Powerbroker Bill Edwards has improved St. Petersburg with his business
ventures, according to former broadcaster John Wilson.
In just 10 years, Bill Edwards has
become one of St. Petersburg’s
powerbrokers, plus one of its most
influential developers and
entrepreneurs, shaking the foundation
of the city that was once known as Tampa
Bay’s retirement haven. He refocused
his attention on the development and
improvement of St. Petersburg when he
was forced out of the mortgage business
by the Dodd-Frank Act. He rebuilt
Baywalk, an eyesore that was a failing
shopping center in the heart of the city,
renamed it Sundial and brought in highend
restaurants such as Ruth’s Chris Steak
House, quality shops, a popular market
and special events. Sundial attracts a
thousand people a day. He helped to
stimulate an unprecedented wave of
new construction and attracted other
developers, including the Kolter Group,
which is building a Hyatt Hotel with a
high-rise tower of condos on top that will
be the tallest building in town.
Edwards owns a first-class recording
studio, Big3 Records, which brings major
stars to town to record, and he saved the
bankrupt Treasure Island Tennis and Yacht
Club, now the Club at Treasure Island, and
bought two hotels on the beach. You might
say that Bill Edwards is driven.
Edwards took over the management of
the struggling Mahaffey Theater and
turned it into a successful venue for
performers, among them Tony Bennett,
Mark Anthony, Cedric the Entertainer and
others who have played there to sold-out
houses. He also took over the management
of Al Lang Stadium, gave it a major
overhaul, and bought the professional
soccer team, the Rowdies, whose game
attendance is averaging the third highest
in the league. He added a section near
the stadium seats for children to play in
order to help turn soccer games into family
events. He also has major plans for an
$80 million expansion of the stadium that
he would finance without public money.
In addition, Edwards has poured
millions of dollars into local charities
such as All Children’s Hospital and the
Veterans Air Lift Command that provides
free transportation for severely wounded
veterans to their homes and hospitals.
144 TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE | MAY/JUNE 2017
Bill grew up in Bedford, Massachusetts,
in a family of six with a stepfather, and
became the family provider when he
dropped out of high school to get a job on
a fishing boat. He joined the U.S. Marine
Corps and went straight to Vietnam, where
he was shot in combat and wounded by
a land mine. A Purple Heart and combat
medals hang discreetly in his office to
remind him that he survived a devastating
war. He is lucky to be alive and has
emerged not only as a survivor, but as
one of the most powerful developers in
Tampa Bay.
Bill Edwards can be assertive,
demanding and has his critics to be sure,
but he also has strong supporters. He is
married, and he and his wife have started
a family. He knows what he wants. That
is the man behind those prescription
sunglasses. 9
EDITOR’S NOTE: John Wilson ended 50-plus
years of radio and television news broadcasting
with his final goodbye on WTVT-Fox 13 on
November 26, 2014, the day before Thanksgiving.
COMMAERNTTARY
A Look at the Man
with the Sunglass es
By John Wilson
SCOTT WEBER, WMOR