Miami Beach's Flamingo Park and Orlando's downtown/Lake Eola areas scored first and second place honors in the Top 10 ranking, but St. Petersburg and Sarasota weren't far behind. St. Pete earned third place in the rankings that were based on data provided by Walk Score. Downtown St. Petersburg was specifically called out for being among the Sunshine State's most walkable neighborhoods with a Walk Score of 90.9.

St Pete is becoming a hot bed for emerging and established artists of all medium. One of the growing and most visible art forms in St Pete are the murals and street art popping up all over town. The city was recently rated as one of the "Top 10 spots for Street Art" by Huffington Post. One of the best ways to experience this vibrant and thought provoking art form is during the annual SHINE Mural Festival held around the first 10 days of September. The festival celebrates and illuminates the power of art in public spaces to revitalize neighborhoods and to inspire connections. 

Homeowners in this city are forming a solar co-op so that members can use their group buying power to get discounts on solar panels.

Mayor Rick Kriseman says the wastewater dumped in the bay was 99.993-percent bacteria free, according to the city's tests of the water.

While St. Petersburg was the biggest offender in the number of gallons of partially-treated sewage dumped into the Bay, many other municipalities made dumps of their own, some of untreated, raw sewage.

Intellitech, a manufacturer of liquid filling and closure machinery used in the biotech and pharmaceutical industries, has finished its relocation from Maryland to St. Petersburg.

St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman said, "I welcome Intellitech to the Sunshine City from Maryland.  St. Petersburg has strong specialized manufacturing and life sciences clusters that will provide both a base of workforce talent as well as a great customer base for this growing company. St. Petersburg is an innovative, creative and competitive community that offers one of the best lifestyles for families in the country." 

One of my two favorite days as mayor was the day we announced our intent to purchase the home of the Dr. Carter G. Woodson African-American History Museum in order to ensure the museum's operators could continue their important work at that location. The day we raised the museum's flag high above City Hall was another one of my favorite days. History was made. While some time has passed since those celebrations, my commitment to the museum remains as strong as ever.