The Mayor of St. Petersburg has chosen Hines and the Tampa Bay Rays as the redeveloper for the Historic Gas Plant District

The Mayor of St. Petersburg has chosen Hines and the Tampa Bay Rays as the redeveloper for the Historic Gas Plant District.  This means that Hines and the Rays will be responsible for designing and implementing the redevelopment plan for the district. The goal is transforming it into a new, vibrant, and sustainable area.

The Mayor of St. Petersburg, Ken Welch, has chosen Hines and the Tampa Bay Rays as the master developer for the redevelopment of the Historic Gas Plant District and the site of Tropicana Field. Above all, this means that they will be responsible for creating and implementing a comprehensive vision for the area. In addition, this will transform it into a new, thriving, and sustainable community.

Mayor Welch announced in his state of the city speech on Monday that Hines and the Rays will lead the redevelopment of the 86-acre plot of land in downtown St. Petersburg, which includes the home of the Rays. The goal of the redevelopment is to create a new and revitalized area in the heart of the city.

Hines is a company specializing in global real estate investment, development, and property management. The Rays are the local Major League Baseball team based in the area. The partnership between Hines and the Rays plans to redevelop the site into a 7 million square foot, mixed-use district, including a new, modern stadium for the Rays. The goal of the redevelopment is to create a vibrant and sustainable community.

The new vision for the Historic Gas Plant District, as planned by Hines and the Rays, includes a mix of family entertainment, retail, civic spaces, arts and culture, food, and a new baseball stadium as its centerpiece. The goal is to create a diverse and thriving community with a range of amenities for residents and visitors alike.

The total cost of the redevelopment is estimated to be over $6 billion over the next 20+ years. That includes an initial investment of $2.5-$3 billion in the construction of a new stadium for the Rays and the initial development of the district.

The city's website details the full proposal from Hines and the Tampa Bay Rays, including the other three proposals from 50 Plus 1 Sports, Restoration Associates and Sugar Hill Community Partners.

In conclusion, more about this later today on Shemon and Sheppard 2-6pm.

We all love food. And in Florida, food is serious business. Did you know that there are over 41,000 restaurants in the Sunshine State? In fact, there are only 3 states that have more restaurants than Florida: California, New York and Texas. So what's the Best Restaurant In Florida?

To be one of the most popular restaurants in any town within the state is a big deal. There's clearly a lot of competition. It's hard for me to pick my favorite because of all the different types of cuisine. I may be able to pick out my favorite Mexican, Japanese, Italian..but to choose an overall favorite is tough!

If you ever wondered if your personal favorite is the most popular in town, now you'll have the answer. There are over 400 towns in Florida, and it would've taken me 3 years, so instead I focused on towns and cities in Florida with populations over 30,000. Then I used Yelp to find the highest rated restaurant in each city/town. So EVERY city and town in Florida may be a slight exaggeration, but some of the small towns don't even have restaurants.

After looking at this list and you want more, there's a few other food lists I've recently put together. Yelp's Top 100 Places to Eat in 2023, North America's Most Distinguished Restaurants...you're gonna be hungry!

