Alligator Alcatraz. Guns. Social media. Legal battles about those and myriad other Florida issues remain unresolved heading into 2026.
Tampa Bay News
Learn what’s going on in Tampa Bay from the award-winning writers who live here
Posted inNews & Views
Tampa Bay’s biggest stories of 2025
It was a hard, weird year of news.
Posted inNews & Views
Photojournalist Dave Decker’s best shots of 2025
From protests and vigils to concerts and games, these were Tampa Bay’s top moments of the year.
Posted inNews & Views
Photos: WWE star Titus O’Neil gives 5,000 presents to Tampa families
It was the 17th annual ‘Joy of Giving.’
Posted inNews & Views
Photos: ZooTampa takes in foxes rescued from fur farm
The pair was among 250 animals rescued from a fur farm in Ohio earlier this year.
Posted inNews & Views
Florida isn’t getting safer for cyclists
There have been 185 bicycling fatalities this year (along with 9,277 injuries from bicycle crashes), per state data.
Posted inNews & Views
In Tampa, Ingoglia proposes legislation to remove elected officials for ‘financial abuse’
He’d win authority to recommend removal of any elected official for ‘financial abuse, malfeasance or misfeasance.’
Posted inNews & Views
DeSantis’ proposed budget would change how Florida cancer centers get funds
Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa is one of them.
Posted inMusic
Water Street Tampa owners want to build a 3,500-capacity venue across from Benchmark International Arena
The parking lot across the old Amalie would also include a 250-room hotel, retail and parking.
Posted inNews & Views
GOP gubernatorial candidate Paul Renner pleads his case to Tampa Bay Trump supporters
The former Florida House speaker is trailing Trump-endorsed Byron Donalds significantly in early public opinion polls.
Posted inNews & Views
Activists fight Mosaic’s ‘moot’ argument over radioactive byproduct in Polk County roads
In its challenge, the Center for Biological Diversity cited concerns about radon emissions and potential air and groundwater pollution.
Posted inNews & Views
Tampa-based CAIR-Florida sues DeSantis after ‘terrorist’ designation
The Muslim civil-rights organization claims the governor’s order blocking the group from state resources is unconstitutional.
Posted inNews & Views
Charges dropped against Tampa photojournalist arrested covering Miami ICE protest
Dave Decker faced charges of trespassing and resisting arrest despite showing press credentials.
Posted inNews & Views
‘No contract, no coffee’: Downtown Clearwater Starbucks closed as unionized workers join nationwide strike [PHOTOS]
Unlike past one-day strikes, this one is open-ended with a to-be-determined end date for the work stoppage.
Posted inNews & Views
Clearwater Starbucks workers join nearly 4,000 baristas on strike
Workers are asking customers and their communities to boycott Starbucks for as long as they’re on strike—meaning no gift cards, no coffee and no holiday merch.
Posted inNews & Views
Nikki Fried: ‘The pendulum is swinging towards Democrats’ after Miami victory
Florida Dems are focused on flipping Tampa Bay congressional seats.
Posted inNews & Views
ZooTampa shares photos of the baby monkey born last weekend
The occasion marks the first birth of the ‘vulnerable’ species there since 2018.
Posted inNews & Views
USF researchers discover steep decline in some sargassum seaweed populations
Researchers say high temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico may be to blame.
Posted inNews & Views
Even Pinellas can learn lessons from new Florida Wildlife Corridor development guidelines
While focused on large master-planned communities, guidelines in the 153-page book can also be applied to urban areas.