The Tampa Tribune from Tampa, Florida • 36

FRIDAY 2.26.2010 THE TAMPA TRIBUNE TBO.COM MARKET SNAPSHOT 1003 Jl NYSE 7,013.55 GOLD $1107.80 I $0.17 CRUDE OIL $78.17 Proposal includes retail, hotel complex and possibly a ballpark. on the roughly 350-acre fairgrounds at U.S. 301 and Interstate 4, said Sandy MacKinnon, the Fair Authority's chairman. Even after construction, the massive hotel and retail project would still leave about 125 acres for the annual fair. A Major League Baseball stadium also is a possibility.

In a Fair Authority e-mail in September, MacKinnon sounds bullish on the See STADIUM SITE, Page 10 Last week, former Tampa Mayor Dick Greco, who is a real estate consultant, said he was representing a group that wants to build a commercial project on Florida State Fair Authority property. However, he declined to name the developers behind the proposals. This week, e-mail from the Fair Authority obtained by the Tribune list players in the proposal. They include Republic Land Development of Fairfax, Naples-based engineering and de sign firm WilsonMiller and a Tampa-based real estate group that calls itself the Land Sharks. It is affiliated with former Pinellas County Commission Chairman Ronnie Duncan.

David Mechanik, a local land-use lawyer working on the project, confirmed that Republic Land would essentially be the project's developer. Plans are in their infancy and would need to be approved by the Fair Authority. Now, they include building hotels, shops and restaurants By MICHAEL SASSO msassotampatrib.com TAMPA A large Washington-area developer and some local political heavyweights are behind a proposal to put a huge hotel, retail and possibly baseball stadium project at the Florida State Fairgrounds, documents show. IFtoras) tomato iTunes' playlist tops 10 billion The Black Eyed Peas own the No. 1 and 3 positions in the Top 20 list.

A string of freezes hammered farmers, and there's uncertainty as cold lingers. By CURTIS ROSS crosstampatrib.com It's 10 billion tunes and counting for iTunes, according to Apple. The application that made digital downloading safe for nontechies recently passed that milestone, with The Black Eyed Peas holding down the No 1 and No. 3 spots with "I Gotta Feeling" and "Boom Boom Pow," respectively. Both songs are from last year's "The E.N.D." album.

In fact, although iTunes was introduced in 2001, only one song in its Top 20 all-time downloads was released before 2007. That song, "Hey There Delilah," by Plain White T's, originally appeared on the band's 2005 album "All That We Needed" but wasn't released as a single until 2007. No performer has three songs in the Top 20, but four scored two. Besides The Black Eyed Peas, they include Lady Gaga, Florida rapper Flo Rida and Katy Perry. The top 20 iTune downloads are: "I Gotta Feeling," Black Eye Peas "Poker Face," Lady GaGa "Boom Boom Pow," Black Eyed Peas "I'm Yours," Jason Mraz "VivalaVida'Coldplay "Just Dance," Lady GaGa "Low," Flo Rida (featuring T-Pain) "Love Story," Taylor Swift "Bleeding Love," Leona Lewis "Disturbia," Rihanna "So What," Pink "I Kissed a Girl," Katy Perry "Single Ladies," Beyonce' "Hot Cold," Katy Perry "Stronger," Kanye West "Live Your Life," T.I.

"Hey There Delilah," Plain White T's "Right Round," Flo Rida "Party in the U.SA," Miley Cyrus Associated Press file photos Farmworkers get tomatoes out of a field in Homestead before freezes hit in January. The cold weather has punished growers. By KEITH MORELLI kmorellitampatrib.com Ureezing weather has taken a heavy toll on I (Florida growers' tomato plants. I Even before the freezes Wednesday night, some growers had lost 70 percent of their plants. The upshot is not just that tomatoes are more expensive in some restaurants and markets, they aren't available.

Reggie Brown, executive vice president of the Florida Tomato Growers Exchange in Maitland, said Florida normally provides enough tomatoes at this time of year to feed North America. "Crippling" is the word Brown uses to describe the losses from January through February. He calls it the biggest supply disruption of the Florida tomato crop in 20 years. "We've got growers who could have had as much as $10,000 an acre in a crop that was destroyed by the freeze," Brown said. "Those kinds of losses are hard to recover from.

The tomato plants planted after January's freezes are growing slowly because of cool weather. Farmers hope that See TOMATO SHORTAGE, Page 10 Sesame Street safari to let kids in free for '10 Offer is for children 5 and under and there are no blackout dates. adventures that celebrate Africa. The Sesame Street characters will all be dressed in African-themed costumes. One highlight is a new junior roller coaster, Air Grover, for parents and children.

Kids will also be able to view Sesame Street Presents: "Lights, Camera, Imagination!" in the park's 4-D theater. Parents can also pay extra on select days for the Dine with Elmo experience. 3 1. 'WIm i ii Staff photo by JAY CONNER Busch Gardens' Sesame Street Safari of Fun is expected to open March 27. It will be filled with children's rides, a water play area, shows and adventures that celebrate Africa.

Reporter Shannon Behnken can be reached at (813) 259-7804. DILBERT By Scott Adams By SHANNON BEHNKEN sbehnkentampatrib.com TAMPA Busch Gardens is making it a little easier for preschoolers to enjoy its soon-to-open attraction Sesame Street Safari of Fun. Kids 5 and younger are now eligible to get in free to the park for the rest of the year, said Donnie Mills, Busch Gardens' executive vice president and general manager. "The one thing we needed to do better was cater to families and young kids," he said. "This does that, and we wanted to help kids enjoy it for free." (Parents will still have to buy a ticket.) To get the Preschool Pass, register on www.SesameStreetSafariofFun.com and bring a copy of the child's birth certificate to a ticket window at the front gate.

Here's an added bonus: There are no blackout dates. The safari attraction opens March 27 and will have a Sesame Street-themed play area featuring Elmo, Big Bird and their friends. Bulldozers were still at work Thursday, but the attraction is nearing completion. The area will be filled with children's rides, a water play area, shows and BUT I WILL REMEMBER, AND I UILL REfAIND YOU. YOU'RE HOPING I LJONT REttENBER TO REtAIND YOU.

THEN YOU1L SAY IT'S rAY FAULT. WALLY. I1L NEED YOUR LOAD CALCS BY TUESDAY. GOOD LUCK. IA0NDAY IS rAY HIDING DAY.

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