Seasons 52
463 E Altamonte Dr

Stephie's Pub & Irish Eatery
1061 W Orange Blossom Trl

Bourbon Steak Miami
19999 West Country Club Drive

Mercato Italiano
501 SE Mizner Blvd

Petar's Eatery
3300 Bonita Beach Rd Unit #120

Natuurlik
4956 Le Chalet Blvd

Godson's Pizza House
1720 Cortez Rd W

The Greek Spot
1239 Cape Coral Pkwy E

Daily News Cafe & Restaurant
1575 S Ft Harrison Ave

Pico Bistro
793 W Montrose St

The BBQ Boutique
4209 W Hillsboro Blvd

La Brochette Bistro
2635 N Hiatus Rd

Tempo Restaurant
271 Miracle Mile

Miami Kabab
10422 W Atlantic Blvd

Urban Rrasoi
20218 Old Cutler Rd

Toro Latin Kitchen & Tequila Library
1825 Griffin Rd

Fat Stork
8270 Griffin Road

Farm to Fit
168 North Beach Street

Seaside Subs
1645 SE 3rd Ct, Ste 102

DeLand Eatery
442 E New York Ave

Taki Omakase
632 E Atlantic Ave

Roma Pizza
600 Courtland Blvd, Ste 4

Pisco y Nazca Ceviche
8551 NW 53rd St Ste A101

Marquise Dunedin
1714 County Rd 1

Next Stop Brunch
10351 Corkscrew Rd

Oku by Takato
551 N Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd

Uncle Rico's Pizza
2960 Cleveland Ave

Skippers Cove Bar
1930 Harbortown Dr

Underground Kitchen
1001 NW 5th Ave

Sticky Rice Thai & Sushi
5885 Lake Worth Rd

La Piazzetta
701 N Federal Hwy

Ceviche Miami
4085 East 8th Ave

Sahara Cafe
2000 Harrison St

Yardie Spice
225 S Krome Ave

Thai Nine
2467 Faye Rd

Thai West
9260 W Indiantown Rd

El Punto
3850 S Orange Blossom Trl

Nyammins Kitchen & Grill
428 W 10th St

Cesarina's Italian Deli
2575 East Bay Drive

Olli Olive Pizza
4599 N University Dr

Next Level Bar & Lounge
3670 N State Rd 7

Swirl Wine Bistro
4976 West Atlantic Blvd

Hog Snappers
990 E Melbourne Ave

N by NAOE
661 Brickell Key Dr

Ocoa's Breeze
1147 Washington Ave

Sunday's Eatery
18367 NW 27th Ave

Trattoria Pampered Chef
7347 Miami Lakes Dr

Rosalia's Kitchen
12130 Miramar Parkway

New Smyrna Beach Brat Haus
2810 N Dixie Fwy

Huey Magoo's Chicken Tenders
7206 West McNab Road

One Cafe
325 S Biscayne Blvd

Tropics Cafeteria
1501 NE 167th St

Que-Rico Columbian Flavors
13648 Tamiami Trl

Alegria Tacos
3801 N Andrews Ave

Taverna Berrocal
2515 NE 3rd St

Mr. J Hand-Pulled Noodle
1688 E Silver Star Rd

Camille
3201 Corrine Dr Fl 2nd

63 Sovereign
63 W. Granada Blvd

Japanatolia
1600 Oviedo Mall Blvd

Henry's Cuban Cafe
3565 Jupiter Blvd SE, Ste 4

Andy's Latin Food
9920 A1A Alternate

Millenium Bistro
9 Palm Harbor Village Way

Josiah's Southern Cooking
1003 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd

Sushiato
7961 N University Dr

Kaeru Sushi & Grill
10211 Pines Blvd

Lupita's Mexican Kitchen
6890 Pensacola Blvd

Pho Kien Giang
8730 49th St N

Ceviche Express
8000 W Broward Blvd

Adris Tacos
2601 W Reynolds St

Poblano South
1315 SW First Ct

Yummy Rice Thai & Asian
3781 S Nova Rd

Meeter's Deli
6570 NW Selvitz Rd

Chunkay
8344 Garden Rd

India Grill & Bar
650 Royal Palm Beach Blvd

Salvatore's Prime Sandwiches
212 W 1st St

Vino Vino
2063 Siesta Dr

Granny's Southern Smokehouse
818 Pennsylvania Ave

Fatty's BBQ & Soul Food
846 49th St S

Louie K Subs
2560 N University Dr

King's BBQ
2504 W Tennessee St

Blazing Grill & Pizza
7132 N Nob Hill Rd

Gao Restaurant
8405 N Himes Ave

Burger Rob's
3486 S Hopkins Ave

Sicilian Oven
10610 Forest Hill Blvd

Artjazz
955 Sansburys Way

Suri Sushi Thai
141 Weston Rd

4 Rivers Smokehouse
1600 Fairbanks Ave W

The Apple Lounge
2803 Recker Hwy

Git-n-Messy BBQ
855 E SR 434