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Publisher Going To New Heights

JIM REED/The Tampa Tribune

Jay McGee is publishing a new magazine called New Heights that is geared toward the older neighborhoods around downtown Tampa. He works on the lay out on a computer in his Seminole Heights home

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By KATHY STEELE, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 16, 2008

SEMINOLE HEIGHTS - There weren't many friends or near acquaintances Jay McGee didn't buttonhole for an opinion on why no one had launched a magazine about Seminole Heights.

It has it all: history, Craftsman bungalows, artists, kitschy shops and the nostalgic charm of an old-style neighborhood where everyone feels, well, neighborly.

"Someone better do it," McGee kept saying, and so often that he finally knew he would be the one.

"For a year I've been doing the whole research. I've been testing the waters," said McGee, who has more than 10 years of experience in public relations and marketing.

Writing, editing and graphics were familiar territory. But pulling a magazine together was a risk, and the first advice he got was to think beyond Seminole Heights to a broader market.

He followed Tampa's urban corridors - Florida and Nebraska avenues - and pulled in Tampa Heights, Riverside Heights, Ybor City, downtown, West Tampa and the Channel District.

Next week, McGee, 35, will distribute about 20,000 copies of New Heights, a free bimonthly look at the lifestyles and rhythms of Tampa's urban neighborhoods.

In print and online at www .newheightsmag.com, the magazine will feature profiles and articles on health and beauty, food, real estate, arts, entertainment and neighborhood happenings.

The first edition features a profile of dentist Sebastian Castellano, a third-generation Riverside Heights resident. Future profiles will include filmmaker Gene Howes of Cigar City Pictures, who is shooting a documentary on Seminole Heights.

Among the contributors will be Michelle Baker of Cooks & Co., who will write a food column, and Elizabeth Graham of Forever Beautiful Salon and Day Spa, who will write about skin care and beauty.

Suzanne Prieur, who plans to write articles on historic preservation, was among those who urged McGee to include more neighborhoods.

"We are surrounded by all these other Heights neighborhoods that have their own incredible charms and offer different experiences," she said. "We all have common issues, and we are all underexposed and underrated."

Spreading positive news is a priority, especially for neighborhoods such as Seminole Heights, where outsiders have heard only the long-held stereotypes about crime and prostitution, McGee said.

"If we do good things and don't tell anybody, who's going to know?" he said.

McGee, who grew up in Pasco County, earned a public relations degree from the University of South Florida. He bought a starter home in Seminole Heights seven years ago.

"I started realizing what was here," he said.

McGee owns Grunt Marketing & Public Relations and is public relations director for Dutcher PR. Some of Dutcher's national clients include SecurityPointMedia and Triton Generators, and McGee's work has been seen on ABC's "Nightline" and in USA Today.

After temporarily leaving Seminole Heights, McGee married in April and he and his wife, Heather, bought a bungalow in Southeast Seminole Heights.

He has had a few sleepless nights getting ready for the magazine's launch date while also working for Dutcher and his marketing company.

"I'm not a sales guy," McGee said. "It's not easy for me. I've always been behind the scenes."

But he's encouraged by the response from advertisers, bumping an initial printing from about 5,000 copies to 20,000. Acropolis Greek Taverna, Gorilla Theatre and A-1 Superior are among the businesses on board.

"It's fun because I love my neighborhood and I love to write," McGee said.

Reporter Kathy Steele can be reached at (813) 835-2103 or ksteele@tampatrib.com.

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