Wesley Chapel, Florida -- For more than 10 years, the Richard Jacobs Group of Ohio and the Tampa-based Sierra Properties have been trying to open a 1.3 million square foot shopping center off I-75 and State Road 56 in Pasco County. But legal battles have kept the Cypress Creek Town Center from...more ever becoming reality.

Now it appears the current developers may be getting ready to sell, at least that's the impression county leaders have been left with.

"Right now pursuant to a meeting we recently had, they want to make some amendments to their approvals because they do anticipate some vendor coming in," Pasco County Zoning and Code Compliance Administrator Debra Zampetti told 10 News.

Signs seem to be pointing to Indianapolis-based Simon Property Group taking over the property.

Simon, the nation's largest operator of outlet malls, owns the Ellenton Premium Outlets as well as others in the state.

It's been reported Simon has already begun

SARASOTA, Florida - In response to a 10 News Investigators report and mounting public criticism over the failure to deliver on a perceived promise of a youth baseball complex, Cal Ripken Jr.'s baseball group is pointing the finger back at activists in Southwest Florida.

Three years...more ago, Sarasota landed Orioles spring training with a $31.2 million upgrades package and in exchange was promised benefits that included a Cal Ripken Jr. Youth Baseball Academy.  Similar complexes in Aberdeen, Md. and Myrtle Beach, S.C. draw thousands of travelers a year.

But the Orioles, who put out a press release in 2009 touting the Ripken academy, never wrote a guarantee into their contract with Sarasota County. Ripken is now in talks with neighboring Charlotte Co. to possibly build his youth academy in Port Charlotte.

While criticism so far has been targeted at commissioners and the Orioles, a spokesman for the Ripken Group issued a press release Wednesday that said the

SARASOTA, Florida -- "Charlie one, Charlie one, Bravo one come in!" barks a resident of Isles of Palmer Ranch into a hand-held radio.

This Sarasota County neighborhood is responding to an emergency. Ambulances and fire trucks roll down the streets.

A tornado has touched down...more and people are injured.

"One, two, three," counts a paramedic, while lifting a woman who has a metal spike in her forehead.

"Oh, I don't want to do this," Tova Fisch moans.

Before you get too worried about Fisch, this is just a drill. But hundreds of people involved, including law enforcement, medical experts, and community volunteers are taking it seriously. 

"This community is trying to stay prepared, so we can survive that kind of very serious weather condition," says Paul Hersey, a member of the Community Emergency Response Team or CERT. 

While simulated tornado action takes place at several spots in the county, at the Emergency Operations

TAMPA, Florida -- When Mary Lee's House opened four years ago, the toys made children feel welcome.

But stuffed animals, soft colors, and the life-size tree hanging over the lobby aren't just decorations. They're the tools to help children feel at ease as they prepare to tell their...more stories of severe trauma, abuse, or neglect.

Most of them are under the age of five.

"Domestic violence, rape, sexual assault, a lot of the things people don't like to think about that occur in our community," says Dr. Leslie Kille, who works in trauma recovery at the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay inside Mary Lee's House.

Mary Lee's House on Armenia Avenue is where children go after they've been abused or neglected and referred either by the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office or by Florida's Abuse Hotline. Here, they can receive medical exams, interviews from investigators, and counseling through art.

"The place was built with them in mind," says Trish

BARTOW, Florida -- "We're being singled out."

USF PolyTechnic's interim regional chancellor, David Touchton, and students are turning to the Polk County Board of Commissioners for support. Touchton says, "Recent legislation would leave us dead in the water. We would not be able to...more recruit faculty if we do not know if we will exist."

"If this bill is signed, it will create educational refugees displaced due to some political head butting," says Damon Dennis, 21, student body president at USF Poly.

PolyTechnic students say their education is in limbo. "They keep telling us it's going to be OK. We don't feel it will be OK," says Cecilia Rodriguez, 21, student.

Touchton warns commissioners $103 million in cuts would cripple the university and Polytech's immediate independence as the 12th university would come at a steep price.

"That would trickle down the I-4 corridor with a negative $700 million economic impact," he says.

He

The Tampa Bay Rays have announced their promotional giveaways for the 2012 season, and there will be quite a lot of collectibles for fans.

The season opening series will have two giveaways: a Rays schedule magnet for all fans at the Friday, April 6 game, and a Raymond Cowbell for the...more first 10,000 kids 14 and under at the Sunday, April 8 game.

