HSBC Finance Corp., a unit of banking giant HSBC Holdings plc, will shut six Suncoast lending offices, including one in West Pasco, as it pulls out of the U.S. consumer lending business. ...more

March 6, 2009

New York City's Hell's Kitchen never sleeps. John Masterson talked about walking around that gritty-turned-gentrified community on the west side of Manhattan in the wee hours of the morning and seeing dancers go through their routines and hearing piano players pound out music for them. "It's alive," he said. ...more

March 4, 2009

Amid hoopla and frustration over the switch to digital television, one thing is for sure. Some companies are making out quite well. ...more

February 27, 2009

These are lean times for government in Florida. Government revenue continues to plunge as the recession and real estate bust drag on with no end in sight. So there is a premium these days on getting value for our public dollars. With that in mind, it was interesting to see a list of the salaries of ranking public officials on the Suncoast The Tampa Tribune has compiled. ...more

February 25, 2009

Duane Cole lost his home in a massive explosion on Feb. 11, but with the help of relatives and friends, he knows he can rebuild it. ...more

February 24, 2009

Though the final quarter of 2008 brought the sound of fewer hammers, a low not heard of in at least 23 years, they haven't fallen silent. ...more

February 20, 2009

If you see a cute, white Nissan hatchback driving around the Suncoast with a pole sticking out the sunroof, smile and wave, because it's taking your picture. ...more

February 20, 2009

Over a breakfast of Post Honey Bunches of Oats I was noticing on the box that they were promoting the cereal's Web site, onespoonful.com. Somehow, since I was enjoying the cereal, I wanted to immediately visit the site. Well, I might have had the immediate desire but I had to finish my cereal first. ...more

February 14, 2009

Is the glass half empty? Is the glass half full? Is the glass about to fall on our big toe? We ask these questions in the wake of a report from the Florida Association of Realtors that housing sales along the Suncoast rose 16 percent in December, compared to a 3 percent decrease in November. Times being what they are, some people are choosing to see a gloomy lining to this silver cloud of housing news. ...more

January 28, 2009

Hours after the teenager was taken into custody on charges he tried to kill an undercover police officer, the family of James A. Seay came to his defense this morning, saying the allegations were out of character for him. ...more

January 27, 2009