubio, former Sen. Bill Nelson and Rep. Kathy Castor have all unsuccessfully sponsored federal legislation exempting premium cigars from FDA regulation — a costly proposition that would involve new taxes and new standards to meet, very likely putting the Newman Company out of business. Eric Newman says his family’s business is an “unintended consequence” of the government’s efforts to keep kids away from more youth-oriented tobacco products like flavored cigarettes, Juuls and other e-cigarettes.
“We’ve explained to them, we’re David going up against Goliath. We’re a threat to no one,” he adds. “We go up to Congress, and we don’t ask them for an earmark. We don’t ask them for a tax credit. We just ask them to leave us alone.”
The main argument for exempting premium cigars is based on their relatively low rate of use. A 2017 study in the journal Nicotine & Tobacco Research established smokers smoked a median number of just 0.1 premium cigars per day, compared to a median of 10.1 cigarettes smoked by established cigarette users, and 1.6 filtered cigars. In addition, the median age of first use for premium cigars is 24 years old, supporting the Newmans’ assertion that kids aren’t smoking premium cigars.
“Cigars are an adult choice,” Newman says. “People smoke cigars because they enjoy them like they enjoy a glass of wine. It’s a custom industry.”
In March 2018, the decision to bring premium cigars under FDA oversight was put on hold by the Trump administration, which opened up the issue for public comment. According to Newman, more than 34,000 comments critical of the regulations were submitted. Newman says he’s heartened by the community’s support of the city’s namesake.
“This is the Cigar City. If you know anybody who has lived here for four generations or more, chances are someone in their family worked in the cigar industry because those were the jobs around,” he says. “People rallied to the cause. We’re still fighting it. We aren’t there yet. We aren’t go-ing away, but we’re still fighting.”
“God willing we’ll be here for another 123 years.”
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https://www.jcnewman.com/visit-us/
J.C. Newman Factory Renovation
*Visiting Hours at the Museum Temporarily Suspended*
In 1954, J.C. Newman Cigar Company moved from Cleveland, Ohio to the historic El Reloj factory in Tampa, Florida. Built in 1910, El Reloj serves as the international headquarters for J.C. Newman and is the only factory still manufacturing cigars in Cigar City.
In anticipation of the company’s 125th anniversary and the factory’s 110th anniversary, our iconic factory is undergoing a restoration project to highlight its historic beauty.
Due to this, visiting hours at our existing museum have been temporarily suspended. We apologize for any inconvenience this causes you, but rest assured that when we reopen in early 2020, the wait will have been worth it.
In addition to an expanded museum, our public areas will also include a retail store, hand-rolling area, and many interactive experiences. Between our self-guided and docent-led tour options, you will be able to peek into the past to see how our family persevered through the years, learn more about the industry which built Tampa and experience the artistry of cigar making first hand.
Our hope is that El Reloj becomes a destination for cigar and history lovers alike Whether you smoke daily or have never before picked up a cigar, we will have something for everyone.
We invite you to take a virtual tour of the factory by visiting our Google Business View page here. Stay up to date on the construction process and the reopening of our museum by signing up for our mailing list below.
ADDRESS:
2701 Sixteenth Street
Tampa, FL 33605
PHONE:
(813) 248-2124
BUSINESS HOURS:
MON – FRI: 8AM – 5PM
MUSEUM HOURS:
CURRENTLY SUSPENDED
Factory Renovation Updates and Plans from Drew Newman
Black Diamond Cigar
Cigar Rolling Machines
Barrels of Loose Filler Tobacco
Tobacco Leaves in Bunches
Brick House Double Connecticut Cigar
Wrapper Tobacco Cut By Chaveta
Diamond Crown Cigar
Cigar Rolling Machine Wrapper Plate
Maximus Cigar on Loose Wrapper Tobacco Leaf
Brick House Double Connecticut on Wrapper Tobacco
Tobacco Wrapper Stripping Machine
Perla del Mar Cigar
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https://halfwheel.com/visit-j-c-newman-cigar-co/
MARCH 27, 2018•BROOKS WHITTINGTON•CIGAR LOCATIONS
A VISIT TO J.C. NEWMAN CIGAR CO.
It’s called the Cigar City, but there are now more breweries than cigar factories. Tampa—specifically its Ybor City neighborhood—was once the capital of the global cigar industry. A drive through Ybor City shows many of the old cigar factories still standing, some dilapidated and vacant, some renovated to apartments and offices, but there is one where cigars are still rolled. Just one.
The outside of the El Reloj cigar factory in Ybor City. The massive clocktower towers over large building.
Working in a 108-year-old building means constant upkeep. The roof had been replaced shortly before our visit.
Visitors are greeted by a full-fledged museum. The centerpiece is the restored clock which chimes regularly.
Taking the picture in the bell tower required some effort that any sane attorney wouldn’t approve of. That said, here’s what the inside of the bell tower looks like.
Eric Newman (L) stands at the head of the conference table. His reflection displays off a photograph of his father Stanford Newman (L), Eric (C) and Bobby Newman (R).
The building is so large that both Eric and Bobby Newman struggled to identify where this picture of the hygrometer came from. Our belief is that it was from the third floor, but there were similar old-school hygrometers throughout the building.
In 1953, Stanford Newman began a test to see if the old E. Regensburg Cigar Factory in Tampa would be suitable for his father’s cigar company. A year later, Julius Caeser Newman moved his company from Ohio to the Cigar City.
The Regensburg factory was built in 1910, but the massive factory was better known as El Reloj, Spanish for the clock, due to the tall bellower that sits at one corner of the factory. In 1951, Regensburg left after mechanization took employment from 1,000 rollers to around 300. Enter J.C. Newman.
In 2020, J.C. Newman will celebrate its 125th anniversary and part of those celebrations will be an updated El Reloj factory. The company plans to turn it into a cigar destination, though it’s not as if that isn’t the case at the moment.
The building houses a multitude of things, most notably, a cigar factory on the second floors that produces 60,000 cigars. In addition, a museum and the J.C. Newman offices are on the first floor, there’s a machine shop, a museum area, complete with exhibits detailing the building and company’s history. And lots of storage. The building is so large and contains so much history, that some members of the Newman family struggled to identify where various pictures we took were taken.
And while there’s a two-year project planned to update the building, it’s not as if the company hasn’t been doing that for the last half-century. We arrived shortly after a new roof had been installed. The museum area is substantially more involved than a few pictures with captions; i.e., a museum professional certainly helped the company construct it. In 2002, the company restored the building’s famous clock which had been dormant for nearly 50 years after a woman complained it was waking up her baby.
The clock now chimes, every day.
It's a bit challenging to understand the scale, but this room is the size of a small garage. Tobacco is opened dried out on the third floor and then sent through a door in the floor to this room on the second floor. Picadura, i.e. scrap tobacco, is brought in from the Fuente and Padrón factories, as well as J.C. Newman's own PENSA factory in Estelí. It's a mound of tobacco.
Eric Newman is frustrated by this sight. The mask irks him, largely because it reminds him of the government regulation. No factory has seen more sitting U.S. Congressmen than J.C. Newman's El Reloj factory. Old cigar boxes hold old parts for old cigar machines.
A total of 135 employees and two dogs work out of the nearly 100,000-square-foot building. There are two separate cigar operations: the antique, human-operated cigar machines that produce 60,000 cigars are overseen by 15 employees while two employees make cigars entirely by hand, part of Drew Newman’s upcoming Fourth Generation Cigar Co. project.
The second floor rolling room produces 60,000 cigars per day.
The machines are constantly refilled, using buckets from Home Depot, with the filler mixture, by hand.
Filler tobacco waiting to be placed into cigars.
Workers are constantly inspecting wrapper leaves, stretching them and then placing them into the machines.
A worker stretches the wrapper out.
It’s rare to see this many cigars stored on top of one another, but this isn’t a normal cigar factory.
More fresh-rolled cigars, this time a different wrapper.
There’s extra machines and dedicated mechanics but sometimes, repairs are made on the fly.
While it’s not too far from the ocean, misters overhead pump out a fair amount of humidity.
A few years ago, the Newmans created buttons that said “Save Tampa’s Last Strippers.” Technically, the buttons said “Cigar Strippers” but that was hard to see. They were referencing the workers who strip, or devein, wrapper leaf. Using machines is common as the machines break less wrapper than human hands.
Two employees are rolling cigars in the traditional, entirely by-hand manner. It’s part of Drew Newman’s Fourth Generation Cigar Co. project.
The concept is that everything is American-made: the cigars, the tobacco, the bands, the boxes, the clasp. Everything. As such, the cigars won’t be cheap. They are expected to formally debut later this year.
Because of the Newman family’s political advocacy, the factory receives a fair bit of politicians. As such, you see charts and maps throughout the factory stressing the importance of the cigar industry and the uniqueness of what’s taking place at the El Reloj factory.
Up until recently that operation was just the antique machines, which use mixed filler tobacco from the Fuente and Padrón factories, as well as the Newman’s own PENSA factory in Estelí, Nicaragua. That filler is mixed into a special blend which is then placed inside of various wrappers to create brands like Factory Throwouts.
The machines are different from those used by the companies responsible for mass market cigars like Swisher. These are older, slower and finickier. And while they are still machines, they won’t work unless a human is there to place the tobacco leaf, fill the blended tobacco or remove the finished cigars. Quite simply, there is as much movement over the course of a minute as you’d see at any factory, but the difference is just in output.
Jeannie is one of Bobby’s dogs. She is an ambassador for Southeastern Guide Dogs, which Bobby sits on the board of, an organization that trains dogs to serve as guide dogs for the visually-impaired and veterans. She roams the office, seen here protecting the hallway from stray bloggers.
For the Newman family, the red brick building is a matter of pride. It could very easily move this production to Nicaragua, where it would be far cheaper to make the identical cigars, but it wouldn’t be the same. The Newmans are Cigar City and until someone else resurrects another old building, Cigar City is J.C. Newman.
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https://www.frontrowsoccer.com/2019/09/29/no-room-at-the-inn-cosmos-trying-to-find-a-league-may-not-play-in-2020/
NO ROOM AT THE INNS?: Cosmos, trying to find a league, may not play in 2020
Rocco B Commisso: “If they don’t let the Cosmos play, what can I do?” (FrontRowSoccer.com Photo)
UNIONDALE, N.Y. — Cosmos owner Rocco B. Commisso hasn’t decided yet, but he admits that it has been difficult to find a league in which his team can compete next year.
“It’s a tough decision,” Commisso said at halftime of the Cosmos’ 3-1 win over Chattanooga FC at Mitchel Athletic Complex Saturday night. “I have not made up my mind yet. Clearly, if nobody let’s us play, how can we play? NISA doesn’t want us, the NPSL doesn’t want us and I’m just not going to field a team of amateurs. That’s not the Cosmos.”
In an interview posted on this website July 29, Commisso said intended to have the Cosmos team continue to play next year, although he didn’t know which league it will compete.
Much has happened since then.
The first-place Cosmos, who are participating in the 10-game NPSL Members Cup this fall, finished second in the National Premier Soccer League season, losing in the championship game to Miami FC, 3-1, Aug. 3.
The NPSL will not allow teams with professional players to compete in the league starting in 2020. The Cosmos have used professional players the past two seasons.
NISA, the National Independent Soccer Association, which started up this autumn, provisionally has been sanctioned as a Division III league by U.S. Soccer. Chattanooga FC and Detroit City FC, which are competing in the Members Cup, will commence play in NISA next spring.
“From what I heard — I didn’t speak to them personally — is that they might have a lot of problems with them getting Division Three if they let the Cosmos in,” Commisso said. “I heard it from some of our people that are in touch with the situation. U.S. Soccer is just putting stumbling blocks in front of us.”
He later added: “If they don’t let the Cosmos play, what can I do?”
Commisso and the North American Soccer League have filed an anti-trust lawsuit against the U.S. Soccer Federation. “We have to keep this lawsuit going on,” he said. “It has taken too long, frankly. We’ll see what happens.”
Asked if the Cosmos had other options for 2020, Commisso replied, “Not if people don’t let us play. We already have one lawsuit. Let’s see what happens from that lawsuit. It’s just unfortunate that we have people in place, elected to be on the board of the USSF whose primary job is to make sure the Cosmos don’t have the light of day to play.
“It’s sad, it’s disgusting.”
He later added: “It’s sad for the players. I could afford to lose money. I think we’re up to $30 million here. So, it’s not a penny. There’s principles and I will fight those principles and they know that. But they know that they can’t pull me down that fast. There are laws in this country. There is a major lawsuit going on and the depositions have already taken place. I feel good. I feel good as to our chances of getting a final judgment in the court system.”
Commisso said that he has not set a deadline as to when he will decide on whether the Cosmos will perform in 2020.
“Let’s wait for the season to be over, then we’ll make some decisions,” he said. “We’ve got a good hand, a strong hand, in respect to the lawsuit. A lot of stuff has been uncovered in depositions.”
The team still can compete in the NPSL as Cosmos B, an amateur side, but Commisso said possibility that was still up in the air.
“I haven’t made that decision,” he said. “At the end of the season I will regroup with my team and see what we should be doing here.”
In June, Commisso purchased Fiorentina for a reported $150 million. He said he decided to buy the Italian Serie A club because it participates in a league that has promotion and relegation and that teams can determine its own destiny on how much money it spends on players.
