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In new ad, Rick Baker takes credit for making St. Pete cool

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

Meet Rick Baker 2.0.

The former mayor has released a new television ad showing a quartet of St. Pete residents gathered around a restaurant table discussing the many attributes which have made the city a great place to live and work.

Beach Drive … the Dali Museum … dog parks … trees planted ‘everywhere’ … each are mentioned by a diverse group of burgers before a server asks, “You know that’s all because of the mayor, right?”

“Kriseman?” asks former St. Petersburg Police Deputy Chief Cedric Gordon.

“Uh, no,” the waitress giggles. “Mayor Rick Baker,” as the server points to a nearby table where a familiar-looking man with a mustache and sunglasses sits.

“You ain’t seen nothin’ yet,” Baker declares as he snaps off his shades.

The ad is being released just hours before Baker engages with Kriseman in the first debate since last month’s primary election, which ended with front-running Baker placing 89 votes behind Kriseman.

After Tuesday night’s debate, both candidates will hold fundraisers later in the week. Kriseman will be in Ybor City Wednesday, while Baker will be at Kozuba and Sons Friday night.

Watch the ad below:

 

Mitch Perry has been a reporter with Extensive Enterprises since November of 2014. Previously, he served as five years as the political editor of the alternative newsweekly Creative Loafing. He also was the assistant news director with WMNF 88.5 FM in Tampa from 2000-2009, and currently hosts MidPoint, a weekly talk show, on WMNF on Thursday afternoons. He began his reporting career at KPFA radio in Berkeley. He's a San Francisco native who has now lived in Tampa for 15 years and can be reached at [email protected]

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