K9 Protection Dogs in St. Petersburg, FL

We’re only halfway through 2025 and this year alone, Max McNown has toured New Zealand’s Hobbiton (which we know anyone can do, but nonetheless envy him for) and more recently, shared the stage with Jake Owen at Nashville’s CMA Fest.

The wavy-haired, 23-year-old country singer-songwriter makes his Tampa Bay debut on Friday. Anyone who waited to get tickets to the Jannus show has already gotten their dose of bad luck for Friday the 13th—because the show is sold-out.

He's touring off of his new album Night Dive, dropping July 18. The record feels like a deep dive into your 3 a.m. thoughts, related to questioning why your fiancé has been acting distant lately and rehearsing hard conversations with a friend.

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Photo by Alisha Durosier | The Crow’s Nest

By Alisha Durosier

WTF really means “Welcome to Florida,” according to journalist and author Craig Pittman.

The bestselling Tampa Bay author kicked off the inaugural Florida Studies Book Festival on April 5, with a crowd of Florida literature enthusiasts, local authors and University of South Florida faculty and students at the St. Petersburg campus’s Nelson Poynter Memorial Library.

The all-day festival was hosted by USF’s interdisciplinary Florida Studies Program. Featuring 11 speakers, all of whom were authors ranging from geographers to policy experts, the festival was a celebration of the humanities and the human experience in the multifaceted state of Florida.

The idea for a Florida Studies Book Festival arose a couple of years ago, when former graduate student and festival speaker Debbie Carson suggested the program host a book fair.

“I’m thrilled that we were able to pull this thing off and make it happen, partly because I want to draw attention to the Florida Studies program,” said Florida Studies Program director and USF St. Petersburg geography professor Chris Meindl.

The Florida Studies Program was founded by USF St. Petersburg southern history professor Ray Arsenault and emeritus professor Gary Mormino in 2002. The program officially began in the fall of 2003.

Mormino said in a 2003 university press release that the proximity of USF St. Petersburg and its faculty to local cultural and academic institutions creates a “synergy.”

“There is recognition of a crying need for a place to cultivate the study of Florida,” he said in the press release. “All these things had to come together. If any one of these was missing, the Florida Studies program would not have been possible.”

According to Meindl, the concept of Florida as a living laboratory is what defines the Florida Studies Program. It’s a theme that was emphasized by each festival speaker and is reflected in the program’s diverse course offerings, many of which do not solely center on the state of Florida.

“We’re weird,” Pittman said of Florida. “We produce a lot of weird news. But if that’s all you notice, you’re missing out on a lot of stuff that actually influences the way we live now all over the United States.”

With books on orchid smuggling, saving the Florida Panther and collections of his various essays, stories and columns about the state of Florida, everything about the state is worth exploring for Pittman.

USF St. Petersburg English professor and Duckwall professor of Florida Studies Julie Armstrong sees the state as a literary mecca — a title some won’t necessarily assign to Florida.

“Florida is one of those. And, you know, as a literary scholar, I find that really fascinating. What is it about this state that really has an outsized body of literature prominent about it?” Armstrong said.

She, alongside her husband, USF St. Petersburg English professor Thomas Hallock spoke at the festival about their two-volume anthology on the 500-year history of Florida literature, which they are co-editing with USF St. Petersburg graduate student Benjamin Brothers.

Hallock is primarily working on the first volume, which encompasses literature from the 16th century — where the state of Florida is first mentioned in a poem — to the mid-19th century. Picking up where he leaves off, Armstrong is working on the second volume, a collection of literature from Florida’s declaration of statehood to the present.

Hallock said a major theme in the first volume of the anthology is translation in both a literal and figurative sense.

“The idea of Florida is constantly being translated and retranslated,” he said. “It’s always shifting. And I think in this time of tremendous cultural and social instability, Florida really helps provide insight into that.”

Armstrong also sees the constant shift as a theme in the second volume as well.

“Fluidity and mobility,” Armstrong said. “Moving into and out of and across and through the state, mobility is a huge one.

Armstrong affirms that fluidity as a theme is not just a reference to the fact that Florida is a peninsula.

“Now people try to build homes for lasting value, but prior to the 20, 21st century, we just didn’t have that. It was a much more transient way of living. ​​It’s a much more fluid way of living,” she said.

