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THE SKINNY

• The Great Southshore Getaway

• Flood Plans

• Monday Money Minute

Featured Story

The Countdown is On!

Your final chance to register, rack up points, and win The Great Southshore Getaway is almost gone

If you’ve been sleeping under a rock that’s under another rock on a completely different planet, then you might not have heard about The Great Southshore Getaway. 🚢😂 So consider this your FINAL CALL.

At midnight on the 25th, registration closes, and your chance to win a $1,000 Royal Caribbean gift card on us officially sails away. That means this is your last chance to register, rack up those entries, and give yourself as many chances to win as possible. Check out our Facebook post for all the details, then get yourself registered.

Don’t dilly-dally. This cruise is shoving off soon. 🚢🌴 And somebody in Southshore is going on vacation. Might as well be you.

Special thanks to all of our brand partners that make giveaways like this possible: Max Cool Air Conditioning, DVD Syn Turf, McBreen & Nowak, Most Insurance, Kuma Plumbing & Drain

You Can’t Stop the Water

Florida’s push toward living shorelines and flood-resistant development could offer a new way for Southshore to prepare for rising water and future storms

If you live in Southshore, you probably don’t need anyone to explain what a few extra feet of water can do. Storm surge, flooding and shoreline erosion have become very real concerns for coastal communities across Florida. Now, some of the solutions being tested around the state are getting attention as potential models for coastal communities across the country. And the basic idea is pretty simple: Instead of trying to keep every drop of water out, start designing communities that can handle it when the water comes.

That includes elevated buildings, flood-resistant materials, parks designed to temporarily hold stormwater, and a growing push toward “living shorelines.” Unlike traditional concrete seawalls, living shorelines use combinations of native plants, oyster reefs, rocks and other natural materials to absorb wave energy and slow erosion. Florida is already investing in these projects, and researchers have mapped areas around Tampa Bay where they could work. That last part should sound particularly relevant around here.

Communities like Apollo Beach, Ruskin and Gibsonton sit right along Tampa Bay, where the conversation about flooding isn’t theoretical. We’ve seen what hurricanes, storm surge and even heavy rainfall can do when the water has nowhere to go. Hillsborough County planners have also encouraged living shorelines as an alternative to traditional seawalls. The county’s Environmental Protection Commission even offers a 50% reduction in certain permitting fees when homeowners choose a living shoreline instead of a seawall.

None of this means seawalls are disappearing tomorrow. Some properties simply aren’t suited for a completely natural shoreline, and higher-energy areas may still require harder infrastructure. The bigger change is recognizing that concrete isn’t always the only answer. Florida has spent decades learning the hard way that you can’t completely engineer your way out of living next to the water.

For Southshore, the question probably isn’t whether we’ll have to adapt. It’s how much adapting we can do before the next big storm makes the decision for us.

Things to do

What’s Washing Up on The Shore This Week

Monday Money Minute

$1.26 Trillion on the Plastic

Americans now owe $1.26 trillion on credit cards. Yes, trillion. With a T. According to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, credit card balances climbed another $21 billion during the second quarter, reaching $1.26 trillion.

Carrying a balance has also become incredibly expensive. The Federal Reserve says credit card accounts actually being charged interest averaged 22.15% in the second quarter. So let’s put that into normal-person money.

If you have $10,000 sitting on a card at roughly 22% interest, that could mean more than $2,000 a year in interest if the balance remained around that level. And this is where credit cards get sneaky. A $200 dinner doesn’t necessarily cost $200 if you’re carrying that balance for months. Neither does the vacation, the new TV, or that emergency purchase you swore you’d pay off next month.

If you’re carrying credit card debt, paying it down may be one of the best guaranteed returns available to you right now. Start with the highest-interest card, pay more than the minimum whenever possible, and stop adding new charges while you’re digging out. Because $1.26 trillion is America’s problem. That 22% sitting in your wallet is yours.

Southshore Spotlight

Forgotten Angels

There’s turning 18, and then there’s turning 18 and suddenly being expected to figure out adulthood largely on your own. Forgotten Angels Florida in Valrico works with young adults aging out of foster care, along with homeless and at-risk youth, providing safe housing, mentorship and the practical skills they need to become independent.

That means helping them finish school, find jobs, open bank accounts, build credit and even providing opportunities to live in their own tiny homes. It’s a pretty incredible organization doing important work right here in our backyard. If you’ve never heard of Forgotten Angels, they’re worth getting to know and, if you can, supporting. ❤️

Nominate your local hero by emailing us at [email protected]

We Know a Guy…or Girl

Southshore Services

Need a painter? A plumber? Someone brave enough to tackle that lightbulb hanging 30 feet above your living room? We've got you. And the best part? They're all right here in our community. Click the link above to find your next Southshore professional because we know a guy...or gal. And now you do too.

Interested in joining the list? Shoot us an email to [email protected]

“Keep it Local!”

Foodies Only

Your Restaurant

New menu items, promos, specials, events- feature them here. This is the place to tell 40,000 readers in Southshore what you've got. Only 20 spots for the year. Claim yours today.

If you’ve got a restaurant, food truck, or even a lemonade stand, it could be featured here. Email us at [email protected]

Local Sports

Our area high schools boast state champions and multiple division titleists. Come out and show your support for these teams and for our community.

Got news, events, or press releases that the Southshore needs to know about? Submit them here. (We’ll do our best to add press releases in our regular rotation.) If you’re looking to run an actual ad, go here instead.

Until next time,

Keep It Local.