Diane Steinle, North Pinellas Editor
Diane Steinle is the North Pinellas editor of the Tampa Bay Times. She has worked for the Times since 1984 as a reporter, editorial writer and editor. A North Carolina native, she has a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. She lives in Clearwater and is the mother of two adult sons.
Phone: (727) 445-4184
Email: dsteinle@tampabay.com
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Clearwater & North Pinellas Times shifts publication days
04/06/13ColumnsHere in the North Pinellas newsroom of the Tampa Bay Times, we work hard every day to bring you informative stories and entertaining features that tell the story of life in the northern half of Pinellas County. Starting this week, you will find some of that coverage in a different place.
Much of our daily North Pinellas news coverage will now appear in the section of the Times labeled Local, also known as the B section. You already go there for North Pinellas obituaries, plus business stories, entertainment news and coverage of the bay area and state. Now the B section also will include more stories about North Pinellas local governments, public safety, politics and news events....
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Mellow music of Pure Prairie League centerpieces today's Blast Friday in Clearwater
03/28/13EventsCLEARWATER — Even if they can't recall the names of any of the musicians, people who venture downtown tonight for the monthly Blast Friday street festival may recognize some of the soft, country-rock melodies of the band onstage, Pure Prairie League.
Perhaps the band's best-known single, Amie, still gets play time on radio stations, as does Let Me Love You Tonight.
And listeners may be forgiven for not remembering the names of band members. PPL, which got its start in Ohio in the late 1960s, endured years of personnel changes because of the Vietnam War, health issues, members' changing career aspirations and fickle record companies. One easily recognizable name that did a stint with PPL: Vince Gill....
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Walmart wins access to tax incentives for Largo project
03/12/13 Local GovernmentLARGO — Only two Largo commissioners resisted when Walmart sought a brownfield designation for land it plans to develop on the old Crossroads Mall property, even though there is no known contamination on the land and the designation would qualify the giant retailer for a host of tax credits and special incentives.
Brownfield designations originally were intended to encourage cleanup and development of contaminated properties by offering incentives and some regulatory relief to developers....
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Prominent land-use lawyer Ed Armstrong plans to leave longtime firm
03/04/13BusinessCLEARWATER — One of Pinellas County's most successful and high-profile lawyers is leaving the firm where he has worked for 30 years to open a small Pinellas outpost of Tampa-based Hill Ward Henderson.
Ed Armstrong, 55, went to work at Johnson, Pope, Bokor, Ruppel & Burns right out of law school and is now a shareholder in the firm, which is considered the biggest law firm based in Pinellas with 38 attorneys in Clearwater and Tampa....
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Police: 7-year-old made hoax call about Belleair Elementary shooter
02/28/13CrimeCLEARWATER — The hoax call to 911 about shots fired at Belleair Elementary School on Tuesday, which spawned a massive police response and panic among parents, was made, police said today, by a first-grader at the school.
And it wasn't the first hoax call the 7-year-old boy had made: He confessed to nine calls, according to Clearwater police.
On Wednesday, the boy called 911 again to report a dead person in a roadway. Police also responded to that call before determining that it was a hoax, but most of the other calls the child made were "non-descript" and didn't generate a police response, according to Clearwater public safety spokeswoman Elizabeth Watts....
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Chill out to tasty sounds, seafood at the Sea-Blues Festival
02/14/13EventsCLEARWATER — Brian Craig isn't worried that forecasters say there will be a chill in the air this weekend for the seventh annual Clearwater Sea-Blues Festival.
"It's a hearty crowd. And though it may be cold, it's going to be one of the warmer places to be" in the country, said Craig, the city's events coordinator.
They will have lots of blues-y music and seafood to help keep them warm. And since Sea-Blues is the last remaining major blues festival in the area that has free admission, Craig believes plenty of people will be willing to tolerate a little chilliness for the opportunity to hear outstanding music without opening their wallets....
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Destruction of Clearwater Beach sand dune outrages witnesses
01/18/13EnvironmentCLEARWATER — The bulldozer swooped in on a Saturday, when the watchful eyes of code enforcement officers weren't around.
Neighbors were, though.
Cameras flashed and video cameras rolled as members of the Clearwater Beach Association witnessed a backhoe scoop up sand from a dune at a beach access in the 700 block of Eldorado Avenue, at Mango Avenue.
