Ever wonder about the air your child breathes? One national newspaper is urging parents to look more closely outside the schoolhouse door. USA Today spent eight months examining the impact of industrial pollution on the air outside schools nationwide. Using a government model for tracking toxic chemicals, the newspaper ranked 127,800 public, private and parochial schools based on the concentrations of chemicals likely to be in the outside air. ...more

December 12, 2008

Leaders for Westchase are looking into a land purchase that could lead to a park expansion. ...more

December 10, 2008

Tampa Electric Co.'s request to raise base service rates by $228 million a year is far too high, the Florida Public Counsel told state regulators Thursday. In papers filed with the Florida Public Service Commission, the counsel, which represents Florida ratepayers, said TECO's request should be slashed to $38 million. ...more

December 5, 2008

Opponents of a franchise agreement with Tampa Electric Co. tried to force Mayor Pam Iorio's hand, but in the end, they didn't have enough support to make it happen. ...more

December 5, 2008

Plenty of people wish they could prevent their younger self from making a big mistake. ...more

December 4, 2008

A day before the Tampa City Council planned to vote on a 25-year franchise agreement with Tampa Electric, community leaders urged the council to postpone its vote. ...more

December 4, 2008

Today, Tampa City Council members will hold the final vote on the city's franchise agreement with Tampa Electric Co. In the last few months members have gone back and forth about approving it, with at least three hoping to use the negotiations to push the utility toward cleaner environmental policies. ...more

December 4, 2008

A day before the Tampa City Council votes on a 25-year franchise agreement with Tampa Electric, community leaders urged the council to postpone its vote, saying the agreement should be changed to promote the use of renewable power. ...more

December 3, 2008

A series of cold fronts has made for some difficult fishing on Tampa Bay's South Shore flats. Water temperature is now at 65 degrees - the point where snook stop actively feeding, and other species slow down. ...more

December 3, 2008

Mayor Pam Iorio has proposed creating a citizens task force to study "green" policies and work on implementing a citywide energy conservation initiative. ...more

November 27, 2008