On Thursdays, beginning this week and continuing through November 19, Achieva Credit Union and the Downtown Development Board will host lunchtime concerts in Station Square Park.
This week’s concert in the park from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the 600 block of Cleveland Street, features the acoustic contemporary sounds of Sal Beloise. In the coming weeks, other musical genres will be featured including Latin, jazz, pop, rock, country and blues.
I had been anticipating Clearwater Fashion Week from the event’s first press release. As soon as I read the words “designer clothes at sample sale prices,” I knew it was going to be a good event, but what it evolved into was beyond my expectations. When I stepped inside Station Square’s first floor retail space, it was like walking into an industrial-chic, converted warehouse boutique in SoHo, New York.
Opening night on Wednesday, Sept 2nd, brought out the “who’s who” in Clearwater, and then some. City Councilman George Cretekos was there, shopping with his wife, and Mayor Hibbard was on the scene early as well. Paul Wilson of Wilson Media & Advertising and the Sunscreen Film Festival hosted the night’s fashion show, and TV star Jason Dohring (Veronica Mars, Moonlight) stopped by to lend his support to friend and fashion show producer Sarah Clouden. Clouden, who has eight years experience producing fashion shows and even her own line of lingerie in Europe, directed the runway shows for the week.
Last night was the first night of Clearwater Fashion week and it was fabulous! I have been excited about this event since I first got the press release, but the opening night was beyond my expectations. What’s not to love about it? Designer clothes for sample sale prices, good food catered by the Belleair Country Club, and a runway fashion show featuring Gioffre, Roberto Cavalli, Whitley Kros and Craig Taylor!
The event was full of “who’s who” in Clearwater, and then some! Actor Jason Dohring stopped by, as well as Paul Wilson and designer Craig Taylor, who was instrumental in making this fantastic event possible. I even had to brush past the mayor to get my hands on my 45% off Rebecca Minkoff handbag! A percentage of the sales benefitted Ruth Eckerd Hall, so really it was a donation…
Cleveland St. District, Clearwater
Clearwater, Florida and Nagano, Japan have been sister cities for half a century, and to honor this achievement on April 25th, the City of Clearwater celebrated the union by holding a Lantern Festival in Station Square Park. The purpose of the festival is to promote cultural harmony and awareness. Nagano has been holding an annual lantern festival at Zenkoji Temple for six years. The festival was originated to honor Nagano hosting the 1998 Winter Olympics.
Japanese Culture and Lantern Festival to Celebrate Sister Cities’ 50th Anniversary
Station Square — Sales projections ahead of schedule
Clearwater FL, April 2007 Cleveland Streetscape is nearing its second block of completion, and with it, new businesses and future residents are giving downtown Clearwater a new look. “We have pre-sold over 70% of our units”, reports Connie Super of Station Square Realty, “we are ahead of our projected sales.” This is a 13-story building with 126 residential condominium units, and 10,000 square feet of ground fl oor retail including a major restaurant space that sits just west of the Post Offi ce. In addition, the project will provide more than 100 public parking spaces within a structured garage.
CRITICAL POWER
Clearwater FL, April 2007 - Believe me: Clearwater is the lifestyle you’ve always dreamed of. It’s a small town of friendliness, aff ordable housing, good schools and growing business opportunities. It’s a true—officially voted—beach lover’s paradise, it’s the new 9-million dollar Cleveland streetscape, the new multi-million dollar beach walk, the new downtown marina with gorgeous water taxi that will take us back and forth from the white sand beaches and all the new shopping and restaurants of downtown. What more can we ask for? Apparently our Mayor Frank Hibbard dared to ask for much more than that and to many that was very politically incorrect. It will probably take a miracle to grant our mayor’s wishes, but given that it is over a decade since there has been a good miracle in Clearwater, (ever since the Blessed Virgin Mary briefl y chose to appear on the dark-tinted window panes of an office building on the side of US19 highway back in 1996. This made Clearwater world famous almost overnight) I think it’s time for another, and I hope I could help.
Hard City Hats Tour Water’s Edge
Clearwater FL, June 2008 - The opening gala that commenced at Water’s Edge on May 23rd marked a brilliant light at the end of the tunnel of the seemingly unending residential construction in Downtown Clearwater. Roughly 200 visitors comprised of potential buyers, realtors and city councilmen were wined and dined at Water’s Edge Sales Center located at 401 Cleveland Street in
Downtown Clearwater. The guests were escorted in small groups over to the massive 26-floor luxury residential condominium building to tour one of the newly completed and elegantly decorated units (furnishings by Robb & Stucky).