Through the festival, the program also celebrates the humanities at a time where the discipline is under threat.

The National Endowment for the Humanities, which funds the Florida Humanities Council that funded the festival along with Armstrong and Hallock’s anthology, and helped establish the Florida Studies program, is facing budget and staff cuts at the hands of the federal government.

During this time when support for the humanities is dwindling, the field is often seen as inefficient.

“You can’t build bridges. You can’t do brain surgery. You can’t train dolphins. I get it… But at the end of the day, so many jobs are run or performed by people who do not need technical skills, but they need to be broad thinkers. They need to understand a wide range of things,” Meindl said.​​

Armstrong said that the humanities is all about “complicating” and criticizing, which she emphasizes isn’t definitively negative.

“We’re not going to give you the happy, pretty, tidy picture of American history. We’re going to tell you it’s messy, it’s difficult,” she said. “It means thinking critically and breaking apart and showing how something works, analyzing it. And, you know, people don’t want that.”

Meindl is hoping to make the book festival an annual event but may need to find additional grant funding. It is uncertain whether the Florida Humanities Council will be able to provide the financial support necessary for the program to run the festival.

“I’m honored to be participating,” Hallock said. “Though I hope diversity is a priority in future book fairs.”

HOMELESSNESS

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Residents, business owners and neighborhood association leaders told City Council last Thursday the chronically homeless problem in downtown St. Petersburg has gotten worse and that they fear for their safety.

What You Need To Know

“It’s just aggressive. It’s dangerous. It’s dirty,” said Ronicca Whaley, owner of Shiso Crispy. “The sanitary aspect of it is just awful.”

Last month, Whaley began working to open a fourth location of her restaurant at 225 First Ave. N., on the Jannus Live block. Whaley said during that time, she has witnessed and had many run-ins with the chronically homeless.

“I didn’t realize how aggressively bad the problem was out here,” she said. “All of the other local restaurant owners are telling me how bad it is here, but you truly don’t understand until you’re up in it.”

Police calls in the downtown neighborhood have grown steadily over the last three years, according to city records. In 2023, there were 5,598. Last year, it was 12,011. So far this year, there have been 8,598 but if the trend continues it will be more than 20,000.

The downtown population has also grown substantially over the past 15 years. In 2010, there were about 3,000 condo units. Currently it’s nearly 20,000 units, according to Jason Mathis, CEO of the St. Petersburg Downtown Partnership.

At the council meeting, Karen Carmichael, president of the St. Petersburg Downtown Neighborhood Association, said there are many people downtown with mental and substance abuse issues.

“We see it every day, individuals living on the streets or in temporary hotel hosing, exhibiting behaviors that reflect deep unmet needs,” she said. “Children on school field trips to our museums and parks are exposed to people yelling, using disturbing language or acting in ways that are frightening and unpredictable.”

Council Member Gina Driscoll, who represents downtown in District 6, said she firmly believes it’s a safe place to go.

“It’s very popular and it keeps growing in all of the ways that we love for a vibrant downtown,” she said. “Sometimes that becomes an extra responsibility, too. And I’m confident that we’re doing what we need to do to set up a plan for success.”

Driscoll wants a new Clean and Safe program to be established downtown.

“It’s something that other cities have done with a lot of success,” she said. “It really just puts an extra focus on making sure that we have the public safety support that’s needed and also that we spruce things up.”

On Thursday, the city’s Public Services and Infrastructure Committee plans to discuss the Clean and Safe program. It provides enhanced cleaning services, code enforcement, small business support and safety ambassadors.

Driscoll said the meeting will be the first step in a long process, which will ultimately need council approval for funding. She hopes it can be up and running by the end of the year but said it could take a little longer.

“I just signed a petition for it,” said Whately. “I think that is a great program that we definitely need to enact in our city. Something has to be done.”

St. Petersburg will soon stop adding fluoride to its drinking supply ahead of statewide ban.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — St. Petersburg will soon stop adding fluoride to its public drinking water ahead of a statewide ban, city officials announced Tuesday.

St. Petersburg will stop adding fluoride the week of June 16. The Florida ban on fluoride, which was signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis on May 15, goes into effect on July 1.

