Advertisement
Natalie Weber - Metro Reporter
Natalie Weber

Metro Reporter

I cover a little bit of everything business related for the Tampa Bay area. I just graduated from the University of Notre Dame with a major in English and minors in journalism and computing. My hometown of Grand Junction, Colo., is situated in a valley known for its peaches and hiking trails. The area also is famous for an annual festival celebrating a chicken that survived for 18 months without a head. When I’m not puzzling over the perfect lede for my story, you can find me experimenting with a new recipe or with my nose in a book.

  1. Midtown project still on schedule, despite pandemic
    2 hours ago• Health
    An aerial view of the construction Midtown Tampa July 30. The building on the left is an office space while the building on the right will house a Whole Foods. Both are visible from N Dale Mabry Highway. [LUIS SANTANA | Times]
  2. Amazon to open another ‘fulfillment center’ in Tampa Bay area
    Aug. 5• Business
    Packages on a conveyor belt await loading into trucks at the Ruskin Amazon facility. Amazon opened the doors to its 1.1-million-square-foot fulfillment center in Ruskin Wednesday to celebrate the warehouse's grand opening more than a year and a half after its launch. [BORCHUCK, JAMES | Tampa Bay Times]
  3. Florida’s back-to-school sales tax holiday starts Friday. Here’s what‘s covered.
    Aug. 4• Education
    Aliyah Martinez, 6, and brothers, Mikah-Derek White, 4, (center) and Markus-Derek White, 2, pose with masks fitted for their smaller faces, and available for back-to-school shopping at Queen's Fabric in Tampa. [MARTHA ASENCIO RHINE | Times]
  5. Chef with Food Network experience opens Tampa bakery
    Aug. 4• Business
    Chef Brenda Villacorta poses for a portrait at SucréŽ Table, a bakery she recently opened in Tampa, on July 23. [IVY CEBALLO | Times]
  6. Lutz home from ‘Edward Scissorhands’ hits the market
    Aug. 3• Business
    The Lutz home featured in Tim Burton's 1990 film, 'Edward Scissorhands,' is on the market for $224,000. [Courtesy of Stacie Savoy] [Courtesy of Stacie Savoy]
  7. Chef con experiencia en Food Network abre panadería en Tampa
    Aug. 3• CENTRO
    La Chef peruana Brenda Villacorta ordenando croissants y pastelería en Sucré Table, un negocio que abrió recientemente en Tampa. [IVY CEBALLO | Times]
  8. Delivery service goPuff opens another Tampa delivery warehouse
    Jul. 31• Health
    Snack-focused delivery app GoPuff launched in Tampa in February. It serves the area surrounding the University of South Florida. [GoPuff]
  9. Uber Eats pilots online ordering service for restaurants
    Jul. 31• Business
    Uber Eats driver Cory Herndon, 34, uses his cell phone after picking up an order in St. Petersburg in October. [CHRIS URSO | Times]
  10. St. Petersburg Banyan tree removal draws protest
    Jul. 30• St. Petersburg
    A protester, who asked not to be identified, burns sage while holding the branch of a Banyan tree that was cut off on Wednesday. A tree removal crew is taking down the Banyan, which St. Petersburg officials say cannot be saved. But more than a dozen neighbors and members of the Florida Indigenous Rights and Environmental Equality group protested its removal. [JONAH HINEBAUGH | Times]
  11. Those planes you may suddenly be hearing? Here’s an explanation.
    Jul. 28• Business
    Flights taking off or landing at St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport are using the airport's secondary runway That's the one shown here in roughly the 2 o'clock position. The change will take place as a contractor works on a nearly year-long job to repave the airport's main north-south runway. [Visit St. Pete/Clearwater] [Visit St. Pete/Clearwater]
  12. Seminole Gaming updates safety guidelines at Tampa Hard Rock and other casinos
    Jul. 27• Health
    Members of the Clean Team move through the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tampa reopened to the public May 21. [LUIS SANTANA | Times]
  13. Retailers say they’re stocked for hurricane season, despite pandemic shortfalls
    Jul. 20• Hurricane
    Angela Carren, digital marketing and promotions manager, left, and Sean Balsley, general manager with Nature's Food Patch Market and Cafe,1225 Cleveland St, in Clearwater discuss stock in the store's pasta, canned soups and condensed milk aisle on Tuesday. The store is working to keep stock of items that are in demand and in short supply in preparation for the possibility of hurricane panic buying in the midst of the pandemic -- as they deal with supply chain issues as well as social distancing challenges. [DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD | Tampa Bay Times]
  14. Ritzy Tampa condos would replace more affordable apartments near Bayshore
    Jul. 18• Business
    A welcome sign is pictured outside Bay Oaks Apartments in Tampa on Tuesday. The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Tampa, a new development project proposed by the Related Group, is planned to replace the complex. [IVY CEBALLO | Times]
  15. Steinbrenner home in South Tampa drops sale price by about $1.3 million
    Jul. 17• Business
    The Steinbrenner home in South Tampa recently decreased its sale price by about $1.3 million. [Courtesy of Laura Lopez]
  16. Small businesses hard hit by pandemic look for boost during annual Sunrise Sale
    Jul. 16• Health
    Over 40 downtown St. Petersburg merchants participated in the 47th annual Sunrise Sale Thursday morning in St. Petersburg. The annual event is sponsored by the Downtown Business Association St. Petersburg. Shoppers were encouraged to wear their pajamas and sleepwear, but this year shoppers showed off their masks due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Missy Hardy and her daughter Molly, 16, check out items for sale at Coastal Soul, St. Petersburg. Both are from Tampa. [SCOTT KEELER | Times]
  17. Related Group scores deal with Ritz-Carlton on Bayshore residential development
    Jul. 8• Business
    The Related Group proposes to build two condominium towers with 168 luxury condos on Bayshore Boulevard south of W Bay-to-Bay Boulevard in Tampa that it says will be run by the Ritz-Carlton brand. In this rendering, the see-through figures represent the planned Aquatica condo tower to the north and the Stovall condos to the south. [Rendering courtesy the Related Group] [The Related Group]
  18. ‘Brain-eating amoeba’ case reported in Hillsborough County
    Jul. 3• Health
    Check tampabay.com for the latest breaking news and updates. [Tampa Bay Times]
  19. Tampa residents find 9-foot alligator on doorstep
    Jul. 3• Tampa
    The alligator was missing two limbs, likely due to a fight with another alligator, Croc Encounters said. [Courtesy of Croc Encounters]
  20. University of Tampa alum launches dental care product
    Jul. 3• Business
    [Courtesy of Brushee] [Brushee]
  21. In midst of national reckoning on race, the American flag embodies cultural divide
    Jul. 3• News
    Jabaar Edmond, during a protest in front of St. Petersburg City Hall June 5. [JOHN PENDYGRAFT | Times]
  22. Tampa International Airport expects increased traffic during July
    Jul. 1• Business
    Empty passenger boarding bridges are pictured with a Delta airplane in the background at Tampa International Airport on May 7, 2020. [DIRK SHADD | Times]
  23. St. Pete protesters talk the talk, not just walk the walk
    Jun. 26• News
    A group of about two dozen protesters met Thursday outside St. Petersburg City Hall to talk about the issues they've spent a month marching to raise attention to and what changes they would like to see locally. [DIRK SHADD | Times]
  24. City of St. Petersburg expands eligibility for business assistance program
    Jun. 25• Business
    St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman's administration announced the creation of the Fighting Chance Fund in April. [SCOTT KEELER | Times]