“When I look at my team at Fiorentina, it’s a small city, a beautiful city. the level of money that we are spending for players, dwarfs — it’s huge — in relation to what an average MLS team pays. They are keeping still, average, below average type of soccer to play here in the U.S.”
Commisso’s lawsuit is expected to go to trial in 2020, if there no more delays.
“They are not going to kill me,” he said. “They tried, but they can’t do it. So, I’ve gone and invested my money in a meritocracy, where there’s promotion and relegation and its sorely needed in this country. What’s unfortunate is that the powers that be at FIFA are looking more at the money that could be made in the U.S. in the [2026] World Cup. So, it is opposed to the telling the U.S. to fix up their soccer regime, how soccer gets managed here in this country. That’s the unfortunate part.”
Commisso then reiterated his feelings on the lack of a promotion-relegation system in the U.S.
“They want the same closed system that appears in other sports in this country,” he said. “Rarely you see any teams go bankrupt, rarely do you see any teams lose money. It’s a system made to prevent competitive forces to hit the pocket books of the billionaires. It’s not me. The system is not to produce a winning soccer nation and that’s the shame of it, that we’re getting the World Cup again with nothing to prove on the field. We’re still second, third, fourth rate, and it’s a shame.”
Fiorentina (1-2-2, 5), which is 15th among 20 teams in Italy’s First Division, plays at 11th-place A.C. Milan (2-3-0, 6) Sunday.
Commisso said that he was satisfied with his new club.
“Absolutely,” he said. “Look at the love the people have for me. Someone in Europe put out a list of the teams with the percentage of new players on the starting team. We’re No. 1. I’m glad I closed the deal in two weeks. I’m glad that I got started in June. It would have been disastrous to have closed in August. We brought a lot of new players and let’s see what happens. We have a big game [Sunday].”
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.newsobserver.com/opinion/article235549422.html
Is $200 million too much for the MLS in Charlotte?
Fans cheer the Atlanta United soccer team, an MLS franchise.
Is a Major League Soccer team worth $200 million to Charlotte?
It’s a question the city might soon have to confront given reports that Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper may ask the Charlotte City Council to pay for upgrades to Bank of America Stadium that would help the city get an MLS franchise. Sources tell the Observer editorial board that that no such ask has been formally made yet — despite at least one report saying so — but there do appear to be conversations happening between the city and Tepper. A formal and precise proposal is sure to come soon, and council members are surely calculating now what a good deal would look like for the city.
We believe a good MLS deal does exist. This editorial board has said before that the city should welcome the opportunity to partner with Tepper, who has displayed both vision and an understanding that ventures should benefit more than his own bottom line. An MLS team could be one such venture, but is the reported price tag of $100-200 million too steep for Charlotte?
In some ways, it’s not a bad deal. The city, after all, committed almost $300 million in 2003 to bringing an NBA franchise back to Charlotte. We got more than a team with that investment, certainly — we got an arena and the big events it subsequently has attracted. Still, $200 million to secure a franchise in a growing U.S. league is at least a little intriguing.
But the best way to judge Charlotte’s potential investment is a way Tepper and any businessperson would appreciate: What are the comps these days on public dollars and MLS facilities? The answer: $100 million is on the high end, and $200 million would eclipse most every other city’s investment by tens of millions. Most MLS teams, including those in Sacramento and St. Louis — sought less than $100 million in recent years. A few asked for no public dollars for facilities.
Those numbers come with a caveat — most have involved MLS-only stadiums, not improvements to an existing stadium as Tepper is proposing. The average public money spent on MLS facilities, according to Marquette University research? $83.3 million.
Just as important, perhaps, is how much of a partnership Tepper is pitching. According to the Observer’s Jim Morrill, Danielle Chemtob and Brendan Marks, Tepper is proposing that he will pay more than $400 million in franchise fees, salaries and other costs associated with the franchise, and that the city will pay for stadium upgrades and team facilities. But unless Tepper is also offering the city a stake in the MLS team — and the chance to earn a profit — it’s disingenuous to describe that proposal as anything but the city footing all the stadium costs. That’s rare in pro sports these days, and it’s not much of a partnership. Charlotte should ask for more.
The city also should ask about Tepper’s plans to eventually ask for the city’s help with a domed stadium that would house the Panthers and the possible MLS team. Tepper might see that as separate from the MLS proposal, but a city investment in sports facilities comes from one finite bucket of tourism-related taxes. Also, it’s politically dicey for the city to pay for hundreds of millions for Bank of America Stadium upgrades if that stadium might be replaced in the near future. Never mind that any request for public money — even if it comes from tourism taxes — is viewed amid the backdrop of other needs that the city still needs to address.
All of which are challenges Charlotte can overcome. There’s a good MLS deal out there. The city council has some work to do to find it.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.givemesport.com/1509113-inside-david-beckhams-40-million-penthouse-apartment-in-miami
Inside David Beckham's €40 million penthouse apartment in Miami
From next season, David Beckham’s Inter Miami will be competing in the MLS.
While we’re not quite sure exactly who will be playing - or managing - the side next season, we know Beckham will infest heavily in his project.
Manchester City’s David Silva is rumoured to be teaming up with the club after this Premier League season, while they’ve been linked with a certain Lionel Messi.
We all know Beckham will spend plenty of money on Inter Miami and he’s also spent plenty of money on a new property in the city.
That’s because he’s splashed an eye-watering $40 million on a new apartment - the world's most expensive apartment in 2019.
David Silva set to join Inter Miami
Inter Miami contact Messi over possible move
Check out our new GIVEMESPORT homepage
The ‘Scorpion building’ was designed in 2013 by the late Zaha Hadid. It’s located in downtown Miami and offers a “lifestyle of a seven-star hotel.”
On top of the 60 floors is a helipad for the residents with the 83 apartments having two, three, four or five bedrooms with the price ranging from €5m to €40m.
At 215 metres tall, it’s the third tallest building in Miami and is designed as a curved skeleton.
The Beckham’s apartment is towards the top but they won’t have to worry about stairs. A scenic glass elevator takes residents directly to their door.
On the 60th floor is a huge indoor infinity swimming pool with incredible views of Biscayne Bay. There is also a sky lounge for events, with private dining room and multimedia theatre to screen movies, conferences or presentations.
But some apartments have their very own swimming pool and an amazing terrace given views of the bay and the Atlantic Ocean.
‘Silestone Blanco Zeus’ and ‘Iconic Black’ colours dominate the apartments themselves. As you’d expect, they’re equipped with the very best appliances.
Communal spaces include a six-star hall, while there are also ‘four scents’ in the building with air conditioning systems releasing different fragrances in different areas of the building.
It really is rather incredible, isn't it?
Football
https://www.tampabay.com/news/tampa/2019/09/27/st-pete-and-tampa-city-council-chairmen-have-different-vision-for-tampa-bay-rays/
St. Pete and Tampa City Council chairmen have different vision for Tampa Bay Rays
Tampa City Council chairman Luis Viera welcomes the challenge of keeping the Tampa Bay Rays. His St. Petersburg counterpart, Charlie Gerdes, says he’s not interested in sharing the team with Montreal.
Tampa City Council Chairman Luis Viera and his St. Petersburg counterpart, Charlie Gerdes, discussed regional cooperation in Tampa on Friday morning.
TAMPA — Charlie Gerdes and Luis Viera don’t see eye to eye on this region’s ability to support a major league baseball team for an entire season.
Or which city could better support a franchise.
Gerdes,...
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https://www.abcactionnews.com/news/driving-tampa-bay-forward/its-time-tampa-bay-survey-reveals-commuters-want-rapid-transit-streetcar-expansion
'It's Time Tampa Bay' survey reveals commuters want rapid transit, streetcar expansion
Results will help define long-range transportation
TAMPA, Fla. — The latest It’s TIME Tampa Bay survey reveals commuters are looking for rapid transit service to get to and from work as well as expanded streetcar access.
Survey results will help the three Metropolitan Planning Organizations create the very first tri-county Long-Range Transportation Plan for Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas Counties. The It’s TIME Tampa Bay survey was the most successful MetroQuest survey in the United States ever, according to the survey website.
DRIVING TAMPA BAY FORWARD | The latest headlines on safety and infrastructure in the Tampa Bay area
More than 9,500 people weighed in on transportation and growth in the Tampa Bay region, leaving about 250,000 data points for consideration in the creation of its first tri-county Transportation Plan.
Respondents said they were looking for routes connecting Downtown Tampa to the University of South Florida as well as Tampa International Airport.
They also were looking to expand the TECO Streetcar that currently runs through parts of Downtown, Channelside and Ybor City to connect it to more neighborhoods.
In addition, there was a popular push to put elevated express lanes, similar to the ones currently on the Selmon Expressway, on highways. Hillsborough County said if that gets approved to the long-range transportation plan, express lanes could go on roads like Dale Mabry, Memorial Highway and the Gandy Bridge.
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https://www.tampabay.com/arts-entertainment/arts/books/2019/09/27/gianna-russos-new-book-captures-a-poetic-side-of-tampa/
Gianna Russo’s new book captures a poetic side of Tampa
Native to the city, she evokes its past and present. Russo will appear at the Times Festival of Reading.
Gianna Russo's new poetry collection is "One House Down."
Amid the high-rises and the McMansions, between the interstates and the eight-lane highways, the ghosts of an older Tampa fan themselves in the deep shade of bungalow porches and live oaks. You might...
Native to the city, she evokes its past and present. ... The Methodist Women's Society Cookbook (United Methodist Church, Ybor City, circa 1953) ...
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https://www.theringer.com/mlb/2019/9/27/20885126/tampa-bay-rays-tropicana-field-fan-attendance-relocation-payroll-playoffs
The Hidden Treasures of Tropicana Field
Amid relocation rumors, rock-bottom payroll, stagnant attendance, and another playoff push, the Tampa Bay Rays continue to have to justify their existence. But inside the oft-derided Trop awaits both unexpected charm and a team that’s changing the way baseball is played. Can the Rays get fans under the dome to watch?
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https://www.wfla.com/news/welcome-to-florida/welcome-to-florida-tampa-bay-history-center-explores-areas-past-from-cigars-to-pirates/
Welcome to Florida: Tampa Bay History Center explores area’s past from cigars to pirates
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) – From pirates to cigars to the Columbia Café, the Tampa Bay History Center offers interactive experiences for guests to dive into our area’s history.
While the center changes some exhibits throughout the year to keep things fresh and exciting, there are a few main stables throughout the three floors that history buffs should check out.
One of those exhibits is the “Cigar City Gallery,” which is a replica of what a store in Ybor City would have looked like in the 1910s and 1920s.
It features original cigar marketing material from those times.
“Cigar factories and cigar manufacturers were some of the first to employ the techniques of advertising and marketing,” said Manny Leto, the director of marketing and communications for the Tampa Bay History Center.
“You see all these really great cigar labels, these, again, promotional materials like putting their logo and their name on ashtrays and cigar cutters and those kinds of giveaways or promotional materials,” Leto added. “We think that that’s new but really it goes back quite a long way and it goes back to the cigar industry.”
On the same floor as the Cigar City Gallery, you’ll learn more about the Seminole Indian tribe.
The History Center has a vast collection of artifacts.
“And it features original Seminole patchwork clothing, tools, ceremonial items, things that Seminole Indians would have used during their celebrations,” Leto said. “Seminole patchwork is very unique, not only to Florida but unique to each of the different families who wore it. So each piece of patchwork is identified with a different family or clan and is unique to that family. And we just have this really great collection of these really colorful skirts, long shirts, jackets.”
The center even has a Rolodex of different patchwork styles.
The interactive part of this exhibit is a theater that tells the story of the Seminole Indians from both the side of the U.S. Army and from the side of Cooachachee, a Seminole leader who led his people during the second Seminole War in the 1830s.
A neat, interactive exhibit that may be great for kids involves a lesser-known part of Florida history: cattle ranching. The History Center talks about that in their “Cowman and Crackers” exhibit, where folks can actually hop on a saddle and ride along with a Florida cattle drive.
The movie shown in this part of the center involves an actual cattle ranching family in Florida, who has been here since the late 1700s.
Of course, you can’t talk about Tampa Bay history without thinking of pirates.
The History Center features a gallery all about pirates, privateers and life on the ocean.
“So the whole gallery is built around this 18th-century sailing sloop, or a pirate ship, if you will. And it’s about the size of a ship that a sailor or a pirate or a privateer would’ve actually been on during this time,” Leto explained. “You can walk through the ship and learn a little bit about life at sea in the age of Discovery. And so life at sea as a pirate, as a privateer in the 17, 18, 1900s. And you really get a sense of the technology that they used, the actual life aboard the ship.”
The gallery has artifacts recovered from Florida waters on display, including navigational tools, weapons and gold and silver, as well as common things such as utensils and jewelry dating back 400 years.
The Tampa Bay History Center is a great location to learn about history from across the region, not just the City of Tampa.
“The history center is really telling the story of the Tampa Bay area, the Tampa Bay region and historic Hillsborough County. And that means we’re not just a Tampa museum, we’re a museum about the Tampa Bay area. So we tell stories that are all the way down south to Sarasota and all the way north to Tarpon Springs, so we are telling that full story and certainly the story of west-central Florida and really Florida in general,” Leto said.
Here is some information to help you plan your next visit to the Tampa Bay History Center.
