Stephen Nohlgren, Times Staff Writer
Stephen writes about the Tampa Bay Rays' quest for a new baseball stadium, aging and other topics.
Phone: (727) 893-8442, or toll-free 1-800-333-7505, ext. 8442
Email: nohlgren@tampabay.com
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New campaign aims to reduce babies born addicted to pills
05/10/13HealthTAMPA —More than 1,500 Florida babies are born each year already addicted to powerful prescription painkillers.
Excruciating withdrawal can take three weeks — just as with an adult addict.
"I saw these babies, and it changes your life," state Attorney General Pam Bondi said Friday. "They have to be covered with blankets. They're sensitive to light and sound. And they don't cry, they shriek."...
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Not a day for politics
05/09/13 BlogST. PETERSBURG -- With the baseball season underway and the St. Petersburg mayoral election only months off, not a single mention of a new stadium reared its head Thursday at the annual Tampa Bay Rays luncheon sponsored by the St. Petersburg and Clearwater chambers of commerce.
Senior Vice President Mark Fernandez described the team’s community work, including $2 million in donations to various children’s programs. Manager Joe Maddon reassured an enthusiastic audience that the Rays would win 90 games this year and “back on top of the American League East.’’...
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Saga in Cleveland gives hope to families of missing Tampa Bay kids
05/07/13 Human InterestFor a few Tampa Bay families, the news out of Ohio was personal.
Three young Cleveland women had escaped a decade of captivity, a saga that offered a sliver of hope for families whose children have disappeared.
Dade City resident Carole Bernhardt, 73, says she prays for her grandson Zachary every day. He disappeared nearly 13 years ago from a Clearwater apartment at age 8, when his mother went for a brief walk. Police never found a body and never developed clear suspects....
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Spring training uncertainty complicates competition for Pinellas bed tax money
04/28/13 Local GovernmentCLEARWATER — County officials juggling the Pinellas bed tax could soon face another request for dollars, this time to keep at least two Major League Baseball teams in the county for spring training.
The Toronto Blue Jays' lease to play in Dunedin expires in 2017 and they have indicated unhappiness that their stadium is nearly 4 miles from their training complex.
These concerns turned serious last week when the Florida Legislature tentatively slotted $50 million for spring training facilities that would be shared by two teams. It was widely perceived as a way to help Palm Beach Gardens build a complex for the Blue Jays and Houston Astros....
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Clearwater Blue Jays?
04/26/13 BlogDUNEDIN -- The Toronto Blue Jays have indicated unhappiness with their spring training facility in Dunedin. Among other things, the city’s aging stadium is almost four miles from the team’s training complex and, these days, Major League teams like to cluster all their spring train facilities in one location....
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Medical Marijuana Redux
04/23/13 BlogThe people spearheading a drive to get medical marijuana on the November, 2014 ballot have decided to start over from scratch with a new citizen initiative petition.
An existing petition, circulating since 2009, had generated about 31,000 signatures, far short of the 683,149 needed for a constitutional referendum.
Jon Mills, former dean of the University of Florida law school, is redrafting the petition language to bolster it against any Florida Supreme Court challenge, announced Ben Pollara, campaign manager for United We Care....
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Young fans help Rays grow their base, team owner says
04/23/13 Local GovernmentTAMPA — Echoing an upbeat tone he set on opening day, Rays owner Stuart Sternberg told Tampa business leaders the team is growing its fan base — from the bottom up.
Since opening day, the team has offered discount packages to about 25,000 school children and Little Leaguers, which has helped boost early season attendance.
Developing fans "doesn't happen overnight'' and the team is "preaching patience,'' Sternberg told about 270 people at the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce's annual Rays appreciation luncheon at the Downtown Hilton....
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More 2014: Jessica Ehrlich ready to take on Rep. C.W. Bill Young again
04/18/13 BlogAttorney Jessica Ehrlich, who failed to unseat veteran Republican U.S. Rep. C.W. Bill Young in last year's general election, announced Thursday that she will try again in 2014.
Ehrlich, a 39-year-old Democrat, said Young has lost touch with Pinellas County, accusing him of not helping education, job creation, Medicare and Social Security.
"It's infuriating to watch what is going on in the House of Representatives,'' she said, echoing themes from her last election bid. "Congress is still not listening, not compromising, not offering solutions.''...
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Attorney Jessica Ehrlich to challenge Rep. C.W. Bill Young again
04/18/13PoliticsST. PETERSBURG — Attorney Jessica Ehrlich, who failed to unseat veteran Republican U.S. Rep. C.W. Bill Young in last year's general election, announced Thursday that she will try again in 2014.
Ehrlich, a 39-year-old Democrat, said Young has lost touch with Pinellas County, accusing him of not helping education, job creation, Medicare and Social Security.
"It's infuriating to watch what is going on in the House of Representatives,'' she said, echoing themes from her last election bid. "Congress is still not listening, not compromising, not offering solutions.''...
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Medical marijuana campaign coffers are growing fast
04/12/13ElectionsPersonal injury mogul John Morgan, who announced last month that he would lead Florida's medical marijuana initiative, also pumped $100,000 into the cause, according to campaign finance records filed with the state this week.
The donation went to a political committee, now headed by Morgan, that wants to get a constitutional amendment on the November 2014 ballot that would legalize pot use for medical purposes....
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Everyone has a stadium dream
04/11/13 BlogST. PETERSBURG --
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Less smoke, more firepower for pro-medical marijuana group
04/04/13 BlogPeople United For Medical Marijuana, the political committee hoping to get a constitutional amendment on the Nov. 2014 ballot, has rebranded.
The group's Web and social media handles now go by UnitedForCare.
The change is designed to "more accurately reflect what we are trying to accomplish,'' said campaign manager Ben Pollara. "To allow very ill individuals access to medical marijuana that can have a positive impact on their quality of life, not an effort to legalize marijuana.''...
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Some Tampa Bay Rays fans like the stadium just the way it is
04/02/13 The HeaterST. PETERSBURG
Whatever attendance problems the Tampa Bay Rays have encountered, whatever slings and arrows Tropicana Field has suffered, not much complaining comes from Section 301.
Perched behind home plate in the upper deck, the section filled up Monday with season ticket holders renewing connections to seat mates they last saw in September. Handshakes and high-fives greeted new arrivals....
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Tampa Bay Rays owner has upbeat air about stadium issues
04/02/13 The HeaterST. PETERSBURG — A relaxed, smiling Stuart Sternberg hinted at more upbeat relations with the city of St. Petersburg Tuesday, shortly before the Tampa Bay Rays' home opener at Tropicana Field.
Sternberg told a group of reporters that the team's goal has been to open some dialogue about stadium issues, and "we are being successful at that."
Perhaps as illustration, the Rays principal owner spent about 15 minutes talking with Mayor Bill Foster near the team's dugout after he spoke to reporters. The two last formally met in February to talk about the Rays' desire to look at new stadium options throughout the Tampa Bay area....
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Friends honor man who was ready to open his own motorcycle shop
04/01/13AccidentsPINELLAS PARK — The motorcycles poured single file into the quiet cul-de-sac Monday night — 20, then 40, then 60, then more until no space remained. They throttled down to a low murmur and waited for the 4-year-old boy standing on a red pickup to give the signal.
It was a difficult moment for Aeiden Mullins. His father had died two days earlier. A fraternity of motorcycle lovers had come to pay their respects with a communal revving of engines....
