* The 37-story Pendry tower—with completion planned for 2024—is now under construction. Yet another reminder of what could have been built there: Trump Tower Tampa.
* Inflation in Tampa Bay rose 8.9 percent in 2022.
* “I’m a big supporter of Ron (DeSantis) and his policies, and as you can see from the donations (more than $200,000) I fully support him.” That was Tampa City Council candidate Blake Casper in a recent interview with Creative Loafing Tampa Bay. Even in a “nonpartisan” race, it’s relevant for what it says about values and ideology.
* Casper—who jumped in at the last minute—has self-funded $105,000 for his campaign. BTW, District 4 is the only one in Tampa where GOPsters outnumber Dems. Yes, it’s a “nonpartisan” race, but, yes, everybody knows who’s a “D” and who’s an “R”.