Admission Prices:
Adults – $14.95
Seniors (60+) – $12.95
Youth (7-17) – $10.95
Children (6 & under) – Free
Military, first responders, students (with ID) – $12.95
Members – Free
Travel time to the Tampa Bay History Center (links will update to current traffic conditions, weekday afternoon conditions listed):
– From Brandon: 19 minutes
– From New Port Richey: 54 minutes
– From Lakeland: 42 minutes
– From Bradenton: 53 minutes
– From Sarasota: 1 hour
– From Orlando: 1 hour, 23 minutes
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2019/09/27/socom-ramps-up-efforts-to-develop-cutting-edge-data-techniques-opens-new-data-engineering-lab/
SOCOM ramps up efforts to develop ‘cutting-edge data techniques,’ opens new data engineering lab
The U.S. Special Operations Command Data Engineering Lab grand opening ceremony took place in Tampa, Fla., on Sept. 25, 2019. The lab is an open-concept work environment and is the Command’s outpost of a larger DoD modernization eco-system, whose goal is to foster collaboration between Special Operations Forces professionals, data scientists, data architects, software developers, systems integrators and technologists.
U.S. Special Operations Command is ramping up its efforts to develop “cutting-edge data techniques” like artificial intelligence to boost readiness and minimize costs.
As part of that initiative, the command unveiled its new Data Engineering Lab located at the SOFWERX facility in Tampa, Florida, on Wednesday. SOFWERX was established under a partnership intermediary agreement with SOCOM and DEFENSEWERX, formerly known as the Doolittle Institute, to help address war fighter problems for the command.
The lab was designed to cultivate AI, machine learning, and robotic process automation — all to boost the performance and strength of special operations forces, SOCOM spokeswoman Army Maj. Jennifer Bocanegra told the Military Times.
“The DEL is modeled off of leading technology companies, where DoD partners, industry thought leaders, academia and Special Operations Forces collaborate to develop, test and employ new technical approaches to modernize warfighting decision making,” Bocanegra said in an email to the Military Times.
Already, several projects are underway at the DEL, according to Bocanegra.
Along with the Pentagon’s Joint Artificial Intelligence Center, the DEL is working on a project supporting the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment based at Fort Campbell in Kentucky to use AI and machine learning technology to help predict and prevent key mechanical issues, and to enhance the effectiveness of aircraft maintenance, among other things.
“This project is in its early stages, but initial data collection, analysis and use of results have resulted in a significant increase in readiness, at cost savings,” Bocanegra said.
A ribbon cutting ceremony for the opening of the lab was held on Wednesday, and included remarks from SOCOM commander, Army Gen. Richard Clarke and SOCOM Chief Data Officer David Spirk.
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SOCOM's Data Engineering Lab grand opening took place in Ybor City in Tampa yesterday. The DEL is specifically designed to develop and leverage cutting edge data techniques, including AI & machine learning, to enhance SOF effectiveness and capabilities...
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Spirk joined SOCOM in 2018, after working with the Department of Defense’s Project Maven Program that launched in April 2017. The artificial intelligence program is designed to use machine learning and artificial intelligence to process full-motion video.
The new lab comes as SOCOM is composing a new artificial intelligence and machine learning strategy as part of its program objective memorandum for fiscal years 2022 to 2026. At the time, Spirk said Special Operations Forces components would start crafting the strategy starting in September.
“We’re going to start the crafting of a real roadmap,” he said at the Special Operations Forces Industry Conference in May, according to National Defense. “This will help the command...talk about the investments we need to make and the resources that we’re going to need.”
The DEL will be overseen by SOCOM’s Data Office, but will be housed in SOFWERX’s facility in Tampa’s Ybor City. SOFWERX and the new data lab will both address solutions for special operator needs, Bocanegra said.
“Being co-located provides opportunities for the DEL and SOFWERX to collaborate on future challenges for the Special Operations community,” Bocanegra said.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.wtsp.com/article/life/holidays/halloween-events-haunted-houses-theme-parks-tampa-bay/67-d406eaf1-8566-46df-ada6-30c6bf03739e
Haunted houses, theme parks, pumpkin festivals and more Halloween events in Tampa Bay
Get in the spooky spirit with super scary haunted houses, ghost tours and family-friendly trick-or-treating.
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https://thatssotampa.com/hidden-gems-3-tampa-coffee-shops-you-need-to-visit/
Hidden Gems: 3 Tampa coffee shops you need to visit
Tampa is a coffee lover’s paradise. You have the large coffee shops like Kahwa Coffee and Blind Tiger that have changed the game in the area. There are also other major coffee spots that have come to prominence with the emergence of Food Hall, like Union by Commune + Co. and Kofe.
Other shops worth mentioning include King State, which serves both coffee and craft beer, Spaddy’s, Seminole Heights go-to caffeine spot, and The Portico, which uses its coffee shop to provide jobs and donations for those in need.
While we love the coffee purveyors that keep us caffeinated, there are a few hidden gems you need to visit in the city of Tampa.
22nd Street Coffee
This spot came to our attention courtesy of an Instagram post about their Cuban toast. Yes, we came for the toast and stayed for the cup of Joe. Their delicious Cuban bread also makes for one of the best breakfast sandwiches in the entire region.
22nd Street Coffee just opened a little over a year ago. A good coffee spot is just as much about aesthetic as it is about the roast. 22nd Street Coffee is adorned with murals inside and out. The owners are welcoming, and the tables are vibrant. If you want lose yourself for a few hours inside a savory ham, egg, and cheese, a piping hot cup of local roast, then you need to visit this Ybor City gem.
Also, when you visit, make sure to try the “Fraccucino,” made with cream, milk, CAFÉ PEREZ Cuban style espresso and home made whipped cream. It’s the best way to start your day.
22nd Street Coffee, 208 North 22nd Street.
LPCX Cafe Bakery
This is another spot that goes above and beyond with its food. The pastries are the perfect complements the coffee. The Colombian bakery serves up dishes like the arepa engallada, a treat featuring pulled pork, paisa cheese, avocado, and a poached egg on top of a arepa. It’s divine, y’all.
Hungry for more? Treat yourself to a fried cheese-dough called Buñuelo. The tarts and waffles here are equally irresistible. It’s a much appreciated taste of Colombia right in Tampa.
LPCX serves up Eastlick Coffee, and you can taste the sensational boldness in every cappuccino.
PS, save room for LPCX’s famous Colombian hot dog loaded with crushed potato chips and pineapple.
LPCX Cafe Bakery, 6204 North Armenia Avenue.
Felicitous Coffee & Tea
Felicitous is creation of a former USF student who craved a good local coffee shop off campus. Mixing the coziness of Central Perk from Friends, with damn fine coffee you’d expect from Double R Diner in Twin Peaks.
Felicitous has two locations, both housed in a quaint cottage like homes. Whenever we see the purple and green facade we’re filled with the kind of warmth that can only be created by coffee and conversation.
When we visit, we’re almost always in the mood for an affogato, because there’s nothing like ice cream and espresso on a Sunday morning.
What makes Felicitous stand apart from the rest of the coffee shops in Tampa is its special menu. The Floridian is a latte with mocha, Florida orange, and whipped cream. The Mississippi Mud is a sweet blend of hot chocolate, espresso, marshmallows, whip topping and chocolate drizzle.
You need to sip on the Teacher’s Pet. It’s a latte with dark chocolate, peanut butter, whip, and chocolate drizzle. Yes, Felicitous is for those with a sweet tooth.
Felicitous Coffee and Tea, 14204 N 42nd Street AND 11706 N 51st Street.
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https://www.courier-journal.com/story/sports/soccer/louisville-city-fc/2019/09/28/louisville-city-fc-ties-tampa-bay-in-front-of-season-record-crowd/3809642002/
Louisville City FC ties Tampa Bay in front of season-record crowd
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https://floridapolitics.com/archives/306897-strike-em-out-full-time-baseball-wont-work-in-tampa-or-st-pete-charlie-gerdes-says
Strike ’em out: Full-time baseball won’t work in Tampa or St. Pete, Charlie Gerdes says
He’s happy to let Tampa take another stab.
St. Petersburg City Council Chair Charlie Gerdes doesn’t think the Tampa Bay Rays can have high enough attendance at home games whether they have a brand new stadium in St. Petersburg or Tampa.
He said during a Café Con Tampa talk Friday that the team’s only hope for success in the Tampa Bay region might be to play a split season in Montreal.
The team previously floated an idea that would split home games between Montreal and Tropicana Field, but St. Pete Mayor Rick Kriseman scoffed at the idea.
Some fans also balked, arguing the city and its taxpayers shouldn’t be on the hook for a new stadium if the team isn’t fully committed to playing its full season in it.
“[Hillsborough has] a problem with a revenue source, but their geography is primo,” Gerdes said.
On the contrary, St. Pete has a potential revenue source, but it’s location within the region leaves too few fans within a 30-minute drive from the stadium.
Pinellas County has long had available tourism bed tax dollars to help fund a stadium. Hillsborough County wanted to leverage community redevelopment dollars as well as tap potential private sources, a plan the Rays rejected.
And whatever ends up happening, has to get the OK from not just the Rays, but the entire Major League Baseball.
“If the team moves from Pinellas to Hillsborough, Charlie says attendance is not going to meaningfully change,” Gerdes said, using his own name to emphasize that was his opinion.
Home game attendance is abysmal, but attendance is down across the board. Gerdes blames big screen TVs and the comforts of home. Why schlep it to a stadium when you can watch the game for free at home with access to your own bathroom, not to mention much cheaper beer.
Gerdes said Rays principal owner Stu Sternberg told the city a full season in St. Pete was not an option.
“ ‘I will not give you 81 games,’ he said that,” Gerdes said.
He said that’s even if the team gets a shiny new stadium on the city’s downtown waterfront.
Gerdes said he’s more interested in redeveloping the massive Tropicana Field site. If asked, he said he would support another memorandum of understanding with the Rays to allow them to again negotiate with Tampa.
Gerdes was speaking with Tampa City Council Chair Luis Viera during an event sharing priorities on both sides of the bay. The Rays issue often pits St. Pete against Tampa, but Gerdes was all too happy to let Tampa have another stab, especially if that’s what keeps the team local.
“It’s so important to continue to try to have some sort of dialogue,” Viera said. “If the rays leave the region that is a real big failure on our part.”
(Follow link for full article.)
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2854970-br-football-ranks-big-names-rumoured-to-join-david-beckham-at-inter-miami
B/R Football Ranks: Big Names Rumoured to Join David Beckham at Inter Miami
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https://www.caughtoffside.com/2019/09/26/man-utds-greenwood-linked-with-beckham-agency/
David Beckham targets Manchester United star as client as he’s linked with agency move
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https://www.fourfourtwo.com/news/david-beckham-mason-greenwood-agent-manchester-united-man-utd
Mason Greenwood in David Beckham's sights as England legend looks to expand client list
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https://www.tampabay.com/news/st-petersburg/2019/09/26/rays-low-attendance-during-playoff-run-reignites-tampa-st-petersburg-debate/
Rays’ low attendance during playoff run reignites Tampa-St. Petersburg debate
The paltry support from fans this week as the Rays chase the wild card rekindles an old argument that St. Petersburg can’t support big league baseball.
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https://www.sbnation.com/2019/9/26/20883568/american-sports-stadium-architecture-future
What the future of the American ballpark should look like
The American ballpark is in decline. Let’s build it back up.
Don’t just talk about community buy-in; let the community buy in
In 2018, before exploring alternate plans such as a time-share with Montreal, the Tampa Bay Rays optimistically pitched a new park in Tampa’s Ybor City neighborhood. In describing the design, the Rays claimed the venue would be “of, by and for the people of Tampa Bay.” Community engagement is a common refrain in presentations like this, and the Rays are far from the first team to suggest a closer relationship with the public. I don’t see anything in the Ybor stadium design to suggest it will create one, though. It’s a fairly standard design that is admittedly prettier than their moribund current home, Tropicana Field, but doesn’t address the fundamentals of fan support.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://skystatement.com/what-the-future-of-the-american-sports-stadium-should-look-like/
What the Future of the American Sports Stadium Should Look Like
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http://www.samfordcrimson.com/20190925-david-beckham-closing-in-on-appointing-ex-real-madrid-boss-santiago-solari-as-inter-miami-coach/
David Beckham closing in on appointing ex-Real Madrid boss Santiago Solari as Inter Miami coach
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https://www.reddit.com/r/TampaBayRowdies/comments/d9ksvj/how_do_you_approach_this_game_vs_louisville/
How do you approach this game vs. Louisville?
With how tight the standings are, three points would be amazing, but also quite difficult. Louisville has been quite good at home (especially as of late). I'm imagining the narrow pitch is going to lead to a lot of congestion in the midfield, so moving around the ball will probably be difficult and might look similar to the Atlanta and Ottawa away games where we resort to having to hoof it over the top (not our best look). That said, it's unlikely they sit back in their place either, perhaps opening up the transition part of the game to some extent.
So, what do you expect to see? How do you think we come at this one?
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https://www.reddit.com/r/TampaBayRowdies/comments/dant3m/its_only_one/
It's only one!
Post-Match Thread
Down by one against a purple team, which is absolutely the worst color in the world.
