What's next for Water Street Tampa?

Zillow names Tampa Bay nation's top housing market; activist arrested ahead of DeSantis news conference; Brandon, Wesley Chapel to get 'traveling water circus'

View on the web Go to our home page Subscribe to the Times Wednesday, January 5, 2022 Forward this to a friend Subscribe to more newsletters Hey there. Things are warming up today. Expect a high of 75 and low of 57. Below are stories on a luxury Pinellas County golf resort that could see some big changes and on outgoing Florida Sen. Jeff Brandes, who enters his final legislative session next week. Plus: Tampa Bay is the nation’s top housing market for 2022, according to Zillow. [MARTHA ASENCIO-RHINE | Times (2021)] With Phase 1 nearly complete, Water Street Tampa is set to expand its footprint this year Water Street Tampa remains in Phase 1 of development, but it won’t be for much longer.    A handful of major components have rolled out as part of Jeff Vinik’s $3.5 billion project since late 2020. They include two new residential towers, an office tower, a new Publix GreenWise Market and a JW Marriott hotel.   Now, only a few big pieces of what developers consider to be Water Street’s first phase have yet to open.   As those components near completion, we take a look at the plans for Phase 2 and beyond. AROUND THE BAY Golf-course living: In an effort to adapt to a changing industry, Palm Harbor’s Innisbrook Resort is looking to build 186 homes on one of its four courses.   Demolition ahead? A new owner purchased two century-old buildings in downtown Tampa, with plans to replace them with up to 200 condos.    Tampa Electric to expand solar: The utility wants to bring a sixth solar farm to southern Hillsborough County. See how many homes the project would power.   Unlikely partnership: With housing development booming in Pasco County, school district officials have embraced the idea of charter expansion to help keep up with demand for seats.   UF professors’ lawsuit advances: A federal judge refused to dismiss the case, saying the revised conflict-of-interest policy that put the university in the national spotlight still poses a “credible threat” to faculty speech.   Lightning have new minority owner: Jeff Vinik sold an undisclosed stake to Arctos Sports Partners, a private equity firm with offices in New York and Dallas.   New chapter for The Orpheum: The beloved live music venue is closing in Ybor City. But its story isn’t coming to an end.   Robot finds man dead: A woman was taken to a Tampa home against her will earlier this week, which led to a homicide and a robot discovering a suspect dead under the house, police say. BRIGHT SPOT 🎪 [ANDYBUIPHOTOGRAPHY.COM | Cirque Italia] 'Traveling water circus' headed to Tampa Bay The Palmetto-based troupe Cirque Italia will premiere its family-friendly acrobatic show in Brandon and Wesley Chapel in the coming weeks. Here's what we know. Your support makes a difference The Tampa Bay Times needs your help to keep delivering top-notch journalism. Please consider subscribing or making a tax-deductible donation to the Tampa Bay Times Journalism Fund. Donate Gain unlimited access CORONAVIRUS DEVELOPMENTS UPDATES AT TAMPABAY.COM/CORONAVIRUS Changing the focus? The highly contagious omicron variant is causing a major spike in U.S. coronavirus case counts. But some experts say in light of vaccination rates, we should be paying more attention to hospitalizations.   Florida maternity ward closes: After staff shortages related to COVID-19 outbreaks caused the temporary shutter, mothers-to-be who had planned on giving birth at one Sunshine State hospital will now need to find another option.   COVID-19 misinformation: False claims on social media continue to conflate the global survival rate for the virus with an individual's chance of survival. PolitiFact explains.   Opening without pandemic rules: The public will have more access to the Florida Capitol this legislative session than in 2021, when tight COVID-19 measures were put in place. POLITICS Melrose Elementary to City Hall: The history of St. Petersburg could be told through Ken Welch's family story. On Thursday, he'll accomplish what his father tried to do 30 years ago: Become mayor of his hometown.   Brandes' vision for Florida: The upcoming legislative session marks Jeff Brandes' last as a state senator. He'll be trying once again to push forward measures aimed at criminal justice reform.   Trump cancels Florida news conference: The former president said he won't hold the event on the anniversary of the U.S. Capitol insurrection after all.   Community activist arrested: A confrontation between the Northside Coalition of Jacksonville's president and aides for DeSantis preceded the governor's news conference Tuesday. Here's what happened. Dive deeper into your favorite local subjects 📨 Our free email newsletters bring the best of the Tampa Bay Times to your inbox every week. Explore all of them here. OPINION AND COMMENTARY Rick Kriseman reflects on tenure: In this guest column, St. Petersburg's outgoing mayor looks back at his eight years in office. SPORTS Back on pace: The Lightning reclaimed some positive vibes in Tuesday night's win over the Blue Jackets, snapping its three-game winless streak.   Just when he thought he was out: Bolts broadcaster Rick Peckham spent 24 years with the team before retiring in 2020. We caught up with him after his recent three-game stint back on the call.   Best QB in Bucs history? These five statistics fortify our assertion that Tom Brady is the best quarterback the organization has known.   Prize worth chasing: The Bucs are banged up, battered and bruised heading into Sunday's regular-season finale. Still, even with a division title in pocket, coach Bruce Arians is not conceding an inch. And that's a good thing, sports columnist John Romano says.   USF coach gets contract extension: Jeff Scott, who's entering a pivotal third year with Bulls football, is set to stick around through the 2026 season. TODAY'S TALKER [IVY CEBALLO | Times (2021)] Zillow's hottest housing market for 2022? That would be Tampa Bay. The real estate firm ranked the region No. 1 in the country, projecting a 24.6 percent increase in home values this year. Today's DayStarter was compiled by Meaghan Habuda, Anila Lijo, Rachel Adamson and Amy Gehrt. Did someone forward this to you? Get DayStarter in your own inbox next time. It's free to subscribe. Sign up here. Contact us Privacy policy Terms, conditions & copyright Standard of accuracy © 2022 • All Rights Reserved Tampa Bay Times • 490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111 To ensure this email is delivered to your inbox, add custserv@elist.tampabay.com to your address book. You are receiving this email because you signed up for the "DayStarter" newsletter from the Tampa Bay Times. If you'd prefer not to receive updates, you can unsubscribe from this email.