In this week's Tampa Bay Business Journal segment, editor Alexis Muellner discusses how St. Pete-Clearwater Airport is growing, the sneak peek inside Hillsborough County's largest home, and the important of the Tampa Bay Rays' trip to Cuba.
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Tampa International Airport is the middle of a $1 billion expansion project. But that is not the only Bay Area airport with construction signs up.
St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport is spending more than $33 million dollars to upgrade its facilities, including removing the runway's asphalt and replacing it with longer-lasting concrete.
Alexis notes one major concern many have about the health of the airport: its dependence of a single carrier.
"There's some talk and criticism about it being too reliant on Allegiant Air which has 95 percent of the flights there," said Muellner. "If for some reason that low-cost carrier were to go, it is likely that airport, given some of the work it is doing, could attract another carrier."
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This week the Business Journal got a sneak peek at Surya Estates, the formal name of Dr. Kiran Patel's mansion being built three blocks from the intersection of North Dale Mabry Highway and Linebaugh Avenue.
Construction began in March 2013 on the 17-acre site. The first phase consists of three connected homes with a combined 32,526-square-feet.
SLIDESHOW: Forty-one photos of the Surya Estates
Two more homes will be built on the property when the second phase breaks ground sometime later this year.
Onicx is the developer and builder overseeing the massive project. It is so huge Alexis says people come to the construction site asking to buy condos.
When the project is complete it will be the largest house in Hillsborough County.
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Major League Baseball announced on Tuesday the Tampa Bay Rays will be visiting Cuba on March 22. The team will play against the Cuban National Team at Estadio Latinoamericano in Havana.
The trip coincides with President Obama's historic visit to Cuba. He will become the first sitting president to travel to the island nation in 88 years. Mr. Obama is planning to attend the Rays game.
The Cuba trip will be the first for a MLB team since the Baltimore Orioles played a game in the communist country in March 1999.
"There's a lot of connections between Tampa Bay and Cuba," said Muellner. "Baseball a deep tradition in Cuba. No matter how you feel about the change and move towards more relations, baseball has a universal appeal. I think it's really going to be great for the Rays to be there."
ESPN and ESPN Deportes will broadcast the Rays game.
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For more information on these stories, click on the video player, go to youtu.be/SjxvXvBebvs or pick up this week's Tampa Bay Business Journal available online and on newsstands.