COYR
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https://www.reddit.com/r/TampaBayRowdies/comments/dau92o/rowdies_highlights_at_louisville_city_fc/
Rowdies Highlights at Louisville City FC - September 28, 2019
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqwiHcbiHOs&feature=youtu.be
Rowdies Highlights at Louisville City FC - September 28, 2019
Tampa Bay Rowdies
🎥 FULL HIGHLIGHTS of tonight's dramatic 2-2 draw in Louisville. Sebastian Guenzatti and Lucky Mkosana scored late goals for the Rowdies.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DnwAOkCYSY
Cocktails with Collins: Episode 6
Tampa Bay Rowdies
On this month's episode of "Cocktails with Collins" presented by The Don CeSar, Coach Collins talks pumpkin spice, closing out the regular season, and Malik Johnson.
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http://www.theunsubs.com/wp/2019/09/25/episode-222-squid-go-pro/4548
Episode 222 – Squid Go Pro
Posted on September 25, 2019 AuthorMatthew Cox Comment(0)
Executive Producer: David Klabo
Tonight, the guys cast their gaze at the playoff possibilities following the Rowdies big win over Bethlehem, check in on the other Eastern Conference contenders, and preview this weekend’s huge trip to Louisville!
In this episode:
Rowdies 6:1 Bethlehem
Eastern Conference Update
Playoff Possibilities
Louisville Preview
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https://www.tampabay.com/hillsborough/inspired-by-ybor-history-jc-newman-expanding-amid-concerns-about-cigar-industrys-future-20190531/
Inspired by Ybor history, J.C. Newman expanding amid concerns about cigar industry's future
Ybor City’s last cigar factory, J.C. Newman Cigar Co., is adding a hand-rolling space to its operations and releasing The American, a cigar made entirely from U.S. ingredients including Florida-grown tobacco.
TAMPA — The future of Ybor City's last working cigar factory will be rooted in the community's past.
First, the J.C. Newman Cigar Co. will bring back The American — the first cigar ever rolled in the...
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https://tampamagazines.com/j-c-newman-cigar-company/
In many ways, the cigar factories that dot the Ybor City landscape are identical.
They were all built with red brick. Each stands three stories tall and has a basement. The buildings run east to west according to the sun’s daily path — with no electricity, cigar workers needed as much natural sunlight as they could get.
But look a little closer, and you’ll notice one major difference. The factories are no longer functioning, no longer producing the cigars that put Tampa on the map. The exception? El Reloj, named for the thundering clock that used to ring out across all of Ybor City each hour, keeping time for the neighborhood. The factory is home to the 123-year-old J.C. Newman Cigar Company, the only family-owned premium cigar manufacturer left in the entire United States.
“We used to be able to get on our roof and see all of our competition all over the United States from our roof because Tampa was the fine cigar capital of the world,” says company president Eric Newman. “My grandfather went into business for himself in 1895. When he started, there were 42,000 licensed cigar manufacturers. We’re the only one of those cigar manufacturers from 1895 that are still owned and operated by the founding family.”
Like essentially every other red-blooded American industry, the cigar business is a shadow of what it was when Hungarian immigrant Julius Caeser Newman became a cigar apprentice at 15 years old in the early 1890s in Cleveland, Ohio. Just three years later, his mother secured an order for 500 cigars from the local grocer, and Newman started the business that exists today out of the family barn.
In a sign of things to come, the fledgling company’s first real challenge came when, after moving operations into the heated basement of their home, Newman’s mother evicted the business. The cigar production process, she discovered, had made her canned fruits and vegetables taste unmistakably of tobacco. Newman moved his company into a storefront, and later a factory, in down-town Cleveland, where he found ways around a series of threats to his business. First, millions of Americans were introduced to cigarettes when shipments were sent to the troops fighting overseas during World War I.
“Until World War I, no one smoked cigarettes. Cigars were the tobacco of choice for everybody,” Eric Newman says. “All our customers who were in Germany who were cigar smokers came back as cigarette smokers.”
Newman’s grandfather lost money during the Great Depression, when he kept two factory shifts running each day just to keep people employed. The same happened after World War II, when the federal government returned the cigars it had purchased from the Newman Company during fighting — 35 percent of the factory’s total wartime production to help stimulate the economy — with the company taking a total loss. In the immediate post-war years, more cigars were coming back into the factory than were being produced each day.
Those issues were temporarily solved with Newman’s development of the Cameo cigar, which cost just a nickel each and became one of the country’s top-selling cigars. The success was short-lived; Newman raised the cost to six cents, and business plummeted. Simultaneously, a tobacco price-fixing scheme by the larger cigar manufacturers made it nearly impossible for the Newman Company to stay competitive in the mass-market cigar business.
“We had to find a niche in the cigar business that the big guys weren’t in,” Eric Newman says. “In the early ‘50s, they were in the mass market business, so my grandfather said we should get in the premium business. There was only section of the Unit-ed States making premium cigars in the early ‘50s, and that was Tampa, Florida.”
In 1954, at 78 years old, J.C. Newman moved his entire operation to the current Ybor City factory. Less than a decade later, he watched as many of his fellow Cigar City manufacturers shuttered, unable to overcome the embargo on the Cuban tobacco they depended on for the Havana-style cigars Tampa had become known for. Thanks in part to a partnership with Carlos Fuente and his company (Fuente would produce handmade Newman cigars at his factory in Nicaragua, and New-man would make, market and sell U.S.-made Fuente cigars), Newman, his son Stanford, and later his sons Eric and Bobby, would ride out the peaks and valleys of the cigar industry through the 1990s. Today, the Newmans produce the majority of their hand-rolled and machine-made cigars at their factory in Nicaragua, including their iconic Cuesta Rey (the name that still shines from the top of El Reloj) and Quorum, a newer cigar that is now the world’s top-selling bundled ci-gar. In Ybor City, more than 100 workers churn out 60,000 cigars made both by machine and by hand every day.
The past decade, though, brought a new adversary, and one that poses the greatest threat to the business so far: the federal government.
In 2016, the Food and Drug Ad-ministration declared it would regulate all tobacco products, including premium cigars like the ones made by the Newmans, in an effort to curb tobacco use by kids and teenagers. The Newman company had been anticipating the move for about a decade and had already been working with politicians from both parties to block it. Sen. Marco Rubio, former Sen. Bill Nelson and Rep. Kathy Castor have all unsuccessfully sponsored federal legislation exempting premium cigars from FDA regulation — a costly proposition that would involve new taxes and new standards to meet, very likely putting the Newman Company out of business. Eric Newman says his family’s business is an “unintended consequence” of the government’s efforts to keep kids away from more youth-oriented tobacco products like flavored cigarettes, Juuls and other e-cigarettes.
“We’ve explained to them, we’re David going up against Goliath. We’re a threat to no one,” he adds. “We go up to Congress, and we don’t ask them for an earmark. We don’t ask them for a tax credit. We just ask them to leave us alone.”
The main argument for exempting premium cigars is based on their relatively low rate of use. A 2017 study in the journal Nicotine & Tobacco Research established smokers smoked a median number of just 0.1 premium cigars per day, compared to a median of 10.1 cigarettes smoked by established cigarette users, and 1.6 filtered cigars. In addition, the median age of first use for premium cigars is 24 years old, supporting the Newmans’ assertion that kids aren’t smoking premium cigars.
“Cigars are an adult choice,” Newman says. “People smoke cigars because they enjoy them like they enjoy a glass of wine. It’s a custom industry.”
In March 2018, the decision to bring premium cigars under FDA oversight was put on hold by the Trump administration, which opened up the issue for public comment. According to Newman, more than 34,000 comments critical of the regulations were submitted. Newman says he’s heartened by the community’s support of the city’s namesake.
“This is the Cigar City. If you know anybody who has lived here for four generations or more, chances are someone in their family worked in the cigar industry because those were the jobs around,” he says. “People rallied to the cause. We’re still fighting it. We aren’t there yet. We aren’t go-ing away, but we’re still fighting.”
“God willing we’ll be here for another 123 years.”
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.jcnewman.com/visit-us/
J.C. Newman Factory Renovation
*Visiting Hours at the Museum Temporarily Suspended*
In 1954, J.C. Newman Cigar Company moved from Cleveland, Ohio to the historic El Reloj factory in Tampa, Florida. Built in 1910, El Reloj serves as the international headquarters for J.C. Newman and is the only factory still manufacturing cigars in Cigar City.
In anticipation of the company’s 125th anniversary and the factory’s 110th anniversary, our iconic factory is undergoing a restoration project to highlight its historic beauty.
Due to this, visiting hours at our existing museum have been temporarily suspended. We apologize for any inconvenience this causes you, but rest assured that when we reopen in early 2020, the wait will have been worth it.
In addition to an expanded museum, our public areas will also include a retail store, hand-rolling area, and many interactive experiences. Between our self-guided and docent-led tour options, you will be able to peek into the past to see how our family persevered through the years, learn more about the industry which built Tampa and experience the artistry of cigar making first hand.
Our hope is that El Reloj becomes a destination for cigar and history lovers alike Whether you smoke daily or have never before picked up a cigar, we will have something for everyone.
We invite you to take a virtual tour of the factory by visiting our Google Business View page here. Stay up to date on the construction process and the reopening of our museum by signing up for our mailing list below.
ADDRESS:
2701 Sixteenth Street
Tampa, FL 33605
PHONE:
(813) 248-2124
BUSINESS HOURS:
MON – FRI: 8AM – 5PM
MUSEUM HOURS:
CURRENTLY SUSPENDED
Factory Renovation Updates and Plans from Drew Newman
Black Diamond Cigar
Cigar Rolling Machines
Barrels of Loose Filler Tobacco
Tobacco Leaves in Bunches
Brick House Double Connecticut Cigar
Wrapper Tobacco Cut By Chaveta
Diamond Crown Cigar
Cigar Rolling Machine Wrapper Plate
Maximus Cigar on Loose Wrapper Tobacco Leaf
Brick House Double Connecticut on Wrapper Tobacco
Tobacco Wrapper Stripping Machine
Perla del Mar Cigar
(Follow link for full article.)
https://halfwheel.com/visit-j-c-newman-cigar-co/
MARCH 27, 2018•BROOKS WHITTINGTON•CIGAR LOCATIONS
A VISIT TO J.C. NEWMAN CIGAR CO.
It’s called the Cigar City, but there are now more breweries than cigar factories. Tampa—specifically its Ybor City neighborhood—was once the capital of the global cigar industry. A drive through Ybor City shows many of the old cigar factories still standing, some dilapidated and vacant, some renovated to apartments and offices, but there is one where cigars are still rolled. Just one.
The outside of the El Reloj cigar factory in Ybor City. The massive clocktower towers over large building.
Working in a 108-year-old building means constant upkeep. The roof had been replaced shortly before our visit.
Visitors are greeted by a full-fledged museum. The centerpiece is the restored clock which chimes regularly.
Taking the picture in the bell tower required some effort that any sane attorney wouldn’t approve of. That said, here’s what the inside of the bell tower looks like.
Eric Newman (L) stands at the head of the conference table. His reflection displays off a photograph of his father Stanford Newman (L), Eric (C) and Bobby Newman (R).
The building is so large that both Eric and Bobby Newman struggled to identify where this picture of the hygrometer came from. Our belief is that it was from the third floor, but there were similar old-school hygrometers throughout the building.
In 1953, Stanford Newman began a test to see if the old E. Regensburg Cigar Factory in Tampa would be suitable for his father’s cigar company. A year later, Julius Caeser Newman moved his company from Ohio to the Cigar City.
The Regensburg factory was built in 1910, but the massive factory was better known as El Reloj, Spanish for the clock, due to the tall bellower that sits at one corner of the factory. In 1951, Regensburg left after mechanization took employment from 1,000 rollers to around 300. Enter J.C. Newman.
In 2020, J.C. Newman will celebrate its 125th anniversary and part of those celebrations will be an updated El Reloj factory. The company plans to turn it into a cigar destination, though it’s not as if that isn’t the case at the moment.
The building houses a multitude of things, most notably, a cigar factory on the second floors that produces 60,000 cigars. In addition, a museum and the J.C. Newman offices are on the first floor, there’s a machine shop, a museum area, complete with exhibits detailing the building and company’s history. And lots of storage. The building is so large and contains so much history, that some members of the Newman family struggled to identify where various pictures we took were taken.
And while there’s a two-year project planned to update the building, it’s not as if the company hasn’t been doing that for the last half-century. We arrived shortly after a new roof had been installed. The museum area is substantially more involved than a few pictures with captions; i.e., a museum professional certainly helped the company construct it. In 2002, the company restored the building’s famous clock which had been dormant for nearly 50 years after a woman complained it was waking up her baby.
The clock now chimes, every day.
It's a bit challenging to understand the scale, but this room is the size of a small garage. Tobacco is opened dried out on the third floor and then sent through a door in the floor to this room on the second floor. Picadura, i.e. scrap tobacco, is brought in from the Fuente and Padrón factories, as well as J.C. Newman's own PENSA factory in Estelí. It's a mound of tobacco.
Eric Newman is frustrated by this sight. The mask irks him, largely because it reminds him of the government regulation. No factory has seen more sitting U.S. Congressmen than J.C. Newman's El Reloj factory. Old cigar boxes hold old parts for old cigar machines.
A total of 135 employees and two dogs work out of the nearly 100,000-square-foot building. There are two separate cigar operations: the antique, human-operated cigar machines that produce 60,000 cigars are overseen by 15 employees while two employees make cigars entirely by hand, part of Drew Newman’s upcoming Fourth Generation Cigar Co. project.