The fine grains of sand were then dumped atop sea oats and grass covering another nearby dune....
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Clearwater will pay more to hire lobbying firm touted by mayor
01/18/13 Local GovernmentCLEARWATER — Saying they wanted the strongest team they could get lobbying for Clearwater in Washington, City Council members decided to ditch the lobbying firm the city has used since 1998 and voted to hire a more expensive firm touted by Mayor George Cretekos.
Since 1998, the city has used Alcalde and Fay, based in Arlington, Va., as its federal lobbyist. The firm is charged with maintaining close ties with Florida's congressional delegation, working to acquire federal tax dollars and grants for the city, and pushing for legislation favorable to cities....
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Clearwater police aide accused of sending explicit photos to child
01/15/13CrimeCLEARWATER — A Clearwater police aide was arrested Monday and accused of sending inappropriate pictures to an 11-year-old girl.
Toby Lamar Malloy, 35, of Clearwater, was arrested after the girl's mother contacted the Clearwater Police Department regarding messages sent to her daughter via Facebook.
Detectives in the department's Crimes Against Children and Families unit began an undercover investigation. Detectives began communicating with Malloy through the girl's Facebook and email accounts and received sexually explicit pictures back, according to city public safety spokeswoman Elizabeth Watts....
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Sheriff's Office arrests 18-year-old in shooting near Largo
12/21/12CrimeLARGO — Two men were injured Friday morning in a shooting in Ridgecrest, an unincorporated neighborhood west of Largo.
By Friday afternoon, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office had a suspect under arrest: Deonte Jermaine Williams, 18, of Oak Village Drive in Largo, who authorities say was the shooter but also one of the injured.
The shooting occurred about 10 a.m. near 2325 119th St. N, a local store known as Handy Corner, according to Pinellas County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Cecilia Barreda....
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Patrols beefed up in Whitney Road area after student is attacked
12/19/12CrimeCLEARWATER — The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office provided extra patrols in the Whitney Road area Wednesday following an attack on a 17-year-old girl.
The teen was walking to her school bus stop Tuesday morning when she was grabbed from behind, dragged out of public view and sexually assaulted, according to the Sheriff's Office.
The assault occurred between 6 and 7 a.m. The girl went back home and told her family, who called authorities....
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Work up an even bigger appetite at Thursday's Times Turkey Trot
11/20/12 Human InterestCLEARWATER — The very idea of getting up at sunrise on Thanksgiving to run or walk in the Times Turkey Trot is enough to send some people diving back under the covers, seeking dreams of turkey and pumpkin pie.
But for thousands of others, the Turkey Trot, now in its 34th year, is a joyful tradition — the best part of Thanksgiving Day, some say — and they wish the race lasted longer....
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Pinellas law approved to give the disabled help refueling their cars
09/13/12 Human InterestStarting in November, it will be a little easier for people who are disabled to get help refueling their cars at gas stations and convenience stores.
That's when an ordinance approved recently by the Pinellas County Commission is scheduled to take effect.
The federal Americans with Disabilities Act already requires gas stations with two or more employees on duty to help with refueling if people with disabilities honk or signal that they need assistance....
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Pasco man accused of molesting girl in Clearwater park
09/12/12CrimeCLEARWATER — A Pasco County man was arrested Tuesday by the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office, accused of lewd and lascivious molestation on a girl under 16, officials said. And they are concerned there may be other victims.
According to reports, Michael Still, 22, of 6840 Tierra Linda St. in Port Richey, went to Coopers Bayou Park on Bayshore Boulevard in Clearwater with some acquaintances on Memorial Day, May 28....
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Belleair approves tax break for Biltmore restoration
09/05/12 Local GovernmentBELLEAIR — For weeks, town commissioners debated whether this small town could afford to give the prospective owners of the Belleview Biltmore hotel a hefty property tax exemption in exchange for their restoring and reopening the 115-year-old landmark.
Tuesday night, the debate ended in a 3-2 vote to approve the exemption and enshrine it in town law.
Mayor Gary Katica and Commissioner Kevin Piccarreto voted against the ordinance. Piccarreto was particularly critical, saying the town has not done enough research on the idea, which the commission first began discussing in July, and that a decision was being rushed to meet the prospective owners' deadline....
