Steve Newborn
ReporterI cover Florida’s unending series of issues with the environment and politics in the Tampa Bay area.
I love to go camping, ride bikes and go for long paddles on scenic, winding rivers, so I can think about that while covering meetings that go on for hours.
I've been around Florida so long that I have covered events that most people can’t remember anymore. I've covered President George W. Bush’s speech in Sarasota as the Sept. 11 attacks unfolded; the ongoing drama over whether the feeding tube should be removed from Terri Schiavo; the arrest and terrorism trial of USF professor Sami Al-Arian; how the BP Deepwater Horizon spill affected Florida; and followed the Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition as they walked and paddled through the state — twice.
I also got the privilege of tagging along with a Sarasota-based group investigating how manatees are faring in Cuba.
Before joining WUSF, I covered environmental and Polk County news for the late, great Tampa Tribune and worked for NASA at the Kennedy Space Center during the early days of the space shuttle.
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Pasco County joins Hernando County, Citrus County, the city of Zephyrhills and five other Florida counties in enacting a moratorium. -
A letter from a local attorney calls for four members of the board to resign because of properties they own. Meantime, a key vote on the stadium plan was postponed at least two months by Tampa's CRA board. -
Board members of the redevelopment agency told Ken Babby they don't want all the future money going to the team. He said the larger community would benefit from what is called the "halo effect." -
Welch was forced to defend his first term as some of his policies came under attack by the other candidates. -
If voters approve the referendums in November, the Hillsborough County Commission would expand to nine members — with the current at-large districts eliminated. The school superintendent could also be elected, instead of appointed. -
City Manager Carlos Baia told city council members that he's reaching out to Hillsborough County and Tampa to consider hooking up to their systems. -
Kathleen Peters said passage of the referendum on November's ballot could adversely affect the supply of labor in Pinellas County. -
It comes amid high utility costs as the city's 30-year contract with Duke Energy expires this summer. -
The law mandates local officials have to approve development if these spaces that legislators call "enclaves" are next to developed land — even if local zoning or comprehensive plans would otherwise prohibit it. -
Local government support for the Rays' ballpark was fragile before the tax measure went on the November ballot. Now, the Tampa Sports Authority is writing a letter to state its priority: Raymond James Stadium.