The second floor rolling room produces 60,000 cigars per day.
The machines are constantly refilled, using buckets from Home Depot, with the filler mixture, by hand.
Filler tobacco waiting to be placed into cigars.
Workers are constantly inspecting wrapper leaves, stretching them and then placing them into the machines.
A worker stretches the wrapper out.
It’s rare to see this many cigars stored on top of one another, but this isn’t a normal cigar factory.
More fresh-rolled cigars, this time a different wrapper.
There’s extra machines and dedicated mechanics but sometimes, repairs are made on the fly.
While it’s not too far from the ocean, misters overhead pump out a fair amount of humidity.
A few years ago, the Newmans created buttons that said “Save Tampa’s Last Strippers.” Technically, the buttons said “Cigar Strippers” but that was hard to see. They were referencing the workers who strip, or devein, wrapper leaf. Using machines is common as the machines break less wrapper than human hands.
Two employees are rolling cigars in the traditional, entirely by-hand manner. It’s part of Drew Newman’s Fourth Generation Cigar Co. project.
The concept is that everything is American-made: the cigars, the tobacco, the bands, the boxes, the clasp. Everything. As such, the cigars won’t be cheap. They are expected to formally debut later this year.
Because of the Newman family’s political advocacy, the factory receives a fair bit of politicians. As such, you see charts and maps throughout the factory stressing the importance of the cigar industry and the uniqueness of what’s taking place at the El Reloj factory.
Up until recently that operation was just the antique machines, which use mixed filler tobacco from the Fuente and Padrón factories, as well as the Newman’s own PENSA factory in Estelí, Nicaragua. That filler is mixed into a special blend which is then placed inside of various wrappers to create brands like Factory Throwouts.
The machines are different from those used by the companies responsible for mass market cigars like Swisher. These are older, slower and finickier. And while they are still machines, they won’t work unless a human is there to place the tobacco leaf, fill the blended tobacco or remove the finished cigars. Quite simply, there is as much movement over the course of a minute as you’d see at any factory, but the difference is just in output.
Jeannie is one of Bobby’s dogs. She is an ambassador for Southeastern Guide Dogs, which Bobby sits on the board of, an organization that trains dogs to serve as guide dogs for the visually-impaired and veterans. She roams the office, seen here protecting the hallway from stray bloggers.
For the Newman family, the red brick building is a matter of pride. It could very easily move this production to Nicaragua, where it would be far cheaper to make the identical cigars, but it wouldn’t be the same. The Newmans are Cigar City and until someone else resurrects another old building, Cigar City is J.C. Newman.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.frontrowsoccer.com/2019/09/29/no-room-at-the-inn-cosmos-trying-to-find-a-league-may-not-play-in-2020/
NO ROOM AT THE INNS?: Cosmos, trying to find a league, may not play in 2020
Rocco B Commisso: “If they don’t let the Cosmos play, what can I do?” (FrontRowSoccer.com Photo)
UNIONDALE, N.Y. — Cosmos owner Rocco B. Commisso hasn’t decided yet, but he admits that it has been difficult to find a league in which his team can compete next year.
“It’s a tough decision,” Commisso said at halftime of the Cosmos’ 3-1 win over Chattanooga FC at Mitchel Athletic Complex Saturday night. “I have not made up my mind yet. Clearly, if nobody let’s us play, how can we play? NISA doesn’t want us, the NPSL doesn’t want us and I’m just not going to field a team of amateurs. That’s not the Cosmos.”
In an interview posted on this website July 29, Commisso said intended to have the Cosmos team continue to play next year, although he didn’t know which league it will compete.
Much has happened since then.
The first-place Cosmos, who are participating in the 10-game NPSL Members Cup this fall, finished second in the National Premier Soccer League season, losing in the championship game to Miami FC, 3-1, Aug. 3.
The NPSL will not allow teams with professional players to compete in the league starting in 2020. The Cosmos have used professional players the past two seasons.
NISA, the National Independent Soccer Association, which started up this autumn, provisionally has been sanctioned as a Division III league by U.S. Soccer. Chattanooga FC and Detroit City FC, which are competing in the Members Cup, will commence play in NISA next spring.
“From what I heard — I didn’t speak to them personally — is that they might have a lot of problems with them getting Division Three if they let the Cosmos in,” Commisso said. “I heard it from some of our people that are in touch with the situation. U.S. Soccer is just putting stumbling blocks in front of us.”
He later added: “If they don’t let the Cosmos play, what can I do?”
Commisso and the North American Soccer League have filed an anti-trust lawsuit against the U.S. Soccer Federation. “We have to keep this lawsuit going on,” he said. “It has taken too long, frankly. We’ll see what happens.”
Asked if the Cosmos had other options for 2020, Commisso replied, “Not if people don’t let us play. We already have one lawsuit. Let’s see what happens from that lawsuit. It’s just unfortunate that we have people in place, elected to be on the board of the USSF whose primary job is to make sure the Cosmos don’t have the light of day to play.
“It’s sad, it’s disgusting.”
He later added: “It’s sad for the players. I could afford to lose money. I think we’re up to $30 million here. So, it’s not a penny. There’s principles and I will fight those principles and they know that. But they know that they can’t pull me down that fast. There are laws in this country. There is a major lawsuit going on and the depositions have already taken place. I feel good. I feel good as to our chances of getting a final judgment in the court system.”
Commisso said that he has not set a deadline as to when he will decide on whether the Cosmos will perform in 2020.
“Let’s wait for the season to be over, then we’ll make some decisions,” he said. “We’ve got a good hand, a strong hand, in respect to the lawsuit. A lot of stuff has been uncovered in depositions.”
The team still can compete in the NPSL as Cosmos B, an amateur side, but Commisso said possibility that was still up in the air.
“I haven’t made that decision,” he said. “At the end of the season I will regroup with my team and see what we should be doing here.”
In June, Commisso purchased Fiorentina for a reported $150 million. He said he decided to buy the Italian Serie A club because it participates in a league that has promotion and relegation and that teams can determine its own destiny on how much money it spends on players.
“When I look at my team at Fiorentina, it’s a small city, a beautiful city. the level of money that we are spending for players, dwarfs — it’s huge — in relation to what an average MLS team pays. They are keeping still, average, below average type of soccer to play here in the U.S.”
Commisso’s lawsuit is expected to go to trial in 2020, if there no more delays.
“They are not going to kill me,” he said. “They tried, but they can’t do it. So, I’ve gone and invested my money in a meritocracy, where there’s promotion and relegation and its sorely needed in this country. What’s unfortunate is that the powers that be at FIFA are looking more at the money that could be made in the U.S. in the [2026] World Cup. So, it is opposed to the telling the U.S. to fix up their soccer regime, how soccer gets managed here in this country. That’s the unfortunate part.”
Commisso then reiterated his feelings on the lack of a promotion-relegation system in the U.S.
“They want the same closed system that appears in other sports in this country,” he said. “Rarely you see any teams go bankrupt, rarely do you see any teams lose money. It’s a system made to prevent competitive forces to hit the pocket books of the billionaires. It’s not me. The system is not to produce a winning soccer nation and that’s the shame of it, that we’re getting the World Cup again with nothing to prove on the field. We’re still second, third, fourth rate, and it’s a shame.”
Fiorentina (1-2-2, 5), which is 15th among 20 teams in Italy’s First Division, plays at 11th-place A.C. Milan (2-3-0, 6) Sunday.
Commisso said that he was satisfied with his new club.
“Absolutely,” he said. “Look at the love the people have for me. Someone in Europe put out a list of the teams with the percentage of new players on the starting team. We’re No. 1. I’m glad I closed the deal in two weeks. I’m glad that I got started in June. It would have been disastrous to have closed in August. We brought a lot of new players and let’s see what happens. We have a big game [Sunday].”
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.newsobserver.com/opinion/article235549422.html
Is $200 million too much for the MLS in Charlotte?
Fans cheer the Atlanta United soccer team, an MLS franchise.
Is a Major League Soccer team worth $200 million to Charlotte?
It’s a question the city might soon have to confront given reports that Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper may ask the Charlotte City Council to pay for upgrades to Bank of America Stadium that would help the city get an MLS franchise. Sources tell the Observer editorial board that that no such ask has been formally made yet — despite at least one report saying so — but there do appear to be conversations happening between the city and Tepper. A formal and precise proposal is sure to come soon, and council members are surely calculating now what a good deal would look like for the city.
We believe a good MLS deal does exist. This editorial board has said before that the city should welcome the opportunity to partner with Tepper, who has displayed both vision and an understanding that ventures should benefit more than his own bottom line. An MLS team could be one such venture, but is the reported price tag of $100-200 million too steep for Charlotte?
In some ways, it’s not a bad deal. The city, after all, committed almost $300 million in 2003 to bringing an NBA franchise back to Charlotte. We got more than a team with that investment, certainly — we got an arena and the big events it subsequently has attracted. Still, $200 million to secure a franchise in a growing U.S. league is at least a little intriguing.
But the best way to judge Charlotte’s potential investment is a way Tepper and any businessperson would appreciate: What are the comps these days on public dollars and MLS facilities? The answer: $100 million is on the high end, and $200 million would eclipse most every other city’s investment by tens of millions. Most MLS teams, including those in Sacramento and St. Louis — sought less than $100 million in recent years. A few asked for no public dollars for facilities.
Those numbers come with a caveat — most have involved MLS-only stadiums, not improvements to an existing stadium as Tepper is proposing. The average public money spent on MLS facilities, according to Marquette University research? $83.3 million.
Just as important, perhaps, is how much of a partnership Tepper is pitching. According to the Observer’s Jim Morrill, Danielle Chemtob and Brendan Marks, Tepper is proposing that he will pay more than $400 million in franchise fees, salaries and other costs associated with the franchise, and that the city will pay for stadium upgrades and team facilities. But unless Tepper is also offering the city a stake in the MLS team — and the chance to earn a profit — it’s disingenuous to describe that proposal as anything but the city footing all the stadium costs. That’s rare in pro sports these days, and it’s not much of a partnership. Charlotte should ask for more.
The city also should ask about Tepper’s plans to eventually ask for the city’s help with a domed stadium that would house the Panthers and the possible MLS team. Tepper might see that as separate from the MLS proposal, but a city investment in sports facilities comes from one finite bucket of tourism-related taxes. Also, it’s politically dicey for the city to pay for hundreds of millions for Bank of America Stadium upgrades if that stadium might be replaced in the near future. Never mind that any request for public money — even if it comes from tourism taxes — is viewed amid the backdrop of other needs that the city still needs to address.
All of which are challenges Charlotte can overcome. There’s a good MLS deal out there. The city council has some work to do to find it.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.givemesport.com/1509113-inside-david-beckhams-40-million-penthouse-apartment-in-miami
Inside David Beckham's €40 million penthouse apartment in Miami
From next season, David Beckham’s Inter Miami will be competing in the MLS.
While we’re not quite sure exactly who will be playing - or managing - the side next season, we know Beckham will infest heavily in his project.
Manchester City’s David Silva is rumoured to be teaming up with the club after this Premier League season, while they’ve been linked with a certain Lionel Messi.
We all know Beckham will spend plenty of money on Inter Miami and he’s also spent plenty of money on a new property in the city.
That’s because he’s splashed an eye-watering $40 million on a new apartment - the world's most expensive apartment in 2019.
David Silva set to join Inter Miami
Inter Miami contact Messi over possible move
Check out our new GIVEMESPORT homepage
The ‘Scorpion building’ was designed in 2013 by the late Zaha Hadid. It’s located in downtown Miami and offers a “lifestyle of a seven-star hotel.”
On top of the 60 floors is a helipad for the residents with the 83 apartments having two, three, four or five bedrooms with the price ranging from €5m to €40m.
At 215 metres tall, it’s the third tallest building in Miami and is designed as a curved skeleton.
The Beckham’s apartment is towards the top but they won’t have to worry about stairs. A scenic glass elevator takes residents directly to their door.
On the 60th floor is a huge indoor infinity swimming pool with incredible views of Biscayne Bay. There is also a sky lounge for events, with private dining room and multimedia theatre to screen movies, conferences or presentations.
But some apartments have their very own swimming pool and an amazing terrace given views of the bay and the Atlantic Ocean.
‘Silestone Blanco Zeus’ and ‘Iconic Black’ colours dominate the apartments themselves. As you’d expect, they’re equipped with the very best appliances.
Communal spaces include a six-star hall, while there are also ‘four scents’ in the building with air conditioning systems releasing different fragrances in different areas of the building.
It really is rather incredible, isn't it?
Football
Thursday, September 26, 2019
Full Circle: The uncertain future of the Tampa Bay Rays
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.abcactionnews.com/news/full-circle/full-circle-the-uncertain-future-of-the-tampa-bay-rays
Full Circle: The uncertain future of the Tampa Bay Rays
Decisions made decades ago haunt the franchise
TAMPA BAY AREA, Fla. — As the Rays fight to make the playoffs, the story of this season is one where the past, present, and future are all swirling around the team. But there was a time in Tampa Bay when baseball was the best game in town.
During six seasons between 2008 and 2013, the Rays went to playoffs four times and made it all the way to the World Series. In both 2009 and 2010, during the Great Recession, their average attendance was above 23,000, which was middle of the pack for Major League Teams, not bad by "Baseball in the Bay" standards.
