Inside Azaleaville is a neighborhood newsletter, published about once a month.
Azalea Ranked #2 Neighborhood in St. Pete to Buy a Home
Niche gives Azalea high marks for housing, family-friendliness, and outdoor activities. The neighborhood earns an overall A- rating, with an A in housing and B+ in public schools. It also receives praise for safety, diversity, and access to parks.
With a dense suburban feel, Azalea offers residents the comfort of quiet streets and the convenience of proximity to beaches, shopping, and schools. Most residents own their homes, and community involvement remains a defining feature of neighborhood life.
Reviewers on Niche note Azalea's great sense of community and its ideal balance between peaceful residential streets and accessibility to the rest of the city. As one resident wrote, “It’s a quiet neighborhood with friendly people and a safe environment.”
If you’re already here, you know why Azalea is special. If you’re thinking about moving, Niche’s rankings confirm what locals have known all along: Azalea is one of the best places in St. Pete to call home.
The Niche.com rankings come from their "2024 Best Places to Live" report.
DDT trucks fogging for mosquito control was a familiar scene in Florida from the mid‑1940s through the early 1960s.
Local recollections from the 1950s and early 1960s describe children chasing these trucks and riding bicycles through the chemical fog.
In Azaleaville, the DDT trucks rolled through on most summer evenings from the early 1950s through the early 1960s, before being phased out as concerns over their environmental and health impacts grew.
🎁 Margie’s Toy Drive: Bring Joy This Holiday Season 🎁
Once again, St. Pete Fire & Rescue is teaming up with local schools to make sure no child is forgotten this holiday season. Through close coordination with school counselors, fire personnel help identify families facing real hardship, ensuring that toys go directly to the children who need them most right here in St. Pete.
Azalea has always been one of the most generous neighborhoods in the city, and we’re proud to continue that tradition. Please consider donating a new, unwrapped gift in the $5 - $10 range (or maybe a little more) - something simple that might mean the world to a child this winter.
The Azalea Neighborhood Association will also gladly accept cash donations, which will be used to purchase additional toys to add to the growing pile of holiday cheer.
Visit Margie's Toy Drive page to find out how to donate, where to drop off gifts, and what items are most needed.
Margie’s Toy Drive is named in loving memory of Margie Griesi, the beloved founder of the Azalea Neighborhood’s holiday toy collection. Margie began the drive with a simple goal: to bring joy to children who might otherwise go without during the holidays. Her kindness, energy, and deep commitment to community made the toy drive a cherished tradition. Today, we continue her legacy by collecting new, unwrapped gifts for local children, honoring Margie’s spirit with every smile we help create.
“Knock Knock… Who's There?”
1925 Traffic Report: Light carriage and motor traffic reported on Park Street north of the Jungle Prada shopping center
Babe Ruth Statue Dedicated - With Farragut Drive Neighbors Front and Center
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LOST HOLES of the Jungle Country Club
Review: June 7th Block Party & Azalea Outdoor Family Movie Night
A pickup soccer game on the street added some friendly chaos - briefly interrupted when the ball went into Jungle Country Club Creek. Ken sprang into action, fishing it out using Steve’s pool skimmer, and the game was back on.
As the sun dipped low, families laid out blankets and lawn chairs under the stars. Our feature presentation, The Incredibles, lit up the screen while the weather was perfect with a comfortable tropical breeze.
Big thanks to everyone who brought food, pitched in, and showed up.
Manatees Hold Love Fest in Golf Creek Park near Park St and Dartmouth Ave N
Slava Ukraini! (Слава Україні)
The tour began in Brooklyn, New York, and St. Petersburg was next on their schedule. The players — a diverse mix including students, soldiers, business owners — spoke about how baseball grants them a respite from the ongoing war in Ukraine.
Sergii Shtapura, a pitcher and National Guard soldier, wore the blue-and-yellow “UKRAINE” jersey. His personal story reflects how sports and war intertwine: once pursuing baseball in Germany, he returned home to fight.
The visit is part of a broader humanitarian and goodwill tour crossing multiple U.S. cities. Plans include attending games featuring the Clearwater Threshers and Tampa Bay Rays.
Coach Oleg Boyko emphasized the priceless value of this experience for the team.
Three beautiful Pinellas County beaches named the best in Florida
And now, a Public Service Announcement from the Azaleaville Wildlife Alliance
Meet Your New Favorite Neighbors, the Opossum Family
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Opossums eat a variety of insects, slugs, snails, cockroaches, and ticks, which can damage garden plants. They are also known to eat venomous snakes like copperheads and rattlesnakes and are immune to their venom.
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Opossums also prey on rodents like mice and rats, helping to keep their numbers in check.
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Spelled Opossum. Not to be confused with possums, an Australian order of mammals that aren’t closely related
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"Nature's Cleanup Crew": Opossums are omnivores and scavengers who eat dead animals and fallen fruit, helping to keep the environment clean and preventing the spread of disease.
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They are marsupials, not rodents and are the only marsupial in North America.
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Seed Dispersal: By eating fruits and berries, opossums can also contribute to seed dispersal, aiding the growth of native plants.
Capybara Cafe opening this month at 4703 Park St N will let you cuddle capybaras, wallabies, and lemurs (oh, my!)
An exotic animal petting zoo is opening in west St. Pete, including a high-energy Lemur Lounge (equal parts cuddle session and comedy show), a Mini Safari with a wallaby, coati mundi, and armadillo, and an “After Dark” daytime experience featuring nocturnal animals like ringtail cats, fennec foxes, and skunks.
CALENDAR
📅 Monthly Observances
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National Ice Cream Month – celebrates through the entire month
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National Hot Dog Month, National Picnic Month, National Blueberry Month, plus Baked Bean, Corn, Eggplant, Beans, Hemp, Horseradish, Independent Retailer, Bank Account Bonus months, and more
📆 Other Observances
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Dog Days of Summer – begins in early July
🗓 Daily Observances
| Date | Observance |
|---|---|
| July 1 | National Creative Ice Cream Flavors Day |
| July 2 | World UFO Day |
| July 3 | Compliment Your Mirror Day |
| July 4 | U.S. Independence Day |
| July 5 | National Apple Turnover Day |
| July 6 | National Fried Chicken Day |
| July 7 | World Chocolate Day |
| July 8 | National Chocolate with Almonds Day |
| July 9 | National Sugar Cookie Day |
| July 10 | National Piña Colada Day |
| July 11 | National Blueberry Muffin Day |
| July 12 | National Pecan Pie Day |
| July 13 | National French Fries Day |
| July 14 | Bastille Day (France) |
| July 15 | National Tapioca Pudding Day |
| July 16 | National Corn Fritters Day |
| July 17 | National Peach Ice Cream Day |
| July 18 | Nelson Mandela International Day |
| July 19 | National Daiquiri Day (plus Flight Attendant Day) |
| July 20 | National Lollipop Day |
| July 21 | National Junk Food Day |
| July 22 | National Penuche Fudge Day |
| July 23 | National Vanilla Ice Cream Day |
| July 24 | National Tequila Day |
| July 25 | National Hot Fudge Sundae Day |
| July 26 | National Coffee Milkshake Day |
| July 27 | National Crème Brûlée Day |
| July 28 | National Milk Chocolate Day |
| July 29 | National Lasagna Day |
| July 30 | National Cheesecake Day |
| July 31 | National Raspberry Cake Day |