While St. Petersburg will stop adding fluoride to the drinking supply, naturally occurring levels of fluoride will remain present in the water. City officials say they'll monitor those levels to make sure they remain safe.

The city still recommends residents use fluoride toothpaste and mouth rinses for dental health.

"Despite these changes, my administration remains dedicated to public health and the benefits of optimal fluoridation," St. Petersburg Mayor Kenneth T. Welch said in a statement. "As we work with community partners to explore ways that helpimpacted residents maintain their dental health, we will continue to provide updates and resources."

The Florida ban, which prohibits local governments from adding fluoride to water systems, was passed over the concerns of dentists and public health advocates. Opponents to fluoride bans argue that adding fluoride to the drinking supply is safe, effective and efficient.

Still, DeSantis argued that residents can still get access to fluoride outside of it being in the drinking supply.

“We have other ways where people can get access to fluoride," DeSantis said at a public event earlier this month. "When you do this in the water supply, you’re taking away a choice of someone who may not want to have overexposure to fluoride.”

Florida was the second state in the U.S. to pass a fluoride ban. Utah passed a similar ban in late March.

Fluoride is a mineral that has been added to drinking water for generations to strengthen teeth and reduce cavities by replacing minerals lost during normal wear and tear, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Excess fluoride intake has been associated with streaking or spots on teeth. And studies have also traced a link between excess fluoride and brain development.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

The Brief

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The U.S. Department of Labor has announced a nationwide pause on Job Corps centers, citing low graduation rates as justification for the decision. The move, linked to cost-cutting efforts under the Trump administration, has sent shockwaves through local campuses — including the Pinellas Job Corps Center in St. Petersburg.

"This means that more young people are now going to be homeless because the Department of Labor does not think that this is worth the investment," said St. Pete City Councilman Corey Givens.

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The backstory:

Roughly 280 students lived on the Pinellas campus, many of whom had aged out of foster care or come from difficult backgrounds. Now, with the program suspended, students are scrambling to figure out their next steps — some facing the possibility of homelessness.

"We don’t know where we’re going to go," said Nina Brown, a student close to completing her Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) certification. "Everything’s just been put on pause."

What they're saying:

The shutdown has also displaced more than 150 instructors and staff members. Debbie Garrett, who taught art at the center for 13 years, described the news as heartbreaking.

READ: Rhythm Roots: Legendary Black musicians left lasting impact from Tampa to St. Pete

"These are young people who’ve come from horrendous situations," she said. "This center gives them a chance to become nurses, pharmacy techs, carpenters. We need them — in Florida, and across America."

Cranstan Cumberbach has taught at the center for 11 years.

"I really believed in the job and in the impact that we were making, the difference we were making in the lives of the students here," he said.

By the numbers:

The Labor Department pointed to a 34% graduation rate as one reason for the pause. However, staff members argue that the figure is outdated and was collected during the COVID-19 pandemic. They claim the center now has an 87% graduation rate.

MORE: St. Petersburg Housing Authority hosts summit to attract more landlords

The other side:

Givens, who is a former Job Corps employee, called the center a "transformation zone."

"This isn’t just a school," he said. "It’s where miracles happen."

Big picture view:

"At a time when we do have a gap in these blue-collar industry jobs, now we want to cut the training programs that are pipelining these young people into the workforce. To me, it's backwards," said Givens.

Many local industries — especially in healthcare and skilled trades — hire directly from Job Corps graduates. With the program on hold, some employers could face staffing shortages during an ongoing labor crunch.

"This comes at a time when we’re already short on workers," Garrett said. "These young people are going to go back to all the counties they are from in Florida without their education. Do you have a job for them? Do you have housing for them?"

READ: St. Pete plans to add more pickleball courts to meet popular demand

What's next:

A rally in support of the Pinellas Job Corps Center is being organized for next week. Students, staff, and local leaders are expected to attend in hopes of reversing the decision.

"This isn’t just about education," said instructor Cranstan Cumberbatch. "It’s about hope, opportunity, and futures being built — all of that is at risk now."

The Department of Labor has given the center until the end of the month to find housing for the most vulnerable students facing homelessness, about 20%.

The Source: The information in this story was gathered by FOX 13's Genevieve Curtis.

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