The Rays would kill for those numbers today. Actually, they would be willing to share the team with another city, in another country for those numbers — which is exactly what they are trying to do now.
The point is, the Rays were once a source of pride for Tampa Bay, a feeling of accomplishment. A feeling that after years of being used as stadium bait by other cities and teams (Chicago White Sox, San Francisco Giants), we finally
“got ours.” Our own Hometown Team. But that was then. This is now.
Here’s a sampling of quotes of the current Baseball climate in the Bay:
“We are simply not well suited for a baseball team that needs to draw tens of thousands of people to its ballpark.” – Rays Owner Stu Sternberg
“We are too large of an area to lose a major sporting franchise.” – Tampa Mayor Jane Castor
“This is about Tampa keeping its team and Montreal having one as well.” – Rays Owner Stu Sternberg
“We need to be one region, when it comes to this team, and quite frankly that’s been lacking.” – St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman
“The team needs to be right over here in Ybor city, I completely agree that we have lost momentum.” — Hillsborough County Commissioner Ken Hagan
There’s been plenty of criticism and questions about Rays owner Stu Sternberg’s plan to share the team with Montreal but few answers.
The team declined our repeated request for an interview.
But all the other major players who shape the Rays Future did go on record and had a lot to say, including St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman who sat down with us just days before he would meet with the Rays owner for the third time since the team announced in June that it wants to split its season between here and Canada.
Q & A with St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman:
Paul LaGrone: Have the discussions you’ve had with Rays owner Stu Sternberg been productive?
Mayor Rick Kriseman: Yeah, I think the most important thing for the public to understand is as long as Stu and I, and his team and my team, continue to talk that’s a good thing.
Paul LaGrone: Do you feel like you’re any closer to coming to an agreement?
Mayor Rick Kriseman: Um, I think I’m um, again any time we meet is a positive meeting. We are trying to build on the previous one.
Paul LaGrone: Do you think the Rays have a genuine interest in staying in St Petersburg?
Mayor Rick Kriseman: Well, I think that's what they’ve certainly said publicly. And I’ll be honest everything that’s said behind closed doors we’ve kind of agreed that’s where it’s going to stay. We are not going to negotiate through the media or through the public.
But it’s the public who would finance what the Rays want: a new open air ball park. And it’s the same public who would have to support a part-time team, something they’ve been unwilling to do during a full season at Tropicana Field, which has been home to the league’s lowest attendance for six out of the last eight years, despite the Rays consistently being in the playoff race
Q & A continues with St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman:
Paul LaGrone: If it meant saving would you be willing to go along with this idea of sharing the team, if that were the only way?
Rick Kriseman: If we were to get to a point where we allowed the Rays to explore the split season, I believe and I may be wrong on this, but I believe it would end up showing that the challenges are too great.
Paul LaGrone: If the Rays came back to you with the notion of letting Tampa having another crack of the bat so to speak.. would you be willing to entertain that?
Rick Kriseman: I did what no one else has done that’s sat in my seat, which was to even allow the team to explore the opportunities across the bay. And I gave them three years to do that, which is a considerable amount of time. Um and for whatever reason it didn’t work. I think at this point in time we need to look here. And see what we can do in St Pete.
Paul LaGrone: Are you willing to stand your ground if it means being known as the mayor who lost baseball?
Rick Kriseman: I had two choices. I could try to kick the can to whoever followed me or I could make a decision and move the ball under my administration knowing that there was risk involved in doing that. I will not make everyone happy no matter what I do. And the only time you don’t make anyone unhappy is if you don’t make any decisions at all.
Paul LaGrone: Do you think Major League Baseball will stay in the Tampa Bay area, or do you think this is the beginning of the long goodbye.
Rick Kriseman: I think that if for some reason this team relocated I think instantaneously the Tampa-St. Pete Region becomes the number one sight for expansion. I say that because if you look at our market you look at our population growth, all the things we talked about, and you stack them against all the cities we’ve discussed and we come out on top.
Across the Bay, the challenges are just as big, but Tampa Mayor Jane Castor wants to keep the Rays local, if she can.
Q & A with Tampa Mayor Jane Castor:
Paul LaGrone: You’ve gone on record saying they belong in Tampa. How do you as mayor get that done or ultimately keep them here?
Mayor Jane Castor: If St. Petersburg doesn’t work out then we would love to have them here in Tampa, and I will do everything in my power as mayor to bring them to Tampa.
Paul LaGrone: Do you think it’s worth keeping the Rays here, if it comes at a cost for tax payers?
Mayor Jane Castor: The question is bigger than that. You have individuals who say building a stadium is a losing proposition for any municipality and then on the other hand you can show city after city where it’s a benefit not only to the citizens but to the economy.
Paul LaGrone: Have you had any discussions with owner Stu Sternberg about bringing the Rays to this side of the bay?
Mayor Jane Castor: No, I haven’t had those discussions. The only discussions that he and I have had is that they want to stay in this area.
Paul LaGrone: And do you believe him when he says that?
Mayor Jane Castor: Sure.
Paul LaGrone: You don’t feel like he’s using this as an opportunity leverage to move to another city?
Mayor Jane Castor: No, he doesn’t strike me as that individual.
But Sports Journalist Neil deMause says a sports team’s impact on the local economy is overstated.
“While a new stadium may have its benefits, the amount of public money being put into them never comes back to the public.” — Neil deMause
Finding the money is something Tampa and Hillsborough struck out on when they pitched the new stadium in Ybor City last year.
County Commissioner Ken Hagan was the front man on that effort and now he finds himself on the bench waiting for permission from St. Petersburg to even talk to the Rays.
“We wanted to sit down and have a regional discussion on what is the best way to ensure the team remains here, unfortunately Mayor Kriseman was unable to do that.” — Ken Hagan
Hagan is now pushing for a smaller version of the Ybor City ball park, one that would be suitable for a part-time team and would provide Ybor with a year-round venue for entertainment.
Q & A with County Commissioner Ken Hagan:
Paul LaGrone: You still have confidence that this vision can happen?
Ken Hagan: I do have confidence, at this point. I’m unsure if it will be the original framework or if it will be the dual home field split ball park scenario that the Rays want to explore.
With all the political noise, it’s easy for the fans to be silenced. But that’s never been a problem for Rob Szasz, known as Tampa Bay’s Happy Heckler.
Rob was the Rays' secret weapon, getting into opposing batters’ heads. And it often worked.
“When they take their gloves out of their back pocket I'd go 'better fix that back pocket buddy, major league babseball has dress codes here, you're going to get fined.' You’d see the guy start pushing his pocket back in. You know they hear you!” — Rob Szasz
Rob used to have season tickets, but after the recession, like many fans, he had to give them up. He still goes to the games but it’s just not the same.
Q & A with Tampa Bay’s Happy Heckler Rob Szasz:
Paul LaGrone: Do you think we’re bad fans?
Rob Szasz: I don’t think we are bad fans. We’d be bad fans if we didn’t support the team whatsoever.
Paul LaGrone: Do you think the fans deserve this, what’s happening?
Rob Szasz: No, definitely not they don’t deserve this.
St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman and Rays Owner Stu Sternberg have met three times — that the public knows of.
At the heart of those ongoing discussions is the team asking Kriseman for permission to formally explore the split season with Montreal.
Their lease contract with St. Petersburg runs through the 2027 season.
(Follow link for full article.)
http://worldsoccertalk.com/2019/09/25/mls-games-drowned-better-quality-quantity-foreign-leagues-tv/
MLS games drowned out by better quality and quantity of foreign leagues on TV
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.heraldtribune.com/entertainmentlife/20190925/bar-tab-grillsmith-brings-tampa-bay-chain-standout-happy-hour-to-sarasota
Bar Tab: Grillsmith brings Tampa Bay chain, standout happy hour to Sarasota
The restaurant and bar recently opened its first Sarasota-Manatee location on South Tamiami Trail
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.tampabay.com/arts-entertainment/music/2019/09/25/this-weekends-best-tampa-bay-concerts/
This weekend’s best Tampa Bay concerts
Phil Collins, Brantley Gilbert, Tyler, the Creator, Snarky Puppy, Deep Purple, Grandson, Jaden Smith and more.
Phil Collins performs at Philadelphia's Wells Fargo Center in October.
TAKE A LOOK AT HIM NOW: PHIL COLLINS
It’s been 15 years since Phil Collins, once retired and now finally back, last played Tampa. And when you see him on Thursday, you’ll realize where that time went....
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.narcity.com/travel/us/fl/tampa/antique-decor-shop-dysfunctional-grace-in-tampa-is-eerily-beautiful-shop
There Is A Hidden Gothic Antique Shop In Tampa & It's Eerily Beautiful
There's beauty in dysfunction.
There's something beautiful in the dark and mysterious, and it's a whole vibe that we really love — especially around the spooky season. Dysfunctional Grace Art Co. in Tampa takes the forgotten and lost, offering a wide selection of eerily beautiful decor items at their quirky gothic shop.
When you step foot into Dysfunctional Grace, you may be surprised at what you find. From antique decorations to shrunken heads, skeletons, fossils, preserved animal specimens, and occult & witchy trinkets, it's the ideal place for finding something scary yet striking for all of your Halloween vibes.
Even just looking at the space and figuring out where to start is a beautiful sight. It's weirdly Instaworthy, but not for typical reasons.
You may also find books, crystals, jewelry, and bath bombs too. Aside from spooky odds and ends, visitors will also find taxidermied animals adorning the walls, which can make for an interesting decor piece.
@the_goblin_queen
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According to Dysfunctional Grace's website, all animals in their shop passed away of natural causes, by accidents, or the teeth of another animal, with their goal to bring new life to them & what was lost. They ask that you respect the animals that you may see during your visit, alive or dead. You can even bring your dog with you to this dog-friendly shop.
No two visits are the same as staff find, upcycle, & create unique gems with items that may have been tossed aside where they see an unappreciated beauty — as their website says, it's a place where death & dysfunction dance in a graceful ballet. While this shop isn't for everyone, it's definitely worth a stop for those into the weird, witchy, and wonderful world of art, antiques, and creativity.
@dysfunctional_grace
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You'll find this little shop on 7th Ave in Tampa, just a few paces away from a bewitching secret speakeasy that feels like a mini haunted mansion — which is also allegedly haunted. As if you needed another excuse to check out either place, now you can hit two crows with 1 stone by shopping for some off-the-wall decor, then grabbing a kava or kratom at the lounge after.
An overview of Dysfunctional Grace Art Co. can be seen below. For more cool & unique things to do in the Tampa area, check out the world's most unusual dollar store in Clearwater or this adult-friendly inflatable water park that is a hilariously fun time.
Dysfunctional Grace Art Co.
Price: 💸 - 💸💸
Address: 1903 E 7th Ave, Tampa, FL 33605
Hours: Mon-Thurs, 11 a.m to 6 p.m.
Fri & Sat, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Why You Need To Go: A quirky little antique and decor shop with eery vibes. Surprisingly beautiful, with plenty of spooky decor for the Halloween season.
Website
There are stories everywhere! If you spot a newsworthy event in your city, send us a message, photo, or video @NarcityUSA on Facebook and Instagram.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.cltampa.com/news-views/local-news/article/21074548/tampa-store-wants-to-know-who-stole-its-immaculate-miniature-horse-fetus
Tampa store wants to know who stole its immaculate miniature horse fetus
The specimen was preserved at Dysfunctional Grace in Ybor City.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.narcity.com/eat-drink/us/fl/tampa/spooky-haunted-speakeasy-bar-in-tampa-feels-like-gothic-addams-family-mansion
This Secret Speakeasy In Tampa Will Make You Feel Like You're In A Real Haunted Mansion
A mini gothic mansion hole in the wall of a bar fit for the queen Wednesday Addams herself.
The Spookeasy Lounge
Florida is home to some of the coolest haunted spots around, but the best ones are often hidden. This little speakeasy tucked away within another restaurant is a bit more paranormal than the rest: The Spookeasy Kava Lounge feels like a haunted mansion fit for Wednesday Addams herself - and all spirits are welcome.
Tampa is home to the coolest and most mysterious mini haunted mansion that gives some mega gothic millionaire vibes. To enter this ghost of a speakeasy you'll have to find it within another restaurant. You simply walk into The Stone Soup Company and head upstairs - look for the black bookcase. Your secret entrance to all of the best spirits lies just behind it.
Inside you'll find a rich textured red room with the most spine chilling decor and jet black accents. The entire space is really regal with gothic wall sconces, dangling exquisite crystal chandeliers, and plush black leather seatings fit for a Queen or King like yourself. They have some really unique design elements, like the ouija board table, perfect for you to set your spirits while you conjure spirits.
The entire place is incredibly Insta-worthy and will fill your feed with the most bewitching magic. Check out the black magic of this enchanting spookeasy below:
@avvy_scintillare
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@avvy_scintillare
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via The Spookeasy Loungevia The Spookeasy Lounge
This video below gives you a view of the whole place as one cohesive place and it's seriously beautiful, you'd have to see it to believe it.
On the walls, you'll also find beautiful images that have a classic renaissance painting vibe - but they're no ordinary works of art. The eyes follow you, some will shh you, and others will rot and decay right before your eyes.
