Wednesday, November 14, 2012
The businesses were forced to close down during the Republican National Convention in August.
August’s Republican National Convention in downtown Tampa was a mixed bag of good and bad news for businesses in the county. Some businesses that thought they’d see a surge in business didn’t realize the profits they’d hoped for. Others reported doing very well as hundreds of Republicans converged on Tampa Bay. But a few businesses had to shut down entirely, forgoing all hope of realizing profit during the event. Three of the businesses that faced the latter circumstances will be brought up during Thursday’s Hillsborough County Commission meeting. Commissioners are being asked to give the three businesses that operate out of the first floor of County Center, 601 E. Kennedy Blvd., a month of free rent in December to make up for the losses …
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
Now that the Republican National Convention is a memory, we want to hear your thoughts on how the county’s law enforcement agencies performed.
Hundreds of law enforcement officers from agencies all over the Tampa Bay area converged on downtown Tampa last week to keep the peace during the Republican National Convention. The Tampa Police Department estimates 3,500 officers from various agencies pitched in to keep the county safe as thousands of visitors from all over the country came to town, according to spokeswoman Andrea Davis. The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office alone assigned more than 1,000 deputies to the downtown area during the convention’s four-day run. Other agencies from around the county also lent some of their finest to what was likely the biggest law enforcement undertaking in Tampa Bay history. As the RNC unfolded, stories about the professionalism of …
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Mayor Bob Buckhorn and Tampa Police Chief Jane Castor addressed the media during a daily briefing on Thursday morning at the Tampa Convention Center.
Don't take the bait, and be prepared. Those were a few lessons Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn and Police Chief Jane Castor learned during a relatively quiet week. There have been just three arrests and no property crimes reported since Monday at the Republican National Convention downtown. During a media briefing at the Tampa Convention Center on Thursday, the final day of the RNC, Buckhorn and Castor talked traffic updates, security measures and what they hope delegates and visitors to the city take away. Here's a roundup:
We've compiled some of the best, funniest, oddest or most interesting Republican National Convention stories from Patch and other local and national media.
Are you a political junkie? Can't get enough of all the headlines about the Republican National Convention? Patch is bringing you hyperlocal coverage of the RNC, from the floor at the Tampa Bay Times Forum and from local angles in 23 different Patch towns across the region. We're also pulling some of the best, funniest, oddest or most interesting RNC stories from around the web and compiling the links here for your convenience. Below is just a sampling that we'll continue to update, and if you find an RNC-related link that's interesting, feel free to post it in the comments section at the bottom. Patch: Other Local Media: National Media:
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
They’ll have to make a 15-minute hike to the convention tomorrow.
First they were left without transportation from Palm Harbor’s Innisbrook Resort to the Republican National Convention in downtown Tampa. Then they were stuck on a bus for hours following the convention Tuesday night – not making it back to the resort until after 3 a.m. Wednesday, according to TBO. Now, Florida’s Republican delegation is facing a 15-minute hike from the security perimeter to the convention as officials try to straighten out the transportation problems facing the state’s top GOPers. "The (Republican National Committee) needs to fix this bus problem … We need to take care of our delegates," TBO quoted Adam Putnam, Florida’s agriculture commissioner as saying. “It was a complete breakdown.” According to TBO, the Republican …
Chuck Kaelin and his college buddies said they don't like where the Republican Party has headed since the days of Ronald Reagan.
Chuck Kaelin of Seminole Heights took the day off Wednesday from his job as a manager at Publix. He just had to come to downtown Tampa, site of the Republican National Convention, to share his opposition to the GOP's platform. "When's the RNC going to come back to Tampa again?" he said. Kaelin was holding his homemade sign, which read, "Pardon Me, G.O.P. — Your Lunatic Fringe is Showing," on a streetcorner a few blocks from the Tampa Bay Times Forum. Joining him were two of his old college buddies from the University of Florida, Phil Atley of Port St. Lucie and Wallace Armes of Naples. "We were Republicans back then," said Armes, who once campaigned for Ronald Reagan. The Republican Party has gone "downhill ever since," according to his …
Some business owners say they haven't had many patrons this week during the Republican National Convention.
Today marks the halfway point of the Republican National Convention, netting only a handful of arrests and far fewer protesters than law enforcement officials had predicted. During a Wednesday morning briefing at the Tampa Convention Center, Mayor Bob Buckhorn and Tampa Police Chief Jane Castor addressed those issues in addition to what some would call the economic elephant in the room: The lack of patrons visiting downtown businesses this week. Although 50,000 people were expected to be downtown during the convention, business owners say they've seen fewer patrons than normal due to enhanced security measures that prevent the public from regular access to their shops, and convention events on Monday being canceled because of inclement …
We've compiled some of the best, funniest, oddest or most interesting Republican National Convention stories from Patch and other local and national media.
Are you a political junkie? Can't get enough of all the headlines about the Republican National Convention? Patch is bringing you hyperlocal coverage of the RNC, from the floor at the Tampa Bay Times Forum and from local angles in 23 different Patch towns across the region. We're also pulling some of the best, funniest, oddest or most interesting RNC stories from around the web and compiling the links here for your convenience. Below is just a sampling that we'll continue to update, and if you find an RNC-related link that's interesting, feel free to post it in the comments section at the bottom. Patch: 13 Protesters Booted from Innisbrook After Marco Rubio Heckled (Palm Harbor) Newt U is Now in Session (Old Northeast-Downtown St. Pete) …
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Visitors in town for the 2012 Republican National Convention share their impressions of the Tampa Bay area.
As Patch covers the local impact of the 2012 Republican National Convention, we're asking visitors we encounter what they think of our Tampa Bay community. If you're visiting Tampa for the RNC, please feel free to share photos and memories of your Tampa experience with our local residents by clicking the "Upload Photos and Videos" button above!
An expected boon to downtown Tampa businesses because of the RNC is a bust, restaurateurs said Tuesday.
It was supposed to be like a Super Bowl shot in the arm for downtown Tampa restaurants who expected throngs of eaters during the four-day Republican National Convention. The city made much ado about preparation for the event pouring money into landscaping and road repairs. But it was a virtual ghost town Tuesday during what would be the start of the busy lunchtime rush. Lynn Pham just hopes to break even this week. “I just don’t see it,” she said. Pham, owner of Bamboozle Cafe on Tampa Street, ordered extra food for the week. She kept on additional help and even was open on Sunday for the crowds she anticipated. But no one came. Sure there was Tropical Storm Isaac but the storm passed far from Tampa, Pham said. Between the storm and the …
Amy Rogers
1:19 pm on Thursday, November 15, 2012
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