Every Sunday home game will be a "Family Fun Day," with giveaways to the first 10,000 kids at each of these games.  Bobbleheads, always a staple for sports memorabilia, will be back this year, with seven given away throughout the season:

Kyle Farnsworth (May 20 vs. Atlanta)
Desmond Jennings (June 3 vs. Baltimore)
Joe Maddon (June 15 vs. Miami)
James Shields (July 1 vs. Detroit)
Matt Moore (July 22 vs. Seattle)
DJ Kitty (August 5 vs. Baltimore)
TBA (September 23 vs. Toronto)

And perhaps the biggest talker of all (at least it is here in the

Sarasota, Fla. -- The students and staff of Phoenix Academy will celebrate Black History Month with a presentation at 6:30 p.m., Friday, Feb. 24, in the Sarasota High School auditorium.
The Greatness Beyond Measure Choir and other community members will join the Phoenix Academy family in...more highlighting the contributions of African-Americans through song and the spoken word.
"We are delighted to offer everyone an opportunity to be inspired and motivated by the achievements of African-Americans," said Phoenix Academy Program Director Harriet Moore. "These celebrations strengthen the bond between school, home and community, while giving students a chance to showcase an important part of the history that has made our country strong."
About Phoenix Academy
Phoenix Academy is a Sarasota County public school that helps refocus students in grades eighth through 10 who have struggled academically in traditional school settings. The school is located just east of Sarasota

DUNEDIN, Florida -- The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office is investigating what looks like an accidental stabbing at the Mardi Gras celebration in Dunedin on Tuesday.

Photo Gallery: Dunedin Mardi Gras 2012

A 56-year-old man dressed as a pirate was posing for pictures with a...more group of teens he did not know, according to the PCSO. Deputies say the man had a knife in a scabbard as part of his costume and one of the teens grabbed the knife and posed with it for the photo, pointing the knife at the pirate.

Deputies say someone then noticed the man had blood on his shirt and called for help.

Dunedin Fire Rescue transported the victim to Bayfront Medical Center for treatment of non life-threatening injuries.

Deputies would like to speak to the teen involved and are asking him to contact Deputy Chris Mantzanas at 727.582.6200. He is described as a white male, about six feet tall, wearing a white t-shirt and flashing pink glasses.

You

Dunedin, Fla. -- The City of Dunedin held their 21st Annual Mardi Gras Parade and Festival on Feb. 21 featuring over 50 floats packed full of people donned as pirates covered in beads.
City officials decided against the incorporating any food trucks, like in some recent events, and instead...more stuck solely with local vendors. And the food looked amazing, from freshly popped kettle corn and hot-off-the-grill Greek cuisine to wood fire pizza cooked right there in parking lot across from Casa Tina's, there was something for everybody. 
The family-friendly affair almost went off without a hitch until someone stabbed a pirate in the neck with his own sword. But don't worry, he was taken to Bayfront Medical Center with non-life threatening injuries. 
So here they are, a roundup of pics from a spectator's perspective of the 2012 Dunedin Mardi Gras.
For more photos, check out the City of Dunedin's Facebook page.

Lakeland, Florida -- Polk deputies say nothing suspicious was found after a bomb threat was called in at the USF PolyTech/Polk State College campus in Lakeland on Wednesday.

The schools -- which share the same campus -- were evacuated for nearly two hours after the threat was called...more in.  Classes have since resumed.

Polk deputies say they received a bomb threat on campus several weeks ago, but nothing was found that time, either. Even though the threats are usually fake, officials must take the precautions needed and search the area every time.

Polk deputies say a person who calls in a hoax bomb threat can be charged with a second degree felony.

The Museum of Science and Industry -- MOSI -- in Tampa is a perfect place for a weekend trip with the kids. But, get this, technically the museum isn't a "museum" at all!

Why do they call it MOSI?

Rain, planes, brains, electricity explained, even fake hurricanes! There's so...more much to see and learn at Tampa's Museum of Science and Industry -- MOSI.

Or, is as it used to be pronounced, Mossy.

"In the early days, the initials were used M-O-S-I. But it was pronounced 'mossy' -- like the green moss that grows on trees," said MOSI President Wit Ostrenko.

"So, finally, as we got the facility open, we started expanding it, we went to 'mosey' -- like moseying along."

For more than two decades, Ostrenko has run MOSI, showing off the practical side of science.

But the story of this amazing place goes back much further -- 50 years.

In the 1960's Hillsborough County created a youth museum. That got the name Museum of

Tampa, Fla. -- Take your baby or toddler to Jan Platt Regional Library in South Tampa to learn how yoga can help them become more flexible, take deep breathes and learn to relax.
The new children's yoga class is offered on Friday mornings from 11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.
Click here for directions and to see more FREE events offered.

TALLAHASSEE, Florida (AP) - Monthly rates will go up $4.93 a month next year for a typical Progress Energy Florida customer due to a settlement that has received state approval.

The Public Service Commission on Wednesday endorsed the deal Florida's second-largest electric utility...more reached with consumer advocates last month.

It includes a $288 million refund of costs resulting from the shutdown of a nuclear plant at Crystal River, but base rates go up $150 million.

That's a net increase of $4.93 a month for a customer using 1,000 kilowatt hours, which is about average, for a total of $128.12.

The nuclear plant will be temporarily removed from the base rate. The pass-on of costs associated with a proposed nuclear plant in Levy County also will be limited.

The company serves central and north Florida.