While the shifting eyes of the painting images follow you and really brings alive the haunted feel, this place may actually be haunted. In a Youtube video, the owners claim they have the only Haunted Kava lounge in Ybor City and have reported experiencing some unexplained things here - such as glasses flying across the bar, things unexpectedly falling off shelves, and water turning on by itself and flooding the downstairs.
They even serve their beverages in crystal clear skull heads that really ties this witchy gothic mansion together. You can sip on their full liquor bar selection or revive yourself after a particularly soul-crushing work week with some mind-altering kava or kratom that's sure to lift your spirits.
@daylinamiller
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If you're not familiar with either, Kava is a tea made from the root and stems of a small shrub and has been used medicinally and as a part of spiritual ceremonies for over 3,000 years and Kratom is a plant relative to coffee and triggers mild hallucinogenic effects similar to opiates. Both are completely legal and can be enjoyed recreationally like alcohol.
If you're ready to raise your spirits and speak with the dead, The Spookeasy Lounge is upstairs inside of The Stone Soup Company located at 1919 East 7th Ave Tampa, FL 33605. This booze-some bar is open 12 pm - 9 pm Sunday - Thursday and Friday & Saturday from 12 pm - 12 am.
For more information about The Spookeasy Lounge, check out their website here.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.narcity.com/things-to-do/us/fl/tampa/florida-is-home-to-the-worlds-most-unusual-dollar-store
Florida Is Home To 'The Most Unusual Dollar Store' And It Is Incredible
The weirdest collection of purchasable trinkets you will ever find.
The bizarre dollar store is located at 4315 E Bay Dr, Clearwater, FL 33764. The hours of operation are Monday-Saturday from 9 am to 8 pm and Sunday from 11 am to 6 pm.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.narcity.com/things-to-do/us/fl/tampa/inflatable-water-park-at-sunwest-park-near-tampa-is-a-fun-thing-to-do
This Adult-Friendly Inflatable Water Park Near Tampa Is A Hilariously Good Time
Fun in the sun!
(Follow link for full article.)
http://www.fox13news.com/news/local-news/ussocom-developing-military-data-solutions-for-the-battlefield-in-ybor-city
USSOCOM developing military data solutions for the battlefield in Ybor City
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.tampabay.com/arts-entertainment/music/2019/09/25/new-concerts-grace-potter-lucinda-williams-oliver-heldens-more/
New concerts: Grace Potter, Lucinda Williams, Lifehouse, more
Catch up on today’s Tampa Bay concert announcements.
Grace Potter will perform at Jannus Live in St. Petersburg on Jan. 9, 2020. [Pamela Neal]
Grace Potter will make her return to St. Petersburg with a concert at Jannus Live on Jan. 9. Tickets are $28.50 and up.
Lucinda Williams, who played Jannus Live earlier this year, is...
The Civil Wars' John Paul White has booked a solo acoustic show at the Attic in Ybor City on Nov. 14. Tickets are $20 and up.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.musicfestnews.com/2019/09/george-porter-jr-and-runnin-pardners-and-the-reality-at-the-attic/
George Porter Jr. and Runnin’ Pardners and The Reality at The Attic
Photographs by kind permission of Funk Eye Media
Stories by kind permission of Phil Ross and Dan Farkas
George Porter Jr. and Runnin’ Pardners and The Reality played The Attic at Rock Brothers Friday night, September 20, in Ybor City (Tampa). We asked two of the area’s best to talk about the show. We were there but wanted to share their impressions.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.wsoctv.com/news/local/mls-looks-at-2-cities-for-guidance-on-choosing-expansion-team/990427874
MLS looks at 2 cities for guidance on choosing expansion team
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Carolina Panthers executives continue their quest to lock down a Major League Soccer expansion team.
[Sources: City discussing potential $100-200M stadium renovations for MLS]
“We are in the midst of a very historic boom in the building of soccer stadiums in our league,” MLS Commissioner Don Garber said.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.wbtv.com/2019/09/25/charlotte-abuzz-with-talk-major-league-soccer-stadium-changes/
Charlotte abuzz with talk of Major League Soccer, stadium changes
(Follow link for full article.)
https://goldengatexpress.org/2019/09/24/san-francisco-wants-a-new-soccer-team-sf-state-students-agree/
SAN FRANCISCO WANTS A NEW SOCCER TEAM, SF STATE STUDENTS AGREE
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.starsandstripesfc.com/mls-usmnt/2019/9/25/20883416/community-corner-liga-mx-mls-merge-promotion-relegation
Community Corner: Should Liga MX and MLS eventually merge?
And how should it be set up?
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2019/09/25/cbj-morning-buzz-clt-reveals-fresh-look-for.html
CBJ Morning Buzz: CLT reveals fresh look for airport entrance; What Charlotte's first MLS suitor says about latest bid; Duke Energy CEO among 'Powerful' execs
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.cladglobal.com/news.cfm?codeid=343154
HNTB designs noise-boosting stadium for Columbus Crew SC
(Follow link for full article.)
https://ussoccerplayers.com/2019/09/the-render-version-of-mls.html
THE RENDER VERSION OF MLS
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Sep 25, 2019) US Soccer Players - If you subscribe to the right news feeds, you're probably aware of the plans to build a new stadium for the Columbus Crew in the Arena District of Ohio's capital city. New renderings of the building hit the internet on Tuesday to coincide with the team taking season-ticket deposits for the stadium's planned 2021 opening.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.tampabay.com/arts-entertainment/2019/09/25/top-things-to-do-in-tampa-bay-sept-26-oct-2/
Top things to do in Tampa Bay: Sept. 26-Oct. 2
Lego fans gather to share amazing constructions, plus you can meet an 'American Ninja Warrior’ star and YouTube’s HobbyKids.
A Ferris wheel made of Lego bricks spins during the Bricks-n-Blocks fan convention in 2017.
BRICKS-N-BLOCKS: LEGO FAN EXPO
This is the fourth year for the Bricks-n-Blocks: Lego Fan Expo, not officially sponsored by the Danish toy company. It’s by and for fans of the colorful bricks that snap...
Tom Hoehn, who has appeared as the organist for the Florida State Fair, Tampa Bay Rowdies and Boston Red Sox spring training, will perform a live ...
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.nashvillepost.com/sports/nashville-sc/article/21089120/nashville-sc-continues-quest-for-topfour-playoff-seed
Nashville SC continues quest for top-four playoff seed
With four matches left, clubs looks to lock in home game
After Saturday’s 0-0 draw with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds, Nashville SC remains in contention with four other clubs for the top spot in the Eastern Conference standings.
Tied for fourth place with 55 points, Nashville and Pittsburgh are chasing the New York Red Bulls, Indy Eleven and the Tampa Bay Rowdies, each of which has 56 points, in a race for one of the top four seeds.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-7502601/David-Beckham-talks-Santiago-Solari-manager-Inter-Miami.html
David Beckham holds talks with former Real Madrid boss Santiago Solari over becoming first Inter Miami manager
Santiago Solari played with David Beckham for Real Madrid between 2003-05
Pair remain friends and now Beckham wants him as coach of his MLS franchise
Solari was in charge at Bernabeu for a period last season but lasted four months
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.legit.ng/1261396-santiago-solari-david-beckham-eyes-real-madrid-boss-inter-miami-manager.html
Santiago Solari: David Beckham eyes ex-Real Madrid boss as Inter Miami manager
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2019/08/27/how-mls-teams-could-qualify-2020-concacaf-champions-league
How MLS teams can qualify for the 2020 Concacaf Champions League
https://www.abcactionnews.com/news/full-circle/full-circle-the-uncertain-future-of-the-tampa-bay-rays
Full Circle: The uncertain future of the Tampa Bay Rays
Decisions made decades ago haunt the franchise
TAMPA BAY AREA, Fla. — As the Rays fight to make the playoffs, the story of this season is one where the past, present, and future are all swirling around the team. But there was a time in Tampa Bay when baseball was the best game in town.
During six seasons between 2008 and 2013, the Rays went to playoffs four times and made it all the way to the World Series. In both 2009 and 2010, during the Great Recession, their average attendance was above 23,000, which was middle of the pack for Major League Teams, not bad by "Baseball in the Bay" standards.
The Rays would kill for those numbers today. Actually, they would be willing to share the team with another city, in another country for those numbers — which is exactly what they are trying to do now.
The point is, the Rays were once a source of pride for Tampa Bay, a feeling of accomplishment. A feeling that after years of being used as stadium bait by other cities and teams (Chicago White Sox, San Francisco Giants), we finally
“got ours.” Our own Hometown Team. But that was then. This is now.
Here’s a sampling of quotes of the current Baseball climate in the Bay:
“We are simply not well suited for a baseball team that needs to draw tens of thousands of people to its ballpark.” – Rays Owner Stu Sternberg
“We are too large of an area to lose a major sporting franchise.” – Tampa Mayor Jane Castor
“This is about Tampa keeping its team and Montreal having one as well.” – Rays Owner Stu Sternberg
“We need to be one region, when it comes to this team, and quite frankly that’s been lacking.” – St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman
“The team needs to be right over here in Ybor city, I completely agree that we have lost momentum.” — Hillsborough County Commissioner Ken Hagan
There’s been plenty of criticism and questions about Rays owner Stu Sternberg’s plan to share the team with Montreal but few answers.
The team declined our repeated request for an interview.
But all the other major players who shape the Rays Future did go on record and had a lot to say, including St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman who sat down with us just days before he would meet with the Rays owner for the third time since the team announced in June that it wants to split its season between here and Canada.
Q & A with St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman:
Paul LaGrone: Have the discussions you’ve had with Rays owner Stu Sternberg been productive?
Mayor Rick Kriseman: Yeah, I think the most important thing for the public to understand is as long as Stu and I, and his team and my team, continue to talk that’s a good thing.
Paul LaGrone: Do you feel like you’re any closer to coming to an agreement?
Mayor Rick Kriseman: Um, I think I’m um, again any time we meet is a positive meeting. We are trying to build on the previous one.
Paul LaGrone: Do you think the Rays have a genuine interest in staying in St Petersburg?
Mayor Rick Kriseman: Well, I think that's what they’ve certainly said publicly. And I’ll be honest everything that’s said behind closed doors we’ve kind of agreed that’s where it’s going to stay. We are not going to negotiate through the media or through the public.
But it’s the public who would finance what the Rays want: a new open air ball park. And it’s the same public who would have to support a part-time team, something they’ve been unwilling to do during a full season at Tropicana Field, which has been home to the league’s lowest attendance for six out of the last eight years, despite the Rays consistently being in the playoff race
Q & A continues with St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman:
Paul LaGrone: If it meant saving would you be willing to go along with this idea of sharing the team, if that were the only way?
Rick Kriseman: If we were to get to a point where we allowed the Rays to explore the split season, I believe and I may be wrong on this, but I believe it would end up showing that the challenges are too great.
Paul LaGrone: If the Rays came back to you with the notion of letting Tampa having another crack of the bat so to speak.. would you be willing to entertain that?
Rick Kriseman: I did what no one else has done that’s sat in my seat, which was to even allow the team to explore the opportunities across the bay. And I gave them three years to do that, which is a considerable amount of time. Um and for whatever reason it didn’t work. I think at this point in time we need to look here. And see what we can do in St Pete.
Paul LaGrone: Are you willing to stand your ground if it means being known as the mayor who lost baseball?
Rick Kriseman: I had two choices. I could try to kick the can to whoever followed me or I could make a decision and move the ball under my administration knowing that there was risk involved in doing that. I will not make everyone happy no matter what I do. And the only time you don’t make anyone unhappy is if you don’t make any decisions at all.
Paul LaGrone: Do you think Major League Baseball will stay in the Tampa Bay area, or do you think this is the beginning of the long goodbye.
Rick Kriseman: I think that if for some reason this team relocated I think instantaneously the Tampa-St. Pete Region becomes the number one sight for expansion. I say that because if you look at our market you look at our population growth, all the things we talked about, and you stack them against all the cities we’ve discussed and we come out on top.
Across the Bay, the challenges are just as big, but Tampa Mayor Jane Castor wants to keep the Rays local, if she can.
Q & A with Tampa Mayor Jane Castor:
Paul LaGrone: You’ve gone on record saying they belong in Tampa. How do you as mayor get that done or ultimately keep them here?
Mayor Jane Castor: If St. Petersburg doesn’t work out then we would love to have them here in Tampa, and I will do everything in my power as mayor to bring them to Tampa.
Paul LaGrone: Do you think it’s worth keeping the Rays here, if it comes at a cost for tax payers?
Mayor Jane Castor: The question is bigger than that. You have individuals who say building a stadium is a losing proposition for any municipality and then on the other hand you can show city after city where it’s a benefit not only to the citizens but to the economy.
Paul LaGrone: Have you had any discussions with owner Stu Sternberg about bringing the Rays to this side of the bay?
Mayor Jane Castor: No, I haven’t had those discussions. The only discussions that he and I have had is that they want to stay in this area.
Paul LaGrone: And do you believe him when he says that?
Mayor Jane Castor: Sure.
Paul LaGrone: You don’t feel like he’s using this as an opportunity leverage to move to another city?
Mayor Jane Castor: No, he doesn’t strike me as that individual.
But Sports Journalist Neil deMause says a sports team’s impact on the local economy is overstated.
“While a new stadium may have its benefits, the amount of public money being put into them never comes back to the public.” — Neil deMause
Finding the money is something Tampa and Hillsborough struck out on when they pitched the new stadium in Ybor City last year.
County Commissioner Ken Hagan was the front man on that effort and now he finds himself on the bench waiting for permission from St. Petersburg to even talk to the Rays.
“We wanted to sit down and have a regional discussion on what is the best way to ensure the team remains here, unfortunately Mayor Kriseman was unable to do that.” — Ken Hagan
Hagan is now pushing for a smaller version of the Ybor City ball park, one that would be suitable for a part-time team and would provide Ybor with a year-round venue for entertainment.
Q & A with County Commissioner Ken Hagan:
Paul LaGrone: You still have confidence that this vision can happen?
Ken Hagan: I do have confidence, at this point. I’m unsure if it will be the original framework or if it will be the dual home field split ball park scenario that the Rays want to explore.
With all the political noise, it’s easy for the fans to be silenced. But that’s never been a problem for Rob Szasz, known as Tampa Bay’s Happy Heckler.
Rob was the Rays' secret weapon, getting into opposing batters’ heads. And it often worked.
“When they take their gloves out of their back pocket I'd go 'better fix that back pocket buddy, major league babseball has dress codes here, you're going to get fined.' You’d see the guy start pushing his pocket back in. You know they hear you!” — Rob Szasz
Rob used to have season tickets, but after the recession, like many fans, he had to give them up. He still goes to the games but it’s just not the same.
Q & A with Tampa Bay’s Happy Heckler Rob Szasz:
Paul LaGrone: Do you think we’re bad fans?
Rob Szasz: I don’t think we are bad fans. We’d be bad fans if we didn’t support the team whatsoever.
Paul LaGrone: Do you think the fans deserve this, what’s happening?
Rob Szasz: No, definitely not they don’t deserve this.
St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman and Rays Owner Stu Sternberg have met three times — that the public knows of.
At the heart of those ongoing discussions is the team asking Kriseman for permission to formally explore the split season with Montreal.
Their lease contract with St. Petersburg runs through the 2027 season.
(Follow link for full article.)
http://worldsoccertalk.com/2019/09/25/mls-games-drowned-better-quality-quantity-foreign-leagues-tv/
MLS games drowned out by better quality and quantity of foreign leagues on TV
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.heraldtribune.com/entertainmentlife/20190925/bar-tab-grillsmith-brings-tampa-bay-chain-standout-happy-hour-to-sarasota
Bar Tab: Grillsmith brings Tampa Bay chain, standout happy hour to Sarasota
The restaurant and bar recently opened its first Sarasota-Manatee location on South Tamiami Trail
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.tampabay.com/arts-entertainment/music/2019/09/25/this-weekends-best-tampa-bay-concerts/
This weekend’s best Tampa Bay concerts
Phil Collins, Brantley Gilbert, Tyler, the Creator, Snarky Puppy, Deep Purple, Grandson, Jaden Smith and more.
Phil Collins performs at Philadelphia's Wells Fargo Center in October.
TAKE A LOOK AT HIM NOW: PHIL COLLINS
It’s been 15 years since Phil Collins, once retired and now finally back, last played Tampa. And when you see him on Thursday, you’ll realize where that time went....
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.narcity.com/travel/us/fl/tampa/antique-decor-shop-dysfunctional-grace-in-tampa-is-eerily-beautiful-shop
There Is A Hidden Gothic Antique Shop In Tampa & It's Eerily Beautiful
There's beauty in dysfunction.
There's something beautiful in the dark and mysterious, and it's a whole vibe that we really love — especially around the spooky season. Dysfunctional Grace Art Co. in Tampa takes the forgotten and lost, offering a wide selection of eerily beautiful decor items at their quirky gothic shop.
When you step foot into Dysfunctional Grace, you may be surprised at what you find. From antique decorations to shrunken heads, skeletons, fossils, preserved animal specimens, and occult & witchy trinkets, it's the ideal place for finding something scary yet striking for all of your Halloween vibes.
Even just looking at the space and figuring out where to start is a beautiful sight. It's weirdly Instaworthy, but not for typical reasons.
You may also find books, crystals, jewelry, and bath bombs too. Aside from spooky odds and ends, visitors will also find taxidermied animals adorning the walls, which can make for an interesting decor piece.
@the_goblin_queen
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According to Dysfunctional Grace's website, all animals in their shop passed away of natural causes, by accidents, or the teeth of another animal, with their goal to bring new life to them & what was lost. They ask that you respect the animals that you may see during your visit, alive or dead. You can even bring your dog with you to this dog-friendly shop.
No two visits are the same as staff find, upcycle, & create unique gems with items that may have been tossed aside where they see an unappreciated beauty — as their website says, it's a place where death & dysfunction dance in a graceful ballet. While this shop isn't for everyone, it's definitely worth a stop for those into the weird, witchy, and wonderful world of art, antiques, and creativity.
@dysfunctional_grace
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You'll find this little shop on 7th Ave in Tampa, just a few paces away from a bewitching secret speakeasy that feels like a mini haunted mansion — which is also allegedly haunted. As if you needed another excuse to check out either place, now you can hit two crows with 1 stone by shopping for some off-the-wall decor, then grabbing a kava or kratom at the lounge after.
An overview of Dysfunctional Grace Art Co. can be seen below. For more cool & unique things to do in the Tampa area, check out the world's most unusual dollar store in Clearwater or this adult-friendly inflatable water park that is a hilariously fun time.
Dysfunctional Grace Art Co.
Price: 💸 - 💸💸
Address: 1903 E 7th Ave, Tampa, FL 33605
Hours: Mon-Thurs, 11 a.m to 6 p.m.
Fri & Sat, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Why You Need To Go: A quirky little antique and decor shop with eery vibes. Surprisingly beautiful, with plenty of spooky decor for the Halloween season.
Website
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Tampa store wants to know who stole its immaculate miniature horse fetus
The specimen was preserved at Dysfunctional Grace in Ybor City.
(Follow link for full article.)
https://www.narcity.com/eat-drink/us/fl/tampa/spooky-haunted-speakeasy-bar-in-tampa-feels-like-gothic-addams-family-mansion
This Secret Speakeasy In Tampa Will Make You Feel Like You're In A Real Haunted Mansion
A mini gothic mansion hole in the wall of a bar fit for the queen Wednesday Addams herself.
The Spookeasy Lounge
Florida is home to some of the coolest haunted spots around, but the best ones are often hidden. This little speakeasy tucked away within another restaurant is a bit more paranormal than the rest: The Spookeasy Kava Lounge feels like a haunted mansion fit for Wednesday Addams herself - and all spirits are welcome.
Tampa is home to the coolest and most mysterious mini haunted mansion that gives some mega gothic millionaire vibes. To enter this ghost of a speakeasy you'll have to find it within another restaurant. You simply walk into The Stone Soup Company and head upstairs - look for the black bookcase. Your secret entrance to all of the best spirits lies just behind it.
Inside you'll find a rich textured red room with the most spine chilling decor and jet black accents. The entire space is really regal with gothic wall sconces, dangling exquisite crystal chandeliers, and plush black leather seatings fit for a Queen or King like yourself. They have some really unique design elements, like the ouija board table, perfect for you to set your spirits while you conjure spirits.
The entire place is incredibly Insta-worthy and will fill your feed with the most bewitching magic. Check out the black magic of this enchanting spookeasy below:
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via The Spookeasy Loungevia The Spookeasy Lounge
This video below gives you a view of the whole place as one cohesive place and it's seriously beautiful, you'd have to see it to believe it.
On the walls, you'll also find beautiful images that have a classic renaissance painting vibe - but they're no ordinary works of art. The eyes follow you, some will shh you, and others will rot and decay right before your eyes.
While the shifting eyes of the painting images follow you and really brings alive the haunted feel, this place may actually be haunted. In a Youtube video, the owners claim they have the only Haunted Kava lounge in Ybor City and have reported experiencing some unexplained things here - such as glasses flying across the bar, things unexpectedly falling off shelves, and water turning on by itself and flooding the downstairs.
They even serve their beverages in crystal clear skull heads that really ties this witchy gothic mansion together. You can sip on their full liquor bar selection or revive yourself after a particularly soul-crushing work week with some mind-altering kava or kratom that's sure to lift your spirits.
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If you're not familiar with either, Kava is a tea made from the root and stems of a small shrub and has been used medicinally and as a part of spiritual ceremonies for over 3,000 years and Kratom is a plant relative to coffee and triggers mild hallucinogenic effects similar to opiates. Both are completely legal and can be enjoyed recreationally like alcohol.
If you're ready to raise your spirits and speak with the dead, The Spookeasy Lounge is upstairs inside of The Stone Soup Company located at 1919 East 7th Ave Tampa, FL 33605. This booze-some bar is open 12 pm - 9 pm Sunday - Thursday and Friday & Saturday from 12 pm - 12 am.
For more information about The Spookeasy Lounge, check out their website here.
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Florida Is Home To 'The Most Unusual Dollar Store' And It Is Incredible
The weirdest collection of purchasable trinkets you will ever find.
The bizarre dollar store is located at 4315 E Bay Dr, Clearwater, FL 33764. The hours of operation are Monday-Saturday from 9 am to 8 pm and Sunday from 11 am to 6 pm.
(Follow link for full article.)
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This Adult-Friendly Inflatable Water Park Near Tampa Is A Hilariously Good Time
Fun in the sun!
(Follow link for full article.)
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USSOCOM developing military data solutions for the battlefield in Ybor City
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New concerts: Grace Potter, Lucinda Williams, Lifehouse, more
Catch up on today’s Tampa Bay concert announcements.
Grace Potter will perform at Jannus Live in St. Petersburg on Jan. 9, 2020. [Pamela Neal]
Grace Potter will make her return to St. Petersburg with a concert at Jannus Live on Jan. 9. Tickets are $28.50 and up.
Lucinda Williams, who played Jannus Live earlier this year, is...
The Civil Wars' John Paul White has booked a solo acoustic show at the Attic in Ybor City on Nov. 14. Tickets are $20 and up.
(Follow link for full article.)
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George Porter Jr. and Runnin’ Pardners and The Reality at The Attic
Photographs by kind permission of Funk Eye Media
Stories by kind permission of Phil Ross and Dan Farkas
George Porter Jr. and Runnin’ Pardners and The Reality played The Attic at Rock Brothers Friday night, September 20, in Ybor City (Tampa). We asked two of the area’s best to talk about the show. We were there but wanted to share their impressions.
(Follow link for full article.)
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MLS looks at 2 cities for guidance on choosing expansion team
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Carolina Panthers executives continue their quest to lock down a Major League Soccer expansion team.
[Sources: City discussing potential $100-200M stadium renovations for MLS]
“We are in the midst of a very historic boom in the building of soccer stadiums in our league,” MLS Commissioner Don Garber said.
(Follow link for full article.)
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Charlotte abuzz with talk of Major League Soccer, stadium changes
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SAN FRANCISCO WANTS A NEW SOCCER TEAM, SF STATE STUDENTS AGREE
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Community Corner: Should Liga MX and MLS eventually merge?
And how should it be set up?
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https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2019/09/25/cbj-morning-buzz-clt-reveals-fresh-look-for.html
CBJ Morning Buzz: CLT reveals fresh look for airport entrance; What Charlotte's first MLS suitor says about latest bid; Duke Energy CEO among 'Powerful' execs
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HNTB designs noise-boosting stadium for Columbus Crew SC
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THE RENDER VERSION OF MLS
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Sep 25, 2019) US Soccer Players - If you subscribe to the right news feeds, you're probably aware of the plans to build a new stadium for the Columbus Crew in the Arena District of Ohio's capital city. New renderings of the building hit the internet on Tuesday to coincide with the team taking season-ticket deposits for the stadium's planned 2021 opening.
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Top things to do in Tampa Bay: Sept. 26-Oct. 2
Lego fans gather to share amazing constructions, plus you can meet an 'American Ninja Warrior’ star and YouTube’s HobbyKids.
A Ferris wheel made of Lego bricks spins during the Bricks-n-Blocks fan convention in 2017.
BRICKS-N-BLOCKS: LEGO FAN EXPO
This is the fourth year for the Bricks-n-Blocks: Lego Fan Expo, not officially sponsored by the Danish toy company. It’s by and for fans of the colorful bricks that snap...
Tom Hoehn, who has appeared as the organist for the Florida State Fair, Tampa Bay Rowdies and Boston Red Sox spring training, will perform a live ...
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Nashville SC continues quest for top-four playoff seed
With four matches left, clubs looks to lock in home game
After Saturday’s 0-0 draw with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds, Nashville SC remains in contention with four other clubs for the top spot in the Eastern Conference standings.
Tied for fourth place with 55 points, Nashville and Pittsburgh are chasing the New York Red Bulls, Indy Eleven and the Tampa Bay Rowdies, each of which has 56 points, in a race for one of the top four seeds.
(Follow link for full article.)
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David Beckham holds talks with former Real Madrid boss Santiago Solari over becoming first Inter Miami manager
Santiago Solari played with David Beckham for Real Madrid between 2003-05
Pair remain friends and now Beckham wants him as coach of his MLS franchise
Solari was in charge at Bernabeu for a period last season but lasted four months
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Santiago Solari: David Beckham eyes ex-Real Madrid boss as Inter Miami manager
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How MLS teams can qualify for the 2020 Concacaf Champions League
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